iRig Stomp I/O Users Topic - Experiences and Questions

[smcvey]

Hi All,

Thought I would start a separate Topic for users of the new (April 2018) Stomp I/O floorboard. I am sure I will need your help as I am new to IK and software modeling in general. My story:

Been playing guitar off and on for about six years and was in some cover bands (Classic and Modern Rock). In my search for sounds to mimic AC/DC, Eagles, Santana, Foo Fighters, etc. I started with a clean Fender amp and an array of Boss pedals and got tired of the tap dance and trying to keep all the knobs in the right places. So I tried Line 6 POD and other modelers in front of an amp. At least I could create presets that would sound exactly the same whenever I wanted them. Then I turned to amps with built-in MIDI presets and effects. Hughes and Kettner Switchblade, Marshall JMD. I keep hearing how great the Line 6 Helix is, but I grow tired of dedicated hardware that is obsolete in a few years. So it makes sense to go all software-driven. And the Stomp I/O should give me both presets I can call up in a hurry, plus the ability to turn on/off individual effects. So I'm looking to make this my live performance rig and simply put it through a clean, full-range PA speaker for monitoring plus send everything to the board.

Have I made the right choice here? No need/desire to record anything in the short term. Maybe after I retire and have more time...

Thanks for your feedback and all the future newbie questions/answers that are bound to arise.

[Timo2019]

Thanks smcvey... Yeah, at this point I think I've made the right decision.This is my first IK experience and at first it seemed rough, but I'm trying to be positive and open minded. All my interactions with tech support have been good. The interface so far has been flawless, although I would have liked the lightning plug end to have been at a right angle for other ipad vertical mounting options. As far as might rig goes, I run both real and virtual components. I really like that I can use both the IK Stomp and NA Kontrol rig at the same time either live or through a DAW...

[Spanishfly69]

Whats Up Guys! I don't have my unit yet. but i have the rig 2 and blueboard and use my mackie mixers pre's and my focusrite saffire pro when I'm using AmpliTube 4 on my iMac. I was just wondering for those that have the irig stomp i/o, have you tried a comparison between AmpliTube iOS vs AmpliTube 4? and can you hear a big difference, and would consider using iOS in a live gig?

[Timo2019]

There is a slight difference in same amp (example: Fender '65 super reverb) models, but I'm still dialing the whole package in. Probably going to sit down tonight and get jiggy with it... I'll keep this thread updated with anything worth mentioning.

[Spanishfly69]

Yeah i thought there may be a slight difference, when i get the board, i plan on spending some time with my AmpliTube iOS Apps on my iPad mini 2 to sounds as close as good as my gear in AmpliTube 4 on my iMac. Hopefully i can make it work or i might have to get a MacBook for live jams! or just use it in my recording studio. we will see hopefully soon! have fun.

[Timo2019]

The ipad interface was flawless at NAMM, as shown here...

https://youtu.be/KB2pxga9rbA

[smcvey]

OK, here is my early experience:

- Received the unit yesterday afternoon
Everything was in the box (Some have experienced missing power supply)
Got a call and an email from Paul in support asking if everything arrived OK.
Impressed with the weight and build of the unit
- Registered the unit on the IK site from my desktop
- A bit confused about how to upgrade Amplitube CS on iPad (5th Gen) to full version
- Re-registered the unit inside Amplitube iPad and that seemed to unlock everything
Directions say to go the App Store, but that is misleading. App Store wanted to charge me
- Played with presets
Finally discovered the "press and hold" trick to assign effects/functions to Stomp buttons and pedal
Getting the onboard pedal to work with a Wah was the trickiest. Still not sure if I can turn the Wah on/off with the pedal or if I need to assign one of the four switches. That's how I do it now.
Saved some of my own presets for the basic tones (Clean, Crunch, Metal, Lead)
- Installed the PC version of Amplitube. Got it working, but probably won't use it much.
There is no Windows driver for the Stomp I/O that I can detect, but the software finds it just fine. Have to assign the devices in Settings
- Hooked the unit up to headphones first, then sent stereo to my PA system. Can I do both? Hmmmm
- The tuner is nice because it uses two of the stomp button lights to tell you when in tune. Very visible for on-stage use. It does not mute the sound, however.

Overall impressions/next steps:
- This will likely work for my needs, which is a live rig for practice and performance.
- Next experiment is to see if I can use an external MIDI switcher pedal for patches, then keep the Stomp I/O in stomp mode to control individual effects. That is how I used my amps with built-in MIDI and effects previously.
- No issues with latency, feel, etc. Patch switches are nearly immediate. Will certainly work for clean to crunch or lead and back again that some songs need.
- Now that I have the basics down, I will work on creating the most used 5 - 10 presets (AC/DC Crunch, Santana Lead, etc.)
- Is there an acoustic simulator in there? Might save me from carrying an acoustic guitar for those few places where I need it
- Will try Amplitube Acoustic after that.
- I like having a separate volume pedal for swells and muting during guitar changes and tuning. Might need an external expression pedal.

Not bad for a newbie, huh?

[Timo2019]

good job, as far as the wah on/off goes, there is supposed to be a "virtual" switch activated with the pedal. I have not played with that yet. Well good on ya. Enjoy!

[Spanishfly69]

Greg Koch is a great guitar player, and I love the demonstration he does with it. Those that are new to AmpliTube 4. I must say I think you will enjoy the software. I have been using it for a couple of years now and I love it. I love the variety and versatility it has. I also have guitar rig pro 5 which is also great! But I lean towards AmpliTube a lot more. I can’t wait to also get the deluxe gear! I’m also looking to make this my performance rig without all the physical gear. I hope IK can resolve the issues they are having and hope to get my unit soon! I’m glad that you guys are liking it so far!

[Peter_IK]

Yes, Greg is amazing. He recently visited the IK Italian HQ and we set up many of our amps that are modeled in AmpliTube (which he points out some) as a backdrop to his iRig Stomp I/O demonstration there:

https://youtu.be/x1besRk6r0M



P.S. - to embed YouTube videos you can use the following syntax:

Code: Select all

[youtube]the ID of the video (not the full URL)[/youtube]


[smcvey]

Well, I don't understand the Virtual Switch. Sounds like I can use it to turn Wah on/off, but I have no idea how to assign it. When I hold down the On/Off switch on the Wah pedal and move the pedal, it cycles thru Off, On, Auto, and Tilt switches on the Wah.

Right now I am using switch 4 to turn on/off the Wah. Can someone tell me how to work the Virtual Switch?

[Timo2019]

I'm in the middle of two custom builds and about to get into the paint booth. After that I'll have some time to fiddle with it. It would be nice to get some insight from you Peter, help us cut to the chase...

[Ryan_IK]

Hey smcvey,

To answer your question on the iRig Stomp I/O unit's Virtual Switch. This can be triggered by pressing down on the top of your iRig Stomp I/O unit's built-in expression pedal. Make sure to push down with some force to get this to switch on/off. Check the LED next to the expression pedal to see the state of this switch.

If you need any extra help getting started. Please do not hesitate to contact our support team. They are more than happy to help you here.

http://www.ikmultimedia.com/contact-support/

Also, if you have yet to do so. The user manual for your product can be found here, or in your the User Area -> My Products section (https://www.ikmultimedia.com/userarea/) of your IK Multimedia account.

[smcvey]

OK, so it works like a real Wah switch. I had tried that with the Stomp I/O on the desktop, but wasn't able to put enough pressure on it until I put it on the floor and stood on it fairly hard. I didn't see any mention of this in the manual.

Another question - When I use a Wah pedal in the chain, it is assigned to position five, but i don't think I can use all four of the other slots, correct? How many pre-amplifier effects can I use?

Thanks, Ryan.

[Ryan_IK]

OK, so it works like a real Wah switch. I had tried that with the Stomp I/O on the desktop, but wasn't able to put enough pressure on it until I put it on the floor and stood on it fairly hard. I didn't see any mention of this in the manual.

Another question - When I use a Wah pedal in the chain, it is assigned to position five, but i don't think I can use all four of the other slots, correct? How many pre-amplifier effects can I use?

Thanks, Ryan.

Glad to hear that helped. Now, when loading stomp FX pedals in AmpliTube 4 which include expression pedal controls (For example the AmpliTube -> Filter -> Wah). The built-in iRig Stomp I/O expression will automatically learn regardless of the slot used. This should be the same for the Virtual Switch, so feel free to load as many effects as you would like and customize this use to your liking.