Check out our test review here:
www.soundonsound.com/reviews/origin-effects-deluxe55
This is Origin Effects’ DELUXE55 ‘tweed Deluxe recreation’ recorded as a DI via Origin’s own ‘Tweed Combo 1x12 Medium Mix’ IR. I used the same guitar (stock Tele) and the same basic settings on the DELUXE55 for both examples. The main difference is the volume setting on the guitar — all the way up for the driven example and just under halfway for the semi-clean — although the driven example uses the 12AX7 preamp tube setting, while the semi-clean uses the 12AY7.
DELUXE55 drive
DELUXE55 semi-clean
Drive and Tone on the pedal are at 75% for both examples, so there’s a bit more drive available if both were fully up. Keeping them at 75% still gives plenty of ‘sag’ and sustain, I find, but keeps the driven tone a little more articulate whilst also allowing the excellent clean up when the guitar volume is lower. As you can hear, it doesn’t get completely clean with this Drive setting, even using the 12AY7, which offers lots of tonal variation just from pick-hand pressure. It will go both cleaner or more distorted if you want, but this is the ‘sweet spot’, for me, and amply illustrates what a great, versatile little recording amp a tweed Deluxe really is.
If I were using ‘the real thing’ for a recording it would be miked up in the next room and I’d be listening to it on monitors — frankly, I might as well be using this instead. It loses nothing in comparison in that scenario. There’s no EQ or compression on the guitar track, just a tiny bit of mono ‘faux room mic’ courtesy of a UA Evermore, to more accurately replicate how I would record a real amp like this.