Worldwide Exclusive: STL Colin Richardson

STL Tones just teamed up with legendary metal producer Colin Richardson & have created what might be the greatest metal amp sim pack ever. If you're in to Slipknot, Machine Head, Carcass or many others, this is definitely worth taking a look at.
For more info, visit www.stltones.com
Many thanks to Chris Clancy, Colin's partner for being a huge part of this!
Guitars by Luka Citadela Matković @citadela666
Drums by Jackson Ward @jacksonwarddrums
#carcass #machinehead #Trivium
Proudly sponsored by STL Tones
0:00 Colin Richardson Amp Premiere
0:25 Full Mix
1:10 We Live In Interesting Times
1:25 At The Desk
2:17 How The Tone's Constructed
2:34 Presets
4:25 Tweaking Presets
8:02 Interface Features
10:43 Guitar Playthrough
11:33 HM-2 Tone
12:17 Try It Yourself!
About Spectre Sound Studios:
I'm Glenn Fricker, engineer here at Spectre Sound Studios. I love making records, and after doing it for sixteen years, I want to pass on what I've learned. On my channel you can find tutorials on how to record guitar, bass, real drums and vocals. There's reviews and demos of tube amps, amp sims, drums, mics, preamps, outboard gear, Electric Guitar, Bass Guitar, and plugin effects.
We've covered Moon on the Water, played Bias FX, given you the absolute best in Stupid Musician Texts, ranted & raved about bass guitar, and this channel is where The Eagle has Landed.
Everything you've wanted to learn about recording Hard Rock & Heavy Metal can be found right here on this channel!
I also respond to your comments & questions: The best make it into the SMG Viewer's Comments series of videos. Loads of fun, lots of laughs.
Thanks for checking out my channel & please subscribe!

[@AnthonyBencomo]

Your recordings are getting better glen. And your musicians you’re choosing to demo in your videos are better choices with sharper skill. And your personally playing and tone choices are getting better. Amazing.

[@migrimtan2693]

Great video! If anyone's interested in the guitarist who's doing the demonstration, he's name is Luka Matkovic of the Serbian thrash metal band Quasarborn. Check the guys out. Truly worth the hear/watch. I hope you'll like them. Luka's the guitarist and the vocalist of the band.

[@SophiaAphrodite]

You had me at Carcass. One of the most underrated riff masters in the genre along with Prong. Labeling it pepper made me think of CoC actually.

[@ChadKirk]

I haven't played guitar in like 6 months. This makes me want to buy that plugin and play the shit out of it. Sounds great

[@gabopenav]

Your drums are sounding so good!! Ohh wow!! Given your approach to drums there must not be samples! I’m amazed!! Congrats Glenn! The whole demo mix sounds great!!!

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Ty

[@kadenlynch6646]

Wow, Glen, That is the best mix I've heard from you yet, and I have been watching the channel for over 5 years now.

[@joshbeer414]

Love the tones lately. Good stuff

[@TheMixClub]

Your Mixes have always been great.. But over the past year they are kickin some ass. The definition you have going on it killer..

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Thank you very much!

[@michaelrichardson8343]

Great video Glenn...I love these tones! STL and Neural DSP are trying to out do each other and WE are reaping the rewards.

[@buhimoth]

Colin is the GOAT, I knew this would be an instant buy as soon as STL announced it

[@denverrandy7143]

Awesome Riffs,Great Tones!!!

[@CrushingAxes]

I've been using STL Tonality, it sounds very cool, there is definitely something about this plugin, some sort of dept I can't find anywhere else, sounds really cool! Awesome mix!

[@denverrandy7143]

Thanks for the wake up vide my friend!!!Great stuff...damn Colin,Badaxx!!!🤘👍🔥

[@replicantwanderlust]

I had the exactly Same Harley Benton Amarok. Even the same color! Great guitar!)

[@olivierpeartnoy]

love the drum sound

[@darinjones209]

Ok I'm in that is an awesome vst! Trialing the ozone9 right now. As always top notch.

[@71goaliemask]

Impressive stuff - thinking about how long it can take to setup for a mic'd cab, if it's not one of a 'go-to' list one already has. This would be killer to quickly show clients a world class palette of sounds in a short space of time, that don't mean "well it'll sound a bit like this, but better, if we do it for 'real'". Great way to isolate a potential setup for oneself without having to plough through mics, cabs, amps. etc. Lastly a shoutout to the demo player - great riffage!

[@slogiranopile3860]

Vidje Citadele poznat postao

[@weareparkerful]

Holy crap this blows my mind! I just ordered it I’m not going to work for a week

[@resington]

That demo tune is a big STEP UP!

[@deafconmediaZA]

Wow! What a performance.

[@moof99]

the drums sound massive!

[@angermanagementstudios]

Sounds awesome. Defo helps when it’s being played by an absolute demon like this guy. Brilliant.

[@KevinFrasard]

This sounds INCREDIBLE, goddamn thanks Glen!!!

[@stevewelsh8560]

cool, that's what you get? an amp sim with a drummer, love it

[@jasongreen5360]

Glen, you keep telling me I don't need to buy a bunch of plugins, but keep showing me awesome plugins I want to buy! You're killin me here haha

[@BrianOboylemusic]

Sounds fantastic

[@JonoTheVoiceofAustralia]

So full and forward in the mix

[@alrecks619]

i'm a carcass boi, i see a mention of carcass, i instantly like.

[@MartinBellamyMBDrums]

That opening song was so tight!

[@seanmorgan9020]

Great mix man, those drums remind me of Symbolic era Death.

[@shredevil_13]

Full mix demo sounds dense and powerful...👍🤘👌

[@LimitlessPotential12]

would have loved to hear the Poisoned Valentine preset. That`s Bullet for my Valentine`s The Poison tone which I love

[@violenceisfun991]

Yes! The sound on that album has always been my favourite metal guitar tone

[@KaldDodeGitarist]

I can't wait for your video of the Frankencab

[@Admiral_Bongo]

Well, now this is convincing. They make a Scott Burns plugin - I'm buying it and trying my hardest to imagine I'm in Florida.

[@Sailor_Man_Music]

Beautiful, plug in it sounds great. Not my tone but I think it sounds amazing.

[@caileanhunt8679]

Wow that really does sound great!

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Thanks so much!

[@arturoestrada9441]

Gonna get it at some point, been looking to get close to that roadrunner records sound for so long

[@danimourinho]

Awesome

[@jakeseitz]

You need to break down that drum mix, that’s amazing

[@ScottFuckinRitchie]

SOUNDS BAD ASS!!!!!!!!GREAT GUITAR PLAYING!LOVE THE JACKSON KELLY!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@IMMANITYTHEBAND]

WOOOOOOOW 🤘😎🤘

[@jimmyquail1]

Nice!!! Glenn!!!

[@chrisrodriguez4981]

That was a really good mix

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Thanks, Chris!

[@edms3656]

I love that glen now embraces plugins.

[@georgeangelakopoulos8884]

AMAZING guitar player at the beginning!!!

[@citadelasoundproduction9412]

It's Luka of the band Quasarborn. :) Check out "A Pill Hard to Swallow"!

[@georgeangelakopoulos8884]

@@citadelasoundproduction9412 thanks!!!

[@Flagellator-wn2br]

Amazing run through, showing all the necessary differences, especially when the miking combination/cabinet changes. The voicing change is obvious, and I pretty much think those are Colin's go-to cabinet/miking combinations after building up his sonic palette throughout all these years. If I recall correct, the JVM series were released back in 2006 or 2007, so they didn't exist back then when Heartwork was being recorded. I think maybe he reached for the Marshall JVM since it's the most versatile thing Marshall had ever made since the 6100 30th Anniversary, and since it was a layer of the old 5150 mk1, JCM900 SL-X, 6100 and a 10 Watt Valvestate combo (for the extra fizz texture I guess), I certainly think that Colin might have chosen the JVM to create an "average" tone of all those amps being layered. I'm totally going to try using the cabinet of the "Halfworks" preset and do layers/blending with the different head presets (6505, JVM, and JCM800 maybe with a boost?) tweaked to taste! Might turn out to be something awesome and maybe pretty close!

[@Rokkbom]

I've been subscribed for years, and I've always loved your recordings, but it has never sounded as good as now. Keep up the good work and you'll be working with the big guys in no time.

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Ty!

[@eamonahern7495]

I shall make a note of that.

[@MetalTerrorist]

Them tones!!

[@krissmith2396]

cant wait

[@fernandoguerra6841]

I got i say, i got tonehub since like 1 year and half and nothing sounds like this ampsim, feel amazing and sounds great out the box, no IR searching, no 3 plugins, simply click and you have a great amp. Glenn check out the Mark lewis expansion, you will blow away.

[@shredenvain7]

The Marshall JVM is an extremely versatile amplifier. The 4 channels can give you dozens of great sounds.

[@notsure1135]

Tonehub is fantastic.

[@samivuori6669]

Nice!!! I have here Harley Benton 6 string with Floyd rose...But I just call it Glen. Really nice guitars with reasonable price. At least after Seymour Duncan: Invader upgrade!

[@blacksaltscotland]

Glen! Idea for the intro to gear demo's: use whatever plug in or amp you're demoing for the Eagle has landed guitars.

[@burningempire666]

Heartwork is worth it alone. The greatest sounding death metal album of all time.

[@transitoryrecords9045]

That song is fucking amazing bro!!!

[@OurWorldinChaos]

ok this is a bad ass amp plugin it sounds very tight very good. One question the Harley Benton your playing is that the amarock? beautiful guitar

[@bobmartino8073]

Bad ass!

[@SterlingJergens]

I know this is an ad but I'd like to see your take on the Otto Audio II II II II amp sim. recently picked it up and I don't know if I'll need to pick up another heavy amp sim VST at this point, it seems to cover a lot of ground with just the one VST.

[@intriguedviewer501]

Sounds great, worth moving from Gojiras amp sim?

[@SkywalkerDohmen]

Well, this might be a cool tool to check out. I've been trying to chase after the In Waves tone, especially after hearing what a nightmare it was to craft that tone while Trivium was making that record. I do already have a couple really solid amp sims, but I can't pretend that I can't justify having one more tool in the toolbox for killer sounds. Great review and Fuck You, Glenn!

[@noflooddamage154]

can you elaborate on the troubles faced with that tone? one of my favorite rhythm tones

[@SkywalkerDohmen]

@@noflooddamage154 At least from what I've read/heard from Matt Heafy himself and the Making of In Waves documentary. The main issue was the inability for Colin to find a satisfactory tone that actually recorded well (among 10+ amp heads with like 5 or amp cabs). This was when the band tracked drums at AudioHammer Studios (Eyal Levi and Jason Suecof's place). They ultimately moved studios to a place where they were FINALLY able to get the tone for that record that made the cut. You can actually find Matt talking about the making of documentary here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/fmipcohsgdSkoMU&ab_channel=MatthewkiichichaosHeafy

[@ElectromagneDikk]

Band in video at beginning fucking rocks!!!!!!!!!

[@LordofDiamondsMetal]

Yo Glenn, what's up with the slight delay/reverb on the guitar whenever you play it in a demo?

[@davetbassbos]

I love the Ignite Emissary, which I think is same guy, Not only sounds great but there's no noticeable latency when recording unlike some other amp sims on my wimpy PC..

[@FarBeyondMetalz]

Me: I have too much gear, maybe I should just focus on mastering what I have. STL: Want some Colin Richardson tones? Me: Yes absolutely

[@MikoHa]

It’s just sounds great but also some other plugs do, I’m trying to go back to the roots and back to record real amps and cabs after understanding that too much options can lead to time wasted and limited options sometimes need the time to just get the right sound but limit the options to start over and over by switching from plug to plug… I will definitely check this plug/pack, hopefully it’s the one that will make me remove all others and stay with this or real only. As usual - I really enjoy your videos (I did a binge watching of them last few days for 4-6 hours per day).

[@damonhinson4005]

Really cool to see someone using Reaper! Extremely underrated daw

[@guitarandgames1386]

Just got off work at a shit grocery store and saw this uploaded. Fuck yes time to relax before band practice!

[@The_Metal_Mechanic]

Hey Glenn, I'm having trouble getting a solid bass tone on Reaper. I like the sound I get using my Darkglass distortion into my Ampeg head and running the XLR into my Scarlett Solo, but I keep seeing people online making videos and talking about getting a great distortion tone with VSTs only. I can't seem to get a tone I like using their walkthroughs. Is it okay to use physical effects in the signal chain and then using EQ, Amp Sim, and Compressor in Reaper? The Submission Audio DoubleTap has been very helpful.

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Let's just say you're really going to like what's coming from Spectre Digital

[@yanossnicklefritz7064]

So many great amp sim plugins and modelers. So amazingly close to the actual amps without all the cons. Someone needs to keep using and buying real amps though to keep the industry alive and new amps to be modeled. Not me, but I'm glad you still have amps Glenn.

[@AnkothOfficial]

Hi Glenn. I know this is a bit off topic, but could you do a video on Quadruple Tracking Guitars? I honestly don't know how I can pull off such a huge sound that I'm trying to achieve, especially with just amp sims. I tried some quad tracking but my results were just a weird sound of the same riff playing over each other and not actually blending. I came on YT to see if anyone made a video on it, and the one I just watched suggests that I should "edit my guitars to a grid" which we both know that such a thing is how we get robotic and stale sounding metal. I wonder how you would appro6the issue, seeing as you seem to have mentioned the positive effect of good quad tracks in previous videos.

[@alexanderz8052]

Glenn: i've read the presonus pd70 being touted as the shure sm7b killer. This comes from guys doing podcasts. Do you think it might be true for extreme vocals as well? Would be even cheaper than a rode nt1a. On the other hand one could use the latter as a second mic for guitars as well I guess.

[@lazarpetrovic1241]

Luka one of the best Serbian musicans and producers !

[@bradzillarocks]

Colin Richardson is god-tier. This sounds pretty outstanding, not that I need another amp sim but ...

[@samhyans5403]

Looking good Glenn

[@vikingkombat9389]

Dude Rocking a Cort bass. Nice

[@jeremythornton433]

Very cool! So how feasible would it be to run this on a laptop for a live rig? I do know some players are doing something like that. Great show and thanks, Glenn!

[@ElCapitanGames]

The problem you’ll find. And what I found to be the case with kemper, axe fx, helix, pod 500. Everything PC related really. Is that you lose Ms off the attack. Taking away the feel of the amp on the end of the guitar.

[@JoRgHeaD666]

Hello glen, so with all these new technologies, the quality of the guitars, pickups, etc., is going to matter now?

[@WIMPY86]

Sepultura, Overkill, Napalm Death, Murderdolls LOL! There's some memories! But you got me with Uncle Meat.

[@frederickthorne2496]

Glenn can sell some plugins. Now I want this STL. goddamn that sounds badass

[@scottrance2818]

I would be curious to know if the Demanufacture tone is in this pack. It's awesome that Colin was gracious enough to put the Heartwork and Burn my eyes tone and a few others in this pack. But Dino's tone on Demanufacture would sell it for me. That tone still stands up to this day 30 years later as probably one of the most iconic metal guitar tones ever in my opinion.

[@offtherealm5438]

Question, What about Colin Richardson's EZMIX2 pack from Toontrack??? Made of Metal is the pack.

[@mattw.6726]

The JVM410H is an absolute monster and I love mine to death...though my (lack of) skills in no way justify my ownership of it. 😆 I'd love to see what you can do with it. A couple things to be aware of: OD1 and OD2 have different voicings and both will get as heavy as you want them to. OD1 has a higher frequency mid-focus for a more British sound, while OD2 has a lower frequency mid-focus for a more American sound. (My personal go-to is the OD1 orange channel.) Also, on the off chance you use the clean channel for anything, the clean green channel doesn't make use of the channel volume, only the channel gain; the master volume still affects it, though. Clean orange and clean read *do* make use of the channel volume. Lastly, the JVM tends to be a very "hissy" amp on the OD channels, so it's a good idea to use a gate with the 4-cable method to keep it under control.

[@guitarandgames1386]

Hey Glenn nice video! I have to ask have you ever heard the album Litany by Vader. It's fast as hell death metal and personally I think it's my favorite sound of all time. The kick drums sound like a tank busting through a building and the guitar is cutting yet compressed enough to make it sit perfectly. The bass is a bit tough to hear but it's amazing nonetheless!

[@wadealleman941]

Hi Glenn love mix and your education. The only thing I had a hard time hearing the bell ride in the recording. Maybe it is just me. Wade

[@Qemetiel]

"World Ender" = World Eater...finally, a Bolt Thrower preset. Sold.

[@SOHCGT96]

at 1:45 I know this video is supposed to be about the amp plugins but my first thought was "fuck that snare sounds good!"

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

:)

[@cederickforsberg5840]

Sounds fantastic as usual, BUUUUT... 0:59 should have had a spot mic on the ride cymbal, it's barely audiable at all!

[@PooNinja]

Hypnotoad approved

[@marijandesin8226]

Hi Glen Does the pack come with a bass tone to compliment the guitars?

[@BasedCringe]

What is the Tesseract Bass??? Been seeing that a couple of times and am super curious!!!

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

No idea what you’re talking about ;)

[@jasonverhoek4914]

I was definitely too excited myself. Because I didn't make it to the end of the video and was searching for it on the website for ten minutes.

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

It’s out on the 18th

[@jasonverhoek4914]

@@SpectreSoundStudios I came back and watched the rest. My own impatient fault!

[@joejohnson8966]

7:18 history

[@hedonisticpunkvatos]

Somehow I recently blew out 2 speakers on my Fender Stage 100 412 I've had for 20+ years. I think when a buddy dropped my cab because the magnet came loose on the top 2 speakers -____-* Anyway, using this opportunity to get some G12 Neo Cremebacks to go with the Celestion 12T 100s that come with it. It'll be in a diagonal config. I took inspiration from your tone vids. I use it for gigs in half stack with the Stage 100 head (loud and I love the tone!) and I pair this with 1x18 Peavey Black Widow cab (no tweeter) and I've really love the heavy tone. Thanks for your show, dig the sound from this plugin! Will def get the 5 day trial. Keep it up and Fuck You, Glenn! jaja!

[@AlexusDelphi]

Welp, I know what I'll be asking for for my birthday

[@nikolatomic5295]

I think you should consider referencing people you feature in your demos. You haven’t done it with the guys in the beginning of your video, so no one can look the dudes up. IG handle mentions in the video itself would’ve been cool, but maybe you should at least mention them in the video description. I’m sure it’s just an oversight. Cheers!

[@SpectreSoundStudios]

Just reached out to Luka for his IG

[@nikolatomic5295]

@@SpectreSoundStudios awesome, man! Thanks!

[@HankHopeless]

Glenn You very often talk about how the speaker and the cab really alters the tone. What happened to the knowledge, that a speaker has it's maximum efficiency at a very defined cab capacity. The cab has to be a certain size , a certain amount of liters, to get the most out of the speakers frequency response and amplitude. ( I think this is what the Roland microcube has done, to make a small speaker play really loud ? ) Whats the reason that this fact isn't more used ? Tradition ? Lack of knowledge ? It isn't practical in live settings ?

[@SlightlyNasty]

Because guitar cabinets aren't fullrange speakers aiming for efficiency - they're limited-bandwith tone shaping devices. The cabinet size and dimensions are chosen to tailor the desired frequency response by intentionally introducing nulls and resonances.

[@Emily_M81]

Me, having bought Bias Amp 2 Elite and FX 2 Elite in January and hearing this: well fuck. Let freedom ring with a shotgun blaaaaaast XD Positive Grid's tone matching did not work well for me at all. The nearly 30 year old DOD FX7 preset 23 is still pretty much the heaviest guitar sounds on the planet and I just couldn't capture it. But I digress... And dude, blending guitar tones like this is why I love bands with two guitarists using different amps, etc. It sounds amazing (Wasn't Rammstein even noted for this? I think I remember that). Thanks for sharing!