Recreating 5 Popular Metal Guitar Tones with SPARK (Positive Grid)

[@NikNocturnal]

*Get some JUICY tones*

[@felipemedrano5363]

No Metallica tones?, They are Great!

[@stephendavies6375]

Could you dial in a juicy djenty tone like Periphery, Born of Osiris and Within the Ruins, wth this amp?

[@dallashousecomedy8955]

I think I'm actually gonna pre order one. its a great Price

[@longshankdrills8799]

Hey brother , Great job !!! 👍🤘How about so *Testament* - "Dark Roots of the Earth" and/or "Born in a Rut" ... *Megadeth* "Rust in Peace" album ... And *Lamb of God* "Overlord" ... Any or All would be Sweet !!! Thanks & Merry Christmas !!! 🎄🎸🎼🤘🤘🤘🤙

[@longshankdrills8799]

@@aidanbouw5224 Hell yes brother !!! I'm with you on that too ... 🤘🎸🎼🤙

[@FreeTarded1]

You're definitely the only guy so far showing how to unlock those different metal tones.. which is what ALL the other reviews seem to leave out... thanks for this. Definitely leaning towards buying one now.

[@waynecribb4922]

Yes. I have one on order, should arrive @ 1st of Oct.

[@kazzTrismus]

@@waynecribb4922 hows the spark amp?

[@waynecribb4922]

@@kazzTrismus It is everything that the reviews say it is. I haven't used it as much as I want too. I've been very busy with work . Thankfully I have changed jobs and hope to use it more.

[@wingsoficarus1139]

They added an EQ so now you can basically turn any amp into anything you want. Literally use a high gain Vox-styled amp for my 8 string tones.

[@loredanamassini9484]

​@@wingsoficarus1139 isnt this EQUALS to bias FX?

[@mosh-riff]

You should do some covers with this in the future to show the capabilities of this thing in it's fullest capacity.

[@kingfisher7960]

I love the Spark40 man it sounds so good!

[@jmlepunk]

its*

[@mosh-riff]

@@jmlepunk Thanks for reminding me of a minor grammar mistake made by a cellphone using autocorrect on a one year old comment, I really appreciate it.

[@jmlepunk]

@@mosh-riff yeah man no worries

[@Nixeuss]

Yeah we need some covers !!

[@alejandroaaa]

0:52 Cream Theater 5:20 Parkway Drive 8:15 Behemoth 12:02 Avenged Sevenfold 15:52 Architects

[@davidgutierreziii3927]

Have you created any metal tones on the Spark since the update adding the EQ pedal? If so are they loaded up on the sound library? You are one of very few people I have found making quality metal tones on this platform.

[@le_toplo8058]

Nik doesn't use Axe Fx Wait, that's ilegal

[@geekymetalhead5112]

Davie: I'm calling the police

[@gibson2623]

He uses his fingers

[@davidlawson7786]

Sick tones Nik! Damn, I’m still waiting for my Spark to get to my door step, very realistic sounding tones and very usable as well. What a time to be playing guitar. Great video!

[@jacobaranda195]

I really hope there’s a part two of this, best video ever

[@surethebest]

I learned a lot from you describing the sounds and set it up. Best metal review for the spark on KZbin. Nice and tight playing as well! Cheers from Paris

[@ArcticPlaice]

I have a feeling he’s covering dark eternal night....

[@NikNocturnal]

Maybe...

[@chrisbarker8513]

Really wanting this thing! So much in such a small package

[@Georgie3408]

Good stuff man, appreciate the time put in on the video.

[@lNTERESTlNG]

Nails each tone of every band perfectly .....just as easily as can be ....then proceeds to play song riffs .... perfectly..... YEP. SELLING MY GUITAR FOR AN ASMR MIC

[@W6rstAsmr]

do it lol

[@Sierra-xi2ty]

How would you feel about revisiting the spark 40 now that it has EQ?

[@chriss9340]

A guy in his chair making it look so easy. I simultaneously, hate you and have a high amount of respect for you.

[@Krayton_Blaine]

Parkway Drive! 🤘 Glad to see them getting love still. Been a fan since 07/08.

[@tcobu]

1:33 into the video and my jaw already dropped.

[@forrestshrimp9716]

what song is he playing?

[@Billd0z3r]

@@forrestshrimp9716 Dream Theater- The Dark Eternal Night

[@everydaymichigan5725]

I like your honesty. Eq is a very important feature. It tweaks your tone were you can really dial in your feel to a sound your trying to achieve. It makes it your own. Good video 👍

[@frfoljek68]

No scooped mids 80’s tone (Metallica, Slayer)? *sad thrash noises*

[@demifiendrussia]

Slayer’s tone wasn’t scooped in a slightlest

[@mudfightmaster4275]

@@demifiendrussia alot of them is even boosted

[@brianschoeneck4384]

In the mid 90s I read a Kerry King interview where he said he doesn't scoop anything, he boosts mids and minimizes bass and treble. If you try it on a Boss MT-2 it should sound really close

[@SGP_TypeR]

Mine comes in this Saturday apparently, so pumped to get it! I love how your breaking down how to use the mods and the bands you chose was sick. Huge parkway drive and architects fan. Also avenged was some of the first music that got me interested in the metal scene. looking forward to a part 2 of this reaction...I’m a bit late to the show haha 🤘

[@sohamsengupta6470]

How many outtakes did you think he had to do because he said Mesa Boogie dual rectifier instead of treadplate?

[@odinswolf1969]

the latest patch for the spark added a eq pedal, really fixes the heavy bass tones

[@pimpustthugni]

I know it's an old review, but it does have an eq pedal in there. It's under the mod section. I don't know when they added it.

[@adamkahn8645]

btw .... THANK YOU FOR THE ARCHITECTS advice. It helps me get a good start on some ambient sounds!

[@adamkahn8645]

now of course, id love to hear you setup a rhythmn tone for them, considering playing in F# F# B E G# C# is a challenge when building a tone for it

[@3101max]

@@adamkahn8645 most important thing when going for architects rhythm tones is the fredman micing setup. use 2 impulses one on axis the other off axis and a mesa cab evh 5150 sim then youre good to go. thats for the all our gods sound at least

[@adamkahn8645]

@@3101max that would be the tone i was shooting to capture, but more specifically "A Match Made In Heaven" and "Doomsday" from Holy Hell. With their tuning being down in F#, I use my 27" scale Ibanez RG970XL 6 string, equipped with dual Lundgren Black Heaven pickups running into a Tube Screamer (for tone shaping, tightening the low freqs up) then into the amp. It took me quite a while to really dial in precisely the tone Tom used, so I was interested to see how close I got compared to a professional trying the same thing. I focused mainly on MMIH, because thats my favorite tone from them, and it works perfectly with Doomsday as well. I also tried the same setup but used Bareknuckle Aftermaths which sucked donkeys, and the same thing with the Dimarzio Titan (Jake Bowen's sig pickups). The Fishman Fluences nailed that shit perfectly, but I prefer the dynamics of passive pickups. Using your volume knob with active pickups just doesnt work right in my opinion, though the Fluence had the best dynamics of all the actives ive played, but not enough to swing me. I literally dont have to setup seperate presets for my lead and "crunchy" tone; i set my volume knob on the guitar at about 7-8/10, and setup my rhythm tone. When it comes time for leads, i just roll my volume all the way up.

[@3101max]

@@adamkahn8645 yeah pickups actually play a massive role when you want to "copy" tone. i use the juggernauts in a jackson juggernaut and its perfect. cant really seem to get the tone from holy hell tho as josh and nolly used kempers for that album so i dont really know what profiles they used.

[@richardjones2811]

Can't wait for these to finally arrive in the UK

[@adilO.o]

The EQ pedal recently added, has to my ears, transformed this app. While a lot people complain about the bass heavy aspect, I have always found that the issue was more the 400 HZ frequency. This frequency make the tone boxy and add some bark that just doesn't feel right. I took popular high gain presets and made a wide cute in the 400HZ. It's just night and day. By adding a bit of sweetness and punch with other frequencies I achieved tones that I believed were out of reach for the 4 inch speakers of this amp. Spectacular !!

[@Mizfit27]

Dude! Finally someone showing off getting different metal tones! Can you show how to get some band tones like BFMV, Escape the fate and Falling in reverse? All your vids are absolutely killer. I just bought this little amp for easy transport as well as the xvive transponders for wireless playing with my Schecter Tao-6. Loving it so far

[@bruciferjordan2067]

I just got one for Christmas,so I appreciate you for this Nik. Ty

[@erikolsen1333]

My mane killing it as always

[@burialofficial8913]

i honestly don’t know what a bunch of the amp shits mean like EQ and gate and shit i just play my little orange amp with like 3 pedals

[@TheBladepolisher]

Great video Nik ! ! Great tones ! !

[@BrettKingman]

Sounds great, Nik. Great demo. Thanks!

[@felipe_sousa97]

Basically, if you need a awesome metal tone, you'll need a Dual Rectifier simulator and a tube screamer style overdrive, lol, awesome tones, anyways :)

[@Metaldad87]

Behemoth tone "Nah too muffled" No that's perfect for a black metal tone 😂

[@richmit7154]

but not for Behemoth

[@Metaldad87]

@@richmit7154 true

[@Nixeuss]

Please my friend, what song does it play from Behemoth ?

[@awgeezslick8802]

You should take another look at these now that they have added an EQ pedal in the Mod section

[@gordo970]

Nik when will we see more Termina stuff released, its killer! I'm chomping at the bit for more

[@smaticus7747]

That face he makes when he gets the clean tone down 😂😎

[@joeturnip4216]

Thanks for exploring the Clean Sound useful for old guys working with Soft Jazz & Elevator Music.

[@petruccijr2270]

Day 16 of loving Nik. Take our love!! I see you with "the dark eternal night" my fav song

[@shredgod6394]

The only question I have is can you save tones and switch between them with some sort of pedal? If I can use this to play live I am sold.

[@richardgreenwoodjr5263]

I've had mine for about 2 weeks now. You can build, find via the cloud, and save presets for easy access. I have all my favorite tones stored in my METAL folder. You can switch between them with your phone or pad while you're playing (there is a slight latency though) - which is fine for playing around, but less than ideal for performing. I haven't heard of any sort of a foot-switch, but that would be amazing. For like $240 I think it's a great deal for practicing and laying down some demos, but guess you could use it as a preamp/effects loop for live playing maybe? Hope theres something helpful in there- have a good one \m/

[@dethklok107]

They got one now with the spark 2, I'm stoked to get a new amp finally

[@josephconti9655]

Just picked up bias fx2 ! Huge help ! Thankyou! Soo many options haha.

[@npx_riff_lift-g]

absolutely loved the Dream Theater tone!

[@D0Nmega666]

Thanks I have this pre-ordered and was waiting to hear some metal

[@professorfarnsworth6189]

me too, couldnt find any videos on it except theirs and it was all marketing fluff with no real sound clips

[@Grandpalovesmetal]

In the meantime it has EQ on board 🙂

[@maverickpanda]

Loving the color on that guitar bro!

[@NikNocturnal]

Thank you!

[@stormrising2623]

Sadly they changed it. It's called arctic dream. Now it basically looks black with purple and green hints. Was so pissed I returned mine.

[@robertjoot2540]

wow, great video thank you...I'm blown away on what this Amp can do So much fun

[@jakeatwell9224]

I just wanna hear how much volume this thing can actually push out. Most of these smaller amps just sound boxy as hell

[@butthole4185]

I honestly trust this dudes ear ahead of anyone on yt.

[@DabsnDeathcore]

Should totally remake this now that theres an EQ built in. 🤔🤔

[@andycpd6669]

You need to re do this video now they have eq pedals would love to see how your tones change and sound 😊

[@tprice5513]

I want to know if you can get Dimebag tuned into that thing.

[@geekymetalhead5112]

No Slav guitar tones? *Incoherent Soviet noises*

[@TheAndostro]

slav tone ok Behemoth :D

[@gregdjentyguy9986]

Serbians and Russians are different reeeeeeeeee

[@iAmGio91]

@@gregdjentyguy9986 both slavic roots

[@NikNocturnal]

Next time

[@dylancorbitt3457]

Nik Nocturnal we wanna see your top 10 riffs that inspired you to pick up a guitar

[@jacksonwagner8731]

Yo nik i notice you play the intro riff of the dark eternal night alot, you should totally cover that!

[@tinapavlogs3042]

Can we hear about the record software result on this amp

[@gabrielbruno9826]

Sounds great cant wait to try mine out....if i ever get it...maybe by next spring.

[@KondorXT]

It's been a while since we've seen the Majesty

[@NikNocturnal]

I don't use Drop A or B Standard very often is all, so can't bring it out often

[@BirdieInTexas]

got it pre-ordered because of this video! thank you!

[@richardyoung5405]

Thanks for a most useful and informative video.

[@joehervey84]

Dope,I've been bringing up doing another how to create a certain guitar tone. ..more metal!🎸

[@NikNocturnal]

Metaalllllll!

[@joehervey84]

@@NikNocturnal More metal!🎸

[@smaturock]

That "Black Ops" pedal used in the "Behemoth" sound is a ProCo RAT.

[@loredanamassini9484]

Where u capturing the real amp whit a mic?

[@drtysrgn]

Can’t wait to try mine out.. please come already!!!

[@fbisurveillancevan7479]

Good review dude

[@Bassqueen13]

It does have an EQ. dbl tap modulator... I think that's where it is

[@davecooper360]

Thats my main complaint about the Spark! No EQ!!! it would make it SO much easier to perfect the sound of there was a global EQ on there. They say they have no plans to have that so we all need to encourage them to!

[@Virtual-Media]

What benefit does spark offer for those who purchased all Bias software?

[@kristopherthomas7166]

Ship it already....

[@johnivanp]

Right I’m beginning to get impatient now

[@chriss9340]

ordered mine last week....I have an eternity to wait... mid Jun-Jul ship I'm gonna go bananas waiting for it

[@juanmanuelcorrea7673]

@@chriss9340 there are people who bought it on November and still havent received it. I wouldn't even hope to receive it by 2020 if I bought last week.

[@chriss9340]

@@juanmanuelcorrea7673 bummer man delivers

[@juanmanuelcorrea7673]

@@chriss9340 It is a bummer. I really wanted this amp. I might get it when they're widely available, and if it hits Amazon. For now I'm thinking about buying the Boss katana 50.

[@clarkbabin9799]

Just got mine on the 31st and so far I'm quite impressed. I've tried solid state and digital maps before and either there was to much garbage coming out or the tones lack fullness and sustain. This Spark amp does everything a great tune combo and high end stomp boxes can and more. The only thing that I've tried that comes close is a mustang IV and that is lagging except on the side of volume.

[@unholydudetx]

Does it sound good playing metal?

[@clarkbabin9799]

Hell to the yes it sure does. Don't think anybody will be disappointed with the amp.

[@bostonbesteats364]

They do have EQ now.

[@bruceniblett959]

I love mine. Some people say it too bassy but I think a speaker stand would solve that. Also recorded it sounds excellent. If you wanna hear how it sounds like but don't have a stand try using headphones and it doesn't sound dark or too bassy.

[@journeytree]

If I wanted to use headphones, I'd use Guitar Rig and get better tones.

[@MartinBrissonStudio]

its me or that parkway drive tone sounded more like a bullet for my valentine tone xD

[@nickm.9474]

The Northman Riff It’s all the same really. Isn’t it?

[@courtney2809100]

Nice video,have u tried the spark 2 yet?Love ur black musicman guitar...dont seem to see them available anymore.

[@donpritt5160]

Whats the Dream Theater riff at the beginning? 2:08ish.

[@chrisritchie8335]

Don Pritt Dark Eternal Night

[@nikos1992p]

I did not expect that Dark Eternal Night riff! Tasty af!

[@Metaldad87]

You do the same thing I do when setting up a tone the hammer on pull off after changing some settings to see how it sounds.

[@bestboy897]

thats a sick demo

[@matthewlacey8030]

how is the sound at low volume I heard it supposed to be loud enough to practice with a drum kit but does the tone hold at low volume or does it get that "fizzy" sound when you turn it down??

[@andrewburke6707]

It seems they’ve really simplified the app. I downloaded it to see what it could do before I buy the amp. As far as I can tell you can’t move modulation delay or reverb before the amp. Can’t add a second boost or drive pedal. I feel like that really limits the capabilities of this thing. I think I’ll be passing on this one after being pretty stoked for it

[@Madchris8828]

Just got the spark not long ago, this is useful to have. Thanks man. Also as a noob to guitar 🎸 some of these tones kinda sound the same to me, lol I'm sure I'll hear it better the more I get into it.

[@landzcorro3819]

dude, awesome video. very helpful! can you please do how to get the Issues tone. Many would love that

[@user-rj8ob6py1l]

As soon as i saw Nik try to do A7X i was like ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh boiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

[@jeffleecust]

I may be wrong but you are using some type of record out, not the actual speakers on the amp. I understand why but I can’t find any spark videos where they let you know what the amp actually sounds like. Either professionally mic’d with a mic worth 4 times as much as the amp or direct out recording.

[@ganole24]

I was hoping to hear John Petrucci's own amp model on the Dream Theater tone lol. I can't find any videos that play through the JP Mark IIC plus and that's the one model I'm interested in. Great sounding amp though

[@vaughnblaylock6069]

"That's metalcore..." What did you just say to me?

[@SageCorneliusMusic]

Really disappointed that this doesn’t work with Bias FX 2 :(

[@onemancarnage]

No eq ? How about stereo rigs ? Mic placement ? Cab sims ? I'm just curious if this is even worth getting ?

[@ericvalverderosado2046]

Of Mice and Men for the next please, I’m kinda impressed with this amp, I was thinking it was a joke but I can end up throwing my Katana and buying this to play at home and just plug the fuck out of my iPad into the college's PA

[@tyrp7309]

You picked some decent bands. Happy every time the names popped up

[@BobShanky]

Can't wait for mine to arrive!

[@juanmanuelcorrea7673]

Did you ever get it?

[@devmunz4003]

Thanks for this video. Is that the sound in the room?

[@staywasted6876]

It would be fuckin marvellous if this dude tuned his guitar.

[@louaguado995]

Why would you not use the Mesa Petrucci amp for D.T. tones? 🤷‍♂️

[@hubi373]

Thx for showing how you approach the sounds. Have you uploaded those to the tone cloud and if so, how do I find them?

[@fpsLyle]

Do they have community presets like Bias FX? I'm only a couple years into my guitar journey and ALL my time is focused on technique and theory, have not invested much time into chasing tone or replicating bands and the community presets for Bias FX are a life saver when trying to record covers or find specific replications.

[@markjohnson9306]

Bro, how about a gate for that SM57. The ambient pick noise is at best, irritating.

[@jedigarrett142]

Older brother let me mess with it and it sounds dope

[@adamkahn8645]

loved the Parkway Drive tone you built, but i dont understand why you talked about scooped mids? The tone didnt sound very scooped to me, and thats generally my all-the-time tone in tunings from G#-B, just with a bit less gain. I never understood the "scooped mids" movement, Ive always been a mid "pusher"

[@DragonsGemstone]

You are correct in saying you don't understand.

[@adamkahn8645]

@@DragonsGemstone thanks for such valuable feedback. now back to your mother's basement

[@DragonsGemstone]

@@adamkahn8645 ok joker

[@Physio_kai-frederic]

Thanks for the video! What about the people who just bought the current BiasFX 2 mobile software? now you would have to make a comparison to the Line6 Spider MK 5 60. This raises the question of which one is actually ahead

[@Death_metal_Dibby]

You should do this style of video but with the axe fx

[@chatter7653]

Also, the question must be ask with your Fractal Audio unit peeking out thruout the video...Comparable in sound and feel?