About the Presets
Amp & Graphic EQ Blocks
-Ideal Page = all parameters were tracked for all amp models.
-"Advanced" parameters tracked =
---Preamp: Boost Type, Boost Level, Saturation Switch, & Saturation Drive.
----Power Amp: Negative Feedback
----Pwr Tubes + CF: Bias Excursion
---Power Supply: Supply Sag
----Speaker: Low Freq, LF Reso, Speaker Imp. Curve, Cab Resonance, & Speaker Compress.
----Output EQ = Entire page
----Dynamics: Out Compression
-Amp Block: 6 switches are assigned to Control Switches, which can be controlled on the FC6/FC12 via the included "Amp CTRL" Layout.
-CS1: Input Boost
-CS2: Cut
-CS3: Fat
-CS4: Bright Switch
-CS5: Saturation Switch
-CS6: Output EQ
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-Graphic EQ Block: Emulates the Output EQ of the Amp Block. Each channel is made up of "suggested values" from that range of results (aka the median, avg, min, max, etc.). The channels are arranged to mimic 4 common methods of how users might set the Amp Block Output's EQ:
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A) Ideal = Take all results for a parameter, if overall average are positive or negative, eliminate all values in the opposite range (i.e. if avg = 0.5, eliminate all negative values below 0.0). Final average = "Ideal" value.
-B) Mid Cut = Smiley face/Mesa "V" curve
-C) Treble Boost = Cut lows + boost highs
-D) Mid Boost = Mid Boost
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-The Amp Blocks Output EQ on/off is controlled via CS6. It's values reflect the overall average for the parameters (aka not the "select" or "Ideal" values).
-Each amp model features two scenes: 1x with no Graphic EQ, 1x with Graphic EQ.
-Mesa Boogie amps that rely upon the onboard 5 band EQ are the exception. They toggle on/off between the Amp Blocks Output EQ and the Graphic EQ.
-On the Graphic EQ Block, the 31 Hz & 16k Hz sliders were left at 0.0 since the Amp Blocks Output EQ is only an 8 Band EQ and lacks those sliders.
Cab Block
-Cab Block: Consists of 2 Factory Cabs, 1x SM57 + 1x R121. It will generally default to the most usable Factory Cabs per that amp model/scene, but all 4 channels should be usable for all of the amp models featured in that preset.
-All Cabs are set to Standard rather than Ultra-Res. If Ultra-Res is preferred, there should be just enough CPU available on the FM3 to do so.
-Rather than selecting the most popular Factory Cabs per amp model, I took some artistic license and picked the cabs that I felt sounded best with the specific models in each preset. I also chose the Impedance Curve on the Amp Block's Speaker Page which I felt paired best with each of the Cabs I chose. This is the section where I was the most creative/subjective during this entire project.
-Cab 2 Level was determined from finding a combination of the overall 57+121 or blend, recreated mixes from Paid/Pro IR sources, and my own personal preferences. Cab 2 Levels are fixed per 57+121mix across all 6 gain ranges.
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Effects Blocks
-Each preset contains Input/Gate, Compressor, Drive, Amp, Cab, Graphic EQ, Delay, & Reverb Blocks. Each block contains 4 channels, each reflecting the averaged values for that models SOS.
-Input/Gate Block: A) Intelligent (all values), B) Intelligent (fast release) C) Intelligent (slow release), & D) Classic.
-Looper Block: Added so that the user can loop phrases and compare while dialing in their tones with values from the SOS spreadsheets.
-Compressor Block: 4 popular Compressor models = A) Studio FF Compressor 1, B) Optical Compressor, C) Pedal Compressor 1, & D) Dynamicomp.
-Drive Block 1: Boosts + OD = A) FET Boost, B) Micro Boost, C) Tone of Kings, & D) Timothy 1.
-Drive Block 2: Tubescreamers = A) T808 OD, B) T808 Mod, C) Super OD, & D) Full OD.
-Delay 1 Block: Analog + Tape = A) Deluxe Mind Guy, B) Stereo BBD, C) Mono Tape, & D) Stereo Tape.
-Delay 2 Block: Digital = A) Digital Mono, B) Digital Stereo, C) Vintage Digital, & D) 2290 w/Modulation.
-Reverb Block: A) Medium Room, B) London Plate, C) Large Hall, and D) Large Spring or Recording Studio C models.
---Reverb Blocks with the Large Spring on Channel D are for amps that do have or "could" pair with spring reverb in the real world (i.e., Tweed amps might not have onboard spring, but often people run outboard reverb tanks with Tweed amps).
---Reverb Mix = 15% = overall average Mix % for all 5 reverb types used. All Reverb types and channels in all SOS presets = 15% Mix.
---Reverb Quality is set to Economy. On the FM3, if Standard Res Cabs are used, Reverb Quality can be bumped up to Normal with minor CPU to spare.
Preset Leveling
-All amp channels were leveled to an average of -18.0 LUFS.
-Clean amp models were leveled to -18 DBFS, then again with the Timothy 1 Drive on, leveled to an average below -12.0 DBFS. This was to ensure that the clean amps had enough headroom when the Drive Block was engaged.
-I chose to level to an average LUFS/dB rather than a peak max LUFS/dB, as I feel this gives a more accurate representation of the sound levels across time, rather than in isolated moments.
-An Audio sample of 4 bars of normal to hard strumming of bar chords was used, recorded from a Charvel San Dimas Pro Mod with Suhr SSV humbuckers, in the middle position, to Ableton Live 9. This "4 Bar Stum" DI audio sample was then re-amped into the FM3, with the FM3's output reentering Ableton Live on a new track & measured with the Youlean Loudness Meter 2 plugin.
About the layouts
Also included for download are the optional FC Layouts. These are arranged for the FM3+FC6, so Axe-FX 3 & FC12 compatibility might take some tweaking. The OMG9 Layout has been modified to include access to the Amp Ctrl layout. The Amp Ctrl layout features the 6 Control Switches from the Amp Block:
-CS1: Input Boost
-CS2: Cut
-CS3: Fat
-CS4: Bright Switch
-CS5: Saturation Switch
-CS6: Output EQ
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The Presets, Scenes, Effects, and Looper Layouts have all had additional minor modifications. Layout #3 "Effects 1" has been modified to include only the effect Blocks featured in the SOS presets and a control to toggle between the various Cab Block Channels.
