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Originally Posted by Animus  thanks for your input. So I will get better results going line out than direct out the speaker outs? I will just need a dummy load? |
I must be the king of long posts today :-)
Sounds like you have a handle on things, but I'm going to belabor some of the points for the benefit of others that might stumble on this thread.
You can't go direct from the speaker outs to the computer. You need a line out at some point whether it's from your amp or on the dummy load you run on the speaker output.
I would use the line out from your amp since it comes after the power amp and doesn't have the cheesy speaker emulation that some have.
So, if you want to run silent, yes, you need a dummy load. Like you said, it doesn't need to be an $1800 wonder box (although I'm salivating over that TD-1) because you are relying on the LINE OUT from the amp for the tone. It just needs to safely dissipate the power from the SPEAKER OUT.
If you want to check the kind of results you're going to get before you spend money on an attenuator or dummy load, then you can keep the speaker plugged in but don't mic it and record a few riffs by running the LINE OUT (NOT speaker out) into your audio interface. The result will sound all prickly and horrible because you're not getting the benefit of a speaker, or speaker IR.
Make a WAV file of that and upload it to our ConvolvoBot! and choose a range of cabinet/mic combinations. You can try up to 10 at a pass and there's no limit to how many times you can run it. Don't just pick the ones on the grill, make sure you pick some further out, too, and then hone in on the sweet spot for your amp.
If you find something you're happy with, then you're good and you can consider spending a little money on a dummy load. There's a list on the site. There are others not on the list, I'm sure. We listed the ones we had experience with.
IMO, a Weber Mass might work for you, but please do your own research. I personally think it runs a little on the bright side as a DI using the line out. But like you said, you shouldn't need to worry about that because you're using your amp's line out. You're just using it to safely and quietly dissipate the output of your power amp. It's one of the cheaper ones (maybe the cheapest?) and can handle the wattage and has a real speaker motor in it, FWIW.
Good luck with your quest.