I finally tried Neural DSP plugins.
I know.
A bit late to the party.
For some reason, I had never actually tried a single Neural DSP plugin before this. I had heard the hype, seen plenty of videos, and obviously knew people really liked them.
But I had not sat down in my own studio, plugged in a guitar, and actually played through them myself.
So that is what this is.
Not a super technical deep dive.
Not a full review of every single feature.
Just me trying three Neural DSP plugins for the first time and seeing if the hype makes any sense.
The three plugins I wanted to try were Archetype: Cory Wong, Archetype: Rabea, and Archetype: John Petrucci.
That felt like a pretty good spread.
Clean and funky Cory Wong stuff.
Ambient and heavy Rabea stuff.
And then, of course, John Petrucci.
Because John Petrucci.
Why These Neural DSP Plugins?
There are a lot of Neural DSP plugins now, but these three made the most sense to me.
Cory Wong has become one of my favorite guitar players in recent years. His playing is ridiculous, his timing is ridiculous, and the whole clean/funk/session guitar world is something I find really inspiring.
Then there is Rabea.
That plugin had just come out when I originally recorded this, so it made sense to try it while it was still fresh. I expected big ambient sounds, heavy tones, and probably some weird synth-like stuff.
And finally, John Petrucci.
He is one of my ultimate guitar heroes. I do not think I need to explain that one too much.
For the test, I used my Telecaster first and then switched to my Harley Benton Fusion-T for the humbucker sounds.
Trying Archetype: Cory Wong
The first plugin I opened was Archetype: Cory Wong.
And right away, it felt good.
The clean sounds were nice, and the presets made me want to play. That is always a good sign with any plugin or amp sim.
I started with some of Cory’s own presets and quickly realized that I could probably spend hours inside just this one plugin. There are so many things to tweak, but for this first test I mostly stayed with presets.
That felt like the right move.
If I started tweaking every compressor, cab, mic, and pedal, this would have turned into a three-hour video.
The Cory Wong plugin immediately gave me that polished, compressed, clean guitar thing. The kind of tone where you instantly realize your right hand is not Cory Wong’s right hand.
Which is a problem.
Because I do not have the helicopter hand.
Sorry about that.
The Feel of the Cory Wong Plugin
The Cory Wong plugin felt nice to play.
Not quite like playing through a high-end physical unit like a Quad Cortex or one of the Universal Audio amp pedals I have tried, but still very good.
For this test, I was going straight into the instrument input of my Universal Audio Apollo Twin.
That matters, because latency and input feel can change the experience a lot with plugins.
Still, the Cory Wong plugin felt responsive enough that I did not have to fight it. It was fun, inspiring, and very easy to keep playing.
I tried a few presets, including cleaner session-style sounds, more compressed funk tones, and some 80s-inspired chorus sounds.
And honestly?
It sounded great.
Switching to Humbuckers
After trying the Cory Wong plugin with the Telecaster, I switched to the Harley Benton Fusion-T.
That guitar has humbuckers, so it made sense to see how the plugin reacted to a different input.
The answer: still good.
The more lead-oriented sounds were fun, and some of the chorus presets had that silly 80s pop thing going on.
I mean that as a compliment.
If a preset says 80s, I am probably going to click it.
That is just how this works.
Trying Archetype: Rabea
Next up was Archetype: Rabea.
And this one surprised me almost immediately.
The first thing I landed on was not a normal guitar sound at all. It was more of a synth transition thing.
Then I tried an airy guitar pad preset.
And I smiled.
A lot.
This was one of those sounds where the stereo image just kind of wraps around you, especially if your monitors are set up properly. I had recently tweaked some things in the studio, and with this plugin the stereo field felt huge.
That was the first real “oh, I get it” moment.
The Rabea plugin did not just feel like another amp sim.
It felt like a creative tool.
The Ambient Side of Rabea
The ambient sounds were beautiful.
That is probably the simplest way to put it.
There were guitar pad sounds, synth-like textures, and wide stereo effects that made me want to stop testing and start writing something.
That is always dangerous when you are trying to make a review or first-impressions video.
You are supposed to evaluate the thing.
But then the thing gives you a sound that makes you want to write a song instead.
That is usually a good sign.
The Heavy Side of Rabea
Of course, Rabea is not only about ambient sounds.
There were also modern high gain tones, crunch tones, and heavier presets that made me want to tune down and play riffs.
Some of the sounds had a very tight modern metal thing going on. Others felt more like pop punk or heavy rock.
I tried a preset called something like “Tight Like A Tiger,” and yes, it was tight.
Then I tried one called “Gates of Hell.”
That was definitely a sound.
I am not completely sure what I would use it for, but it was a sound.
And sometimes that is enough.
Trying Archetype: John Petrucci
Finally, it was time for Archetype: John Petrucci.
This was the one I was probably most excited about.
Not because I expected it to be the most versatile.
But because it is Petrucci.
I started with the Telecaster, which is probably not the most obvious guitar for John Petrucci tones, but it was interesting anyway.
Then I switched back to the Harley Benton Fusion-T for the humbucker sounds.
That made a lot more sense.
The Petrucci Presets Are Fun
The Petrucci plugin had a lot of presets based on songs and familiar tones.
That is dangerous.
Because instead of just testing the plugin, you end up going, “Oh wait, I know that one,” and then immediately trying to remember riffs you have not practiced properly.
Which is exactly what happened.
Some of the cleaner and semi-clean sounds surprised me. I was expecting to be drawn mostly to the heavy lead and rhythm tones, but some of the more atmospheric sounds were really inspiring too.
Still, somehow I kept ending up on the heavier presets.
Shocking.
The Detune and Double Tracking Features
One of the things I really liked in the Petrucci plugin was the detune feature.
The tracking felt pretty good. I could feel a tiny bit of lag, but that might have been because of my own settings, so I do not want to judge it too harshly.
The double tracking feature was also really fun.
That kind of feature can instantly make playing through a plugin feel bigger and more record-like. It is not always something I would use all the time, but when it works, it is very satisfying.
And in this case, it made me smile.
A lot of this plugin made me smile.
Do Neural DSP Plugins Feel Good to Play?
Based on this first test, yes.
They feel good enough to play.
I would not say the feel is exactly like standing in front of a great amp or playing through the best hardware modelers I have tried. There was still a tiny bit of that plugin thing going on.
A little bit of muddiness here and there.
A little bit of “I probably need to tweak this properly.”
But considering I was mostly just browsing presets and barely scratching the surface, the results were very good.
I would put the playing feel roughly around the same level as something like my Line 6 POD Go.
And that is not a bad place to be.
Are Neural DSP Plugins Worth It?
After trying these three Neural DSP plugins, I understand the hype much better.
You get a lot of stuff.
The presets are inspiring, the sounds are polished, and each plugin has its own personality.
The Cory Wong plugin made me want to play clean, tight, funky things.
The Rabea plugin made me want to create ambient soundscapes and heavy modern riffs.
The Petrucci plugin made me want to pretend I can play Dream Theater properly.
So yes, I think they are worth checking out.
Especially if you record guitars at home and want something that sounds good quickly.
Which Neural DSP Plugin Would I Buy?
That is the hard part.
If I had to pick one, I would probably go with the Petrucci plugin.
It feels like the safest choice for me personally, because I know I would use those rhythm, lead, clean, detune, and double tracking sounds a lot.
But the Rabea plugin had some killer tones too.
Especially the ambient stuff.
And the Cory Wong plugin was honestly just fun. It made clean guitar feel exciting, which is not always easy.
So the real answer might be that I need all three.
Which is not helpful.
But it might be true.
Final Thoughts
Trying Neural DSP plugins for the first time was fun.
That is probably the main takeaway.
I went into this mostly curious. I knew people liked these plugins, but I wanted to know if they would actually feel inspiring in my own studio.
And they did.
I barely scratched the surface, mostly went through presets, and did not spend much time tweaking. Even then, I found a lot of sounds that made me want to keep playing.
That is the whole point.
So yes, I get the hype now.
The Cory Wong plugin sounds great for clean and funky stuff.
The Rabea plugin has some beautiful ambient and heavy tones.
The Petrucci plugin is probably the one I would personally buy first.
But honestly, all three impressed me.
No affiliation with Neural DSP here. I just wanted to try these plugins, and now I have.
And now I kind of want to write music with them.
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