I think a lot depends on your guitar and playing style. For me and my Telecaster neither Guitar Rig or TH2 has wowed me as much as Amplitube Fender (or the Orange and Dr-Z amps I've added to it), but I've been wowed by them after hearing different guitars through them. Having said that, I still use Guitar Rig and TH2 for the effects and stomp boxes - you can get some insane chains going in GR and TH2 has an awesome tremolo pedal I use all the time.

wizard71
Someone somewhere coined it quite nicely by saying 'All amp sims are great, All amp sims Suck'.

That was me   My experience is that you have to do a lot of work with amp sims to make them sound good. They're not as plug-and-play as the hype might lead you to think. Just as it takes time in the studio to set up the amp, find the right place in the room, choose the right mic, mic position, EQ during mixing, etc. you have to work on getting a good sound with amp sims.
 
That said, my goal with amp sims isn't to re-create existing amps, but to create idealized amp sounds - in other words, the amps I hear in my head, not the ones on the floor at GC. The only way I'm able to do that is with sims.
 
I'm looking forward to checking out ReValver 4, it looked pretty promising when I saw an early version at Frankfurt Messe. Meanwhile, each sim has its own character...just like real amps. You can get free versions of POD Farm, Guitar Rig, and Amplitude that are basic, but with all three of them you have access to quite a few cool sounds. 

I actually prefer Guitar Rig/S-Gear/AmplitTube to my real rig ...and I've been playing for decades. When I plug in and use GR5, it inspires me to play. None of my friends (some that make/record music, some casual listeners) could consistently pick out a sim in a mix. And I like the way I can totally change parameters down the road.
 
But if you are a purist, or have a defined sound to your ears that only a mic'd amp can produce, then you need to go old school.
 
If you are flexible, the sim route may be for you.  
 
 

Anderton

wizard71
Someone somewhere coined it quite nicely by saying 'All amp sims are great, All amp sims Suck'.

That was me    

 
Thank god i didnt pretend it was mine ;)
 
To be honest, I would have no idea if they sounded like the amps/cabs/mics they were simulating or not. Im sure i am not alone here, so its easy to fall for the marketing hype, especially when its claimed you can sound just like your 'Hero'. As far as im concerned, you could have exactly the same equipment and guitar but still sound nothing like it because you are the one with the pick, not your hero. Its certainly true with a piano.
 
I'm guessing that not many have the luxury of really knowing how accurate these sims really are so it has to be based on whatever does it for you I guess.

wizard71
To be honest, I would have no idea if they sounded like the amps/cabs/mics they were simulating or not.

Another issue that's often overlooked is these amps were analog, generally used tubes (which age over time), and often substituted components for different production runs. So sometimes even the "real" amps didn't sound like the real amps.
 
This is why I don't want a Marshall sound per se, but the sound of an ideal Marshall that is a composite of all things Marshall.
 
When Line 6 was doing the POD Farm models they'd typically get several amps of the same model, and choose one as a favorite. That would be the one they modeled.

Having worked in a boutique guitar shop, watching endless customers obsess over the age of the speakers in the cabs or whether an amp head was point-to-point wired or not (not to mention which brand of tubes was used), I can only agree. Again, I'm not a guitarist either, and I don't have that much experience playing live through many different amps. I just feel S-Gear most often lets me find the sound I have in my head. It's just skimpy on fx but there's so many other options there that I don't really mind.

I have TH2 (upgrade), GR 5, and S-Gear. I find myself going for S-Gear most of the time, but they all have their strengths and weaknesses and I wouldn't get rid of any of them.

Sanderxpander
I just feel S-Gear most often lets me find the sound I have in my head. It's just skimpy on fx but there's so many other options there that I don't really mind.

I think S-Gear is a fine example of why limiting your options sometimes produces the best results. 

Possibly, although Even if I limit myself to just amp heads and cabs in other sims I often end up with S-Gear. I agree about tweaking though - you can get an acceptable sound with most sims I think.

For me I find there are great sounds to be had with all the softwares if they're used "well" if you have the right gear and the right room, live mic(s) on an amp is great. Using the virtuals for me is a challenge at learning to use different tools to accomplish a familiar job. The more I use them, the more I like the results I get. I do plenty of live amp mics in many situations, but not all.

The TH2 is very powerful and capable, but I find I prefer the results I'm getting with Amplitube 3 Free to which I've added a few amps, cabinets, and mics. I also own an old ART SGX 2000 Express which I use as my live rig. I've always had excellent results with direct out of this and then sometimes adding a virtual cabinet. A lot depends on the kind of sounds you're looking for as well

Even with all the sophisticated modeling, it's sometimes hard for the ear to remember that the virtualization is being played back in full range monitors, not guitar speakers, so getting it to sound as though it's coming through guitar speakers is a key. They do not have the high end that studio monitors do. So I find the virtuals are consistently too bright and rolling off the top quite a bit near 4k or so with a low pass or shelving EQ makes a world of difference...

Input... Yeah that's a tougher one. An instrument input is the best choice if you have it but what impedance value is has is still to be questioned by each user to their own personal taste... Matching a guitar to an amp is much the same thing as some guitars are hotter and some inputs are more sensitive...

In the end, we're making art... If you carve a sound you like with your choice of tool, it works! Setting an amp is as unique virtually as it is in the physical world...

Keni