In this post, I’m going to take a look a few of the best guitar amp sims for metal, and particularly for death metal, black metal, grindcore, and other extreme genres. In other words, we’ll be focusing on VST, AU and AXX plugins that seek to model high gain and modern sounding amps, like that legendary Peavey 5150. Brutal tones only.
While the plugins listed here will still work pretty great for classic styles of metal (think Iron Maiden or Black Sabbath), I’ll be doing a follow up in the future for amp sims that target that classic 70s and 80s sound.
My experience with amp modelling dates back over twenty years, when the first Line6 PODs and V-Amp hardware hit the market, and software-based amp sims arrived on my radar in 2002 with the first release Amplitube by IK Multimedia. Since then, I think I’ve either demo’d or purchased almost every simulation that’s come along. Admittedly, it’s a bit of an obsession. I’m still regularly amazed just how close a $100 plugin can come to sounding like a $4000 boutique amplifier. Only trained ears and liars can tell the difference in a the context of a full mix.
But as with any of these “best of” lists, a lot of it comes down to personal opinion and taste, and no one is paying me to write this. It’s a much more competitive market than it was in 2002, the technology has come a long way, and there’s a ton of great options. So in this roundup, I’m factoring in user experience & affordability along with general sound quality and modeling accuracy.
So let’s get things started with:
Archetype Nolly by Neural DSP
I’m going to be honest here: I find hype off-putting. Neural DSP has such an enthusiastic fanbase that it intially seemed, to me, impossible that their plugins were not simply overrated. A stellar reputation borne of brilliant marketing. Their initial releases, the Fortin Nameless and the NTS, left me a bit cold, not due to their quality—they do sound great—but because they were not “my kind of sound”.
But since that time, and following the release of a number of other Neural DSP plugins that are very much in line with “my sound”, I’ve recorded, mixed, and compared the results to various other esteemed plugins I have in my collection (or have simply demo’d).
And look, the results are undeniable; right now the Neural DSP stuff is most-likely at the top of the heap. But not by a wide margin. Just enough that it would be dishonest to pretend I don’t often favor them. And in my opinion, the best of lot is Archetype Nolly, the one I reach for over and over. For my purposes, it’s simply offers best tones and most versitility.
The plugin is named for Nolly Getgood, and the amps are based on his own modded collection. Although the amps are not named, the suite includes four: amp one is based on Bogner Shiva (clean channel). The second is based on a Marhall JCM800 (2203). The third, and most useful for my purposes, seems to be based on a modded Peavey 5150. The fourth is based on the Victory Countess.
As with all of Neural DSP’s amp suites, the user interface is a straight-forward and pretty much flawless. I have no notes for improvement, and the standard Neural DSP interface is now being imitated by many other developers. Each suite includes a pedal board that includes a noise gate, overdrives, distortions, the amp section itself, the cab (powered by top-of-line impulse responses), and a selection of post-effects.
So what are the drawbacks? Some complain that Neural DSP plugins do tend to use a bit more CPU than some others on the market, even adding a touch of latency. In my experience, the CPU usage and latency has not been problematic or noticable. Provided your interface, DAW, and PC/Mac are up to par, you shouldn’t have a problem. The price, while not exactly high (I would say it’s perfectly reasonable for the quality) may still be offputting to home recording enthusiasts on a budget who graviate toward low-cost or free options.
And one final caveat: I suspect any guitarist who’s been into the extreme metal for long enough is well-aquainted with the Peavey 5150. Every big black metal or death metal act in the game has likely had some variation of this amp with them at some point, either at the studio, or onstage. The Peavey 6505 and 6505+ are direct successors to this amp, and newer variations are still hugely popular, including the Invective, signature of Periphery guitarist Misha Mansoor, and the EVH’s 5150 III. They show up everywhere, and you hear them on a countless number of albums.
Which means if you’re looking to develop your own unique, signature tone, anything based on a 5150 might not be your best bet.
You can grab the demo or buy the plugin here.
Sigma by Audio Assault
Although I felt it necessary to give top spot to Archetype Nolly, Audio Assault is hands-down my favourite developer of amp sims for metal overall, and I think their best amp sim is Sigma. I’m not 100% certain what the sim is based on—it seems to be a model of an Omegaworks amp—but I do know it rivals anything Neural DSP has put out there in terms of tone.
The user interface is similar to what you’d find in a Neural DSP plugin, with a pedal board, amp, cab, and post-effects section. It’s intiuative and straight-foward. There’s also a notable extra that most plugins lack: you can simulate double tracked guitars. I’ve never found this useful in a recording context, and would always opt to record each track separately, but it’s a cool feature to have if you just want to sit down and play for a bit.
To date, I’ve purchased every amp sim Audio Assault has released, and have never been disappointed. Their AHM 5050 plugin, another model of the 5150, comes very, very close to the quality of the 5150 found in Archetype Nolly, to the extent the difference would be tough or even impossible to identify in a full mix. And if it doesn’t quite hit the heights of Neural DSP, I suspect this has more to do with the included impulse responses, where Neural DSP has a slight edge. But, if you’re like me, and prefer to turn to third-party impulses anyway, this really isn’t much of an issue.
My other top picks from the Audio Assault lineup are the RVVX, a truly fantastic amp sim based on the Revv G20, and Hellbeast, based on the Randall Satan (which I prefer to Neural & Fortin’s NTS sim).
But maybe the best part: purchasing everything Audio Assault has to offer cost me less than Archetype Nolly alone. Their products are almost always on sale, often available for $19.99 USD and occassionally deeply discounted to $9.99. And to date, all upgrades have been free. When the third version of AHM 5050 was released, I simply downloaded it. And I think that makes Audio Assault an attractive option even to those who are generally “free amp sim” oriented.
Visit AudioAssault.mx to download a demo or purchase the plugins.
Amphub by STL Tones
My first experience with STL Tones was with a demo of their Tonehub plugin, which is not exactly an amp sim; it has more in common with profiling ampfliers like the Kemper (Rigplayer, found in Overloud’s TH-U, works similarly) .
Well-regarded producers craft and snapshot tones, which the developer then sells as add-ons. Just like with the Kemper. And while some of these collections sound truly fantastic (do you want the exact tone Lorna Shore has on Flesh Coffin?), this approach is simply not my preference. Although the crafted tones can be further tweaked, I find myself prefering to start with a basic, familiar base and working with it from there.
But Tonehub did lead me to checkout STL Tones’s other flagship plugin, a full collection of modelled pedals , amps, and effects called Amphub, available by subscription for $10/month (with new models being added every month). And, no surprise, the sound quality is top-notch. The user interface is again familiar, divided into pedals, amps, cabs, and effects.
There’s a wide-variety of amps served up, but for metal, there’s some standouts: the EVH 5150 model is killer, particularly if you’re on the hunt for bone-crushing low-end—it captures a quality I can’t quite articulate that many sims seem to struggle with—and their 6505 model might actually be the most accurate that currently exists (in the sense that many others, while close, sometimes seem to have “polished” the tone).
It also offers a couple of amps that don’t always get stand-alone treatment, but turn up regularly, particularly in black metal: the ENGL Powerball and the ENGL Fireball. Though I’m not as familiar with these two amps as the 5150 varities, they sound very close to the real deal (although I wouldn’t necessarily consider them the best ENGL sims, more on that coming up). There’s also a big selection of pedals and effects, surpassing those found in other amp suites. And that includes a model of Boss HM-2, that will help get you closer to that Swedish Bloodbath tone, or to something like hardcore/grindcore band Nails.
While the subscription model is front and center, it’s worth noting STL Tones also provides the option to purchase invididual models. So if you don’t want to pay a monthly fee, you can always demo the entire suite, pick your winners, and buy ‘em.
Check out everything STL Tones has to offer here.
ENGL Savage by Brainworx
A plugin developer that sometimes seems to fly under the radar when it comes to amp sims is Brainworx. Better known to adherents of the Universal Audio ecosystem and serious professionals than to hobbiests, there’s no doubt that price is partly to blame. The ENGL Savage 120 plugin, an officially branded sim of the amp with the same name, goes for $149 when it’s not on sale. Sales are frequent, however, and I scored mine for $39.99. Next to the $3000 pricetag of the actual amp, that seems pretty good to me.
Like the EVH 5150 III model in Amphub, the draw of this plugin, for me, is that it captures an intangiable characteristic of real amps sometimes lacking in other plugins: a kind of depth and richness. The features, however, are limited compared to the other picks on this list: there’s no pedal board, the cab and impulse implementation is less flexible, and only a couple post effects (reverb and delay) are added on. More or less, what you’re getting here is a detailed model of the amp head itself.
But it is detailed. You have what amounts to a drop down of cabinet impulses to choose from, impulses that have been expertly engineered (each with an accompanying description of the recording signal chain). Geeks like me like this sort of thing, and they do sound very good. But if you don’t like them, you’ll need to disable the cab entirely and load up your own impulse in a serparate impulse loader.
Still, what this plugin lacks in features, it makes up for in accuracy. And as far as metal cred goes, Galder of Dimmu Borgir (yeah, yeah) tracked the guitars on In Sorte Diaboli using this amp (the real amp, to be clear). Another notable ENGL guy, at least in days gone by: Abbath.
There is a caveat: I don’t think this sim is as suitable for as wide of a range of metal styles as the others on this list, and I’d say the same about the amp it’s based on. For deathcore, death metal, slam and other “brutal” genres, I’d recommend something closer to the 5150 sound. But if you’re aiming for a late 90s/early 2000s European sound, this one might help you get closer than the rest.
Note: It’s also worth checking out the Diezel VH4 and Herbet sims from Brainworx, which are of comparably high-quality.
You can get the ENGL Savage 120 at Plugin-Alliance.com. Keep in mind, this is frequently majorly discounted. If you like the demo, I’d recommend signing up to their mailing list and waiting for a deal.
II II II II by Otto Audio
I’m taking a chance here: I’m part way through the demo period of this brand-new amp sim; I haven’t purchased it yet. But it’s made quite an impression on me during the short time I’ve been working with it, and I’m opting to include it here for one, primary reason: the way it handles low-tuning. This is an amp sim engineered for brutal music. When I plug in my 7-string, there’s clarity and articulation in the low-end that seems unmatched by rival sims.
As far as I can tell, it’s not based on any one amp in particular. The developers seem to have incorporated a variety of tonal options that are inspired by existing amps, but I suspect none are exact simulations. Instead, the strength of this plugin comes from understanding the end-use, and prioritizing results over fussy modeling accuracy.
But that’s not to say you can’t make it sound like a whole variety of popular, existing amps. There’s entire section of presets that dial in specific amps, from the ubiquitous 5150, to a JCM900, to a Peavey XXX. For me, the most exciting preset is an amp that, to my knowledge, has not been modelled previously: the solidstate Ampeg VH-140c. This was an staple of 90s death metal, and I think John Gallagher of Dying Fetus still uses one to this day.
Like the Brainworx plugin, Otto Audio’s plugin does lack a pedal board and post effects, yet it doesn’t feel as hard-up for options as Brainworx’s Savage 120. There’s a dropdown of unnamed, numbered cabinets, which all sound excellent (and possibly contribute to the superior low-end), but you can of course disable the cab section and load up third-party impulses with a third-party loader. You’ve got powertube options, you can adjust the sag, you can adjust the bias. There’s a snarl dial, and while I’m not exactly sure what it’s doing, I know it does something good. Also included: also a boost switch that does the work of an overdrive pedal (which, for me, is often the only essential pedal other than a gate anyway).
If brutal death metal or deathcore is your focus, you owe it to yourself to at least demo this one. One more thing: like Audio Assault’s plugins, there’s emulated doubled tracking.
Grab the demo at ottoaudio.net. Currently they’re offering 50% as an introductory offer.
Summary
Though the above list doesn’t come close to covering the huge variety of plugins currently out there, these five plugins are at the top my list, and I suspect I’ve tried at least 90% of those on the market from 2002 onward, including free ones.
But I do want to add a few thoughts about some other plugins that I omitted that are also popular with the metal crowd, and why I omitted them.
Overloud TH-U: I’ve used the Slate version of this a bit, and I particularly like Rigplayer, but not enough to overlook an interface I find cumbersome. If you like the interface for some reason, this is a good option and the tones are excellent. And there’s a new metal add-on that I haven’t checked out yet.
Line6 Helix Native: Expensive, and the user interface, which makes perfect sense for a hardware unit, or when used alongside the hardware unit, does not fit my workflow. In particular, I typically place an amp sim on a guitar bus, sending the left and right guitar tracks to it. This way, I can use one instance of the plugin to process both tracks. Any tweaks I make to the tone apply to the left and right guitar tracks equally. Helix can do this, but it’s more convoluted than it’s worth for my purposes. The modelling itself doesn’t really excite me enough to push past it, and to my ears, Audio Assault’s AHM 5050 (that’s often on sale for $9.99) and Amphub’s Meridian 65 both sound better than the Helix’s 5150.
Amplitube: Adequate, but the modelling of the high gain amplifiers doesn’t totally work for me. This is where personal taste comes in—I know a lot of people love Amplitube. But like Helix, I find processing a stereo signal with it tedious, so I just don’t bother. For me, simple is better.
ML Sound Labs: Very good, but not better than Audio Assault at the lower price point. (Which is sort of unfair, because their prices are perfectly reasonable.) That said, there’s likely no better free 5150 amp sim than Amp Roots Free, based on the EVH 5150 III.
Positive Grid Bias FX/Amp: This is one of the few I’m out of touch with. I purchased the first version, but it was not essential enough to me to purchase the second on release. Ultimately, I feel it occupies the same space as Amplitube, but I fully admit I’m not sure where they’ve taken it since I last checked in.