MixWave Two-Rock Bloomfield Drive

Two‑Rock’s guitar amplifiers can rightly be described as boutique, and they’re just as capable of great clean sounds as they are of producing driven tones. They also do that ‘bit of hair’ thing really well. A real Bloomfield Drive amp offers plenty of headroom, natural touch‑sensitivity and a gradual transition from clean to harmonically rich overdrive — and that’s what MixWave have endeavoured to capture for us all in this plug‑in. They’ve taken the approach of combining component modelling with convolution (impulse responses, or IRs) to recreate the sound of the amplifier and speakers, along with a number of miking choices.

Following a two‑channel layout, with separate drive and volume controls for the Normal and Lead channels, the control panel includes a few unusual switchable options, but these are an important part of what makes this amplifier so versatile. A single tone stack provides Bass, Middle and Treble, plus a Presence control, while the EQ1/EQ2 switch offers a choice of tonalities. EQ1 works well with cleaner sounds, while EQ2 introduces more gain along with a slightly more forward character. Overall input and output gain controls with meters help keep levels in check.

Other tone‑shaping switches above the EQ knobs provide Bright, Mid and Deep options, but the tone stack can be bypassed completely to push the amp harder, producing a louder, more mid‑accented voice. You also get a choice of 6L6 or 6V6 output valves, a switchable half‑power mode, and an onboard gate that can be used to clean up very high‑gain sounds.

Tonal Range

While it takes a little experimentation to get the best out of the plug‑in, there’s a useful selection of presets for both single‑coil and humbucking instruments, and some of them are designed by well‑known guitarists. These are effective in demonstrating the tonal range of the amplifier, though you may need to adjust the output volume control as levels can be inconsistent.

For effects, there’s an overdrive pedal with basic drive, tone and balance controls, plus a dry/wet blend, and an authentic‑sounding, valve‑style spring reverb emulation. Beyond the amplifier itself, there are additional sections for input and output processing, each featuring a four‑band EQ with parametric mids and variable‑frequency high and low bands. These sections also include a simple compressor with adjustable threshold and make‑up gain, along with a wet/dry control.

For the speaker cabinet, there’s a 2x12 setup with two speaker options and a selection of 21 microphones, encompassing dynamic, ribbon and capacitor models, with adjustments for Distance, Angle, Axis and Delay. Dual‑miking options can be panned and balanced as needed.

It nails those smoky, lightly driven country and blues sounds with commendable touch sensitivity, while also delivering excellent clean tones and a punchy rock overdrive.

Having nine knobs and six switches to contend with does make dialling in your sound a bit more of an adventure than with a more straightforward amp, but there’s a benefit: you’re more likely to achieve the tones in your head. Certainly, I found that this plug‑in is one of the most nuanced and responsive amp simulations I’ve tried — it nails those smoky, lightly driven country and blues sounds with commendable touch‑sensitivity, while also delivering excellent clean tones and a punchy rock overdrive. Those input and output EQ and compressor stages are particularly useful when it comes to tone‑shaping, too.

There’s some keenly priced competition. Universal Audio’s Paradise Guitars suite, for instance, includes a couple of Dumble‑style emulations and costs only slightly more. But if Two‑Rock Bloomfield Drive delivers all the tones you want — and it may well do that! — how many amp emulations do you actually need? Fortunately, there’s a free trial, so you can check it out for yourself.