Do we have an Amplitube wish list?

[guitarkite]

A more scale-able interface would be nice. And possibly more readable controls in some cases. Am I the only one who can just never see the marks on the virtual knobs of the Tube Compressor? Maybe that's authentic but then give me the equivalent of some glow-in-the-dark paint to dab on the controls so that I can see what the heck is going on.

You too?!?! And I thought it was just my bad eyesight... That drives me crazy! And I hate having to have to click on the control just to see what it's set at!

[carlaz]

And I hate having to have to click on the control just to see what it's set at!

Actually, even when one does click on the control, I often find it hard to be sure which control I've clicked on! Maybe there should be some visual cue about that ....

[guitarkite]

Please. Please! Please!!! PLEASE!!!! Change the way the tuner page works! Of all the functions that need to be accessed easily and on-the-fly, it's the tuner! AT3 however, requires me to go to the tuner page... Turn on the tuner... Mute the signal... What the hell?!?!? Three buttons just to do what EVERY OTHER TUNER ON THE PLANET does with one button?!?!?! I don't say this that often, but that's just dumb!

On stage, I actually have resorted to using foot pedal tuner because your setup is so user unfriendly!

One button (preferably one that can be activated via MIDI CC control) that sends you to the tuner page, turns on the tuner, and mutes your signal (if you want). Then the same button sends you back. Simple... Effective... Not dumb...

[bruce09t1]

1) Better integration of the new looper - export loops into the DAW, pull in measures from the DAW tracks.

2) Fender Deluxe 63 model (the old one with no negative feedback). And a champ, too.

3) A better metronome (more choices of sounds, like snare side click).

[jds1978]

1. The ability to adjust adjust sag and bias settings on amps

2. A Fender Quadreverb amp model.

[guitarkite]

1. The ability to adjust adjust sag and bias settings on amps.

It's interesting that IKM and Positive Grid seem to be going in opposite directions in this regard... IKM's old models used to have some limited tube swapping options, but have stepped away from that in recent years in favor of modelling a number of famous "officially licensed" amps "as-is"... Meanwhile, Positive Grid's BIAS FX is adding more detailed "under the hood" editing capabilities to allow users to custom create more personal amps...

Both these options have their benefits... IKM's direction is great way to pull other amp manufacturers into their flock... Positive Grid's direction may not be as enticing to amp manufacturers as IKM, but it does allow for fun tweaking possibilities... (provided you know what the hell you're doing) Unfortunately, these two paths are probably mutually exclusive... Companies that allow for "officially licensed" versions of their amps, are probably not going to allow users to start messing with their internal settings...

[carlaz]

You're probably right, though it would be (I should think( no big deal to make one "officially licensed but non-modifiable model" and another "not officially licensed, but modifiable" model that were essentially the same in their base forms. Sell one to one kind of customer, and another to another kind of customer.

[guitarkite]

That would be great!

I still think that amp manufacturers would be much more hesitant to jump onboard if they knew that even "unofficial" versions of their amps could be "improved" by the average consumer... It takes away from their "Ultimate Tone Guru" status...

I wonder if IKM's move away from user modification was a deliberate attempt to woo other manufacturers into the fold. I mean... I don't blame them... It's a sound business strategy... "Officially Licensed" Fender, Marshall, Orange, Soldano, etc... are major selling points with Amplitube. Besides, why try coming up with your own good sounding amps, when all the iconic amp manufacturers have already done it for you?

Now I also own Positive Grid's BIAS AMP for both PC and iPad, and I have to admit it's hella fun being able to virtually reach into the guts of those amplifiers and start messing around... (Particularly since there's no risk of getting shocked.)

Ultimately however, the end result is the only thing that really matters... Do I get the tonally pleasing amp sounds that I want? And I have to admit, I end up using Amplitube more often... (Maybe I just suck at amp modification.)

[Peter_IK]

Now I also own Positive Grid's BIAS AMP for both PC and iPad, and I have to admit it's hella fun being able to virtually reach into the guts of those amplifiers and start messing around... (Particularly since there's no risk of getting shocked.)

Ultimately however, the end result is the only thing that really matters... Do I get the tonally pleasing amp sounds that I want? And I have to admit, I end up using Amplitube more often... (Maybe I just suck at amp modification.)

It probably has more to do with our 19 years of modeling experience (by people with hands-on experience with vintage analog gear and using the actual gear vs others likely using schematics and sound clips) and starting on desktop first and innovating on mobile instead of the other way around

[carlaz]

I wonder if IKM's move away from user modification was a deliberate attempt to woo other manufacturers into the fold. I mean... I don't blame them... It's a sound business strategy... "Officially Licensed" Fender, Marshall, Orange, Soldano, etc... are major selling points with Amplitube. Besides, why try coming up with your own good sounding amps, when all the iconic amp manufacturers have already done it for you?

I'm sure there is a certain/amount of win-win for both sides, there. IKM are pretty good at modeling and manufacturers endorsing IKM models of their gear tends to send a message that "even the manufacturers of the originals think these are good". Plus, the manufacturer's basically get extra advertising (not to mention at least some cash) out of sales of models of their gear. What's more, players whose guitar heroes use Whatever Brand amp, but who are stuck in their tiny bedrooms instead of coliseum stages, can at least virtually crank up that gear. So it's all good.

Now I also own Positive Grid's BIAS AMP for both PC and iPad, and I have to admit it's hella fun being able to virtually reach into the guts of those amplifiers and start messing around... (Particularly since there's no risk of getting shocked.)

Yeah, I think this is definitely a fun thing -- though not so much fun that I am going to cough up USD 80 just to try BIAS Amp on the desktop (and, yeah, the iPad version is only USD5, but I'm unlikely to really use it for anything). In contrast, Amplitube Custom Shop is free and includes some eminently usable models -- certainly enough to get a feel for the product. (And if you can't get a semi-decent rock tone out of the 50w JCM800 model, then no amp sim product is gonna help you! ) Then you can add extra toys via CS as slow or as fast as the budget allows. That is totally the killer feature for me. Oh, well, and the fact that it sounds pretty good, and lets be get pretty close to some of the tones in my head, regardless of the fact that I have never played through the vast majority of the physical amps!

I would love some of the customization functionality to return Amplitube -- because its a cool, fun thing and could be done well by IKM -- but I don't think it's a huge deal, either. A good (and growing) array of high-quality models that are relatively easy (on the budget!) to acquire and easy on the user to use are (IMO) the key things here. After a few years as a user, I've got a whole host of presets that I've set up, and whenever I flick on on that I haven't used in a while, I think "Oh! That sounds pretty good ..." So I'm a pretty happy customer in terms of what I've got, if a bit grumbly about what I'd like.

[Peter_IK]

They actually get people buying the hardware versions based on their virtual versions in AmpliTube. We're also known for our modeling prowess, too, of course. Cliff Cooper (Orange Amplifiers founder and CEO) so eloquently covers both of these points by stating:

"There are a lot of software companies unofficially modelling the sound of our amps, but it made sense, if you want to accurately model the Orange sound, to work with a company who had the technical expertise to be able to do it properly. We work closely with the IK engineers and programmers to ensure the quality and accuracy of the sound. There is a lot of software out there that purports to give the Orange sound but it isn't actually approved by us. With IK we can sit down together and nail the real Orange sound.

We find that a lot of people who use the Orange amps in AmpliTube then decide they like that sound and buy the real thing. And also it's good working with IK – we feel as if we are all part of one team, which we think is very important"

[carlaz]

Yeah, that would totally (almost) be me. I was aware of Orange historically, but their new stuff hadn't really come on to my radar until everyone started raving about the Tiny Terror in 2006-2007 -- which was exactly the point at which various lifestyle changes made me kind of drop out of playing regularly in live situations where a physical amp would be most handy.

Then Orange snapped more forcefully onto my radar with the appearance of the official Orange models in Amplitube (in ... what? 2012ish?), which quickly earned my love. I still don't have a physical amp -- and there are no official Orange distributors in my country -- but if I were going to be getting a physical amp (and had the cash), one of theirs would be a strong contender. It's a technological race to see whether a traditional physical amp or easier use of Amplitube on mobile devices will be easier for me if I ever start playing out live again!

[Peter_IK]

I had an early (Korean-era) Tiny Terror before we started modeling any Orange amps and I definitely get what the hype was all about at that time. When the 1970s-era OR-120 was being passed around from office to office, it was a great time to be in the amp-modeling business for sure

[carlaz]

When the 1970s-era OR-120 was being passed around from office to office, it was a great time to be in the amp-modeling business for sure

Much jealousy! But I think it's awesome that Orange blessed an official model of a classic '70s-era amp from under their banner (given that they don't do their own physical re-creation, though I think a few clone-makers do). It is a different beast than the modern amps, no doubt about it, but they do all play nicely together.

[metropolis4]

I had an early (Korean-era) Tiny Terror before we started modeling any Orange amps and I definitely get what the hype was all about at that time. When the 1970s-era OR-120 was being passed around from office to office, it was a great time to be in the amp-modeling business for sure

I have a question about that amp. I've been curious if the original responds to pedals the same way the amplitube model does. It sounds so good, but it's so hard to find the right pairing to make it work in some contexts. I've had a little luck with the FuzzOne in front of it.