OX Amp Top Box
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OX Amp Top Box
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S. Osman
Its what I've wanted/needed for around 40 years !!
So it took some time, but finally, in 2018 I can now actually get a decent electric guitar sound at a sensible volume. Brilliant!
H. Engelke
Room for improvement
What I like:
The idea is great. It sounds good. It is easy to use and to set up.
What I don't like:
The Ox is missing bottom end.
A simulation of moving the mic further away from the cabinet I would appreciate a lot.
I hope there will be more cabinets and microphones later.
Personally miss my favourite microphone, the Sennheiser 906.
Wifi is weak, should at least have a the reach of an ordinary iMac, which it hasn't.
Digital output limited to 44100 does not impress me much.
Recording a “real” cabinet, in my case through Apollo 8p, analog in 1-2 and digital spdif are not in sync.
Spdif is late.
b. new
Like it, but just a couple of things...
Overall, I like this box. It works well and the cab emulations sound good and offer a reasonably wide range of choice. I do think there could have been more cabs on offer - and especially a couple of bass cabs. I would think that a lot of guitarists (like me) have a bass guitar knocking around and an 8x10 and a 1x15 bass cab would have been a very useful addition. I would have preferred a regular pot for the speaker volume knob. There is a spot where the volume goes from being just a little too quiet to just a little too loud and, because of the stepped output pot, I can’t get the volume just where I want it.
The other thing for me is the digital output sampling frequency being set at 44.1khz.
I can’t remember the last time I used 44.1 on a session and I don’t have a handy realtime sample rate converter. Seems an odd choice of sample rate. Even the cheapest USB interface can manage 48k…
But, despite those gripes, I do like it and am enjoying using it.
M. Wirth
Pros and cons
Ok, it´s a bit strange there´s no bass cab included, why? And the saving procedure is a bit unintuitive (you Think you are saving a new presets and suddenly the one you had is gone). But, and this is a big but, it really sounds fantastic! Nothing really comes Close to the nearness and feel. When I bought it the prize seemed a bit overprized, but now I can´t understand how they can sell it so cheap.
C. Doignie
YES! Looking for it for 30 years
Purchased a OX after trying it at NAMM - Fantastic!!!! Yes, it does it all: can for the first time use my amps at their best at home, during rehearsals and gigs (plugged in the console + cab at lower volume) ... and it does it extremely well + it enables to ensure the sound engineer is getting the sound you want and not a crappy place SM57... and on top switching between mics and cabs extend widely the sonic possibilities of my amps!!!!
REQUEST TO UA:
- It would be great to be able to transfer some plug-ins (delays, reverb, compressor... ) purchased to it? For example it would be great to be able to add tape echo as an additional delay...
- Also using it live ... would be great to be able to control it from the pedalboard, to switch primarily effects or cabs/mics set-up... midi capabilities would be ideal (using a Gigrig G2...)
- iPad not always connecting fast
A. Bazinet
Simple. Easy. Awesome.
For me, modeling has always been a necessary evil. I used it because I had to, not because I liked it. I'd fire up something that purported to be a classic this or a perfect that, and they never were; always disappointing, always sounding wrong, never inspiring. Typically I'd then go to the forums, research things to try, then spend hours playing Dr. Scientist trying to coax a decent tone from it.
This is as far in the opposite direction as it's possible to be. You plug in; it sounds great. You try some different cabs; they sound great. You try the included effects; they sound insanely great. Throughout the whole process, it's absolutely simple and easy to use. Heck, they put a freakin' carpet under the cab when you hit the 'damp' button.
These people get me. I don't want to be Dr. Scientist; I want to play, and and want to be inspired to play. This thing delivers. I absolutely love it.
B. Prosko
Mind Blown
Was sold on it from the Shawn Tubbs video but got it just in time for a weeks with of sessions with Murray Pulver at the guitar helm...it was a game changer.
B. Chapman
Best thing ever. Period.
You need this now. See what your amp sounds like through multiple cabinets, with multiple close microphones, and room mics. All the while, not abusing reasonable decibel levels, or even dead quiet. Onboard EQ, 1176, Delay and Plate Reverb. What are you waiting for?
D. Jackson
Game Changer!!
I am not exaggerating when I say that I see no need to ever mic a guitar cabinet again. This is hands down the most useful and exciting piece of gear I have ever purchased!!!
S. Skinner
The Perfect Solution for Guitarists
This box has given me everything I have ever wanted from my gear. I can crank my tube amps all the way up and attenuate them down to normal listening volumes. I can practice silently at night and not bother anyone. I can record with beautifully crafted guitar tones using the UA speaker emulations and plugins through my actual amp and pedals. The software is elegantly designed and easy to use / navigate. The plugins included and room emulations are top notch as expected. I can take those professional sounding tone presets and save them to the Ox's rig selector dial and use them live for a perfect sound directly to the PA. And to top it off the box itself and packaging are absolute works of art, it looks beautifully vintage-y and substantial on top of my amp. I can't wait to see what features and functions they plan to add to it in future updates. Thank you Universal Audio for making this amazing piece of gear that I now cannot live without.
J. Gill
Finally, a professional powersoak and cab sim with room and effects unit
This is without doubt the best unit for creating finished sounding guitars direct into your recording system. Bring up the room sound for a gloriously "real" amp in the room sound, truly magnificent. Using the EQ and compression section I am able to get a great "finished" sounding guitar track as if it had been recorded on a console with all the expensive outboard stuff that is found in professional recording studios. It's just so easy to get a really good finished sound. "Finished" is the key for me. I hate messing around with reamping etc in order to find the tone I'm looking for. Reamping is a complete waste of time in my opinion. Getting the sound right before you hit record is the key to fast productive recording sessions and this really delivers. A bit expensive ?, well, maybe but it's worth it, at least it is to me. Highly recommended.
.
Ox Review
I love it!! Does everything you advertised it to do. It means I can turn up my 100W Two-Rock amp and play it in the basement with a band or record late at night using my regular set up. The control over the sound with the different cabinets and microphone configurations, not to mention the UA effects is to die for. Thanks for making such a useful product!!!
Thanks,
Allen
S. Woolgar
Sounds fantastic!
I have two other reactive loads with recording emulation. This is nothing like those other two. Those other two are now for sale.
The iPad wifi setup was dead easy, and it works well. The Mac apps works well too.
Very happy.
J. Bennett
Unreal
If you don't feel like reading the whole review, I'll save you the time, BUY IT.
I have always sworn that you can hear the "digital" in other cabinet emulators, even the expensive Torpedoes and Kempers. If you like that, great, I personally hate that digital aliasing weirdism junk that happens in their tones.
Along comes this thing. I'm a huge UA fan, and I believe that Universal Audio has the best analog emulations on the market, period. So naturally, when I heard they were putting this baby out, I was intrigued.
I work on a lot of metal stuff. So I was a little sketched out the entire time I was waiting for the preorder, because out of all of the videos I found on this thing, NONE of the guitar players were playing anything remotely metal, or even hard rock-type stuff. So I was definitely a little uneasy about it.
I got it before the app came out, apparently Sweetwater accidentally shipped a week early. I saw one of the default presets was a greenback 4x12. I've always preferred vintage 30's to greenbacks but I said what the hey and plugged my EVH 5150 III into it and took the line outs directly into our console.
You guys ever hear a piece of gear and your eyes just go wide and you get the "holy ****" feeling? This was one of those. This greenback 4x12 cab emulation sounded better than any cabinet I've heard in person to date. It was insane.
Then the app comes out. I messed around with the mics, EQ, reverb and delay, and I got some insane tones. The user interface is incredibly smooth and easy to use, a musician that isn't used to dialing in studio gear could use this thing no problem. I also think the build of the unit itself is just gorgeous.
The parameters are so cool, like you don't get the unlimited mic movement like you do the torpedo and some other emulators, but these are more than impulse responses, these are true emulations in the usual UA fashion that we've come to know and love, down to descriptions of exactly how the mics were placed in the room in relation to the cab.
Don't have your guitar player sit too close to it (within two feet), it will feed back a little, but that's very avoidable.
So that's about it. An easy-ish way to put it is, you know how you hear your amp go through your favorite cab, and it sounds amazing, so you mic it up and add some EQ here and there to capture that tone? This thing sounds pretty much exactly how I want my guitars to sound without having to mic a cab or process much of anything at all. And it goes without saying that this thing is great for reamping.
I honestly was a little disappointed at first when I found that there were no V30 emulations, and I still kind of hope that they come out with new emulations as time goes on, but at the same time I just don't care, this thing is a work of art. Buy it.
I have NOT tested this out as load box into a live cabinet, I've only used the balanced line outputs.
V. Kourkoutas
WOW
Universal audio nailed it once again! One of the best pieces of gear I have ever purchased. Both sides of the OX are pro level sounding, taking into account the real amp feel that we guitarists always seek. Having owned all similar products of this category, after buying the ox, they all sound plastic and artificial. It is a must have for every guitarist and every studio owner.
J. Williams
Fan-Bloody-Tastic
Absolutely unreal! Love it. Sounds amazing with all my amps. Killer box!
A. User
OX Captures The Soul Of My amps & Saves My Ears
I have to say the OX is just incredible. I have yet to record anything to Logic that doesn't sound great.
In the past, I usually get slowed down with dialing in a great sound. For example, while the Kemper has the potential to sound great, it's way more time consuming to find the sounds you want as you basically have to find a profile (out of hundreds/thousands) that fits what you need. The other closest competitor, Two Notes Studio, in may opinion blows chunks compared to the OX.
Lastly, I can crank my amp while keeping volume well under control. This is good for my ears. Lots of guitar players eventually get Tinitus (ringing in ears) due to playing in front of cranked amps for hours at a time.
So with the OX, just plugin into the amp I want and get a perfect sound fast. Then just add some plate reverb and done!
Oh happy day
D. Case
Love the OX!
I'm in an environment where I can't get my amps up loud and stick mic on them, so I've tried a number of solutions in the past to mixed results. Software amp emulators are ok for some things, but not all... I've tried reactive load boxes with IRs and that was just a hassle. Previously, I had asked UA to provide an IR loader plugin so I could use a reactive load and get real-time UAD monitoring of the amp tone to no avail. I know there are workarounds with that, but it wasn't a smooth workflow.
Well, I got my OX on the day it was available and I've found my solution - it lets me use my greats amps in their sweet spot (a Suhr Badger 30 and an old Fender Princeton Reverb), attenuate the signal in the room or the club, and utilize speaker modeling which - to my ears - is so much more flexible and better sounding than IRs.
I gave it 4 stars because of the lack of a Windows client (I'm on a Mac, but Windows should have ben there at launch) and the other items (foot switch, USB ports, internal sample rate) which should be addressed later as the product is in market for a while. If UA provided messaging about those features, it would have been 5 stars.
For my needs, OX is absolutely stellar! It's changed the way I record guitars, practice and play live.
.
Le top du top
La meilleure loadbox/attenuateur que j'ai jamais utilisé! Très facile d'utilisation !application Oxfam amp très simple et très intuitive!j'adore!
B. Oaks
Tubbs sold me
Saw Shawn's video and that was it. Bought it.....