Boss ME-90 review

[rpjazzguitar]

Boss ME-90 review.

I’ve had the ME-50, ME-70 and ME-80. The 50 was a very cool unit. The 70 probably wasn’t really a significant upgrade, although there were some differences. The 80 added four footswitches which was probably less of a big deal than it seemed at first. The 80 is a couple of inches wider, which is why I still use the 70 when I’m traveling light – it fits in an ordinary rolling briefcase, which the 80 does not. To my ear the 70 and 80 sound pretty much alike with equivalent settings. All three are solidly built and never game me any trouble.

But, let me be clear. All three of them sounded good to me, for the features I used, which did not include the preamps or the EQ (both of which always sounded a little “off” to me). I used reverb, harmonist at zero, octave-down, tuner, delay, tuner and volume pedal.
The ME-90 seems to sound a little better, consistent with the reports that it’s a better technology generating the sounds. The EQ sounds good.

After a bit of fiddling I got my four sounds.

Clean with reverb

Octave down added in, but not too much

Distortion

Wet (harmonist on zero, a little delay, spring reverb).

I didn’t fall in love with any of the preamps, but they might have had a few better options than the 80. EDIT: Eventually, I found that I got a warmer, less harsh, sound with the Twin Reverb preamp model, used with the Line setting on the switch, which, apparently, kicks in a cabinet model (non-selectable by the user) matched to the preamp.

I didn’t need the separate EQ module, but it sounds good enough to use as needed for a given room.

I then installed three user IRs. The 90 comes with four slots, one already filled – that one is described as being coordinated with your choice of preamp.

IRs are a world of their own which I had managed not to discover until now. I found many IRs for free on line and picked them because they alluded to tubes in the names. I didn’t find a dramatic improvement from any of them, but maybe I need to keep trying.

The 90 has a line/amp switch on the back. The manual says to set it to Amp if you’re plugging into a guitar amp and otherwise set it to Line. This implies that the Line setting has some modeling built in, probably cab modeling. The 80 did too, supposedly. If you put a dummy 1/8” plug into the headphone out, some cab modeling would be engaged. Didn’t sound much different to me.

Anyway, I plugged the 90 into the EV Everse 8. The Everse 8 has a bunch of options. I was using some bass roll-off with the 7 band and a little reverb (#2 on the list).

The rig sounded great.

I feel that I have managed to duplicate the sound of a good guitar amp for a mere three times the usual price.

Now into some of the installation weeds. Back when software came on CD, a good product installed itself. You put the CD in, autorun took over, you followed the directions (usually signing away your privacy or other rights) and then the software worked.

The ME90 doesn’t come with a manual. You have to d/l the start up guide, reference manual, parameter list and I may be forgetting one.There is an internet address. There’s a QR code, but I wasn’t sure how to use it with my computer.

You have to install a driver, a system program, then the Tonestudio software and then the IR loader. You have to do the driver and system program first. You have to d/l some of this to the ME-90 itself, with the usual warnings about not interrupting power so you don’t brick the device.

The links to some of these things are less obvious than they should be. For example, the text twice refers to a link which is not obvious. The link turns out to be at the bottom of a long scroll down. No mention of that where you first encounter the instruction to use the link.

There’s an instruction to copy “all” of the files in a certain folder, but there are only two. That’s “both” not “all”. And, it would be nice to name them to give the user some confidence that things were going according to plan.

So, there’s some unnecessary confusion.

To Boss’ credit, once underway, it all worked.

Now, for a little about ease of use. The ME-50 was pretty much a group of FX boxes with the ability to save a patch. I used the 70 and 80 more or less the same way. But, for the 90, I decided to use Boss Tone Studio and investigate all the options. There are some features which are only available using the Boss Tone Studio.

To get a sound you probably need to go through the following steps.

1. Decide on the position of the Line/Amp switch.

2. From Tonestudio (BTS) select the kind of amp you're plugged into. I guess it doesn't do anything if the switch is set to Line, but I'll have to double check that. There are a dozen or so choices.

3. If you use a preamp it does something to modeling of the cabinet; apparently that is preprogrammed.

4. You have to figure out what is saved to a patch and what is saved globally. I imagined that the extra preamp, for example, that you can sub into position 11 on the switch would be remembered, so any time you use that switch, position 11 is the new preamp. Apparently not. You can save it to a patch, but later if you try to add it say to some other patch, it won't be there. Or so it seemed.

5. If you use a preamp, as in the past, you have 5 knobs to set: gain, 3 band EQ and level. And, you'll have to adjust the level so that switching patches isn't jarring. And there are, I guess, 16 preamps. So, it takes a while to figure out what you're going to like best.

So, the unit gives you a lot of options. It makes me miss my old Reverberocket with just a couple of knobs.

And, I'm using it with the Everse 8 which also has a multitude of options.

So, I heard a little harshness in my chords -- I barely know where to begin. EQ? Preamp gain? Needs better Cab modeling? Should I switch to Amp and start over? Might it be due to the fact I'm using a powered speaker for a guitar amp's job? Features look great in the store. Simplicity looks great on the bandstand.

Want to adjust volume? Two volume knobs on the guitar. The ME90 has output volume, expression pedal volume, and level controls for every module. That's a minimum of two volume controls and, for what I'm doing at least two more, gain and level on the preamps. Then, in the Everse 8 there is channel and master volume. I've lost count.

Tone controls? Two on the guitar, at least 3 on the ME90 (within the preamp) and more with various modules, depending on your settings. Either two or three separate multiband EQs on the Everse.

So, you need to have this all organized before the gig, including your protocol for volume adjustments. Heaven help you if you flip the pickup selector switch without realizing it. You'll end up adjusting a zillion parameters trying to get your sound back and when you finally figure out it was the pickup selector, your rig will need a factory reset. I exaggerate a little, but don't ask me how I know this.

[Cunamara]

One of the issues with the ME-80 was that it didn't have enough output to properly drive a powered speaker that was expecting line input. Maybe that's not an issue with your current speaker. How is the ME-90 in this regard?

[rpjazzguitar]

One of the issues with the ME-80 was that it didn't have enough output to properly drive a powered speaker that was expecting line input. Maybe that's not an issue with your current speaker. How is the ME-90 in this regard?

The output level spec is the same for the 80 and 90, at -10dbu iirc. I would expect the same problem. And, that problem was, set to line, the powered speaker wouldn't go loud enough -- because the input was too weak to begin with.

It may be useful to clarify that this refers to pro line level +4db(something).

Set to Mic, it would be plenty loud enough, but the bass frequencies would bloom. It might be worth trying to crank down the output level of the ME80/90 to mic level (a twist of the knob) and see if the problem goes away, but I think I tried that and it didn't work.

I'm not sure why the mic setting won't work, but it may be due to an impedance mismatch. This problem can definitely be solved by going into a mixer in front of the powered speaker.

A DI might do it, but I'm not sure about that. In that case, it would be low ME output into DI into powered speaker Mic setting. I don't have a DI so I can't test it.

My original post on this was about the Mackie SRM350, original version. The current version apparently does not have this problem. I also have tested the ME80 with a Bose S1 and an EV Everse 8, neither of which have the problem. Also, the ME90 drives the EV just fine

[rpjazzguitar]

Gigged with the ME90 into a Bose S1 powered speaker.

I spent the afternoon with the rig set up in my practice room, tweaking patches.

Everything sounded good and I had the volumes of the 4 patches I use pretty even.

On the gig, it all changed. I still don't know exactly why. Some patches weren't loud enough, others were too loud. Some had bass frequencies blooming, others (or maybe some of the same ones) had treble so icepicky that the tones were embarrassing. I had to redo them on the fly. I succeeded in getting two tones to work. My original clean tone used a preamp, but I had to turn it off because it didn't sound good. My wet tone was too trebly. I ended up reducing the treble with the Bose S1's two band EQ. I liked the power of the Bose, which comes with the downside of edging into playing too loud.

So, when I got home I redid the patches and I'll try it again tomorrow in an octet.

It may be that on the gig the volumes I set up in the practice room didn't work and then adjusting the volume changes the tone. And then you have to adjust tone -- and there are too many ways to do that.

[garybaldy]

My ME8 from 1996 is still going strong. Analogue distortions, no amp models, no interface and straight into a Musicman 65RP.

[Jx30510]

I bought the ME90 and sent it back after a week of hassle (at the least) trying to get a good sound out of it, directly plugged in my tube amp.
I tried about everything possible, with the preamps, output configuration, different cabs, no cabs, the settings (12 or so) that are supposed to match your amp (1x 10, 1x12, Katana, and whatever..)
The sound was a nightmare, huge volume bumps between the presets, only 3 very simple Reverbs, overly harsh drives and preamps, very digital sounding modulations.
I liked the form factor and the overall user freindly "philosophy" .. the delays and volume pedal.
The rest was for me just inusable.
And that was quite a deception.

[rpjazzguitar]

I bought the ME90 and sent it back after a week of hassle (at the least) trying to get a good sound out of it, directly plugged in my tube amp.
I tried about everything possible, with the preamps, output configuration, different cabs, no cabs, the settings (12 or so) that are supposed to match your amp (1x 10, 1x12, Katana, and whatever..)
The sound was a nightmare, huge volume bumps between the presets, only 3 very simple Reverbs, overly harsh drives and preamps, very digital sounding modulations.
I liked the form factor and the overall user freindly "philosophy" .. the delays and volume pedal.
The rest was for me just inusable.
And that was quite a deception.

I get this. My experience is moving along similar lines. So far, I've been able to get one preamp to sound decent in the practice room, but not the gig. I had to turn it off. I'm going into a powered speaker so none of the amp choices are relevant (with the switch set to Line, they're all gray-ed out).

Without a preamp model engaged and with the switch set to line, I haven't figured out what, if anything is being modeled. If it's in the manual, I haven't found it. Somewhere there's an IR, but it doesn't seem to show up in the BTS app. I loaded in three free IRs and they all sound the same, so maybe they're not even in the signal chain. Stated another way, if I'm going into a powered speaker and I want cab modeling, must I use a preamp? -- because I don't like any of them.

EDIT: I have now read, and it makes sense, that the Line setting includes cabinet modeling. I don't know it it's the IR or if it is separate from the IR. It might be worth noting that you can, apparently, bypass everything but the volume pedal by activating the tuner with the system setting that allows you to hear it as you tune. I tested this onn the ME50 years ago -- true bypass and the tuner-activated setting sounded about teh same. Not exact but very close.

ADDITIONAL EDIT: I tested it. The IRs are only in the signal chain if a preamp is engaged. So, the approach is this. Boss wants you to have a preamp in the system at all times. So, if you set the switch to line, like you're going into a PA, it figures that you will need a preamp and cab modeling. It has them connected. You can't have the cab modeling without using a preamp. And, you can't use a preamp without having to pick a cab modeling option (note: some say that it is possible to point to a null IR or empty slot). If you turn the preamp off, you don't get any cab modeling options. I have read that there's one in there anyway, but I'm now thinking that's not true.

I never had any trouble getting the patch volumes about equal with the ME80, but with the ME90 it seemed more challenging. I don't now why and I no longer have the ME80 to test it (traded it in)

For example, a patch using the Harmonist does not have adjustable volume associated with the effect. So, if it's louder than your other patches, what do you do? I found that the EQ module sounds pretty good and has a level control. So, I had to add the EQ in, being very careful to set the three bands to neutral (even a slight rotation of the knob is audible) and adjust the volume with the EQ module's level control.

Now, you're on a gig and for some reason (not a hypothetical, happened last night) that patch is too loud. The number of volume controls in the signal chain is hard to even count, and you have to remember to hit Edit, select the Level control in the EQ module and be very careful not to touch anything else -- bending down in the dark.

So, I agree about the preamps. The reverb choices are limited and the parameters aren't adjustable, but, fortunately, I like the Spring Reverb at about 23 just fine. I'm using the harmonist for two patches and it sounds okay. I wanted one rock distortion sound. I'm doing it with a preamp and OD combination and I'm still not happy.

In theory, the ME-90 should allow you to plug right into a PA and get a great guitar sound. In practice, it hasn't been easy.

[starjasmine]

It may be that on the gig the volumes I set up in the practice room didn't work and then adjusting the volume changes the tone.

I was pretty interested in getting an ME90 till I heard this. I've run into this with other multi-fx units, tho. The difference between "gig volume" and "practice room volume" can make it difficult to dial in consistent volume levels between patches.

I always use a volume pedal anyway - as moving the pickup volume control can alter the tone of the guitar itself, and the pedal allows me to change volume without taking my hands away from the strings. I'll also use it for fades and swells on occasion, a very old-school analog trick. And it's a pretty foolproof way to plug and unplug the guitar without causing speaker damage. I'm pretty sure the ME90 has a built in vol pedal, but IDK whether it's suitable for this use. Adding another gadget to the signal chain defeats your simplicity/weight constraints, but you could consider putting an analog vol pedal inline in the fx loop of the ME90 or between the ME90 and the line in on your powered speaker. That would be one way to enable easy, hands-free, on-the-fly adjustments to volume at the gig without entering a possibly endless loop of preset tweaking ... i.e. your gig presets are unusable at home and your home presets are unusable at the gig so you adjust... endlessly!

Could you create one set of patches that is optimized for practice and another that is optimized for stage volume?

Parting shot: I've found that a good six months of "new gear hell" is not uncommon. Hang in there!

[rpjazzguitar]

I was pretty interested in getting an ME90 till I heard this. I've run into this with other multi-fx units, tho. The difference between "gig volume" and "practice room volume" can make it difficult to dial in consistent volume levels between patches.

I always use a volume pedal anyway - as moving the pickup volume control can alter the tone of the guitar itself, and the pedal allows me to change volume without taking my hands away from the strings. I'll also use it for fades and swells on occasion, a very old-school analog trick. And it's a pretty foolproof way to plug and unplug the guitar without causing speaker damage. I'm pretty sure the ME90 has a built in vol pedal, but IDK whether it's suitable for this use. Adding another gadget to the signal chain defeats your simplicity/weight constraints, but you could consider putting an analog vol pedal inline in the fx loop of the ME90 or between the ME90 and the line in on your powered speaker. That would be one way to enable easy, hands-free, on-the-fly adjustments to volume at the gig without entering a possibly endless loop of preset tweaking ... i.e. your gig presets are unusable at home and your home presets are unusable at the gig so you adjust... endlessly!

Could you create one set of patches that is optimized for practice and another that is optimized for stage volume?

Parting shot: I've found that a good six months of "new gear hell" is not uncommon. Hang in there!

I appreciate the encouragement. I almost always play with my foot on a volume pedal. The ME series all have a good one. With the ME90 there were some moments when I thought the volume change was not smooth enough (meaning, a small movement makes too a big a volume change at one point in the pedal's travel). But, mostly, it seemed okay. I use it for all the reasons you mentioned.

But it's not great to have the patches at different volumes. It changes how you have to use the sweep of the volume pedal and feels awkward. I worked on taming them today, but when I went to my septet session today, I took the ME70 instead.

[Jx30510]

Yes there is a volume pedal on the ME90. What I really like about the ME90 was the Freeze function (that made use of the volume pedal in a sort of way, don't remember exactly), combined to the looper and the volume pedal (for swells)
That was real fun, and was the main reason it took me a bit more time to decide to return it.
At one point I found it may have been worth the price of admission just for that.
But the preamp models where such a hassle to dial in, the strangely impossible volume management and overall digital feel of the effects ( I really didn't like the Vibe and chorus, which are the ones I'm the most interested in since I already have a Strymon El Capistan for delays) just annoyed me to much.
The reviews are all over the map.
I think the guys who like it are the ones that use it at home plugged in a soundcard, or Full Range speaker..

[Doctor Jeff]

Not to detract from your story, but you guys might as well have been speaking Greek to me. In fact, I studied some Greek in high school, along with Latin, and it makes more sense to me than the modeling lingo.

IR? I had to look that up. In my world it’s Interventional Radiology. You know, to have a tube put somewhere in one of your body cavities.

I appreciate your writing up your experience with this, but it’s convincing me to stick with a simple amp.

Like my Epi Valve Jr. One knob, set at 10 PM for optimal tone and clarity.



Anyway, as you were.

[rpjazzguitar]

Not to detract from your story, but you guys might as well have been speaking Greek to me. In fact, I studied some Greek in high school, along with Latin, and it makes more sense to me than the modeling lingo.

IR? I had to look that up. In my world it’s Interventional Radiology. You know, to have a tube put somewhere in one of your body cavities.

I appreciate your writing up your experience with this, but it’s convincing me to stick with a simple amp.

Like my Epi Valve Jr. One knob, set at 10 PM for optimal tone and clarity.


Anyway, as you were.

You might think, because of my voluntary dive down this rabbit hole, that I would have a negative thought about the straight-to-a-conventional-amp approach. Not at all. I feel like I'm trying to achieve more or less the same thing, but at a multiple of the price. If it were to work, I might end up with a small, lightweight, great sounding, loud-as-I'll-ever-need and very flexible unit. And, it would stop me from frittering away all that money on foolishness.

But,if present trends continue, I might have an expensive set of knobs, menus and apps that sound good twice a year and I can't predict which day.

[Jx30510]

Well that's also my feeling.
I got interested in this tecnology very recently, because looking for a new amp, I asked myself, why not try ?
No more drives, nor pedals, or câbles.. just one in all solution, simple, and maybe some fun with new sounds and experimentation.
I've been a big fan of synths, samplers, grooveboxes, quite complex electronic music setups, for 20 years.. So I know a bit about music and technology..
But what I found out is that digital doesn't, for me, fit with a guitar at all.
I just find it sounds crap, and totaly kills the guitars soul..
While I love tweaking an analog filter on a sampler or synth, and think it sounds like heaven..for my guitar, I just prefer a tube amp, with a little delay, and that's my sound of heaven. Keep it simple it works.
If I want some digital sounds, might as well light up my electronic rig, sample a chord or riff, and squeeze the thing to crazyness.

[rpjazzguitar]

My interest in this approach was spurred by something that was probably illogical to begin with. There seemed to be universal praise for the Bud/Blu, but having hated my ZT Lunchbox, I couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money on a 6.5" speaker. (I've already changed my mind on that). Then, I heard that the Bud/Blu was good for voice. I figured to be good for voice, it's gotta be sort of flat in the range of voice, at least, which happens to be almost exactly the range of a guitar.

And, I found that I could buy a lightweight, high quality powered speaker that I could also use as a PA for smaller venues.

I started with the Bose S1. I struggled with the 2 band EQ. So, I got an EV Everse 8, which has 7 band, but it sounded harsh and I couldn't dial that out.

I was using an ME80 which didn't have significant cab modeling, but I read that the ME90 was set up to be used with a powered speaker, among other options.

Side note: Both the Bose and EV were fine with the output voltage of the ME series, which the older Mackie SRM350 was not, but the newer Mackie works with that level of voltage, from what I've heard.

So, continuing to dig deeper, I bought the ME90. I've had every model in the ME series. I have liked the simplicity. It has been like a bunch of stomp boxes with the ability to save a patch. Almost every adjustment is just turning a knob. Getting cab modeling on the ME80 required plugging a dummy 1/8" jack into the headphone socket. I could barely hear any difference so I didn't bother with it. Maybe that's because I wasn't using a preamp - because I didn't like any of them.

The ME90 breaks that mold to a degree. There are now features which can only be accessed by the BTS app. And, at the end of the signal chain, there are some output modeling options which are a little tricky. A lot of a 77 page thread on TGP is devoted to sorting this out.

But, for a jazz guitar forum, it gets simpler. To get a jazz tone through a powered speaker, you're likely to want some kind of output modeling.

So, you set the Line/Amp switch (a physical slide switch on the unit) to Line. That engages some of the output modeling (an IR, either one Boss supplies, or one of three slots that you can fill with a third party IR), but only if you have selected a preamp model. If you don't select a preamp model, you don't get the IR.

(Side note: if you set that switch to Amp, there's a long story which I'm not going to tell in this post).

On the ME90, there are 11 preamps available on the selector knob and several more you can install from the app. That is, you can install one of them in slot #11, which was previously Rectifier. One of the selectable preamps is "Transparent". The manual says it's flat and full range. It takes the place of #11 and you can save the patch. But, if you switch patches and try to edit, the unit will return to Rectifier. So, you didn't permanently swap it in.

The preamp comes with 5 knobs, 4 of which you want. Three band EQ and a level control. The last one is Gain. I'm trying to get a perfectly clean sound, but there's no way to bypass the Gain knob. So, I picked a setting that didn't sound objectionable.

At that point, the rig (Comins GCS-1>ME90>Bose S1) sounded pretty good. And, it can go as loud as I'll ever want to play, although getting that level of output may require tweaking of the level controls inside the patches. I'll find out in big band tonight.

EDIT: I got all the patches they way I wanted, sounding good in the practice room and then went to the big band rehearsal. 17 pc. I turned up for comping and the bass frequencies started blooming. I had to edit the patches to reduce bass in the preamp module and still couldn't get comfortable with the sound. So, at the moment, I'm thinking of giving up on this approach to amplification. In effect, too many moving parts to make on-the-gig adjustments easy enough.

And, I had a singer sit in at my Friday restaurant gig and the Bose S1 sounded terrific through a mic I found in a pile of stuff on a curb marked Free. (daily walks are good for you).

I was happy enough with the Bose sound that I have stopped considering the Everse 8. The Bose just had a mellower sound. There was a harshness to the Everse that I just couldn't dial out, even with the 7 band EQ. And, the Bose is lighter, smaller and cheaper. Not as loud, but loud enough. The Bose has a 6.5" speaker, so I guess I got over that.

I have no idea how this rig would compare to the Bud/Blu. One consideration is that I always use a pedalboard anyway.

Oh, one last thing about the ME90: they changed the tuner. On the unit's display it's less sensitive than it used to be. When you load the app, and select Tuner, you can see the tuning wobble on your PC screen, even while the arrows on the unit's display stay green. That is, the tuner has the sensitivity, but the lighted arrows on the unit aren't showing it to you. That may force me to use a headstock tuner.

[rpjazzguitar]

At this point, I have given up on the Everse 8. I loved the feature set, but I couldn't dial out the harshness. I may not have gone to the bottom of that well, but I couldn't do with with the ME90.

The Bose S1 sounded better, but had this problem with boomy sounding bass. Craig Anderton reviewed it and said that he had to turn the bass all the way off with electric guitar. So, it's not just my unit.

I think I've solved the problem though -- with my old Boss ME-70 which had been on a shelf for years. It is a discontinued model but is available used. They're built like tanks, so I wouldn't hesitate.

Turns out, the ME70 has some features that the ME90 does not. Number 2 below is the one that made the Bose S1 work with my guitar.

1. The tuner arrows are more sensitive on the ME50, ME70 and ME80. If you connect a computer to the ME90 and look at the tuner on the computer screen you will see it move even when both arrows on the face of the unit stay solidly green.

2. The ME-70 is the only one with 4 band EQ. On the ME70, the preamp section is turned on and off with the knob that selects the preamp. The knob has an an "OFF" position and an "EQ" position. Since the preamps require a Gain control and EQ does not, there was an extra knob available, so they implemented 4 band EQ. This turns out to be a big advantage in connecting to an FRFR powered speaker which doesn't have as many bands, like the Bose S1 and many others. Using the Bose S1, I turn the bass down to 9 o'clock and it sounds good.

3. The ME70 (and the ME50 iirc) are narrower than the ME80 and ME90. The ME70 will fit in an ordinary rolling briefcase, but the ME80 and 90 will not. A rolling briefcase can carry everything I need for a gig, with the Bose S1 sitting on top (bag looped over the handle for security), except a full size music stand (don't try a flimsy folding one for a big band gig).

4. Here's something I think is true, but I'm not certain. In the ME90, with the switch set to LINE, you don't get cabinet modeling if you don't use a preamp. In the ME70, the preamp selector knob has two options that aren't preamps: OFF and EQ. Sounds to me that the cab modeling is available when EQ is selected - you just have to plug a dummy jack into the headphone output. The ME90 has no exact equivalent. Turning on the EQ in the ME90 does not activate the all the output modeling afaik. The point is that you don't have to use a preamp to get the cab modeling on the ME70.

5. The ME70 shows you everything on the front panel. Click Edit and you can adjust every parameter the device has with the twirl of a knob. The ME90 has more features, including some that you can't see. You can't see what IR is active without a two button operation. You can swap in "Selectable" options on switch position 11 (some of them) for example, swapping in one of several different preamps instead of choice 11 on the preamp selector dial. With the ME90 I was constantly being surprised that my tone wasn't what I expected -- and then having trouble figuring out what was wrong. That was particularly unwanted on each of the three gigs I played with it.

Clearly, the ME-90 works for a lot of people. My particular application - jazz tone out of a Bose S1 with a simple user interface - is atypical, I should think. The issue I had was the same as the one Craig Anderton wrote about -- and the 4 band EQ on the ME-70 solved the problem. The ME-90 might sound better if you can dial it in with 3rd party IR's or whatever, but I gave up.