Friedman IR-X vs UAFX Lion 68'

Рет қаралды 10,997

Jordan Steele

Күн бұрын

Пікірлер: 121

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Which one did you like the most? The Friedman IR-X or the UAFX Lion 68’?

@liys540 2 ай бұрын

irx

@pbosche 8 ай бұрын

As someone said.. It seems the irx IS a Friedman! And the Lion IS a Marshall. And the Brown IS the perfect modded Marshall. Here’s the thing… The Friedman is modern and what we tend to like when just playing in our rooms. However the heavier, tighter, MORE gain sound isn’t what’s on the songs we love. It’s been interesting to really REALLY listen to more and more Van Halen and AC⚡️DC and realize that those guitars aren’t as heavy and overdrive/distorted/gain as our memories tell us they are. They’re rather “clean” compared to the modern Friedman/Engl/5150 type amps. I’m a big fan of heavy, but with the lion I’m realizing that less heavy is more good…and it doesn’t give my all that room to hide.

@HamsterSpanks 5 ай бұрын

Friedman is good at giving you a big amp feel feel at lower volumes, this is key, and Mr. Friedman understands this very well. This in turn, makes his products, alot of fun, when play at home and small venues. I thought this was a great unbiased review.

@AudioWonderland Күн бұрын

You can gain down the IR-x. Channel one goes clean. Its just better all around

@PedalPoopers 8 ай бұрын

Lion all the way! I have found the UAFX pedals to be the only modelers to react to live situations like the real amps, some people love that fact, others do not.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

🤘

@kilikdudley 7 ай бұрын

Lion sounds like an actual Marshall recorded. IR-X sounds like it’s missing the cab and air before the mic

@sixslinger9951 7 ай бұрын

IRX sounds very thin, almost tinny...yep like missing the cab. horrible sounding imo

@AudioWonderland Күн бұрын

@@sixslinger9951 No, it sounds link an amp with actually clarity. The dude playing is leaving everything flat. The LION is wooly mess. Let the note fade on the lion and enjoy the digital crackle.

@steverherb 7 ай бұрын

Nice comparison. I like the IR-X because it can be used straight into the effects return of any tube amp you already own. Then, you essentially have an all-tube amp with the crushing Friedman tone

@igorbassi3470 8 ай бұрын

Question✋ The Uafx lion has that sensation of an amplifier and Power amp and speaker air movement already confirmed...! But it seems that Freadman doesn't have this Power amp response and the air displacement of the speakers!?

@alexdoyleguitar 8 ай бұрын

Just seems like a missed opportunity to really compare. Using the exact same IR would really make a difference. Even IRs if the same cab and speaker can vary wildly.

@julianc.227 8 ай бұрын

The Lion is absolutely astonishing, for what it is supposed to be. Nothing on the current market offers better Plaxi sounds than the Lion.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

I’d have to agree. It nails the plexi sound very well

@bobzherunkle3092 8 ай бұрын

Friedman sounds like a Friedman Lion sounds like a Marshall. It just comes down to personal preference.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

🤘

@stevemountford3707 23 күн бұрын

The IRX just sounds amazing to me. I’m running one with an Axefxiii and it’s the best tone I’ve ever had.

@alguitarchristie 8 ай бұрын

You should have tried the Lion on the Variac position! And the boost makes a big difference. I had two plexi's and the Lion is closer.Friedman sounds awesome, but it is a real pre-amp, and Friedmans can sound good at lower volumes, so I have always thought they had different tone values! I got the Lion so I can keep it on my board as a backup!

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Oh wow! The Lion definitely gets the different vintage Marshall sounds really well. I find the Friedman always sounds like a Friedman which is either the sound you want or not. The Lion as a backup sounds like a great setup though 🤘

@colinjames7765 8 ай бұрын

The super bass is closer to the Friedman clean, and the brown with the volume 2 on zero and volume 1 up to about 3/4 or so with the bass low and treble and mids cranked with the presence high is closer to the irx in channel 2. The lion has more compression under the fingers, which makes the irx seem to have more depth. With a comp it’s closer when added to the irx. I don’t think the irx power amp sim is compressing much. It’s like the master is fairly low. I think the lion sounds better at low volume but tends to be dark sounding and would benefit from another higher bright cap setting. The lion sounds exceptional with strats. The irx sounds great gained up with singing single note playing. I feel like it needs more volume in the room to sound right, it sounds anemic at lower volume. I think the lion sounds like a guitar on an old great recording(AC/DC, Hendrix, zeppelin, vh) really great edge of breakup and classic riffs and solos especially when boosted- sounds great pushed with a Klon. Where the irx sounds like what you’d hear at a guitar based concert for sounds from the 80s onward (journey, bonamassa, Alice n chains, early metallica, etc.) more dense weighty tone. Personally, I think the lion has more character/ vibe, the irx has a crushing tone in comparison. They do have some overlap. But even Friedman just released a vintage plexi amp. Because while they can sound similar the feel and vibe is different. I’d choose based on the goal sound, or keep both for different flavors.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

@@colinjames7765Definitely. I should used the brown for the higher gain comparison. The plexi is very sparkly and dynamic not as smooth and compressed

@alguitarchristie 8 ай бұрын

@@colinjames7765 there is a bright cap, if you go into the settings on the app. Haven't tried it yet, but James Santiago does a great video at Sweetwater. Get's an awesome tone.

@hannesganahl6384 8 ай бұрын

Friedman for me! Thank you for the very good and honest review!

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! The Friedman is super cool🤘

@rogerYT69 7 ай бұрын

the only problem with the friedman is that the pedal is always engaged (no bypass mode as you mentioned) ...I use it with other amp pedals and the jhs switchback unit. so I can change between the friedman and the other amp pedals...

@markfeatherstone9365 Ай бұрын

Nice demo.. like the way you keep everything “dry”

@zigballiveguitar 8 ай бұрын

Awesome comparison. Both sounded great in their own capacity. IMO IRX sounds more open but lacks a bit of bottom end. I have the IRX and pretty happy with it.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! I agree, coulda been that particular IR or just needed some more bass

@josephestes7076 8 ай бұрын

What is the feel experience? Its tough to hear how it feels under the fingers. Sounds like the lion compresses a little more but maybe not in a way I want. Maybe IRX would behave more amp like with a volume / low gain OD boost going in?

@CatharticGuitar 7 ай бұрын

The Lion sounded so much fuller and present. The IRX sounded a little cheap in comparison.

@LuisHernandez-dy1rq 8 ай бұрын

I had both and kept the Lion . Both great though . The IRX I wasn’t able to use it with my Amps since they don’t have Effects Loop

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Awesome! That is definitely a downfall of the IR-X

@CatharticGuitar 7 ай бұрын

@@JordanSteeleyou mean downside. “Downfall” is a noun that means something that leads to the loss of one’s power or status.

@johannespatzig6218 8 ай бұрын

Great video! Can you use either one into the front of a clean combo amp? Or does that defeat the purpose?

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Possibly. Definitely would have to turn the speaker sim off. There more of a preamp ready to go into a power amp so the effects loop return would be preferable but maybe with some tweaking it would sound good in front of a clean amp. Not sure

@johannespatzig6218 8 ай бұрын

Thank you!

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

@@johannespatzig6218🤘

@rustatum2382 7 ай бұрын

I like the IR-X better here, but I'm now curious and want to hear the IR-X into a UAFX ox stomp

@gmantera Ай бұрын

It easy , Lion Win ! More dinamic and clarity sound

@Spooke.jones123 8 ай бұрын

Maybe this has been covered in the past but what model and color is that les Paul? It’s awesome.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thank you! It’s a 59 reissue washed cherry burst.

@jayl5941 8 ай бұрын

Nicely made video. The noise floor seems much higher on the Lion, also I agree with you on the missing 3-5k region on the Lion.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thank you! Apparently there’s something in the app that allows you to turn the noise down but I wasn’t aware at the time of shooting the video.

@jt5326 8 ай бұрын

Great vid. Lion sounds warm. I have and love the Friedman but now I want the Lion 😂

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Oh no. I’m sorry😂

@michielroom 8 ай бұрын

I have the Lion so I'm used to that sound, and I must say I much preferred the sound of the Lion over the Friedman in your video. One bad thing of the Lion I found is that I don't like the sound of my Big Muff Fuzz through it. Other overdrives, distortions, chorus and phaser are good, and I put my delay and reverb behind it.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Very cool! The Lion does a great job of capturing the Marshall sound. I honestly kinda wish the Friedman sounded more like the Lion but still with the analog tube preamp. There’s a slight scratchy sound to the Lion that I think if it had a tube would smooth out very nicely 🤘

@vinnyguerriero5150 7 ай бұрын

@@JordanSteelebut that “scratchy” is what a plexi does. I have both units and fractal axe iii turbo and Friedman smallbox and twin sister. All of them are great. Lots of overlap

@777strat 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for another great video Jordan! After owning several high-end digital amplifier types (Kemper, Helix, Quad Cortex, UA Dream '65, Ruby and Atomic Amplifire) I then found the Friedman IR-X...for me personally the tube-driven IR-X has a harmonic quality and dynamic feel the others are not capable of. Although all the aforementioned devices sound fantastic and certainly have their place I chose the IR-X for sound quality and feel;)

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! I definitely agree! I’ve tried many different amp modeler type products my favorite of the digital modelers being the fractal products. The IR-X for feel is completely unmatched. It reminds me of running a great tube amp into a loadbox like a captor x or something similar.

@777strat 8 ай бұрын

@@JordanSteele Great points made by comparing the IR-X to an amp and loadbox! I have a Bogner Goldfinger SL45 I run into an Ox Box and I'm able to dial the IR-X into similar tonal territory.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

@@777stratvery cool. I’ve heard great things about the ox box would love to try one, one day. But yeah the IR-X is like a $500 Friedman amp with a load box and IR loader all in one

@stephanewelti8816 8 ай бұрын

Strangers in the night, i love it!

@manuelrivas3569 8 ай бұрын

I love the UFO strangers in the night double album in the back ground. Michael in the man. B T W I really like your demo's 👌

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Haha thanks dude! Michael is my fave 🤘

@sgmarshall3 8 ай бұрын

Spotify has the expanded version with all of the shows they recorded. I lived in Columbus Ohio for 20 years, so I’m partial to that show. It’s too expensive to buy, but it sounds amazing on Spotify

@deans.4705 4 ай бұрын

why wouldn't you use the exact same IR for both pedals.

@5150show 5 ай бұрын

Lion ❤

@musicplaylists59 8 ай бұрын

haven't tried either but on all the videos i've seen with the lion that first cab setting sounds muffled and lacking in upper mids, maybe would be better to use the second cab setting to compare it to the IR-X?

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

It was difficult to find a similar sounding speaker to compare. The Lion has good speaker options but very limited. I like the second speaker on the Lion but I found it quite scooped in the mids and very bright. Overall in my opinion they both sound quite different

@larryb3946 7 ай бұрын

I bought both and I definitely agree with your review. The Lion doesn't pair well with other pedals, which is weird because the UAFX Ruby 63 pairs amazingly well with all pedals I've tried with it. Thank you for your review

@enricodedios3702 5 ай бұрын

I had a problem pairing my reverb and delay pedal to Lion. It doesn’t take well but my other OD pedal takes it well.

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

Couldn't agree more my friend Nice demo and playing Can you do some super clean samples and then add a drive on channel one? No one does that. I play alot of funk and disco too not just overdrive stuff

@DBroce 8 ай бұрын

The initial tone you got from the IR-X was the winner. Answered some questions for me. Cheers.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Awesome dude! Thanks for watching!

@AudioWonderland Күн бұрын

The tight switch does not work on channel 1. What is he doing?

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

Your conclusion is exactly my thoughts How about clean channel with pedals

@PainterDans 5 ай бұрын

Not sure about the IR-X, but the Lion is the best plexi pedal I've heard. I almost sent the lion back because the bluetooth connection sucks, sometimes wont even connect. But it sounds so good and the app is kind of a set it and forget thing for me, so I kept the Lion.

@supaherc 6 ай бұрын

Thanks for comparing these two

@thomasfokas 7 ай бұрын

Strangers In The Night is the best live album ever!!!!!!! I have both of these pedals and I’m just gonna keep them both just for the hell of it but I mainly still use my fractal FM3

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

The UA sounds like a guitar going direct into a PA from a pedal board the Friedman sounds like an amp to me Nice

@jasonkerr931 8 ай бұрын

The IR-X sounds spot on!!!

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

🤘

@Gentlemenrebel 5 ай бұрын

You’d be better comparing the lion with the new IR-D. It’s based on a modded jtm45

@adamswanson8216 7 ай бұрын

I have been interested in this and using the Friedman pedal or preamp I should say with my computer is one thing however, after watching this video, and the fact that I have just ordered, it excites me a little more because I knew there was a headphone out, but I had not considered the fact that I could also just put this straight through my amp. I didn’t have to go in the front, but actually it is a preamp man. Sometimes I can really be high lol. Either way Can go into the effect loop of my silver jubilee combo mini and definitely get some nice clean gains sounds and also this does have the vintage channel so certainly there is a lot there and plenty of tone shaping. I can’t imagine that you can’t get some good lead tones out of the plexi side. Thanks for the demo. 10:59

@bryanwilliams3665 Ай бұрын

Why didn't they give the option to 'switch off' the ir's so you can plug into an amp...as opposed to only front of house or DAW?

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

They do you just hold the channel button for a couple of seconds

@Jimgiannopolo Ай бұрын

Can you run the lion into the front of your amp

@brianmersmann76 8 ай бұрын

I have the Friedman IR-X. How can I hook it up as my main rig going into a half stack and a combo amp with a chorus and delay pedal hooked up to get that stereo effect utilizing all 3 amps. (All have rx send and receive) functions. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thats a great idea. You’d have to send out of the IR-X into a the chorus pedal. Then stereo out of that into the delay, stereo out of that into the return of each of your amps ! 🤘

@glennsteen4249 8 ай бұрын

Friedman IR-X sounds more full 👌 You should do a comparison between the IR-X and Bluguitar Amp1 Mercury Edition 😁

@LuisHernandez-dy1rq 8 ай бұрын

Have you seen the Lion video by Pete Thorn and the designer? It’s a Sweetwater video

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Oh no I haven’t. I’ll have to check that out🤘

@LuisHernandez-dy1rq 8 ай бұрын

@@JordanSteele kzbin.info/www/bejne/eXqcZmN3mL-giqssi=FPuUXE5ekRYUOQtZ

@foulmouthdixie 7 күн бұрын

I honestly don’t understand how anyone is going to prefer the Lion over the IR-X…. Especially if actually play them side by side…. The IR-X is an actual full voltage 12AX7 tube preamp, and it shows. I’ve had them all (Fractals, Helix, Headrush, etc.) and for amps I don’t think anything sounds as organic as the Friedman. I do also have an IR-D which if you are looking for actual vintage Marshall tones is really the ticket. I’ve been using the IR-X (and D) live for 9 months and I constantly get other musicians coming up to me at our breaks raving about my tone and asking where I hid the half-stack! And IMO, you are overblowing the whole “backup is easier with the Lion”…. If the pedal is your backup, you are probably using a regular tube amp as your primary rig. Things go awry, you simply connect the IR-X exactly as you use your amp head…. Effects loop and all! Can’t do that with the Lion…

@jimmcdougall9973 8 ай бұрын

As you correctly pointed out, the Friedman is being a Friedman tube amp. It’s not trying to be a Marshall or a Fender. So depends on what sound you’re after. It’s Friedman all the way imo, and it fits on a pedalboard well enough.

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Definitely! I really enjoy the Friedman sound, it maybe could be a little bit more tonally flexible but it’s great for me and has a great feel.

@tomcollins3649 6 ай бұрын

I’m sorry, you have the irx bright switch on all the time, which is making it sound thinner.

@peter-0200 7 ай бұрын

The IRX is the real deal but I’m struggling to find the tone I’m looking for. More tweaking required.

@JoseyStranded Ай бұрын

The Friedman sounded a bit like a distortion pedal whereas the UA sounded more like an amp.

@Mahdi_ddA 8 ай бұрын

Hi im mahdi this week i feel lonely and sad here in italy in my city jordan really this is the truth here in italy in my city they dont appreciate me and support me here Also the home where i live wuth my family are small and the People are so bad with me and my family here they laugh when i tell them i love USA and country music i Also when i tell my love of USA and nashville i hope to see you to be your friend and play guitar with you its my dream i love USA and country music i love USA when i was kid ❤❤❤❤

@matsandersson8857 5 ай бұрын

The Friedman IR-D is more like a Marshall than the IR-X.

@williamphillips24 28 күн бұрын

The lack of midi control on the UAD kills it for me, and too expensive just to have as a backup imo.

@ericchng6102 2 ай бұрын

There is a pair of 12ax7s in the Friedman

@charlesray-p1i 8 ай бұрын

the Lion sounds like theres a blanket over it? just something messing with the sound? friedman sounds more "3D". Good comparison

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

Thanks! I feel the same way. It’s subtle but definitely there. There’s a depth the the IR-Xs sound

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

Friedman ALL THE WAY

@johngraves2185 7 ай бұрын

IR-X all the way! It sounded like an amp to me, the Lion sounded cool, but also sterile. An actual preamp compared to a pedal, there is a difference. I think you can get great tones from both, but the feel/sound goes to IR-X. Cheers!

@Ahobkan 7 ай бұрын

Friedman IR-X !

@rw4273 8 ай бұрын

Friedman IR-X KILLS

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

🤘

@nevenlisica 8 ай бұрын

IR-X wins all the way. You can also turn it out from your signal chain if you use a loop footswitcher on your pedalboard. If the loop footswitcher also has midi, you win all the way😊 that way you can change channels, boost, etc. on IR-X with the footswitcher

@JordanSteele 8 ай бұрын

That’s great! The IR-X has some awesome possibilities 🤘

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

I hear digital highs on the UA

@jimmyoandrhondalee7431 16 күн бұрын

You're playing was better with the Friedman

@jamproject9 5 ай бұрын

Lion kills💪

@joejohnson8966 7 ай бұрын

11:00 agree

@ztevie.j 4 ай бұрын

A big disadvantage for the Lion is you can't use your own IR's in it... It's the same with the Ox Stomp. Don't know why they didn't give that option, every modeller these days allows for that.