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Agile AmpKit+ Updated to 2.1 (Adds new Amp as IAP)
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ampkit+/id385758778?mt=8
What's New in Version 2.1
NEW Meteor Amp: Patterned after ENGL’s Fireball E625. It cranks a super tight response with a planet-sized punch that sends metal and rock solos into the upper stratosphere. Boasting a remarkable low end distortion along side superior cleans, its 3 band EQ, Bright Switch, Depth and Presence controls earn it a “Heavy” classification in the AmpKit arsenal. Caveat emptor - this amp is not for the faint of heart.
This kind of irritated me - I got the notice for an update to Agile AmpKit+ and the description indicated there was a new amp. Turns out they just added it to the store for $3.99 U.S. as an IAP. The amp is the "Meteor" and modled after an ENGL Fireball E625. Haven't heard that amp in real life - the preview clips sounded decent with a notably bright clean channel and a lead channel that sounds like the Brown Sound with additional saturation and raunchiness.
I don't necessarily oppose to them only adding new content as IAP's, but given that the purchase price of the app is $20 and many of the packs are $10 - $20 and rarely go on sale anymore, I thought maybe a free amp now and then in addition to the option to buy other new stuff would have been a nice gesture for them to stay in competition with Positive Grid. Or at least make it clear that the amp is an IAP in the description, and that nothing else was updated.
AmpKit+ is still a very solid guitar app, but it probably sits 3rd on my depth chart behind JamUp/BIAS and Flying Haggis right now. I keep waiting for some of their bass amps and some items I didn't purchase (like the Plexi) to go on sale, but they haven't since the holidays.
Comments
(and the silence you hear...is everybody now using BIAS, JamUp, and Flying Haggis).
lol... yeah, that's exactly what I use. My Ampkit has been in the cloud for some time...
Actually I really like Ampkit. I've no idea if it sounds more "real" than JamUp, I just happen to prefer the way it sounds on the whole. The silence is due, I suspect, to this being an entirely underwhelming update.
@bennorland said:
Fair enough. I just posted because the major guitar apps are the only reason I got into iOS music in the first place. And it had been some time since they added new content, so it's good that it isn't abandoned. But yeah, to call it an "update" wouldn't be fully accurate.
One thing I will say about AmpKit, their amps have channels, so if you find one you really like, it could be a one-size-fits all solution the way you'd use a real-life amp. It just happens that many of the amps are very finnicky, and the clean sounds aren't that convincing to me.
That's kind of what happened to me too, StormJH1, I played a lot with Ampkit as it was my first amp sim, and it was really my intro into iOS music production (and music production and general) too.
I later got into GuitarTone and then BIAS because Ampkit always sounded a bit too muddy or artificial for me, at least for the styles I like. I tend to gravitate towards a crunchy/bluesy Sabbath tone, and BIAS nails that so well that I can't see myself using anything else now, even a real amp.
Kind of frustrating to keep re-buying all the amps and effects each time a better app comes out, but BIAS is so much fun to tweak and sounds so good that I don't really mind as long as the tech keeps getting better. The way I look at it, it's still way cheaper than hunting down the real gear or getting a Kemper. We truly live in exciting times!
The tube amp I've spent the most time with is a Vox AC30 2x12, and nothing can rival the pure electricity and power that comes from just sitting in a room with the volume turned up, drowning out the world! So, from that standpoint, I don't think BIAS comes close, and I don't know if any sims ever will.
I do think BIAS wins over real amps in a number of areas, though. It destroys my old $300 Fender Mustang combo amp for any type of tone, even the Bassman or '57 models, in my opinion. That is really impressive to me, that they can beat Fender at Fender tones. And the convenience can't be beat - as fun as it is to just fill a room with cranked-up tube sound, I don't really play live so BIAS is so much easier than micing up a real amp.
I love playing guitar, but I love writing songs even more, and, at least for me, once the guitar is in the mix with drums, bass, vocals, etc the convenience and just-close-enough tone of BIAS beats out any sonic advantages a big tube amp would have. One day when I'm a better player or songwriter I might change my mind, but right now BIAS is everything I need.
It's a bit odd they introduced a new amp but didn't put up any samples of it anywhere. Nice thing about Ampkit+ is it came with the ValveKing stock with no in app purchase, probably the only amp I would ever need for both clean and distortion. I own a VK 100 amp so I may be a little biased. To me though the metal tone from the VK is better than anything else I've heard from BIAS or JamUp. For just clean tones, I think BIAS has the edge.
I think I largely agree with @october, especially on his point about once you get guitars into a mix. And his point is well-taken about practical uses of real-life amplifiers - yeah, the AC30 is probably my favorite sounding guitar amp, but it's a 2x12" beast that doesn't sound anything like it does at full volume once you turn it to bedroom levels. (I actually have a Vox Pathfinder 15 - a now discontinued 8" speaker, solid-state amp that does a better job of that chimey sound at volumes I actually use.
My opinion on BIAS is that it takes tens of thousands of dollars (not to mention 100's of pounds) of amplifiers, and can get perhaps 90-95% of the tone and character of those amps - offered in portable iOS app for less than $20. That is pretty freaking cool.
Can even a halfway experienced guitarist tell the difference between that additional 5 - 10% in quality between BIAS and the real thing? Sure. Does monitoring guitar through headphones and digital modeling software give you that same aural experience of feeling a 10" combo or 4x12" cabinet vibrating your chest and becoming one with the acoustics of the room? No. But it sure is a great option to have, and spending dozens of dollars on apps sure beats 50, 100, or 200 dollars chasing that "perfect tone" with a new stompbox.
I think you can rally appreciate a tube amp only in the right situation: a. If you play alone in a private practice room or in a professional studio. b. if you are a pro and you are playing on a big stage. If you're Playing with a band and in a small place, and even if you amp is miked up (with volume at 2) I think that there are no differences between a real amp, bias, kemper or other solutions. In every live gig that I'd played, I never pushed my amps over volume 2. Like I said in other post I sold all of my expensive gear because I need money for something more important, sincerely I can never be happier because now I feel free and I can obtain awesome sounds with a bunch of inexpensive apps.
I think you can rally appreciate a tube amp only in the right situation: a. If you play alone in a private practice room or in a professional studio. b. if you are a pro and you are playing on a big stage. If you're Playing with a band and in a small place, and even if you amp is miked up (with volume at 2) I think that there are no differences between a real amp, bias, kemper or other solutions. In every live gig that I'd played, I never pushed my amps over volume 2. Like I said in other post I sold all of my expensive gear because I need money for something more important, sincerely I can never be happier because now I feel free and I can obtain awesome sounds with a bunch of inexpensive apps.
@StormJH1 said:
Really? I know we want the best for iOS apps but sometimes we need to get real. If BIAS was the dogs bollocks as you seem to be suggesting then all professional guitar players would be buying iPads and using BIAS. I have all the guitar amp emulations on iPad and they come to nowhere near real amps. Trust me. You get what you pay for. After using a Mesa Boogie in the studio and then come home to iPad/BIAS, I can tell you that there is a world of difference. The best analogy I can use here is cars. You can buy any car and it will take you from A to B but a Rolls will have a smoother ride than a banger although they both perform the same function.
I use a Roland VG 99 and I wouldn't want to compare it to iPad guitar amps. Apples and oranges. I still appreciate what is happening on iOS though and I accept the limitations as well.
Let me be clear that I am not in ANY way degrading the quality of premium guitar gear, or that professional musicians prefer it. My "90-95%" comment was illustrative - to a better-trained ear than mine, perhaps the BIAS software only gets 55% of the way, or maybe even 25%.
The car analogy is a pretty good one, except there are more things about the performance of a car that can be objectively measured. Two different people could sit in the nicer car, and would probably agree that the ride is smoother, that the engine noise is quieter, and that they can feel the increased power and performance.
Music, however, is subjective. If you try to quantify what "good" tone is, it doesn't work. You can't say that the $3,000 amp necessarily is "louder" than the $500 one, nor does it have more bass or treble, nor may it distort less quickly with volume. There is good equipment and bad equipment, and sometimes the "bad" qualities (distortion of any kind is the mortal enemy of audiophiles in stereo equipment, but OD/Dist are staples of guitar playing) become good ones.
I'll tell you this: BIAS is capable of a wider variety of good sounds than I could possibly get out of the few amps I own and using different guitars and pedals. Does the "Fender tube amp" equivalent on BIAS sound better than my real life Fender amp? Heck no. But that same BIAS program can do a better MESA, Marshall, or Hiwatt tone than I could ever get my Fender amp to do by twisting knobs.
So, I don't think we really disagree, but obviously the more experienced a person is with "real" gear, the more they'll perceive the difference. I'll never have to do an A:B comparison between BIAS and the real versions of the amps it portrays. I like the sounds I get from BIAS, so it isn't important to me if it isn't an exact representation of the amp pictured in the on-screen livery.
A good deal less than 90% of that real amp's awesome killer sound survives as far as the mixdown...
This is just a privileged discussion so it's all about subjectivity; view points. I am not trying to be right or wrong but just to bring another angle to the discussion. BIAS is good, perhaps the best on iOS and at its price point it is delivering excellent VFM. You can't argue with that. In iOS world, its price is expensive.
However, if we want to make comparisons to the real mccoys in terms of amps and tone and lushness and depth and more, iOS amps are way behind. I've been tweaking BIAS and I found the tones lacking; the body of the tone, harmonics are just not deep enough. That is not to say one cannot use the tones as they are "passable". The creaminess I get when I play a power chord using say my Roland is not there in all the iOS amps but then like I say you get what you pay for. A £5000 amp will blow away a £20 amp app all day long. I still love my iPad apps though.
Tone is subjective but there are guitar tones to die for and you'll get and feel them when you access high end equipments. My friend tours with Living Colour and I get to muck around on his guitars and amps so although I don't own any super amp I get to experience pro set ups. I am trying to get him to buy an iPad and try out all the amazing music apps and he is beginning to like the Audiobus connectivity.
@PaulB said:
Good point, But what your left with is the good stuff.
Amp modelings have their place, but pale in comparison to the physical models. Same hold true with synths as well.
Ios modeling is as also inferior to Mac/pc modeling at this current time, tone is a subjective thing though. As stated above.
Another thought though, I've never heard anyone say, man that sounded great, but it was played on a simulator...so I don't like it anymore.
Living color is a great example, Vernon uses an ipad live, but it ends up going into a physical tubed amp.
Both have their strengths.
Actually, you're left with the stuff that doesn't conflict too much with other parts in the mix (hopefully). It's a compromise which usually doesn't accommodate the sheer power and majesty of the sound that came out of the speaker cab. Same with synths. Those killer tones that knock your socks off are not the ones that play nice in a mix.
I agree with some of the comments (won't tell you which!) but there's also the fact that if you need to record a guitar through a real amp you'll also need a good mic, dead room and some knowledge on how to position the mic (mics) to get the best tone out. I'm not even mentioning the original amp. Most of the ios crowd will not have access to all of those so...
Even if bias or whatever other emulator gives you a reasonable result to put on the record then what the heck, do it. If however you have the gear, the skill, the place and the time to mess about with it then good for you. Just saying.
I don't have anything left to say on how software like BIAS sounds compared to "real" amps, but that wasn't the comparison I made in the first place. In fact, it's baffling to me that anyone would think it was a fair comparison between a $9.99 iPhone app that fits in your pocket versus a $3,000 live rig that could blow down a wall.
But I played guitar as hobbyist for over 15 years (well, with some breaks in the middle where I got bored), and I never even got as far as hearing myself played back on a cassette, let alone multi-track recording and actual amateur "producing" of complete music products. The early iOS options for doing that (we're talking GarageBand and even AmpliTube with a cheap headphone jack interface) were so piss poor that they didn't even match up to the quality of inexpensive combo amplifiers.
That is NOT the case any longer. I'm not exactly a gear hound, but I know pedals and I know how to work with the equipment I can actually afford. And my opinion is that I can get sounds out of BIAS that are superior to anything I can realistically produce at bedroom levels...** without spending my way out of the problem by buying a bunch of new gear **.
So, no, BIAS is not as good as a real amp. But it's hell of a lot more practical. It's $9.99 ($15-20 for iPad) with no IAP's an infinite library user created amps, it's completely portable, and it's a closed recording environment that allows me to create without ever so much as buying an instrument microphone.
So no, I don't consider BIAS to be "expensive in the app world", because it offers so much. Agile AmpKit, on the other hand, is now overpriced for what it does because: (a) it's tone quality relative to other apps is lagging behind; and (b) they have an antiquated pricing structure that just doesn't add up compared to the value offered by competitors.
You must not have the full version of Agile AmpKit on the Mac which costs all of $49.95. Last I counted, I had 26 matched amp/cabs that I had setup, and that's not even all the possibilities of matched amp/cab setups available to me in the app (there are no IAPS, you get everything in the initial purchase).
For the record, Bias sounds better then any Tube Amp that I've ever owned and I've owned many. I can shake the walls down with it, don't understand why other's can't crank up the volume and shake down the walls with a sim though a guitar amp (when properly setup) as it works just fine for me. I've dropped a LOT of money on new and matched tubes trying to get that 'holy grail' of sound in tubies, and it never happened for me, always had a 'buzz' or 'noise' or 'something' interfering with my zen when using a real tubie. I'm a 40 year + player saying this...
Also, so what about the Ampkit update not being a monster, If you have the full Mac version, which would have set you back all of $50 and includes every amp and effect they ever made in the price - past, present, and future, then you'll get the German Engl Fireball for free in the next update anyway, no biggie. Know how to roll, and it won't be an issue at all. So, not exactly an antiquated price structure on the Mac, especially compared to Amplitube 3 which can set you back $HUNDREDS.
You can't even buy Bias on a Mac & let's see what it costs when you can, likely it won't be as cost effective, especially considering that you'll need it's dollar hungry sibling Jamup in order to get even a single effect pedal (or looper, stage ready presets, etc) to use with it's amps. Worse yet, when you export a Bias amp to Jamup, you lose 90% of the awesome tone that you hear in Bias in the first place, a problem that Positive Grid has never provided an adequate solution for.
Basically it's a wash for me in regards to considering which sim is best, all these sims have their ups and downs and each shine in their own aspects. None of them cost that much on a IOS device, considering the alternatives (I'm thinking hardware here and some OS X & PC apps) Mostly ups, once paid up these days. It ends up being a heck of a lot less expensive then buying hardware and a heck of a lot easier to hide from the wife. Face it, the new iPad, Mac, and PC sims and the wide variety of hardware interfaces that are available today are a steal.
@Flo26 said:
Then why hang out on this thread when you can hang out on a 'real amp' thread instead and get some use out of it?
@Muleskinner - I actually agree with several points in your post (buzz sounds and audio issues with "real tube" amps; BIAS losing quality when imported into JamUp; hiding mobile gear from wife)
But your post seemed a bit confrontational when we both seem to agree that iOS software for guitar modeling is great.
I've actually never owned a Mac/Apple computer of any kind. But I've owned several Apple devices (iPod, iPhones, iPad). This entire forum is about iOS device, and more specifically, music made through apps that could (or should) work with AudioBus. That there's a Mac version of AmpKit (or other guitar programs that haven't even been ported to iOS yet), therefore, isn't particularly interesting or frustrating to me.
The only reason I was comparing the iOS apps to real physical hardware is that all of the guitar music we grew up listening too and impersonating was created with amps and physical hardware. The point I was getting at is that for the overwhelming majority of players, iOS gives them the ability to approximate that sound (or any sound) at a very reasonable price, and without having to buy a new type of amp (or pedal) to change up that tone.
Still, I'd like to see more, and I hope would-be developers don't look at the current market and think "Well, I guess guitar is taken care of already!". The new effects app BirdStepper (which I probably can't run decently on my iPad2 is an example of an effects app where the developer had guitar use specifically in mind. iOS devices are several years old, but AudioBus functionality on iOS isn't even two years old yet. There may be whole new opportunities for guitar-based apps that weren't even worth pursuing a few years ago.
Sorry, I can't help but expand your original post beyond IOS, it's needed here. Sorry also if you don't like my style. Not my problem man. You can't separate IOS from OS X at a level on this forum or any other, my advice is to 'get real'. I use an iPad 2 all the time with these apps, get real there also, you are REALLY missing the point somewhere with this stuff...
Glad you choose the same place I do @Flo26, I like your playing style. @Muleskinner I actually agree with 1 thing you said, and welcome to the forum, post some work so we know you better, there are some REALLY good musicians around here.
@Flo26 said:
Your cool, but your spelling definitely could use some improvement.
@WMWM said:
Thanks, didn't mean to offend some folks around here. I just call it as I see it. Truth be told, it's like this. One day I like a particular app through a particular setup, then I try something else and end up liking that better for a while. Then I change it up again. That's what great about apps, it's easy and relatively inexpensive to do that. The Tubie purist will always feel that analog sound from a Tube Amp is superior to anything, and they are generally very vocal about it (I feel that way about my record player regarding analog sound). If you invested that heavily into an amp, then you should believe in it. I can crank an amp up to 11 all day and all night long where I live, but most people can't realistically do that, and that edge of breakup is where the tube amp needs to be in order to be worth the investment. Just my 2 cents.
Here's a video, that I forgot to post earlier per your request, recording isn't my thing - but here's a sample... vimeo video doesn't seem to load correctly here, so just add the http:// to the link below...
vimeo.com/44539747
@Muleskinner said:
@Muleskinner, English is not necessarily the native language of everyone here, people post from all over the world.
PS I think it should be "you're" instead of your
Whatever sounds good, sounds good...love me some smooth plate Telefunken distortion.
Viva la Vinyl!
You're means (you are) so (your) in this case was correct! Unless that was sarcasm, then never mind:)
It depends on what he meant. I took it to mean "you are cool" so that's why I think it should be you're. It was meant as sarcasm
Really no big deal either way.
It wasn't sarcasm, he is cool. I have thick skin, & I appreciate what he had to say.