Anyone rec thick clear unforgiving clean profiles

    Don't get too hopeful, this was a quick demo setup. - I set the Effect (Trem/pan) on to demonstrate the cool duck effect, of how to incorporate a great effect into dynamic playing, even with a compressor. - so if your not into that, disable it first, else it might throw you : )

    Obv, everything here is tweekable to suit you, and work for you. - after all that's the most important. Here are a few pointers on that:-

    • Compressors need to be personal. - the compressor does NOT know you. you have to know IT!. - play and your normal strength, until you start to loose velocity. IF the picking becomes to transient heavy then you know you have set it to much squish. - remember the idea of compression is not to over squash, but to make the sound balanced (unless of course your using it for a effect like sound) - don't set the intensity too high and the squish to high. as this will level the sound too much and become dull on attack (loosing transients) and sudden volume loss. - The attack parameter is how FAST it hits the compressor, so fast attack time will pick up on the same note you hit, as a longer attack will decay in slower.
    • Tweek the Verb, I added very little here, its all a taste thing, so just pick your fav preset or from another rig and use lock. - removed the lows of this because I did not want it to interfere with the guitar sound. OR the delay
    • Same as the Delay. - I added slapback, but very very subtle. more for the body of the tone. - it just fattens the guitar sound slightly, but set in a way so that it wont interfere, as we don't want that!
    • EQ, The PRE EQ here is set to "pre" because I want subtle sparkle, rather than intensity EQ. - Running EQ PRE and POST is different, Pre its more subtle and Post is more obvious. - although setting things Pre will require higher values, but DONT be scare to twist knobs like crazy here.
    • SPACE, Added because IMO (and in my experience) the way Ive always captured really good cleans is by using a mix of close mic, Rear mics but mostly room mics all blended at mix, but the Kemper does not allow us to do this, so space is the next best thing. - not entirely the same, but it gives an impression.
    • EFFECTS, Use ducking, as you can get some real good experimental stuff with that, Love ducking on Trem, Phaser, Vibe & Rotary.. So I have 2 styles in one. - Full on attack mode where im playing large chords, its all good, - then picking section where its effected.. - or a solo piece that has different elements to it. its great fun. play around here.

    Remember.. make things personal. one mans rig is another mans trash. - so please don't judge me on this quick demo. - You would really be surprised at HOW different things can get between one player and the next, but in the end, the end result is the same.

    However... all the above said and done. - if the rig your playing on is bad to begin with.... then it will be bad at the end. - your looking for balence in the clean sound too. - Too much bass will kill it. too much trebble can make it sound thin. too muc mids can make it sound honky.. so you use whatever works for you here. - remember.. MOST things are tweekable.. but not ALL things!

    Good luck getting the tone you seek!.

    Quote from and44

    Don't get too hopeful, this was a quick demo setup. - I set the Effect (Trem/pan) on to demonstrate the cool duck effect, of how to incorporate a great effect into dynamic playing, even with a compressor. - so if your not into that, disable it first, else it might throw you : )

    Obv, everything here is tweekable to suit you, and work for you. - after all that's the most important. Here are a few pointers on that:-

    • Compressors need to be personal. - the compressor does NOT know you. you have to know IT!. - play and your normal strength, until you start to loose velocity. IF the picking becomes to transient heavy then you know you have set it to much squish. - remember the idea of compression is not to over squash, but to make the sound balanced (unless of course your using it for a effect like sound) - don't set the intensity too high and the squish to high. as this will level the sound too much and become dull on attack (loosing transients) and sudden volume loss. - The attack parameter is how FAST it hits the compressor, so fast attack time will pick up on the same note you hit, as a longer attack will decay in slower.
    • Tweek the Verb, I added very little here, its all a taste thing, so just pick your fav preset or from another rig and use lock. - removed the lows of this because I did not want it to interfere with the guitar sound. OR the delay
    • Same as the Delay. - I added slapback, but very very subtle. more for the body of the tone. - it just fattens the guitar sound slightly, but set in a way so that it wont interfere, as we don't want that!
    • EQ, The PRE EQ here is set to "pre" because I want subtle sparkle, rather than intensity EQ. - Running EQ PRE and POST is different, Pre its more subtle and Post is more obvious. - although setting things Pre will require higher values, but DONT be scare to twist knobs like crazy here.
    • SPACE, Added because IMO (and in my experience) the way Ive always captured really good cleans is by using a mix of close mic, Rear mics but mostly room mics all blended at mix, but the Kemper does not allow us to do this, so space is the next best thing. - not entirely the same, but it gives an impression.
    • EFFECTS, Use ducking, as you can get some real good experimental stuff with that, Love ducking on Trem, Phaser, Vibe & Rotary.. So I have 2 styles in one. - Full on attack mode where im playing large chords, its all good, - then picking section where its effected.. - or a solo piece that has different elements to it. its great fun. play around here.

    Remember.. make things personal. one mans rig is another mans trash. - so please don't judge me on this quick demo. - You would really be surprised at HOW different things can get between one player and the next, but in the end, the end result is the same.

    However... all the above said and done. - if the rig your playing on is bad to begin with.... then it will be bad at the end. - your looking for balence in the clean sound too. - Too much bass will kill it. too much trebble can make it sound thin. too muc mids can make it sound honky.. so you use whatever works for you here. - remember.. MOST things are tweekable.. but not ALL things!

    Good luck getting the tone you seek!.

    Thanks for all the pointers, Andy!

    I'm wondering - do you use internal reverb effects when tracking with the Kemper (if you ever use it for that)? It sounds like in your opinion the space effect comes closest to "simulating" a room mic, is that your general experience?

    I would love to hear your opinion on this :)

    Hey Mike.

    Well Im oldschool, so perhaps I might be on my own when I say this... but..

    To get great clean/breakup recordings, they are never done with direct close mics, because depth has to play a big part in that. - in my studio to get that tone when using real amps, I'd use fat condesor mics paired with ribbon room mics and of coure rear mics too. - you'd have most basis covered at this point. can get a Hugh tone that way, but the Kemper cant do this (neither can any digital unit) - its one of the major things lacking for me in any modern" recording with digital gear..

    So adding Space is simulating it to some degree, but its still not the same... whilst the idea is, the sound is not.

    In terms of Verb, no I never ever track with reverb or any effects actually. its always RAW as Possible.. I'll add the thing I want later at mix-down. (Unless the track needs a pacific thing that I cant do Post.)

    I know there is a lot of young players on this forum that will read this and be like.. Whaa? Room? rear? WTF is this crazy man on about!.

    But dont you think its funny.. the world today are trying to re-create the tone of yesterday. - but most of the famous recordings were done with a single close mic, and few room mics. - how we go forwards., is ultimately driving us backwards!...

    People have illusions that because they see a amp with a single mic that that's all it takes.. it doesn't. recording amps in studios is real art, and a hell of lot more than just put a mic on the cone!.i'll stop here... : )

    As said.. Im oldschool! (but still young!!!)

    Single Mics are great for live performance bands..i.e if you want to capture the spirit of the band. then condenser mics/ribbon mics are kinda useless here. - so its dynamic all the way..

    Afterwards at re-track stage then you can go a bit more crazy as things are isolated, and you know what depth to add.

    And sometimes.. you just cant get that same spirit back even after spending hours on a perfect setup, so a single mic will be totally sufficient. it happens, has happened, and always will : )

    There is no right or wrong answer, no cookie cut recipes. no magic mojo.. everything I do, is on the cuff, ultimately as a engineer/producer you have to call the shots at what sounds best, and knowing what will work at any given moment..