Thanks, most important info! I think I’m sold, been playing my old strat direct to Apollo/logic with stock sounds, this sounds like a step up in sound and recording demos etc
Thank You for a GREAT demo! It’s awesome to hear a player demo a product in other ways than trying have it sound metal… Dynamic, melodic harmonicaly interesting and with a genuine CLEAN sound!🙏 Amazing! Need to get one now!😁👌
I’ve had this pedal for a year now, I use it for live weddings and private events, on big and small stages, from 50-150 people. Being honest, I have a love hate relationship with it, sometimes it sounds good, and other times it sounds really tinny and lacks punch through the speakers when playing in a band. You will never replicate that feeling of a real amp behind you on stage, however it is extremely practical for lots of situations, I just wish it had more power and the app is simply useless which is a big floor in my opinion
While I'm not really performing and mostly recording, what I do is use a parametric EQ after all my drives to bump up the mids. Deluxe reverbs tend to be mid scooped, so bumping up the mids just a little I've found evens it out. My favorite amp sound is really a fender bassman, but for me, juicing the mids with a good parametric EQ pedal helps me approach that flatter, fuller sound much better. So if you're looking for a way to help alleviate those moments where it feels a little thin, that's what I'd recommend. Completely opens it up imo
I run one output to the p.a and one to a peavey delta blues. I set the peavey to unity with the monitor mix and the peavey also has a mic on it. I bypass the pre amp by running into the effects loop. Transforms the peavey and gives me the amp behind you dynamic. Sounds great with both outputs being in the p.a.
i mean i know next to nothing, but isnt what your running said pedal to a huge factor? why dont you get like a middle of the road, 20ish watt tube amp that takes pedals well and run it through that, maybe youll get a little more of that bottom end your looking for? tell me why im wrong cause im sure i am and im dying to learn anything i can related to guitar at the moment haha
Have you played with other modellers before? I've been playing ampless for the past 20 years and this is my experience overall with modellers. It depends so much on the PA system and the room. Your best bet is to get a personal monitor. But then again, you could just as well have an amp.
I love this pedal. I have currently stopped carrying my Helix stomp and now use this pedal running into my power cab. It’s my constant journey to lighten my gear to rehearsal. Now if only I can get a small compact LOUD FRFR speaker.
Smallest fr I’ve had was the laney irt-x , so much use out of it too, loadbox for amps , powers cabs , aux in , effects loops , post eq , and other stuff
Happy to have found this review. I’ve been toying with getting a Stomp but really dislike working through menus. This see,s like a great choice for a quiet setup through monitors to not annoy the house.
I have Helix Native and it seems like I’m endlessly trying to get the Fender tones the Dream produces right out of the box. It’s pricey but tempting. And a hell of a lot more convenient to use.
The Dream 65 is the first modeler I’ve actually been able to connect with. It took me about a month and a half to form that connection, but I do love it now. Sounds great, responds well, and is rather simple which I enjoy. Took me a little while to find a good setting for drives and fuzzes, but I learned it’s all about what cab u choose. For my own tastes, I like the EV12. It sounds good for clean tones, but also takes drives, fuzzes, and distortion well.
@@dillonturner9627 yea sure. Im using the stock mode with the EV12. I have the bass and treble set at 11 o'clock, the volume set to about 9 o'clock, the output set to about 2 o'clock, and the boost turned off. Im also using a Fender Player Series Telecaster with these settings that has pretty low output pickups, but i compensate with boosting the output a bit on my Empress Compressor MkII. the Dream is placed before my modulation, delay, and reverb, then it goes to my audio interface. Im also using stereo out of the dream into my wet effects. Im also listening back on a pair of Kali IN-5's. Im also using a Slate plugin which is a Neve 1073 preamp to add a little color and a Neve 1073 eq to roll off some of the lows around 80hz which tightens up the sound quite a bit. I find that i need to make a different present for each of my guitars, but i keep the stock mode and EV12 as a constant and tweak the volume and eq appropriately for each. As far a setting for those guitars im not too sure. It been a while since i made those presets. Sounds good out of the monitors, but im not a fan of how this pedal sounds in my headphones which are Audio Technica ATH-M50X. Not sure if it has something to do with my headphones, the pedal itself, or user error, but i find it harsh with drive pedals in headphones no matter what settings i use or post processing i try.
I agree the lack of headphone is a major oversight. It pushed me in the direction of other alternatives unfortunately as I love the sound of the UA Dream
Might be for the same reason why they didn't include an FX loop, and I quote their support: "UAFX Amp Emulators, just like the vintage counterpart, do not have effects loops." Yeah, but it would have been interesting. We're trying to be innovative and modern here, no? You can add a headphone out even if the vintage counterparts didn't have it, same with the FX loop. ;)
@@LiechtensteinGuy yeah that was the dumbest comment in their entire marketing, almost like they forgot they were marketing and amp emulator and not an actual amp.
I sold a Headrush Mx5 and bought a Dream 65 as I mostly like vintage Fender tones. I began to have buyers remorse as I loved the tones of the Dream but missed the headphone out on the Headrush as well as the modulations, delays, plate reverb, multiband eq. I was given a NUX Mighty Plug Pro as a Christmas gift. The other day, I plugged a cable from guitar into the Dream 65, then the Mighty Plug into the output of the Dream 65. I developed a patch on the Mighty Plug that had only a noise gate, eq, and a slight delay. I'm blown away by the sound of the Dream through the Mighty plug, plus it gives you a headphone output. For $109, it also gives you an IR loader, several great modulations, delays, and reverbs, two multiband eq's, a drum machine, some great Marshall, Vox, Tweed Fender, Soldano amp sims and is also an audio interface. It turns the Dream 65 into an absolute monster and adds the convenience of the headphone jack. For a total cost of $510, I don't think Headrush, Line 6, or QC can touch it for someone who mostly loves Fender tones. The Mighty Plug will seriously surprise you with its own tones and the effects are great, too.👍
This is a really good unit. I own one. To up the ante on my Iridium, I bought some York Audio IR's, focusing on Fender. My Iridium sounds much better now! But the UA Dream is still my preference for Fender tones and features.
I was tempted until I found out it had no headphone jack. Then I did a quick online search and found a thread in the UA forum where they recommended buying a 'Devinal 3,5 mm Dual 1/4 Y splitter cable'. Bought the pedal and the cable and it works perfect. Hope that helped everyone who has the same problem.
Maybe it's better than the Iriduim for the Fender sound, but I love the Marshall and and Vox tones on the Iridium and their choice of Cabs. And it is dead easy to use!
@@ironman1290 I don't like the fender on the Iridium. The dream is awesome, with a great reverb and tremolo. I have the Lion also, which is my favourite. But for cleans, the dream is great. And feels as close as digital can to the real thing. I will probably sell the Iridium.
Thanks for the great demo. I would love to get the Dream and the Woodrow and try them out with my Fractal VP4 (as soon as the VP4 finally arrives :-() What has stopped me from buying the two pedals so far is the lack of MIDI and the fact that they don't have a headphone jack. That's what you should expect for the price. Great sounds BUT...
Sounds really good. The lack of reverb was my main gripe with the iridium. That and the plexi model seemed to only have the bright channel. No jumping off both channels to get that classic rock sound. Meant that it was really a pedal platform rather than a stand alone unit unless you were happy with fairly low gain
Yeh - this unit just by itself I'm finding a bit more inspiring due to the Spring, and also while it is only "Deluxe Reverb" flavoured, it does have quite a big range of tones?
Sounds great, the thing these amp-sound-into-mixer type solutions often seem to miss though is an XLR out. For what they charge they may as well put one in.
Simplifier DLX has XLR outputs (and a headphone output AND three types of reverb AND two channels AND an effects loop AND three amp emulations). No USB of course (because it's analogue) but boy, that thing has got a big feature set!
I’ve had mine for a year. It took me some time to truly find its sweet spot for me. Which is fun at times exploring. However i justified my purchase because i told myself it’s the same as having one amp. But I’m currently looking at units that have various amps (tonex and hx stomps). I’m not an expert so even though the dream may sound a little better, I’m thirsting for amp variety.
I think one of the biggest separations of the UA amp series pedals and competitors is the way they take pedals. They respond extremely close to how the actual amp would respond. I own and love the Dream and have ordered the ruby as well. I am in the process of building a stereo pedalboard around the two of them.
There are so many options for modelers now. In the “pro” category: HX Stomp/XL Iridium ACS1 DreamAudio Then in the super budget category: Joyo Mooer NUX There are so many great ways to go ampless these days. I personally won’t switch from my HX Stomp, since it’s also multi effects (and I don’t feel like buying something else for that random chorus/tremolo/pitch etc) it doubles as an audio interface, and a pretty solid basic MIDI controller (I’m using an XL and only have 2 other pedals, so) It’s great for what I need, and I’ve got infinite sound options for gigging.
Yip, and Helix Native or Neural DSP are even more budget again. Especially in the sales this weekend. But sounding up in the pro category. if you have a DAW with audio interface that can do low latency already. And in the studio where you don't mind playing through the computer. Often better headphone amps that way too. I've come back to playing electric after many years. And, gone with a Sire Larry Carlton H7 335 style. Into Neural DSP Plini. In an apartment, with a young family, and mostly for recording, I realised I really don't want to have to use an amp for solo practice, or recording. Even though, there too, things like the Tube 15 sound surprisingly good, for very little money. I do like the sound of the UAD dream, especially the reverb models. But there's also so many great ITB reverb options too. Even free, like SuperMassive.
Hi Jonathan, big fan fist time commenter. One thing to note about the cabs. The three ‘red’ cabs match the labels on the pedal (g25, Oxford, ev12). They are different speakers inside of the deluxe cab. The green speakers represent completely different cabinets (a two rock, super reverb, and twin reverb if memory serves). I’m a big fan of the 1st red one and then also the 3rd red one.
I think a good idea for a follow up video would be chucking some dirt pedals out front to see how it reacts. One of the great things about a Fender DRRI (which I think is one of the greatest ever production amps) is putting your favorite dirt pedal in front. I think from a feature standpoint there are two big misses on this. As you mentioned lack of a headphone out seems bonkers to me, but I also think it would benefit from an effects loop. What's the point of having all those nice amp gain tones if your delay and reverb (if you don't want to use the spring) are going to sound bad.
@@trickfall8752 I've heard other people have used it this way to good effect. Don't have it myself (yet), but if I did I'd likely put my wet effects after it.
I'm a patreon subscriber and love the content and advice you give on your channel. A couple random comments. I had Amplitube 5 from IK which honestly had many short comings in my opinion. In the past few days they have released TONEX, their AI capturing platform. It is exponentially better than regular Amplitube in my opinion. Anyways, there is a user upload there marked as "Dream 65 Clean". It is a capture of the UADDream and is indistinguishable from the real thing in my opinion. I've never played modeling technology that feels this "amp-like". It is amazing so I thought I'd spread the word and get others opinions. Keep the great music and jamming going man. Look forward to your content daily.
I agree. Aside from the tones -which, to my ears sounds amazing- the Dream 65 does feel very amp-like and it does this the best over the competitors from what I've read and heard. It is expensive, but I have no regrets buying one. I was blown away from the start.
I got one to accompany my HX Stomp. Before I played a Princeton from the 70s. This does a better job of capturing that than the princess on the Stomp. My band goes direct and I've been blown away at how good my clean tone is now. Takes pedals well too, although I can't get it to handle my EQD Erupter. Works with Big Muffs though. Guess not fuzz faces.
Nice one for getting one John. Will you be doing comparisons to the Helix and the Fractal devices? Would be good to hear that as I think everyone has just compared it to the iridium and acs-1 😊
Got the ruby. It killed the constant hx stomp modelling amp tweaking. It das have those disharmonic almost inaudible low frequency artifacts many line 6 models have. Once heared i cant unhear them. Uafx also got the irs right. Would love to be able and run them wirhout the amp with the hx hi gain models. Cmon uafx spit them out already: think their next batch will be a recto, dumble and a jtm/plexi pedal. But for now: Amp sound settled. Freeing the stomp dsp for what it excels: complex morphing ambient multidelay patches. Throw some double take and reels block in with a some pitch/glitch/reverse/sweep delays im adual lime setup. Maybe use the glitch looper. I was asked how my modular synth rig looks like. And where i hid it on stage. My hx is getting jealous looks from my microcosm .
I borrowed one of these from a buddy and really liked it. One thing worth noting, though, especially since it’s an odd design choice IMO, is the following line in the manual regarding the Mods. “When the boost knob is turned all the way down to OFF, the mod is disabled and has no effect on amp color or gain.” That’s why you can’t hear any differences when you switch through the Mods at first (with the Boost at full CCW). I have no idea what advantage could possibly exist for designing it this way. After all, if I’ve engaged a Mod via the switch, I obviously want to hear the change the mod makes. I shouldn’t have to nudge the Boost up from minimum in order to ACTUALLY engage the mod.
I heared that Dream 65 emulates vibrato channel of Fender Delux amp but Strymon Iridium emulates normal channel (more suitable to be a pedal platform). So maybe that's the reason of such differences.
I think the biggest difference probably isn’t in the sound, but rather the responsiveness and how it plays with drives. Imo it’s much better in those areas, where the iridium feels a bit more stale. 🤷
@@johnnathancordy That is interesting 🤔. I’ve spent significant time with both, and I will say they respond quite differently. I had to completely reset my drives and start from scratch, but once I did it was significantly better imo. I also used wildly different settings on the Iridium vs the Dream. I don’t run a compressor and the response to picking dynamics/rolling off the volume was more organic on the Dream too. We’re all looking for something different tho 🤷
@@codynaler6644 This lines up with my experience with both pedals pretty much exactly. I always struggled a bit with the deluxe setting on my iridium with drives and was always changing IR’s and using an always on compressor to get it to feel better. I find with the Dream having a compressor is almost redundant. Once I tweaked my drive pedals to work with it, things started feeling almost identical to my Fender amps.
What happened with the Iridium? When it came out I think we universally thought it sounded really decent - then a couple years on there's a whole host of folks saying it doesn't.....Weird
Obviously I love the thing. My main practice amp since I got it! BTW I've seen a few comments of unnatural sounding overdrive, both in comments and around, but that's not what's going on IMO. Someone posted clips they said were from the UA but were actually from a real vintage Deluxe Reverb and it had the same "negatives" people hear in the UA pedal. Once you take away the volume, DRs don't really sound that good in isolation overdriving. One thing this does do better than the other modelers, IMO and IME, is take pedals.
I will submit that perhaps its easier to get a "good" tone out of the UA pedals but my no means do they blow everything else out of the water. Plenty of videos and tests to back that up
Owning the Iridium I ordered the Dream, triggered by all these reviews calling it a game changer. Gonna send it back, cos I like the Iridium better, especially the clean tone. Just a matter of taste I guess.
Seriously considering between this in amongst my pedalboard, or just running a QC. Gigging in London mainly with a few tours here and there and doing sessions at home. Quad Cortex might have an edge with portability and flexibility, but it’s £££ 😬
Thanks John for the great demo. I've always sort that clean Fender amp sound as a platform I have a question. If one is planning on using this as your amp, then at small gigs your playing through the PA. Is that how this is used in general? This leaves you at the mercy of the PA at the venue which is sometimes ok and more times not a great PA. As a gtr player would it be better to have some sort of seperate speaker for this and also can you use it as a stand alone pedal in your chain. I use a MXR Red comp and Tube screamer first then delays after those two and out tpo an amp. . Would this work after the tube screamer on the board or you' have to place it last in the chain.
For me the iridium is exit already for a long time. I own all 3 UAD pedals. It's the real deal. Period. Together with my Kemper i got all the stuff in my studio i want.
@@BrandonMilner Yes. The UAD pedals are complete copies of the whole amplifier. You can tweak it as a real amplifier. The Kemper only makes snapshots of a certain configuration and then you can put some more highs mids and bass in, that’s it. The effects of the Kemper are really Outstanding Awesome though but overall i’m really very happy with the UAD. I use it on location recordings. I bought the Starlight too to make the set complete. I’m not a fan of reverb or chorus so i don’t need those other two UAD effect pedals. For that kind of stuff i use the Strymon Deco instead.
Friend to me: so is John Nathan a bit eccentric? Me: No.....he's a sound fella.. good player.. JNC: . Hehe great video though looks like a good update.
Hi John, today I use ure preset "Twin Love" with my HX Stomp, Iam happy with that, do u realy think this pedal cost the upgrade compared to the Stomp ? Thx par advance.
Hi John Nathan Cordy, Thank you for your vidéo, is it possible to obtain a good jazz tone with this dream ? (like iridium fender preset), it seems crunch very quicky ? no ? :)
To me, the dream is just more fun to play than my iridium or helix. They all sound good, but I gravitate to the Dream and Ruby when I want to fiddle less and play more. Some of my favorite gigs were when I had to use my guitar and amp alone and be creative with just reverb and tremolo.
I believe the Iridium Round is based on the Normal channel and the Dream on the brighter Vibrato channel. Man, not having a headphone out has kept my Iridium on my board and my Ruby in the box. Love my Ruby, but I use the headphone out to dial-in tones and rehearse every week, before plugging into amps on the weekends.
@@Santaheckleryeah, that can work. But doesn’t have as much volume as I’d like (varies depending on headphone specs). Also, not ideal to have to unplug the cables connected to the outputs in order to do said headphone output workaround.
I was hyped by all the youtube demo where it sounded killer. Your demo is not different, it sound great. I bought it but didn't bond with it. No midi, no headphone out, a preset system that sux (it's not possible to modify the settings of a preset). The clean tones were good, but not better than my Kemper. The OD sounded artificial to me (in person, not on YT), and when moving the gain knob from pure clean to slight pushed, there was a big difference like if a different model was engaged (i suspect this is what they are doing). Trying it with my OD pedals didn't give good results. I sent it back, and reading some reviews online, i know i'm not the only one disapointed. Could there be something i missed ?
I'm not sure you're missing anything - I think it sounds great - but then so do most modelers in 2022. I've heard from loads of folks who have found it takes pedals really well - I haven't tried yet. What system were you monitoring it with out of interest?
@@johnnathancordy i first used a Mooer Audiofile, which is a pedal sized headphone amp. Then i connected it directly to my audio interface. The results were the same.
To be honest, if you've already got a stomp, you can cover this sort of stuff and plenty more? I'd imagine the Dream makes a ton of sense for someone who is wanting something to go direct but doesn't want menus etc?
@@johnnathancordy I like HX stomp very much, but something more simple as Iridium or Dream is tempting or even small valve amp like Fender Vibro Champ to just turn it on and play, but as for now I will get new guitar and stick with Stomp :D. Cheers mate.
Fantastic playing! And a great sounding demo. If I may, I find it particularly frustrating when I watch a 23min video of a reviewer who hasn't read the manual at all and states some factually incorrect guesses about how things work (e.g. What the boost knob does in the various modes etc). Please, these videos are long. I get you are trying to see how hard they are to use w/o reading the manual, but we don't need to see your discovery process. Just tell us "I figured almost all of it out w/o the manual...but if you read it, here's how X works" Also, boy did I want to hear some of those artist presets!! Did I mention how great your playing and tone were!? Delightful and awesome.
I just ordered one from Reverb used and didn’t realize that you couldn’t use it as an audio interface. For $399 MSRP, they can’t make it a USB-C audio interface as well??? I mean, the connectors are already there.
Wait wait. Was it mentioned you “have to” use an interface to operate this pedal? You mean I can’t place this pedal last on my board and plug straight into a powered speaker or first a mixer? What about old school guys who don’t work with interfaces and recording gear like that???
Here's the first time plugging this thing in. You're hearing direct audio into the DAW here. Signal chain - guitar - Dream 65 - Steinberg UR RT4.
What do you think of this as a match with Helix FX John?
Thanks, most important info! I think I’m sold, been playing my old strat direct to Apollo/logic with stock sounds, this sounds like a step up in sound and recording demos etc
What amp were you plugged in to? Or were you using like monitors speakers
Thank You for a GREAT demo! It’s awesome to hear a player demo a product in other ways than trying have it sound metal… Dynamic, melodic harmonicaly interesting and with a genuine CLEAN sound!🙏
Amazing! Need to get one now!😁👌
I’ve had this pedal for a year now, I use it for live weddings and private events, on big and small stages, from 50-150 people. Being honest, I have a love hate relationship with it, sometimes it sounds good, and other times it sounds really tinny and lacks punch through the speakers when playing in a band. You will never replicate that feeling of a real amp behind you on stage, however it is extremely practical for lots of situations, I just wish it had more power and the app is simply useless which is a big floor in my opinion
While I'm not really performing and mostly recording, what I do is use a parametric EQ after all my drives to bump up the mids. Deluxe reverbs tend to be mid scooped, so bumping up the mids just a little I've found evens it out. My favorite amp sound is really a fender bassman, but for me, juicing the mids with a good parametric EQ pedal helps me approach that flatter, fuller sound much better. So if you're looking for a way to help alleviate those moments where it feels a little thin, that's what I'd recommend. Completely opens it up imo
I run one output to the p.a and one to a peavey delta blues. I set the peavey to unity with the monitor mix and the peavey also has a mic on it. I bypass the pre amp by running into the effects loop. Transforms the peavey and gives me the amp behind you dynamic. Sounds great with both outputs being in the p.a.
Try using a booster.
i mean i know next to nothing, but isnt what your running said pedal to a huge factor? why dont you get like a middle of the road, 20ish watt tube amp that takes pedals well and run it through that, maybe youll get a little more of that bottom end your looking for? tell me why im wrong cause im sure i am and im dying to learn anything i can related to guitar at the moment haha
Have you played with other modellers before? I've been playing ampless for the past 20 years and this is my experience overall with modellers. It depends so much on the PA system and the room. Your best bet is to get a personal monitor. But then again, you could just as well have an amp.
I love this pedal. I have currently stopped carrying my Helix stomp and now use this pedal running into my power cab. It’s my constant journey to lighten my gear to rehearsal. Now if only I can get a small compact LOUD FRFR speaker.
Smallest fr I’ve had was the laney irt-x , so much use out of it too, loadbox for amps , powers cabs , aux in , effects loops , post eq , and other stuff
Happy to have found this review. I’ve been toying with getting a Stomp but really dislike working through menus. This see,s like a great choice for a quiet setup through monitors to not annoy the house.
I have Helix Native and it seems like I’m endlessly trying to get the Fender tones the Dream produces right out of the box. It’s pricey but tempting. And a hell of a lot more convenient to use.
John your clean playing never ceases to amaze me. Really musical piece. The Dream 65 sounds pretty incredible.
Agree - he is sooooooo Good. I could just listen to him noodle-around with those Pristine Fender Stratty "Cleans" = phenomenal.
The Dream 65 is the first modeler I’ve actually been able to connect with. It took me about a month and a half to form that connection, but I do love it now. Sounds great, responds well, and is rather simple which I enjoy. Took me a little while to find a good setting for drives and fuzzes, but I learned it’s all about what cab u choose. For my own tastes, I like the EV12. It sounds good for clean tones, but also takes drives, fuzzes, and distortion well.
Mind sharing your settings?
@@dillonturner9627 yea sure. Im using the stock mode with the EV12. I have the bass and treble set at 11 o'clock, the volume set to about 9 o'clock, the output set to about 2 o'clock, and the boost turned off. Im also using a Fender Player Series Telecaster with these settings that has pretty low output pickups, but i compensate with boosting the output a bit on my Empress Compressor MkII. the Dream is placed before my modulation, delay, and reverb, then it goes to my audio interface. Im also using stereo out of the dream into my wet effects. Im also listening back on a pair of Kali IN-5's. Im also using a Slate plugin which is a Neve 1073 preamp to add a little color and a Neve 1073 eq to roll off some of the lows around 80hz which tightens up the sound quite a bit. I find that i need to make a different present for each of my guitars, but i keep the stock mode and EV12 as a constant and tweak the volume and eq appropriately for each. As far a setting for those guitars im not too sure. It been a while since i made those presets. Sounds good out of the monitors, but im not a fan of how this pedal sounds in my headphones which are Audio Technica ATH-M50X. Not sure if it has something to do with my headphones, the pedal itself, or user error, but i find it harsh with drive pedals in headphones no matter what settings i use or post processing i try.
I agree the lack of headphone is a major oversight. It pushed me in the direction of other alternatives unfortunately as I love the sound of the UA Dream
Might be for the same reason why they didn't include an FX loop, and I quote their support: "UAFX Amp Emulators, just like the vintage counterpart, do not have effects loops." Yeah, but it would have been interesting. We're trying to be innovative and modern here, no? You can add a headphone out even if the vintage counterparts didn't have it, same with the FX loop. ;)
I read somewhere that you can use a splitter to connect headphones, suggested by UA. Haven’t tried it yet, my unit is in the mail as I write this. 🤤
@@LiechtensteinGuy yeah that was the dumbest comment in their entire marketing, almost like they forgot they were marketing and amp emulator and not an actual amp.
I sold a Headrush Mx5 and bought a Dream 65 as I mostly like vintage Fender tones. I began to have buyers remorse as I loved the tones of the Dream but missed the headphone out on the Headrush as well as the modulations, delays, plate reverb, multiband eq. I was given a NUX Mighty Plug Pro as a Christmas gift. The other day, I plugged a cable from guitar into the Dream 65, then the Mighty Plug into the output of the Dream 65. I developed a patch on the Mighty Plug that had only a noise gate, eq, and a slight delay. I'm blown away by the sound of the Dream through the Mighty plug, plus it gives you a headphone output. For $109, it also gives you an IR loader, several great modulations, delays, and reverbs, two multiband eq's, a drum machine, some great Marshall, Vox, Tweed Fender, Soldano amp sims and is also an audio interface. It turns the Dream 65 into an absolute monster and adds the convenience of the headphone jack. For a total cost of $510, I don't think Headrush, Line 6, or QC can touch it for someone who mostly loves Fender tones. The Mighty Plug will seriously surprise you with its own tones and the effects are great, too.👍
This is a really good unit. I own one. To up the ante on my Iridium, I bought some York Audio IR's, focusing on Fender. My Iridium sounds much better now! But the UA Dream is still my preference for Fender tones and features.
Great video! Owned this and the Iridium and much prefer the Dream 65.
I was tempted until I found out it had no headphone jack. Then I did a quick online search and found a thread in the UA forum where they recommended buying a 'Devinal 3,5 mm Dual 1/4 Y splitter cable'. Bought the pedal and the cable and it works perfect. Hope that helped everyone who has the same problem.
Maybe it's better than the Iriduim for the Fender sound, but I love the Marshall and and Vox tones on the Iridium and their choice of Cabs. And it is dead easy to use!
@@JackZucker you know what to do then
UA has Lion now
What’s your take on “the feel” of the Iridium? Everybody is saying the Dream feels like the real thing!!!
@@ironman1290 I don't like the fender on the Iridium. The dream is awesome, with a great reverb and tremolo. I have the Lion also, which is my favourite. But for cleans, the dream is great. And feels as close as digital can to the real thing. I will probably sell the Iridium.
Can we talk about that that lvl 99 sword you used to open the box 😂
was looking for this comment lol
That’s not a letter opener… now THIS is a letter opener. Love how JNC doesn’t even mention anything.
😂😂😂😂
John, they do make smaller knives....
Thanks for the great demo. I would love to get the Dream and the Woodrow and try them out with my Fractal VP4 (as soon as the VP4 finally arrives :-()
What has stopped me from buying the two pedals so far is the lack of MIDI and the fact that they don't have a headphone jack. That's what you should expect for the price. Great sounds BUT...
Sounds really good. The lack of reverb was my main gripe with the iridium. That and the plexi model seemed to only have the bright channel. No jumping off both channels to get that classic rock sound. Meant that it was really a pedal platform rather than a stand alone unit unless you were happy with fairly low gain
Yeh - this unit just by itself I'm finding a bit more inspiring due to the Spring, and also while it is only "Deluxe Reverb" flavoured, it does have quite a big range of tones?
@@johnnathancordy certainly seems to on the video
Fwiw, the Two Rock 2x12 cab sim (added with registration) is my fav by far
Sounds great, the thing these amp-sound-into-mixer type solutions often seem to miss though is an XLR out. For what they charge they may as well put one in.
Is it a balanced out? You might not need one, just an adaptor.
Simplifier DLX has XLR outputs (and a headphone output AND three types of reverb AND two channels AND an effects loop AND three amp emulations). No USB of course (because it's analogue) but boy, that thing has got a big feature set!
Amazing tone bro...great playing...wow
I’ve had mine for a year. It took me some time to truly find its sweet spot for me. Which is fun at times exploring. However i justified my purchase because i told myself it’s the same as having one amp. But I’m currently looking at units that have various amps (tonex and hx stomps). I’m not an expert so even though the dream may sound a little better, I’m thirsting for amp variety.
I've got the Ruby and it sounds incredible. Glad i changed out my iridium and stomp for it.
I think one of the biggest separations of the UA amp series pedals and competitors is the way they take pedals. They respond extremely close to how the actual amp would respond. I own and love the Dream and have ordered the ruby as well. I am in the process of building a stereo pedalboard around the two of them.
So you need to purchase two pedals to get your tone? Interesting.
I love it bro. I’m thinking about doing the same. It’s not about “need” anyway. If it inspires you and it feels and sounds great then it’s worthwhile.
There are so many options for modelers now. In the “pro” category:
HX Stomp/XL
Iridium
ACS1
DreamAudio
Then in the super budget category:
Joyo
Mooer
NUX
There are so many great ways to go ampless these days.
I personally won’t switch from my HX Stomp, since it’s also multi effects (and I don’t feel like buying something else for that random chorus/tremolo/pitch etc) it doubles as an audio interface, and a pretty solid basic MIDI controller (I’m using an XL and only have 2 other pedals, so)
It’s great for what I need, and I’ve got infinite sound options for gigging.
Totally agree, for me the HX Stomp does all I need and is a constant source of inspiration
Yip, and Helix Native or Neural DSP are even more budget again. Especially in the sales this weekend. But sounding up in the pro category. if you have a DAW with audio interface that can do low latency already. And in the studio where you don't mind playing through the computer. Often better headphone amps that way too. I've come back to playing electric after many years. And, gone with a Sire Larry Carlton H7 335 style. Into Neural DSP Plini. In an apartment, with a young family, and mostly for recording, I realised I really don't want to have to use an amp for solo practice, or recording. Even though, there too, things like the Tube 15 sound surprisingly good, for very little money. I do like the sound of the UAD dream, especially the reverb models. But there's also so many great ITB reverb options too. Even free, like SuperMassive.
This sounds more like my vintage 64 Deluxe Reverb than the Tonemaster Amp does. That's just weird... but this really nails the sound.
Lack of headphone out is a shocking oversight. Lack of MIDI is a missed opportunity.. and lack of USB out is weird when the pedal uses 3rd party IRs
"That's naught a knife..." had a Crocodile Dundee flashback when I saw him opening the box lol
I was stunned by the input Stich! I kept plugging in and thinking that it’s worth the price of admission just for the input. Stunning
Hi Jonathan, big fan fist time commenter. One thing to note about the cabs.
The three ‘red’ cabs match the labels on the pedal (g25, Oxford, ev12). They are different speakers inside of the deluxe cab.
The green speakers represent completely different cabinets (a two rock, super reverb, and twin reverb if memory serves).
I’m a big fan of the 1st red one and then also the 3rd red one.
Yeh the green ones are the "bonus" ones right - I think I preferred the Green ones
I think a good idea for a follow up video would be chucking some dirt pedals out front to see how it reacts. One of the great things about a Fender DRRI (which I think is one of the greatest ever production amps) is putting your favorite dirt pedal in front.
I think from a feature standpoint there are two big misses on this. As you mentioned lack of a headphone out seems bonkers to me, but I also think it would benefit from an effects loop. What's the point of having all those nice amp gain tones if your delay and reverb (if you don't want to use the spring) are going to sound bad.
Could you not put those effects after the Dream?
@@robdavies9478 Good thought, I definitely think of an "amp" as being last in the chain, but that could work.
@@trickfall8752 I've heard other people have used it this way to good effect. Don't have it myself (yet), but if I did I'd likely put my wet effects after it.
Best review of this pedal I've seen. Thanks 👍
I'm sure you figured this out by now but the green cabs are the bonus ones you get when you register the pedal
Nice vid man, thanks! I’ve got my eye on the Ruby but this Dream is pretty dreamy
I'm a patreon subscriber and love the content and advice you give on your channel. A couple random comments. I had Amplitube 5 from IK which honestly had many short comings in my opinion. In the past few days they have released TONEX, their AI capturing platform. It is exponentially better than regular Amplitube in my opinion. Anyways, there is a user upload there marked as "Dream 65 Clean". It is a capture of the UADDream and is indistinguishable from the real thing in my opinion. I've never played modeling technology that feels this "amp-like". It is amazing so I thought I'd spread the word and get others opinions. Keep the great music and jamming going man. Look forward to your content daily.
I agree. Aside from the tones -which, to my ears sounds amazing- the Dream 65 does feel very amp-like and it does this the best over the competitors from what I've read and heard. It is expensive, but I have no regrets buying one. I was blown away from the start.
I got one to accompany my HX Stomp. Before I played a Princeton from the 70s. This does a better job of capturing that than the princess on the Stomp.
My band goes direct and I've been blown away at how good my clean tone is now. Takes pedals well too, although I can't get it to handle my EQD Erupter. Works with Big Muffs though. Guess not fuzz faces.
You could easily play a whole gig with just a stomp and this right!?
@@BrandonMilner you super can. Not needing the dsp for amp modeling, you can run polyphonic pitch, delays, reverbs, etc.
sounds good, the reverb is nice
I think that's my favourite part of the pedal!
Nice one for getting one John. Will you be doing comparisons to the Helix and the Fractal devices? Would be good to hear that as I think everyone has just compared it to the iridium and acs-1 😊
Got the ruby. It killed the constant hx stomp modelling amp tweaking. It das have those disharmonic almost inaudible low frequency artifacts many line 6 models have. Once heared i cant unhear them. Uafx also got the irs right. Would love to be able and run them wirhout the amp with the hx hi gain models. Cmon uafx spit them out already: think their next batch will be a recto, dumble and a jtm/plexi pedal. But for now: Amp sound settled. Freeing the stomp dsp for what it excels: complex morphing ambient multidelay patches. Throw some double take and reels block in with a some pitch/glitch/reverse/sweep delays im adual lime setup. Maybe use the glitch looper. I was asked how my modular synth rig looks like. And where i hid it on stage. My hx is getting jealous looks from my microcosm .
How’s the microcosm? Is it worth the price tag, or not?
I borrowed one of these from a buddy and really liked it. One thing worth noting, though, especially since it’s an odd design choice IMO, is the following line in the manual regarding the Mods.
“When the boost knob is turned all the way down to OFF, the mod is disabled and has no effect on amp color or gain.”
That’s why you can’t hear any differences when you switch through the Mods at first (with the Boost at full CCW).
I have no idea what advantage could possibly exist for designing it this way. After all, if I’ve engaged a Mod via the switch, I obviously want to hear the change the mod makes. I shouldn’t have to nudge the Boost up from minimum in order to ACTUALLY engage the mod.
I was surprised with how much I loved the Vox on the Iridium & shocked at how much I hated the Marshall.
Same
I have the Irridium and the Lion. The Irridium Marshall sound is very similar to the Lion variac sound with the Greenbacks.
At 2:04 there is severe hum. Is that from the Dream 65? I mean, did they have to model this as well after the tube amp?
Think it comes from the single coils and the camera etc. (Hope so)
Ah yes, the Sword of a Thousand Truths
I heared that Dream 65 emulates vibrato channel of Fender Delux amp but Strymon Iridium emulates normal channel (more suitable to be a pedal platform). So maybe that's the reason of such differences.
That bs. The 2 channels are not that different.
I think the biggest difference probably isn’t in the sound, but rather the responsiveness and how it plays with drives. Imo it’s much better in those areas, where the iridium feels a bit more stale. 🤷
Interesting - there's at least one chap in the comments who found the opposite?
@@johnnathancordy That is interesting 🤔. I’ve spent significant time with both, and I will say they respond quite differently. I had to completely reset my drives and start from scratch, but once I did it was significantly better imo. I also used wildly different settings on the Iridium vs the Dream. I don’t run a compressor and the response to picking dynamics/rolling off the volume was more organic on the Dream too. We’re all looking for something different tho 🤷
@@codynaler6644 This lines up with my experience with both pedals pretty much exactly. I always struggled a bit with the deluxe setting on my iridium with drives and was always changing IR’s and using an always on compressor to get it to feel better. I find with the Dream having a compressor is almost redundant. Once I tweaked my drive pedals to work with it, things started feeling almost identical to my Fender amps.
To my ears, the Iridium in Fender position, with « C » cab is the closest equivalent to my ‘65 Vibrolux I ever heard
What happened with the Iridium? When it came out I think we universally thought it sounded really decent - then a couple years on there's a whole host of folks saying it doesn't.....Weird
One of the best parts of this review is hearing you play guitar.
You've been able to get some amazing clean tones with this. Better that QC or Helix
Obviously I love the thing. My main practice amp since I got it! BTW I've seen a few comments of unnatural sounding overdrive, both in comments and around, but that's not what's going on IMO. Someone posted clips they said were from the UA but were actually from a real vintage Deluxe Reverb and it had the same "negatives" people hear in the UA pedal. Once you take away the volume, DRs don't really sound that good in isolation overdriving. One thing this does do better than the other modelers, IMO and IME, is take pedals.
Guitar players listening with their eyes? No way I’d never do that ………… :,)
To be honest, I would be happy with the Nux Amp Academy, which has midi and scenes etc. I don’t think we’ll see these on our shores.
This is special! Love it!
One thing to note.
You did NOT have it set on the ev12 at first. It's green so it's the jbf120
Red light is ev12
Very nice demo. Thank you.
I will submit that perhaps its easier to get a "good" tone out of the UA pedals but my no means do they blow everything else out of the water. Plenty of videos and tests to back that up
Owning the Iridium I ordered the Dream, triggered by all these reviews calling it a game changer. Gonna send it back, cos I like the Iridium better, especially the clean tone. Just a matter of taste I guess.
U had the cabs wrong. The red light is indicating the listed cabs, the green light is the extra cabs with get after registration
always here for John's amazing guitar playing!
does it take well OD or distortions in front?
Seriously considering between this in amongst my pedalboard, or just running a QC. Gigging in London mainly with a few tours here and there and doing sessions at home.
Quad Cortex might have an edge with portability and flexibility, but it’s £££ 😬
This one VS the Revival Drive compact, same IR's? For blues.
I really would like to know your opinion.
Thanks
Thanks John for the great demo. I've always sort that clean Fender amp sound as a platform I have a question. If one is planning on using this as your amp, then at small gigs your playing through the PA. Is that how this is used in general? This leaves you at the mercy of the PA at the venue which is sometimes ok and more times not a great PA. As a gtr player would it be better to have some sort of seperate speaker for this and also can you use it as a stand alone pedal in your chain. I use a MXR Red comp and Tube screamer first then delays after those two and out tpo an amp. . Would this work after the tube screamer on the board or you' have to place it last in the chain.
Sounded great as well as your playing
4:14
"That's not a knife... that's a knife."
That's how Rambo opens a gear box.
What camera do you use? Great vid!
Once you find a sound you like - can the pedal snapshot recall it?
For me the iridium is exit already for a long time. I own all 3 UAD pedals. It's the real deal. Period. Together with my Kemper i got all the stuff in my studio i want.
You feel the UAD stuff does things your Kemper does not?
@@BrandonMilner Yes. The UAD pedals are complete copies of the whole amplifier. You can tweak it as a real amplifier. The Kemper only makes snapshots of a certain configuration and then you can put some more highs mids and bass in, that’s it. The effects of the Kemper are really Outstanding Awesome though but overall i’m really very happy with the UAD. I use it on location recordings. I bought the Starlight too to make the set complete. I’m not a fan of reverb or chorus so i don’t need those other two UAD effect pedals. For that kind of stuff i use the Strymon Deco instead.
Friend to me: so is John Nathan a bit eccentric?
Me: No.....he's a sound fella.. good player..
JNC: .
Hehe great video though looks like a good update.
Great review 👌i'm wondering, Which guitar are you playing in please ??
Sounds great but for the price of this thing surely just get an Hx stomp right ?
Hi John, today I use ure preset "Twin Love" with my HX Stomp, Iam happy with that,
do u realy think this pedal cost the upgrade compared to the Stomp ? Thx par advance.
So, I need absolute clean for my platform. I want no overdrive, that comes from my pedals because we have pure clean stuff. Can this do that?
no
@@quiksilver78 that’s so weird haha why make the pedal then
Hi John Nathan Cordy, Thank you for your vidéo, is it possible to obtain a good jazz tone with this dream ? (like iridium fender preset), it seems crunch very quicky ? no ? :)
Does UA sell the exact same plug ins in this 65 that you can get without the pedal?
I see you are ready for the Zombie Apocalypse!!! That's one helluva Knife!
That jam in the beggining is very Tom Misch like, especially the chord progression and tone. Was this done on purpose?
To me, the dream is just more fun to play than my iridium or helix. They all sound good, but I gravitate to the Dream and Ruby when I want to fiddle less and play more. Some of my favorite gigs were when I had to use my guitar and amp alone and be creative with just reverb and tremolo.
I believe the Iridium Round is based on the Normal channel and the Dream on the brighter Vibrato channel.
Man, not having a headphone out has kept my Iridium on my board and my Ruby in the box. Love my Ruby, but I use the headphone out to dial-in tones and rehearse every week, before plugging into amps on the weekends.
I believe you can hook up headphones by using a 1/4 to 1/8 adapter in the output…no biggie.
@@Santaheckleryeah, that can work. But doesn’t have as much volume as I’d like (varies depending on headphone specs). Also, not ideal to have to unplug the cables connected to the outputs in order to do said headphone output workaround.
Where can I learn the continuous lines Ike that????
Iridium user rushing to buy a dream at the nearest possible opportunity.
This or HX stomp for Fender Sounds? is there any difference in feels?
So can this be used live through a PA or powered monitor?
I was hyped by all the youtube demo where it sounded killer. Your demo is not different, it sound great. I bought it but didn't bond with it. No midi, no headphone out, a preset system that sux (it's not possible to modify the settings of a preset). The clean tones were good, but not better than my Kemper. The OD sounded artificial to me (in person, not on YT), and when moving the gain knob from pure clean to slight pushed, there was a big difference like if a different model was engaged (i suspect this is what they are doing).
Trying it with my OD pedals didn't give good results.
I sent it back, and reading some reviews online, i know i'm not the only one disapointed. Could there be something i missed ?
No MIDI: deal-breaker right there for me. Thanks for the detailed comment
I'm not sure you're missing anything - I think it sounds great - but then so do most modelers in 2022. I've heard from loads of folks who have found it takes pedals really well - I haven't tried yet.
What system were you monitoring it with out of interest?
@@johnnathancordy i first used a Mooer Audiofile, which is a pedal sized headphone amp. Then i connected it directly to my audio interface. The results were the same.
I saw that knife in the Crocodile Dundee movie i'm sure
Predator actually!!
Shall I get new guitar or UAD Dream 65, that is the real question here :D. I have Hx stomp, but that is big step up I suppose.
To be honest, if you've already got a stomp, you can cover this sort of stuff and plenty more?
I'd imagine the Dream makes a ton of sense for someone who is wanting something to go direct but doesn't want menus etc?
@@johnnathancordy I like HX stomp very much, but something more simple as Iridium or Dream is tempting or even small valve amp like Fender Vibro Champ to just turn it on and play, but as for now I will get new guitar and stick with Stomp :D. Cheers mate.
Do you think UA made the next leap forward in modeling technology? If so, how much better is this to the line 6 model of a deluxe reverb?
I want me a Rambo Knife 🗡️ love it 🗡️🎸🔥😊
This sound really great 😅
Letter Opener of Death
Fantastic playing! And a great sounding demo. If I may, I find it particularly frustrating when I watch a 23min video of a reviewer who hasn't read the manual at all and states some factually incorrect guesses about how things work (e.g. What the boost knob does in the various modes etc). Please, these videos are long. I get you are trying to see how hard they are to use w/o reading the manual, but we don't need to see your discovery process. Just tell us "I figured almost all of it out w/o the manual...but if you read it, here's how X works"
Also, boy did I want to hear some of those artist presets!!
Did I mention how great your playing and tone were!? Delightful and awesome.
Yep, its GREAT!
I just ordered one from Reverb used and didn’t realize that you couldn’t use it as an audio interface. For $399 MSRP, they can’t make it a USB-C audio interface as well??? I mean, the connectors are already there.
dang, i used to like true-fire. i just closed it cause your a chad.
Hey dude, what are the pups in that strat?
Hey Oscar! Monty's pre 65 retro winds
I am curious what it sounds like through a power cab, if you still have one. Love the dream 65 regardless
I’m using dream with a stomp xl. Also the ruby
Not bad at all
Are you using the stomp for your effects and the dream as the amp?
@@TheArbiterOfTruth pretty much but intend to use whatever works in due course
Btw: did anybody lile/buy the uafx tweed pedal?
do you notice latency?
Iridium is ded. The reverb on Dream >> the reverb on the Volante and that's worth it alone
Wait wait. Was it mentioned you “have to” use an interface to operate this pedal? You mean I can’t place this pedal last on my board and plug straight into a powered speaker or first a mixer? What about old school guys who don’t work with interfaces and recording gear like that???
Iridium killer? I hope so for the price. Typical UA over pricing.
I really dont get why they decided to pass on the headphone jack :(
"That's not a knife, THIS is a knife!"