4 files, 3 mics. Can you hear the speaker sim (answers up)

Winny_Pooh

Which one sounds best to you?

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1LeXjpPkxeIDf2gr0n4qEMVUr4AFrCZ8m?usp=sharing


The mics: Beyer m380 TG, Audix i5 & a Sennheiser E906 (the positioning made little difference to the basic tone)
The sim: Suhr Reactive load into a Neunaber iconoclast
The Amp: Matchless Spitfire clone into a 10" Weber Blue dog
Reverb is in front of the amp

*Update* Answers are in post no 8

WiresDreamDisasters

I cannot.

Dan_Halen

4 sounds the best to me - both clean and driven. 1 is a very close second. Can't really tell you why beyond it's the most pleasing to me and what my ears expect a decent recorded sound to come across like. Just sounds the most natural.

Wasn't particularly fond of 2 and 2 - sounded a bit boxy or choked. Sure others will prefer those though because we all hear it differently.

Be interesting to see which is which. With some tweaking you could probably get them all pretty close.

Edi: Oh yeah, the sim. Would guess 2 or 3 is the sim - maybe 2?

ThePrettyDamned

Can't tell which is sim, and they all sound fine enough, hard to tell without a mix to sit in but sounds good... 

Seziertisch

No. 2 seems to have some clipping on it.

I’d guess no 1 is the speaker sim. It seems to have some air around it which the others don’t. I’m guessing the sim is possibly a multi mic IR with at least one room/ambient mic (possibly more even) 

Stuckfast

I'd also guess 1 is the sim, it has that slightly-too-perfect quality about it.

Nikc

liked No1 the least I think I liked the sound of No 3 most but close thing against No 4. 

Winny_Pooh

1- Senn E906
2- Suhr Reactive load & Neunaber iconoclast
3- Beyerdynamic m380
4- Audix i5

All mics 1-2 inches off the cloth.
My thoughts

The E906 would have more bass if right on the grille as it's a supercardiod. Interesting mids.

Iconoclast had lots of highs rolled off here to better match the mics, could be more cutting easily if needed. Very flexible and keeps a bit more attack than the mics.

The Beyer sounds nice and big in isolation but in a mix who knows, its traditional use is kick drums or bass, here it could do the job an AKG D20 or ribbon would do if you blended tracks.
Not sensitive to positioning at all, I guess due to it's huge capsule.

The Audix is the most neutral in this (it's a bright speaker) and many other cases and for that reason works well for acoustic guitar etc where you want more highs vs a 57 or for a fuller snare sound.

WiresDreamDisasters

Oh yeah, I hear it now.

ICBM

I agree with Dan_Halen. 4 sounded the best to me - the only one that actually sounds like an amp in a room, both clean and dirty. 1 was next, and was as good on the clean but slightly fizzy and artificial-sounding on the overdrive. 3 was next, and sounded OK but a bit dull and 'distant'. 2 was the worst, and sounded congested and muddy.

Unfortunately I didn't have time to listen before the answers were posted, but if I had I would either have picked 2 as the load (because it sounds wrong, and definitely different from the others) or if I was playing Devil's Advocate I might have guessed it was 4 because it sounds the best and has the most 'air' in it . But realistically, I think you can hear that it's 2.

Seziertisch

Seziertisch said:

No. 2 seems to have some clipping on it.

I’d guess no 1 is the speaker sim. It seems to have some air around it which the others don’t. I’m guessing the sim is possibly a multi mic IR with at least one room/ambient mic (possibly more even) 

Seziertisch said:

No. 2 seems to have some clipping on it.

I’d guess no 1 is the speaker sim. It seems to have some air around it which the others don’t. I’m guessing the sim is possibly a multi mic IR with at least one room/ambient mic (possibly more even) 

Close but no cigar ... ;-)

Though there is definitely a clipping issue with 2, which possibly explains why people seem to like it least. Something is being hit too hot