Amplitube 3 - screenshot (from NAMM)
-
- KVRer
- 9 posts since 26 Feb, 2010
touche....but I'm definately going to need some help with some of those pedals - all those sliders and all on the Rezo and Step Slicer. Anyone from IK on line can help us stoopid Mac users?
-
- KVRian
- 652 posts since 17 Mar, 2002 from Paris
Delighted with this update (only quick testing, so far)
Certainly seems to live up to all the pre-hype! 
I did get a life,once...but it was faulty, so I sent it back.
-
- KVRAF
- 3864 posts since 29 Feb, 2004
Just some very brief first impressions after two hours with the demo :
- generally speaking this AT3 upgrade is a giant leap forward for amp simulation in general, imho IK really made the right decisions this time.
- again in general the most striking thing about AT3 is that most things really react like hardware, combination of modules, mics, cabs, gain structure ...
That should be read as "those with hardware experience can directly translate their way of working to AT3 and get really predictable results"
- somehow related : AT3 can go very deep if you want to, shaping small details in a very hardware-like way
A dream come true, in this huge collection there really should be a solution for most every absurd sonic image in your head if you're willing to put in some time
- obviously you don't have to, lots of decent presets to start out with
Sorry, but I'll let others comment of those, too much in love with the manual method ...
- re general feel, dynamic reaction is fantastic, very amp like feel so far, though that obviously varies a bit between models.
- re model realism,
---- Fenders now can get spot on, 100%, if you experiment with cabs a bit
, though it has to be said the stock ATF presets still suffer from the old "overly bright" syndrome and don't really do the stellar amps justice. But a completely authentic tone is only two minutes away at most, so I really don't mind. 
---- verdict on the Marshalls is still out, they're a bit more finicky, though I'm pretty confident I'll get the classic tones just fine with a bit of tweaking
---- the Mk III has lots of potential, but those amps aren't known to be plug'n'play in the real world either. So far I can say the trademark interaction of the controls feels very believable, I also got an extremely motivating Walter Trout meets Robben Ford tone rather quickly
---- haven't loaded any others yet, the ones mentioned just motivate to play ...
- the cab/mic section is simply wonderful and really should be your first stop after loading an amp, even before tweaking any amp controls
- some little niggles here and there, but totally small stuff only so far.
Do yourself a favour and try this thing out, you probably will be amazed, I sure am.

Lots more of comments to come, but time is very tight this WE so it might take a few days, but I promise to do my best, it's just too much fun !
Cheers,
susiwong
- generally speaking this AT3 upgrade is a giant leap forward for amp simulation in general, imho IK really made the right decisions this time.
- again in general the most striking thing about AT3 is that most things really react like hardware, combination of modules, mics, cabs, gain structure ...
That should be read as "those with hardware experience can directly translate their way of working to AT3 and get really predictable results"
- somehow related : AT3 can go very deep if you want to, shaping small details in a very hardware-like way
A dream come true, in this huge collection there really should be a solution for most every absurd sonic image in your head if you're willing to put in some time
- obviously you don't have to, lots of decent presets to start out with
Sorry, but I'll let others comment of those, too much in love with the manual method ...
- re general feel, dynamic reaction is fantastic, very amp like feel so far, though that obviously varies a bit between models.
- re model realism,
---- Fenders now can get spot on, 100%, if you experiment with cabs a bit
---- verdict on the Marshalls is still out, they're a bit more finicky, though I'm pretty confident I'll get the classic tones just fine with a bit of tweaking
---- the Mk III has lots of potential, but those amps aren't known to be plug'n'play in the real world either. So far I can say the trademark interaction of the controls feels very believable, I also got an extremely motivating Walter Trout meets Robben Ford tone rather quickly
---- haven't loaded any others yet, the ones mentioned just motivate to play ...
- the cab/mic section is simply wonderful and really should be your first stop after loading an amp, even before tweaking any amp controls
- some little niggles here and there, but totally small stuff only so far.
Do yourself a favour and try this thing out, you probably will be amazed, I sure am.
Lots more of comments to come, but time is very tight this WE so it might take a few days, but I promise to do my best, it's just too much fun !
Cheers,
susiwong
-
- KVRian
- 1392 posts since 28 May, 2008 from Saint Paul, MN
Warning: Honeymoon phase is in FULL effect here

One of the first things I did was bring up XGear and compare old presets to new. "And Dreaming" is an example where something that already sounded very nice sounds even better now. Wow! In a word: clarity! What's so huge (for me) about this upgrade is the openness and real sense of dynamics that you hear and feel. It no longer feels so distant. It often gives that impression of the amp in the room with you. Yeah, we've said that before right
Well, AT3 is one step closer to the goal and WELL within range of hitting it now. I can't wait to hear the comparisons to the real amps! IKM should pull out these babies and do some video comparisons. They have to be nearly 90% of the way there...
Biggest surprise: The Ampeg amps and cabs sound BETTER! I was concerned that the new architecture in AT3 would change the sounds in Ampeg which, to my ears, were already perfect. I was so surprised that they actually IMPROVED these.
Biggest improvement: Hands down, the Vox models. Amplitube is the benchmark now. Good God! That tremolo "Coppertop" sound is about as good as it gets for me. AFAIAC, Softube is no longer the best sounding Vox and the rest can't touch the tone in AT3. For some reason, that old chimey Vox sound has proved the most elusive for amp modeling. IKM knocked it out
Most useful addition: 3-dimensional mic placement. Whatever Overloud has in TH1 seems like a prototype for what would become this feature's design. Nobody else (besides Softube) has attempted this. TH1 and Softube sound good but...these sound GREAT! IKM did it right on all levels; looks, sounds, and feels like it should and has ALL of the options you could dream of. I've always hated the cabinets in AT and the clumsy way in which they work
Now....instead of feeling like I have to find the right cab that doesn't sound like sh*t with the amp model I'm using, I feel like the cab is there to shape an already pleasant tone into something better. Well done!
Disappointments: The new bass amps didn't impress me as much as I had hoped. They sound good but they don't keep up with the quality I hear in the Ampegs. Well, just my initial impression.
When I double click a knob (pan, volume, mix, etc.), I expect it to return to center. Nothin' doin' here. Also, when I double click a numeric value, I expect to be able to enter in the change (+3dB, -2dB, etc.) using the keyboard. The user interface is still a bit clumsy here. No mouse scrolling in preset browser either
Though the addition of right-click features is MUCH appreciated, I think keyboard shortcuts and mouse interaction is still incomplete. Is this not an easy fix? I was surprised it wasn't taken care of as these features are such a standard for VSTs and DAWs.
Overall, this upgrade is probably the best I've seen in some time
It looks, feels and sounds more like hardware and it inspires for hours. But...of course, it is still new 
I hope they keep working on it and THANK YOU IKM for listening to your customers...
Rich
PS I haven't checked this yet... I hope they fixed it so that when I save a preset with the tuner ON, it keeps it. How frustrating to open a preset and have to keep going back to re-engage the tuner.
One of the first things I did was bring up XGear and compare old presets to new. "And Dreaming" is an example where something that already sounded very nice sounds even better now. Wow! In a word: clarity! What's so huge (for me) about this upgrade is the openness and real sense of dynamics that you hear and feel. It no longer feels so distant. It often gives that impression of the amp in the room with you. Yeah, we've said that before right
Biggest surprise: The Ampeg amps and cabs sound BETTER! I was concerned that the new architecture in AT3 would change the sounds in Ampeg which, to my ears, were already perfect. I was so surprised that they actually IMPROVED these.
Biggest improvement: Hands down, the Vox models. Amplitube is the benchmark now. Good God! That tremolo "Coppertop" sound is about as good as it gets for me. AFAIAC, Softube is no longer the best sounding Vox and the rest can't touch the tone in AT3. For some reason, that old chimey Vox sound has proved the most elusive for amp modeling. IKM knocked it out
Most useful addition: 3-dimensional mic placement. Whatever Overloud has in TH1 seems like a prototype for what would become this feature's design. Nobody else (besides Softube) has attempted this. TH1 and Softube sound good but...these sound GREAT! IKM did it right on all levels; looks, sounds, and feels like it should and has ALL of the options you could dream of. I've always hated the cabinets in AT and the clumsy way in which they work
Disappointments: The new bass amps didn't impress me as much as I had hoped. They sound good but they don't keep up with the quality I hear in the Ampegs. Well, just my initial impression.
When I double click a knob (pan, volume, mix, etc.), I expect it to return to center. Nothin' doin' here. Also, when I double click a numeric value, I expect to be able to enter in the change (+3dB, -2dB, etc.) using the keyboard. The user interface is still a bit clumsy here. No mouse scrolling in preset browser either
Overall, this upgrade is probably the best I've seen in some time
I hope they keep working on it and THANK YOU IKM for listening to your customers...
Rich
PS I haven't checked this yet... I hope they fixed it so that when I save a preset with the tuner ON, it keeps it. How frustrating to open a preset and have to keep going back to re-engage the tuner.
-
- KVRAF
- 3644 posts since 27 Nov, 2003 from beach side australia
just trying to tweak my old machine and settings to wring a bit better performance on my old laptop here(getting a few clicks now and then in standalone mode) so a quick question. Is running my audio driver at 16 bit (instead of 24) going to have noticable effect for live jamming
i had a quick try and i wasn't sure, i thought it didn't sound quite so 'round' but i could be imagining it?.. its a bit hard to compare as i keep getting crashes when i change the driver/asio settings. I changed visual settings in 'my computer' to 'best for performance'and changed audio to 16 bit and it seems to run a bit better now. (at3 is in econo mode already) I tried taking the buffer from 4ms to 5ms but it made that horrible distorted tone that you get when the buffer is set too short which is wierd as i was actually increasing the setting??
i had a quick try and i wasn't sure, i thought it didn't sound quite so 'round' but i could be imagining it?.. its a bit hard to compare as i keep getting crashes when i change the driver/asio settings. I changed visual settings in 'my computer' to 'best for performance'and changed audio to 16 bit and it seems to run a bit better now. (at3 is in econo mode already) I tried taking the buffer from 4ms to 5ms but it made that horrible distorted tone that you get when the buffer is set too short which is wierd as i was actually increasing the setting??
-
- KVRist
- 39 posts since 18 Sep, 2006
Am I missing something? The description on the IK site says 31 amps for Amplitube 3, and mine has 30 (counted them twice). I am missing the Vintage Metal Lead amp (marshall jmp100). I still have it in amplitube metal, but it is not in Amplitube 3. Not that I can see anyway.
-
- KVRian
- 909 posts since 19 Aug, 2009
It's there (last one in the Lead group). However, there are no presets for this amp.carltonec wrote:Am I missing something? The description on the IK site says 31 amps for Amplitube 3, and mine has 30 (counted them twice). I am missing the Vintage Metal Lead amp (marshall jmp100). I still have it in amplitube metal, but it is not in Amplitube 3. Not that I can see anyway.
-
- KVRist
- 39 posts since 18 Sep, 2006
I see it now. I was confused because I didn't see it in the preset list under amps.
- Rad Grandad
- 38041 posts since 6 Sep, 2003 from Downeast Maine
I still am waiting for news on my box version I paid for
Just notification would be nice, it kinda sux that everybody else has it and I still have no idea when I might get it 
The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another's world. It requires profound, purpose‐larger‐than‐the‐self kind of understanding.
-
- KVRist
- 196 posts since 25 Oct, 2006
Well, it will always take longer since the final software was only ready yesterday and CD's must be manufactured and all the rest printed. why not just get the download edition? The CD is garbage once the first update comes out anyway.Hink wrote:I still am waiting for news on my box version I paid forJust notification would be nice, it kinda sux that everybody else has it and I still have no idea when I might get it
-
redshift factor redshift factor https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=54214
- KVRian
- 1118 posts since 8 Jan, 2005
Really? Initial impression noted, but still, that Trace Elliot should jump out immediately as at least as good as any of the Ampegs (and I LOVE the Ampegs!). But the the Trace Elliot has amazing presence and the ability to get a very pleasant growl that sits well in the mix at the same time.blueman wrote:The new bass amps didn't impress me as much as I had hoped. They sound good but they don't keep up with the quality I hear in the Ampegs. Well, just my initial impression.
The TE is one of the highlights for me, along with the JC-120, copper face AC30, great new tone to all our old familiar amps, 3D free mic placement, those Electro-Harmonix stomps, the new Neumann mic, the Slicer pedal, Swell.... ok, there's just too many highlights to name!
- Rad Grandad
- 38041 posts since 6 Sep, 2003 from Downeast Maine
oh I see, I can download the demo and have a full working copy for two days...it would of been nice had they sent me an email as well about this 
The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another's world. It requires profound, purpose‐larger‐than‐the‐self kind of understanding.
- Rad Grandad
- 38041 posts since 6 Sep, 2003 from Downeast Maine
typojensa wrote:Actually, the demo is fully working for 10 days.Hink wrote:oh I see, I can download the demo and have a full working copy for two days...
The highest form of knowledge is empathy, for it requires us to suspend our egos and live in another's world. It requires profound, purpose‐larger‐than‐the‐self kind of understanding.
