Warning: Boring Guitar Nerd Talk Here.

I’ve been messing around with IRs this week. Again.
In particular, guitar cabinet IRs (Impulse Responses) Basically the recorded behaviors of guitar speakers, cabinets and microphones are captured as algorithms and saved as files which can be loaded into software inside a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation)

Read this article if you feel like nerding up on this even more!

So far the testing is promising. I am able to achieve some incredibly great sounds while retaining all the tone from my pickups with the feel of my tube amp. If all goes according to plan, I’ll soon be able to crank up any amplifier and run it into my studio computer through various ‘virtual’ cabs. With a few mouse clicks I can now recreate my guitar sound through microphones, speakers and cabinets I don’t own!

What does this all mean? Well even if I did own loads of cabinets and microphones I’m generally not afforded the time to record a guitar track, then physically change mics and cabs for the second or third or fourth guitar parts. It’s just not practical.
The other great thing about using IRs is that they can be changed and swapped out after a track has been recorded. Very handy when mixing the song.

So there you have it. Everything you never wanted to know about Impulse Responses!