plug ins for acoustic guitar

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henrod
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plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

Hi, all. I just bought a gorgeous new Taylor T5 and it just doesn't sound like an acoustic guitar through my system. I was hoping to use it to replace my old Takamine and my Strat. It sounds awesome as an electric. My plug in settings are all just fine.

I've been running the Tak and the Strat into my UltraliteMk3 (FW) and using DP's plugins exclusive for f/x. The Tak sounds great with just a little reverb, nothing else. I perform a solo act and DP runs my show live.

Can anyone recommend either new plugins, or settings for the stock DP8 plugins to help brighten up and acoustify my T5? I downloaded demos for Waves stuff, but they require a stereo channel and 96K - neither of which are the settings for my 300+song file in DP.

Thanks.

Scott
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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Phil O
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by Phil O »

I'm not familiar with the T5, but if it has a good acoustic sound, mic it. IMO it's the only way to capture an acoustic guitar. I have yet to hear a pickup on an acoustic I've liked. If it doesn't have a good acoustic sound, no plugin is going to help. If you must use the pickup, get fussy with EQ. MOTU's MW EQ is quite versatile once you get to know it.

One of the best sounding guitars I've recorded was a Taylor dreadnought with phosphor bronze strings. When this guy first brought it into the studio he had plain steel strings and it sounded quite good, but the second time he came in he had the phosphor bronze on it and it really came alive. (but would that screw with your electric sound? :? )

Phil
DP 11.23, 2020 M1 Mac Mini [9,1] (16 Gig RAM), Mac Pro 3GHz 8 core [6,1] (16 Gig RAM), OS 14.3.1/11.6.2, Lynx Aurora (n) 8tb, MOTU 8pre-es, MOTU M6, MOTU 828, Apogee Rosetta 800, UAD-2 Satellite, a truckload of outboard gear and plug-ins, and a partridge in a pear tree.
henrod
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

Hi Phil, and thanks. I'm not recording. This is for live gigs. The T5 is a thin line, hollow body hybrid. Internal neck pickup, bridge humbucker and an internal body mic. All the demos I've heard sound great but I'm having trouble with it. It's probably going to boil down to EQ
Thanks.

Scott
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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Phil O
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by Phil O »

If that's the case I'd still point you to the MW EQ. It's got lots of setting options and sounds great. Melda has some good stuff too.

Phil
DP 11.23, 2020 M1 Mac Mini [9,1] (16 Gig RAM), Mac Pro 3GHz 8 core [6,1] (16 Gig RAM), OS 14.3.1/11.6.2, Lynx Aurora (n) 8tb, MOTU 8pre-es, MOTU M6, MOTU 828, Apogee Rosetta 800, UAD-2 Satellite, a truckload of outboard gear and plug-ins, and a partridge in a pear tree.
henrod
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

Phil O wrote:If that's the case I'd still point you to the MW EQ. It's got lots of setting options and sounds great. Melda has some good stuff too.

Phil
I loaded up the MW EQ and cut around 500 and boosted the table, and it's closer. I'm pretty sure it's not the right guitar for me. I'm going to check out a Godin MultiAc Spectrum tomorrow:

http://www.godinguitars.com/godinmultspectrump.htm

Great amplified acoustic sound from what I've heard online, and I'll mess around with the electric side to see if it cuts it for what I need.
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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Gravity Jim
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by Gravity Jim »

Slate Virtual Mix Rack. Lots of options, sounds better on guitar than anything I've ever used.
Jim Bordner

MacPro 5,1 (3.33Ghz 12-core), 32g RAM, OS X 10.14.6 • MOTU DP 10.11 • Logic Pro X 10.2.5 • Waves Platinum, UAD-2, Slate Digital, Komplete, Omnisphere 2, LASS, CineSamples, Chipsounds, V Collection 5[color]
labman
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by labman »

Gravity Jim wrote:Slate Virtual Mix Rack. Lots of options, sounds better on guitar than anything I've ever used.
Yup. I concur. Outside of hardware, I haven't heard or used any better, or anything more fluid in the workflow.
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henrod
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

Gravity Jim wrote:Slate Virtual Mix Rack. Lots of options, sounds better on guitar than anything I've ever used.
Oh, I wish I had some more experience in recording and mixing. I'm a player who never records... all this EQ stuff is baffling to me. I checked out the demos and the results are stunning... I fear that I'd be fiddling with the knobs forever and not know where/when to stop.

I will keep trying to learn, and thanks for the suggestion.
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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Phil O
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by Phil O »

henrod wrote:I'm going to check out a Godin MultiAc Spectrum tomorrow:
You can hear the Godin Multiac as an acoustic on these tracks:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4FPpOxRYLI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLEDPlhhyKQ

and as a synth here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKF6b1mwDUA


These tracks were recorded back in the day on one of the early ADAT tape machines in my basement (before my current studio was built).

Phil
DP 11.23, 2020 M1 Mac Mini [9,1] (16 Gig RAM), Mac Pro 3GHz 8 core [6,1] (16 Gig RAM), OS 14.3.1/11.6.2, Lynx Aurora (n) 8tb, MOTU 8pre-es, MOTU M6, MOTU 828, Apogee Rosetta 800, UAD-2 Satellite, a truckload of outboard gear and plug-ins, and a partridge in a pear tree.
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bayswater
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by bayswater »

Gravity Jim wrote:Slate Virtual Mix Rack. Lots of options, sounds better on guitar than anything I've ever used.
Specifically on what? Are you talking about the original topic here? An acoustic with a pickup?

I have a Godin 5th Ave which comes with a P90. I would have bought it without the pickup if that had been available. I usually use mics. But if I can get a decent acoustic sound through the pickup using VMR, that's appealing. As it is, this guitar, through the pickup sound like the opening chords to Lola -- great if that's what you want, but that's not why I got it.
2018 Mini i7 32G 10.14.6, DP 11.3, Mixbus 9, Logic 10.5, Scarlett 18i8
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billf
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by billf »

henrod wrote:Hi, all. I just bought a gorgeous new Taylor T5 and it just doesn't sound like an acoustic guitar through my system. I was hoping to use it to replace my old Takamine and my Strat. It sounds awesome as an electric. My plug in settings are all just fine.

I've been running the Tak and the Strat into my UltraliteMk3 (FW) and using DP's plugins exclusive for f/x. The Tak sounds great with just a little reverb, nothing else. I perform a solo act and DP runs my show live.

Can anyone recommend either new plugins, or settings for the stock DP8 plugins to help brighten up and acoustify my T5? I downloaded demos for Waves stuff, but they require a stereo channel and 96K - neither of which are the settings for my 300+song file in DP.
Waves should work in mono and at settings of 44.1 k or 48 k.

Let's see... there is also IK Multimedia Fender models for Amplitube that emulate the Fender cleans if you are looking for that strat type of vibe.

MainStage from Apple also has some acoustic guitar settings, and clean amp sounds. But I'm not sure how well it plays with DP.
MacPro5,1 2012, six core 2 x 3.06, 10.12.5, Digital Performer 9.13, 40 gb ram, 828mkIII, 2408 mkII, MTP AV, Logic Pro X 10.3.1, Studio One v 3.2, Pro Tools 12.7.1
henrod
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

billf wrote:
henrod wrote:Hi, all. I just bought a gorgeous new Taylor T5 and it just doesn't sound like an acoustic guitar through my system. I was hoping to use it to replace my old Takamine and my Strat. It sounds awesome as an electric. My plug in settings are all just fine.

I've been running the Tak and the Strat into my UltraliteMk3 (FW) and using DP's plugins exclusive for f/x. The Tak sounds great with just a little reverb, nothing else. I perform a solo act and DP runs my show live.

Can anyone recommend either new plugins, or settings for the stock DP8 plugins to help brighten up and acoustify my T5? I downloaded demos for Waves stuff, but they require a stereo channel and 96K - neither of which are the settings for my 300+song file in DP.
Waves should work in mono and at settings of 44.1 k or 48 k.

Let's see... there is also IK Multimedia Fender models for Amplitube that emulate the Fender cleans if you are looking for that strat type of vibe.

MainStage from Apple also has some acoustic guitar settings, and clean amp sounds. But I'm not sure how well it plays with DP.
So, in the meantime I went out and bought a used Godin MultiAc Spectrum to check out as a replacement for the T5. It sounds great through the PA, with a little EQ and compression. The electric side isn't going to cut it for me.

I think I'm going to return both and find a good Taylor acoustic, and continue to bring my Strat on the gigs. There isn't a perfect hybrid out there for me just yet.
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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Gravity Jim
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by Gravity Jim »

Lord, PLEASE, don't burn your money bringing another damn tinny-sounding Taylor into the world.

Find a really good used acoustic on CL. A Guild or a Gibson or something. You can find 1980s Guild D-series guitars all the time for 1/3 the price of even a middle-range Taylor, and the Guild will blow the Taylor's doors off.

Friends don't let friends buy Taylors.
Jim Bordner

MacPro 5,1 (3.33Ghz 12-core), 32g RAM, OS X 10.14.6 • MOTU DP 10.11 • Logic Pro X 10.2.5 • Waves Platinum, UAD-2, Slate Digital, Komplete, Omnisphere 2, LASS, CineSamples, Chipsounds, V Collection 5[color]
henrod
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Re: plug ins for acoustic guitar

Post by henrod »

Gravity Jim wrote:Lord, PLEASE, don't burn your money bringing another damn tinny-sounding Taylor into the world.

Find a really good used acoustic on CL. A Guild or a Gibson or something. You can find 1980s Guild D-series guitars all the time for 1/3 the price of even a middle-range Taylor, and the Guild will blow the Taylor's doors off.

Friends don't let friends buy Taylors.
But how do you REALLY feel, Jim? Haha... thanks for the input. I like what I've heard with Taylors - I'm used to my very bright Takamine, which has served me well since 1993. I will poke around and see what else is out there.

Thanks.
2014 MacBook Pro 15" Retina (10.15.7, 16GB, 500GB SSD), DP 10.13, Ultralite Mk3 (FW), MidiExpress 128, Roland XV5050, Kurzweil MicroPiano, Kurzweil SP6-7, TC Helicon Quintet, Fender American Stratocaster (2000), Martin DCPA4.
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