Guitar Suite

I was using FreeAmpSE before, which sounds decent but completely incapacitates my computer if i have anything more than maybe an Equalizer running beside it, which makes it harder for me. Then, I found this, and I must say, I've never been happier :D

User Interface
The individual plugins use the Host's default layout. Since there are only a few parameters, I prefer it this way as my host (FL) allows access to the parameters easier this way. In FreeAmpSE, I'd always have to move the knob, then say "last changed knob", etc. ... the only gripe is the values that are read but that is really such a minor problem its not even worth mentioning, really.

Sound
WOW!! Need I say more? ;). The JCM9000 has a great overdrive. And with great, I mean absolutely stunningly great. The Twin is equally great, but more with clean character than overdrive (especially since it doesnt have one, but tthats what the Tube Screamer is for). So, two amps, for different purposes, and thats really all you need! The BOSS pedals sound good, but I haven't played with those as much as I have with the Tube Screamer. I have a real Ibanez TS-9, and I gotta say they're really close. The Univibe Chorus, if applied lightly, really livens it up ... but its also capable of full-on head-screwery FX - quite versatile.

Features:
2 different amps, 3 different distortions, a few good effects - What more could you need? I'd like to see an emulation of a CS-3 or something similar but I'm not complaining, the regular Fruity Compressor does the job as well.

Documentation:
Not much, but its not needed.

Presets:
None. I don't use them really but I like browsing through presets to see what something is capable of.

Customer Support:
None, but they say that

Value for Money:
I'd pay for this :D

Stability:
Not one problem yet, and uses very little CPU too.

Documentation and Customer Support bring the score down somewhat unfairly, Documentation really isnt required and Customer Support ... well, they say that theres no support, but for something this simple, is it really needed? :D. So, I added up what I got for the rest, got the average of that, and set Documentation and Customer Support equal to that. My math was (9+10+10+1+10+10)/6=50/6=8.3 ... so 8 for bothRead Review

LIsten, I Freakin HATE Guitar Amp sims,, I Have me my bad ass Peavey 5150 Combo and it is the best, BUt I am a guitar player for almost 20 years now, and I will always try something whether it be another amp sim or POD, whatver it may be I will try it, and until now I have alwasy been left unimpressed, Yeah you can always get a nice clean sound wiht a sim and it is a lot easier to make it sit in the mix properly but always, ALWAYS, Sim's lack something. BUt this thing is almost unbelievable for the fact it is free and with the Super Overdrive or Tube Screamer pedals inserted BEFORE the amp(Jcm 900), you can get some Very Heavy Distortion. I play Death metal and for me to say that an Amp Sim comes close to getting a great sound is hard for me!! haha BUt this DOES.

It is fairly well-known by now but I actually felt this reviews were low considering how good this sounds and how well it interacts with your playing, It has a feeling of a real amp and responds to your playing like a real amp would. Yes there is no GUI or presets and sh!t like that but it doesnt need any,it is a great amp and if you are unable to tweak some knobs or insert an effect pedal sim, then you shouldnt be allowed to create anything ever!!! Twist them knobs, turn channel B up to about 9.5 and you will be happy with that to start//. So I am going to give presets and GUI an 8 to not drag down the score. WIth some real time and money this will probably be one of the leaders in Amp SIm technology in the near future, if not already, Is easily on par and probably surpasses the big amp sims like Guitar Rig and Amplitube, not as flexible obvioulsy but pretty damn close given the stomp boxes that D/L with this.

I still will probably never record and release something with an amp SIm, but for Demos and kepping it simple, FOr me this is great and is easily good enough to record pro quality guitar tracks..

It does seem to not fully recall the settings, but so what remeber em like you would your own amp and you can easily re-create your sound in a few seconds.Read Review

This Guitar Suite is so well done,
in fact re-modeled in detail after the original gear, that it has to get a 10 for sound.

Quote SimulAnalog:
Many commercial amp simulators claim state of the art modelling techniques inside the product and say things like "every component in the audio path of the original instrument has been accurately modelled". But sentences like this are more like advertising and are not supported by technical papers describing what really happens in the product. Besides, many of the processors have to run all the simulation algorithms on a low cost DSP to keep as low as possible the cost of the hardware. That's why the models they use should be as simple as possible, but... not so close to the real gears they want to emulate.
But of course in the advertisement they have to claim incredible thecnological prodigies to stay competitive with the other products.

What about SimulAnalog Guitar Suite? It is a freeware and no profit set of plugin. Born as a test bench for SimulAnalog research, we saw that without any effort it could be distributed to musicians that may find it useful. That's why it is given as is, with no support and with a very rough user interface.
But we can assure that "every component in the audio path of the original instrument has been modelled, except for the secondary effects of some active devices" and that "the response of each original device have been compared with the respective simulated response, obtaining less than -40dB of difference" without any particular commercial interest saying that.



Interface 10 ?
There is none, just the sliders no fancy gui.
Who needs that anyway, sure a cool gui is nice, but it is really not needed here.
Documentation 10, its not needed.

Presets 5, they could have been included. But they are for download at the SimulAnalog web site.

All in all a very impressive work !
Sad, that people forget the REAL sound of those boxes and amps these days, otherwise they would not have given so bad points.Read Review

Being a guitarist first and foremost, I was interested to see what this suite of plug-ins has to offer.

So first things first - pull out a popular twin humbucker guitar and head straight for the Marshall. The sound is good, not unlike a lot of the modern solid-state amps you get today, but definately has that Marshall grunt behind it. The reverbs are like the spring units you find in 'real' amps, so it's weird hearing them in a software environment usually populated by TC and Waves. You forget that this is what amp reverbs actually sound like... oh and you really don't need any more controls, since this is what the original has.

Next, it's a strat into the Fender Twin. Great combination, and combine with a tape delay (eg karlette) for some vintage surf. The vibrato stands out as a runaway success on this emulation - a lot better than most plug-ins.

The Boss distortion boxes are all okay, but the TS9 is a lot better for those SRV moments. I'm also loving the Univibe (cue lots of renditions of Little Wing and Shine On...) and the PS-1. Would have preferred an MXR90 or Small Stone, but the sound is far better than a lot of phaser emulations.

No Documentation, but then do you really need it? The lack of GUI isn't a problem either - the sound is what counts. Overall, CPU useage is low and a good zero-latency setup allows for realtime listening, which is great. The sounds available are easy to mix with - no harsh digital-ness or other quirks, so for people wanting a decent guitar sound without the need for Amps, Mics and Mixers, should look no further. Best of all, it's free.Read Review