EQ Magazine - June 2008 - (Page 56)

as a plug-in (all) in Ableton Live 7 and Pro Tools M-powered. For the G5 I interfaced with an M-Audio 1814 (FireWire), and entered the laptop through a Native Instruments USB Audio Konnect. DIGIDESIGN ELEVEN Eleven works with Digidesign’s Pro Tools (TDM, LE, and M-Powered versions), Venue, and Avid systems. It comes with no pedals, rack effects, file players, or tuners; what you get are guitar amps, cabinets, and miking options. In that respect it provides a wide array, including a ’59 Tweed Lux, ’59 Tweed Bass, ’64 Black Panel Lux, ’66 Hi AC Boost, ’67 Black Duo, ’69 Plexiglass100W, ’82 Lead 800, ’85 M-2 Lead (Mesa/Boogie Mark IIc), ’92 Treadplate Modern and Vintage models (Dual Rectifier Head), ’89 SL-100 Drive (Soldano), and DC Modern models (Digidesign Custom). Each model loads with its appropriate cabinet, but any cabinet can be matched with any head. One of Eleven’s selling points is that the heads react in a realistically different fashion with different cabinets—e.g., evidencing less headroom when matched with a higher impedance speaker set. Unlike the real thing, the head will not burn up if matched with a lower impedance cab. The eight mic models available can be set on- or off-axis. Eleven offers a Speaker Breakup adjustment control that simulates the distortion created by a speaker when playing an amp at high volume. You adjust input to Eleven on your interface; the knob labeled Input actually causes a clean line boost or cut of –18dB to +18dB, so you can customize how hard your guitar drives the amp. The Output knob helps match preset levels. Although factory presets can often leave you scratching your head and wondering, “Who thought this sounded good?,” Eleven’s list of over a hundred had nary a dud in the bunch. You can create and save your own presets as well. ENCORE! You want more? Of course you do, and EQ has done lots of articles and reviews on amp simulators. Go to www.eqmag.com/gear and search for the following: 05/08 McDSP Chrome Tone review (as part of Emerald Pack Native bundle) 04/08 Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 review 03/08 Waves GTR3 review 08/07 Guitar Amp Sim Power User Tips. Tips for NI Guitar Rig, IK Multimedia Amplitube, Line 6 GearBox, and Waves GTR 04/07 Line 6 GearBox Gold Plug-Ins review 01/07 Power App Alley: Using Waves GTR as a vocal processing strip. 12/06 IK Multimedia Amplitube2 review 09/06 Power App Alley: Creating multi-band distortion with Guitar Rig. 08/06 AmpliTube2 Meets Drums. Techniques-oriented piece on using AmpliTube2 with drums. 07/05 Myths Revealed: Guitar Amp Plug-Ins. Separating fact from fiction about guitar amp plug-ins, with some fascinating insights from their developers. 07/05 Creative Combos. Tips for using Native Instruments’ Guitar Combo plug-ins. 12/03 The Complete Guide to Re-Amping. Includes tips on “virtual re-amping” with plug-ins. 07/02 Four Guitar Amp Plug-Ins (Steinberg Warp, UA Nigel, IK AmpliTube, Alien Connections ReValver) You can switch off both the amp and cabinet sections, which is helpful when using Eleven with other amp modeling software, using multiple cabinets with one head, or running an Eleven head signal out into a live room, where you can set up and mic a physical cabinet. Running your guitar through multiple amp models at once can be problematic with some software, as modelers often eat up considerable CPU power. Whether because Eleven is designed to work specifically with Digidesign products, or because it doesn’t include effects, Eleven is extremely CPU-friendly—I was able to run five tracks worth on my 2.5GHz Mac G5. Eleven also has the lowest latency I have experienced to date. Digidesign went to extreme lengths to achieve accuracy in their modeling, “It had to be the original speaker cones, original transformers, everything matching the date of what we claim was modeled in the product,” says Senior Project Developer Bobby Lombardi. Of course, anyone who knows vintage amps will tell you that no two old amps sound exactly alike, so the real question is do the Eleven models sound good—and the answer is yes. You will definitely hear a recognizable version of the legendary Vox, Marshall, or Fender sound in their respective clones. Eleven also responds realistically, cleaning up when the guitar volume or picking dynamics are dialed down. The software also responds well to hardware pedals (or other software plug-ins) run into its front end, which is Digi’s rationale for not offering effects. Unfortunately the one effect available—amp tremolo—is alltoo-realistically not syncable to the DAW. If you run Pro Tools or Avid and are looking for software that does a great job of modeling amps, and only amps, with low CPU drain, Eleven is for you. PRODUCT TYPE: Amplifier simulation software plug-in. TARGET MARKET: Pro Tools users who want realistic amp sounds and don’t need to have “stomp box” type effects built into their amp sim plug-in. STRENGTHS: Realistic sound and feel. Works well with pedals. Low latency. Low CPU usage. LIMITATIONS: No effects other than tremolo, which doesn’t do tempo sync. Pricey. CONTINUED ON PAGE 59 56 EQ JUNE 2008 www.eqmag.com http://www.eqmag.com/gear http://www.eqmag.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of EQ Magazine - June 2008

EQ Magazine - June 2008 Contents Talk Box Sounding Board 3 Doors Down, Hard-Fi, Paul Manousos Tool Box Panic at the Disco Guitar Trax Bass Management Key Issues Drum Heads Vocal Cords Mix Bus Cheat Sheet Cakewalk Projects Apple Loops Utility SSL Duende Mini JBL LSR4326/PAK & LSR4312SP Holophone H3-D Creation Audio Labs MW1 Studio Tool Amp Modeler Roundup Eventide Timefactor, Electro-Harmonix Stereo Pedals, Korg Pandora PX5D Room with a Vu: Blues Tunes Studios, Silverlake, CA

EQ Magazine - June 2008

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