If you go old and forgotten ... LE456 LePou + Catharsis Studio IR (2009) at 13:45

 

Blue Cat's Free Amp --> www.bluecataudio.com/Products/Product_FreeAmp/

 

Nice tips.

 

I've always been surprised by how little discussion Bogren Digital gets; I think their sound quality even surpasses NDSP's.

 

Yeah, hell yeah. Great little ampsim. Still use it.

LePou plugins are a legend. Too bad they were discontinued ages ago. But they still rock, it's a shame you can't oversample more than x2 (quality setting) but that's enough to sound pretty good

 

There are some plugin wrapper hosts that oversample more than the plugin itself.
Like Kush Element or ddmf metaplugin chainer.

 

NAM is unbeatable once you know how to use it properly. I get that it can also sound like crap, but that is mostly user error.

 

Last edited: May 9, 2026 at 2:37 AM

Well, in previous message I mentioned MY favorite amp sim beside this mega-know-superpriced-marketingovertalking amp sim... but, YES, there is a whole bunch of FREE amp sims out there... Recent I use a lot kuassa free amp... to me, is enough. More than enough. But with some cab IR is more than - more than enough...


Second, it is payed but good enough to be in this list is complete TONE LIB guitar solutions..
https://tonelib.net/
tone lib, GFX main ampsim..
Tone lib Metal, mostly high gain amps
Grand magus versatile two amps actually...
tone lib jam.. tablature editor and reader...
etc.. and offcourse, some free stuff..

Further... neurontube by Audio singularity..



Soldano SLO100 and Laney TF300 (I think).. both are goood...

So, .... there are many, many amp sims that are soooo goood, but not in the main line of mentions and popup on the internet... . sooo plenty, but, best for me!!! I hardly manage to find it on my discs... and on the net is imposible to find. Amplitube original.. V1.30


Yes it's a VST 32bit... but still good

 

As for underrated, no need to talk about the obvious ones that always get recommended (Neural DSP's Archetype series, Amplitube, Bogren Digital's Amp Knob, TH-U 2, Guitar Rig, BIAS 2, Softube's Amp Room, etc.), but some I imagine would get a lot more use with proper visibility and word of mouth would maybe be:

Otto Audio II II II II
Blackstar St James
Headrush Revalver (Peavey)
Mercuriall Reaxis

 

One that instantly comes to mind is the Rockdude from Nembrini if put before a amp and use as one would to add some flavor i find its incredibly versatile and you can use it to nail certain 80s tones that can be hard to replicate like how it was used on Megadeth Peace sells in front of a jcm 800 i love it! MP1 is also amazing

 

Last edited: May 9, 2026 at 6:49 PM

i wish i still had a copy of OTTO II II II II it had some great tones for tuning low

 

Nembrini is for sure another underrated one.

Try the free (even on ios)
https://www.nembriniaudio.com/collections/free/products/crunck-v2-guitar-amplifier

With the integrated cab IR, it is the best free plug'n play solution i ever tried.
No setting needed.

 

You can still find it if you know where to look. It was probably DMCA'd on the sister site though.

 

I have IK Multimedia AmpliTube v1.3 (x86) from H2O on a backup disc. Message me if you want me to share a link so you have it back easily.

 

I've been super into the Neural DSP stuff recently but also I'm pretty new to amp sims. gonna follow this thread and try some out on my recordings.

I was j u s t using the Neural DSP Petrucci X on a track and when you turn down a lot of the settings it starts to sound really good. Definitely had to re-articulate some of the transients to really make it sound like a guitar but overall it was pretty convincing !

[[ also i recognize that Neural DSP isn't underrated ]]

 

As for sounding close to real amps, nothing beats NAM, which is also free. However, it takes the computer rather strongly. Do you guys no any low CPU/Ram sims that you can recommend?

 

The most underrated guitar amp is not using an fake amp at all. Run the guitar just through a good distortion (ohmicide is my favourite) and a bunch of effects to get genuinely unique, dynamic, and interesting sounds.

 

I don't know if it's "rated" at all and it's simple as hell with not too much tonal variation, but Black Rooster Audio's Cypress TT-15 is just plain fun. It does that wonderful crunch without being oversaturated that responds to dynamics very well. They say it's for leads and it might work for that too. I'm not too sure the included 2x12" cab model is the best but it works good enough for me not to try out different cabinets.

And it's free.

 

MGuitarArchitect

https://www.meldaproduction.com/mguitararchitect

 

I am a big fan of Amp Locker and Seacow cabs. I don't know how the guy makes his ampsims but they sound very, very good and are quite cheap. That said I am still generally reaching for nam or tonex depending.