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Neural Amp Modeler: Why I’m Struggling to Understand the NAM Hype

Scott Uhl

84,480 views

Neural Amp Modeler (or NAM) has blown up lately because of the new A2 model. But I'm honestly struggling to understand the hype, and here's why....

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0:00 -Intro
2:14 - Why NAM Got Big
3:39 - Trying Out NAM
4:59 - Limitations
5:46 - Endlessly Chasing Tone
7:00 - Tone
7:47 - Features Matter
10:58 - Shiny New Objects
12:21 - But Its FREE
13:25 - Analysis Paralysis
14:11 - Cloud Sharing
15:02 - We Need Pedals
17:05 - Cheap Pedal Options
17:44 - Amp Mod Singularity
19:18 - More Info
20:39 - Final Thoughts
20:02 - Outro

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🎥 OTHER VIDEOS TO WATCH 🎥
●▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬●
◆ My Tone Philosophy: Why TONE Isn't My Top Priority as a LIVE M...
◆ Helix Stadium and Tone: Helix Stadium: Features, Questions & What ...
◆ Helix Stadium Showcase Tutorial: Use Helix Stadium As A PLAYBACK RIG - "Sho...
◆ Sonicake PocketMaster: The ULTIMATE $65 FX Pedal / Amp Modeler - ...
◆ Quad Cortex Programming: PROGRAMMING and GETTING STARTED w/ Quad Co...
◆ Mooer GTRS Guitar: My ULTRA COMPACT Live Guitar Rig - GTRS M8...
◆ ‪@SpectreSoundStudios‬ NAM Video: Amp Sims are Dead
◆ ‪@SteveSterlacci‬ NAM Video: The Problem with NAM...
◆ ‪@HeyWorshipLeader‬ NAM Video: HeadRush FLEX Prime Just Ruined Everything!
◆ ‪@ToneJunkieTV‬ NAM Video: Should companies be worried about NAM?

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20 Comments

@PatrickGV01 1 month ago

As a nerd, I love any open source software that manages to build a community around it.

@tractorgt 1 month ago

I've had one guitar amp and tone for 30 years. It's what makes us sound like us. Ampeg vh-140c.
I got the nam for it on a mooer pedal and now I don't have to lug my head and 4x12 out anymore.
It's strikingly accurate. 👍

@KubilayMutlu 1 month ago

It's important not to miss the core point of the Nam A2: being able to achieve the tone you have in mind without needing powerful hardware requirements. Don't worry, Scott, we'll soon be seeing devices like this with $3 chips, a few buttons to press, and a few simple potentiometers to turn (Midi, etc.). (Muz:)

@plankspanker1969 1 month ago

I am the banana man. As always, your analysis is well-reasoned. As a Headrush user, I have found that even if I (sort of randomly) choose a capture, it has more depth and less fizz than the usual. So while I agree that NAM is sort of a random, chaotic stew, it seems that many of the bites are more satisfying than the typical.

@modscientist9793 1 month ago

I still use my old classic line 6 pods .why? They inspire me and still sound good to me. Nyaahhhh!😂

@smunzio3000 1 month ago (edited)

The big thing is, that, due to it being an open source standard, it can be integrated virtually everywhere, every time a pedal producing company decides so. For the same reason you aren't locked behind a corporation's portal or specific ecosystem to use those tones (and it will probably outlast each and every other option of capture). I'ts not simply "the new shiny thing" or product, is like a whole new programming language or framework, to make an IT parallel. Another great implication is that this type of innovation forces companies to be more competitive in this field and to give more features for much more reasonable prices, be more open or implement features that really can do a difference.

@aksakalli 1 month ago

NAM is not only free, it’s open-source. 🍌 It will bring more innovation to the effects industry and democratize it. Companies won’t be able to charge a premium anymore just because they have the most accurate amp modeling technology, while offering subpar usability and effects at premium prices. However, I completely agree with you about the obsession with tone chasing. I’ve been having a lot of fun with my Pocket Master and its first preset, just jamming.

@modscientist9793 1 month ago

Scott... you've hit the nail on the head. Gear fatigue is real and everything sounds the same. People need to just play and enjoy the instrument and stop the foolishness.

@TheSlimDude 1 month ago

You’re right on the money. Use the tool that works best for the situation.

@TaylorMorgeson 1 month ago

I feel blessed that I still love my Hughes and Koettner GM40, 7 years in and Im just as happy as i was the first day I bought it.

@HarMegiddo 1 month ago

Banana. Hit the nail on the head and excellent video as usual

@felipousismix 1 month ago

Nice video, Scott. I like NAM to capture my amps using the settings I actually use, and then load them into the computer to record, or push them to the Valeton GP-50 to play live. So far I'm happy with the results. Banana!

@rehurtsal8889 1 month ago

🍌I'm pretty prositive about NAM, but that is mainly regarding recording, it completely replaced my Kemper, I now record my DI signal and "reamp" it by choosing one of my once selected Tone3000 sounds. For playing with my bands NAM has no impact at all, I'm still (and will be) using my Helix and I have no reason to change that. 🍌

@jackprice7828 1 month ago

I love my Tonex. However, it has taken me a good year of experimenting with hundreds of captures, I finally settled on a half dozen of amp models that are actually really good. I see NAMA2 being that same scenario.

@brianengelhart9982 1 month ago

Well said my friend! Still get amazing sounds out of old helix and ampero stomp for my solo show. Not “once” has anyone ask what I’m playing through. Keep doing what you’re doing.

@fredmbarros 1 month ago

You make a very good point about you still needing a device to run it, even if it’s free. Where I would caveat this is that almost all of us have an iPad and apps to run Nam captures are starting to surface. That, coupled with its open source nature, means those who use it like that won’t get left behind. The problem is that the iPad is still fiddly for live use. 🍌

@EduardoMorenoG 1 month ago

I use an eleven rack, built about a decade ago by the company who makes the headrush. It sounds amazing... Prince used to have one at his studio. Many modelers out there are amazing. Great video.

@odeneriksson6633 1 month ago

After being professionally active in the open source arena for more than 20 years, I think there’s one crucial point that tends to be overlooked, or at least not emphasized enough: the software will keep evolving, and will quite possibly surpass the commercial alternatives by a considerable margin.

There should also be an enormous market of perfectly usable second hand PCs that were rendered effectively worthless when Microsoft changed its hardware requirements, including changes made during the lifetime of Windows 11 itself. That creates a huge pool of capable hardware just waiting for a viable alternative operating system.

I also became curious about how all of this sounds in practice, so I bought a Valeton GP-5. While it certainly has some nice sounds, I can’t say I’m particularly impressed by it overall. What I do find genuinely impressive, however, is the whole concept of capturing a completely analog guitar sound that you have spent time developing in the studio, turning it into a NAM model, and then loading that model into something as ridiculously small and inexpensive as the GP-5. Being able to reproduce a carefully developed analog signal chain from a tiny half size guitar pedal is pretty remarkable.

So, let’s revisit this topic in a year or so.

@ClipperNationTV 1 month ago

The ToneRig ipad app supports NamA2 natively and is amazing..supports midi and comes a tone of effects

@dukegdl 1 month ago

The reality in the forums reflects a direct clash between marketing expectations and technical limitations.

User frustration is completely justified. Integrating heavy algorithms, initially designed for computers, into floorboard processors has created a series of significant bottlenecks.

Navigating through hundreds of Tone3000 captures directly from the screen of a multi-effects unit sounds great in theory, but in practice, it is clunky. Furthermore, dealing with unpredictable volume jumps, feedback, or strange noises when loading community-created profiles is ruining the plug-and-play experience.

Keeping the signal routing clean, being able to make surgical cuts (such as attenuating the 80 Hz to 130 Hz zone to control problematic lows), and applying dynamic compression without the fear of an amp block maxing out the CPU remains the most professional route to achieve consistent results both in a DAW and live. When the gear fails to respond, the time that should be invested in perfecting absolute control, attack, and minimal pick movement ends up wasted trying to patch incompatible files.