What is an Impulse Response (IR)?
An impulse response is a digital snapshot of a guitar speaker cabinet that is recorded in a studio setting. It includes the entire sound of the signal chain used to capture it.
A high-quality guitar speaker IR professionally captured will use gear that is transparent and does not color the sound. For example, using clean power amplifiers instead of guitar amplifiers, high-quality pre-amps and digital converters.
This digital snapshot is an incredibly accurate representation that can be recalled in one impulse response which can give you amazing guitar cabinet sounds in the digital realm.
How can Impulse Responses be Used?
IR's can be directly loaded into your digital amp simulator replacing the factory speaker section. They can also be loaded into an impulse response dedicated plugin in your digital audio workstation (DAW) or into hardware units that support third-party IR's.
What are the Benefits of Using an Impulse Response?
For starters, it is the quickest and easiest way to transform your guitar tone without having to spend endless amounts of time building a rig, setting up pre-sets, or searching for that perfect amplifier. Speaker cabinets have the single most impact on the guitar tone and sound, more so than guitar pickups or amplifiers.
Impulse responses allow you to quickly audition a variety of different sounds that were professionally recorded in a pro setting using the very best studio equipment. This allows you to have a great sound right off the bat which can be recalled 100 times and will always give you the same results
Why do I Need Third-Party IR's When They Come Factory in My AMP Sim?
IR's that come factory-loaded in AMP simulators or hardware units do a great job representing their counterparts but are not always 100% accurate due to limitations. These factory IRs are truncated into a lower-quality files which significantly reduces their quality. This is great for beginners getting started however for those that are looking for high quality, accurate representations, more consistency, custom professionally created impulse responses are no match.
Why use Quantum’s Hybrid Impulse Responses?
Our Hybrid IR’s are high-quality, fully mixed and processed impulse responses that were professionally recorded and created using cutting-edge technology for phase-accurate blending of multiple microphones and speaker combinations.
Most third-party IR libraries focus on single speaker and single mic positions resulting in massive collections of endless options which are not user-friendly. This requires users to take on the role of a mixing engineer just to select and filter out something that will work.
Our approach with Quantum DSP Hybrid IRs results in the creation of pre-blended vibes already done for you that are designed to eliminate the guesswork and allow you to quickly implement full high-quality guitar tones and focus on playing and creating music.
If you are ready to take your guitar tone to the next level, then be sure to check out the Quantum DSP Hybrid Impulse Responses and Expand your creative horizons!
