I’ve been a huge fan of Neural DSP’s products for a while now. I use them all the time including the QC for over 100 shows a year as well as most of their plugins. But one thing I’ve always wondered is why their marketing seems so heavily focused on djent, prog, and heavier music players.
Don’t get me wrong, those tones are killer, and I get that these genres are a big part of their audience. But Neural’s amps, plugins, and the Quad Cortex are capable of so much more such as rock, blues, country, pop, session work, you name it. So why don’t we see more of that in their marketing?
I’d love to see Neural expand their reach to showcase how their products excel across all genres. Maybe more content featuring players outside the heavy/prog world, or even collaborations with artists in other styles.
What do you all think? Do you feel like Neural’s marketing leans too heavily in one direction? Would you like to see more variety in how they showcase their products?
Hello I have wondered that myself a good few times… I’m a country picker think Brent Mason Johnny hyland Albert Lee…and would love to see something pointing towards this genre and also big Rockabilly Brian setzer Merle Travis style stuff and some nice old amps from the early 50s would be sweet and not just a bassman amp , and a good spring verb would be nice the QC one is not good in my opinion,
I have some plugins Morgan rabea plini slo100 Cory wrong… And I only use the Morgan suite the rest do nothing for me personally, I have the QC aswell have plini and slo on that but have only made a preset to see what it sounds like on QC and never gone back to use them…
I think part is it’s more fashionable to shred and part I feel its narrowminded in a way…let’s just cater mainly to the heavy side
But I can get get some decent sounds to suit but somtin more dedicated would be very welcome… Not complaining either but would be nice…
And I suppose theres most likely not as many guitarists looking at these types of styles…ndsp want to sell as much as possible so whatever seems most popular is the route they would go… Makes sense really
Maybe they’re just the most profitable branch for musician gear ? Plus djent/prog types are always looking for the next new thing while blues, country and classic rock guys tend to stick with tube amps. This isn’t always the case, but I think it’s just the majority
I think it’s because that genre attracts a lot of players who invest into their gear in a very guitar-centric way. Not that other genres don’t attract that, it’s just that metal seems to encourage players to really care about their gear AND be vocal about it.
I played a show as a fill-in for a gospel band and the other guitarist and bassist were talking more about keys and VSTs for creating pads. And in the country world, I heard more talk about the accessories than the gear (picks, straps, boots haha!).
Everyone’s scene is different, and no one is wrong at the end of the day. I could posit the angle that Meshuggah using Line 6 started something with metal and preamps that proliferated into seeing digital amp modeling being the preferable choice to preserve more clarity at low tunings… and where do you find lower tunings used in higher-gain applications? Metal and heavy music!
Those are just my thoughts, though. I like the QC because it’s easy to use but you can go very deep with it. It also sounds great, records beautifully, and has a small footprint. But ultimately, I just like it because I have fun when I play it. Felt the same way about Fractal, too. What a world we live in eh
Not sure why they do, but it’s always so corny. The super ugly guitars without headstocks, marketing with bands only influenced by either Dream Theater or Meshuggah (Meshuggah is actually a good band though). So many of the videos are super cringe with the corniest bands.
I’m one of those classic rock/blues/analog players who made the switch to the Quad Cortex, and I feel like if they expanded their marketing to include more players from these genres, it could open up a whole new realm. The tones are there for the more traditional styles!
Maybe the djent/prog crowd is the most profitable for musician gear, although doctors and dentists do buy PRS and Murphy Lab Gibsons lolll (I had to) and yes, I own a PRS Core but am not in either of those professions. But I digress…
Or maybe they’re just the most eager to chase the latest tech, while blues, country, and classic rock players tend to stick with what’s familiar usually tube amps and analog gear. That’s not always the case, though, and there’s definitely a growing number of us in the more traditional scenes who are embracing modelers like the QC.
If Neural DSP showcased some different artists in those genres, I think they’d bring in a whole new wave of players who might not have even considered making the switch.
Prog and djent guitarists are more likely to be nerds who get really into the gear and tech side of things. Neural markets to this accordingly.
I’m picturing blues, country, funk, jazz, gospel, “non-heavy” guitarists as guys who tend to stick with their tube amps and minimalist pedal setup. Not to fire shots at them, but I think as a whole they’re not as tech-savvy. I’ve seen more than a few comments on social media with this crowd yelling the loudest about how tube amps are better than digital, etc.
Cory Wong as a player, and the Cory Wong plug-in, both show that the conversion to digital can be done well for these styles. It’s going to take a while for other players of his ilk to catch up.
Meanwhile, I feel like Neural have done a decent job in the past year of posting a variety of guitarists and styles on their Instagram. Not just metal.
I deleted last comment…
But I don’t think there’s really anything more techy or tech savvy about being a heavy styled guitar player… Cory maybe get some blues sounds from it but really it’s not great for country… My opinion and experience … And the main fact country/blues guys tend to stick with real tube amps and separate effects is cause they actually do sound better and react more natural than modellers, although they good they don’t have all the harmonic content an actual tube amp has…
on a recording in a mix you probably won’t tell the difference but side by side modellers don’t compare atal and even more so on clean sounds … There designed to sound like a mic’ed up guitar amp they can’t sound like a real amp unless there on a recording…and anything I’ve been emailed or seen online has mostly been heavy geared adverts and it would be nice to see something geared to other styles… But its easier to gear all things to the heavy styled stuff cause it’s easier to replicate than clean natural clean vlave amps… I think until they actually get these to sound like a real amp in the room beside you… Then we mite see a difference
It mite read like I’m ranting abit but I think these are reasons why they don’t gear towards these genres because the tech isn’t there yet…
And from my experience we need to be plugged into a real amp cause the interaction between guitarist and amp hasn’t been replicated in modellers…
But I do love the QC for recording and rehearsing with musicians online and local gigs cause it’s a handy grab and go setup
Doesn’t sound like you’re ranting at all, just expressing your opinion thanks for sharing! I for one enjoy traditional amps as well, but prefer modellers and consider them “better” for my tastes and applications. If given the choice between my old faithful Budda Superdrive cranked, and my QC through my speakers cranked… I choose the latter. Both setups are great, though. Be it analog or digital, I just love playing guitar so whatever facilitates me doing more of that — I’m all for it.
And that’s what it’s all about whatever makes you play more and enjoy what your doing… I wasn’t saying there bad either I just still prefer a traditional amp over modellers but the QC still makes me a very happy man…anyway the future is always bright with these…
Exactly I’ve been kick off this blog for my complaints - there is a clear bias for sure - not sure why but it’s frustrating cause the product is great but the marketing don’t listen to our voices …. And neither do they respond or acknowledge the requests …
I think they do market to the metal guys. I bought a QC when it fiest appeared on the narket, replacing my helix live rig. After about 6 months i bought an fm3 and that has slowly taken over.
At Home for recording and for teaching i use a nano cortex which has really made me appreciate the ndsp platform again. Im just absolutely blown away by how they seem to be ignoring this product and not updating it. This lack of support and updates makes me stick with my fractal gear for main rig. But i do love the little NC
Oh, absolutely! I didn’t want to sound like I was complaining because, honestly, what they do or don’t do from a marketing standpoint isn’t really my concern. I’m just an old-school player who loves Neural’s products and thinks they could potentially grow even more by expanding their player roster and incorporating more stylistic diversity.
They’ll probably push Cory Wong style players as soon as PCOM for his plugin is done, as is alluded to in his TPS episode (which is fantastic btw, and showcases the QC in a big way…and I’m not even a fan of his music, but CW is a fantastic guy):
The founder Doug C. created a brand that revolutionized the Metal Music (Darkglass)
This is why, and it’s quite clear to me that Metal is a massive part of his passion.
Not all NDSP products are geared towards Metal either.
I think there has been a fair amount of service towards blues and other styles. Tone King, Archetype Asato and Wong, even Archetype Henson to a certain extent can get some amazing classic rock tones. Archetype Morello is just a straight up JCM 800 plugin. Morgan Suite has some great clean and crunch tones and the Soldano and Mesa Mark plugins cover a masssssive range of tones.
Just out of curiosity, what are the country, blues, etc players actually looking for in a plugin?
This is exactly my point! Lol. They have incredible products and plugins for blues, country, classic rock, and other traditional styles. I own and love them all. But in my opinion, they don’t market them enough. I feel like they could reach more players if they did. That’s why my original post questioned why they mostly market toward heavier styles. I get that it’s the foundation of the company, and I love and use those tones too, but it still feels like a missed opportunity. But hey, I don’t work in their marketing department, so what do I know? Lol.
thanks for sharing! I for one enjoy traditional amps as well, but prefer modellers and consider them “better” for my tastes and applications. If given the choice between my old faithful Budda Superdrive cranked, and my QC through my speakers cranked… I choose the latter. Both setups are great, though. Be it analog or digital, I just love playing guitar so whatever facilitates me doing more of that — I’m all for it.