I can't speak for anyone but myself, but for me it's because it's pure guesswork and the so-called results don't prove (or disprove) anything.
Bad analogy, but stay with me:
- find a Picasso your target audience is unfamiliar with (i.e. the player, guitar and riff)
- take a photo of it (the amp)
- get two talented artists to make forgeries of it, then take photos with the same camera, lighting and angle (the modellers)
- ask people to look at the three photos online and identify which is the original (the comparison video)
Now, if people guess wrong it could be naively claimed the forgeries are 'just as good' as the real thing, as 'no one can tell the difference'. This is a BS conclusion to draw, yet I've seen it numerous times on this subject.
This is not a criticism of the OP - I quite like his content. My point is that strong opinions shouldn't be drawn from the experiments of others - you have to do the work yourself and look at all the variables.
My experience with more emulators than I can count is that they simply don't sound or feel as good as a tube amp. They don't inspire me, and I don't have as much fun playing. Playing (or recording) a small amp through a 1x12 similarly leaves me wanting more. No video on the subject can ever change that. Rant over.
I thought the analogy was quite sufficient for expounding on your thoughts on the subject, as well as how many of us think about it.
To me, the main glaring thing that seems to be lost in translation with (some) IRs is the interaction of the transformer with the speaker. It's especially obvious in vintage amps where the transformer "gives" a bit at high volume/gain levels and high dynamics playing, like a tweed bassman or a bluesbreaker. But it's also audible in models of modern amps in certain situations. Different IR loaders and tech can be better or worse at this, it isn't a black and white thing, just a general issue. It doesn't stop me from using IRs when they are called for - they can be a great tool.
Whatever the reason is - and it could be because everyone uses the same IRs and types of IRs, or it could be because the IR technology hasn't quite gotten advanced enough yet, or it could be a myriad of other reasons............ it tends to make everything sound bland and "stock."
Some of these sounds are so "Stock" that they have literally become memes in guitar groups on facebook and other places.
(For example, the Fluff/Ola Mesa OS IR that literally everyone who plays modern metal uses. Agufish, etc, they all use it. Or, the "hair metal" axefx model with the friedman IR that Ben Eller, Robert Baker, and literally every youtuber uses when they do their requisite Nuno/Vitto/etc video.)
These handful of distinct IR sounds have become so pervasive in youtube videos (im sure for the ease of use and quickness of dialing in a solid sound) that people get ear/gear fatigue listening to them. And that's probably the number one place people watch gear demos and guitar related content.
That isn't to shit on OPs video at all (he seems to have high production values) or even to shit on the use of IRs (i use them all the time, if I just want to make a quick demo, or need a speaker's sound which I dont own) i'm just explaining why, to me, it isn't very interesting to try and guess with videos like this.
That's why (at least for me) its
much more interesting/revealing to hear these types of tests through real speakers - whether miced, or a simple phone clip like
@cardinal did a couple days ago. Those tones were very close, but there was a discernible difference. Even if they would have been indistinguishable, I was much more interested in listening to it
as a comparison because of that.
For lots of people, it
doesnt matter if models/amps are indistinguishable with the same IR - because using certain massive, wall of sound, overbearing 4x12 IRs can make a crate GX40 and a JCM900 nearly indistinguishable. So its kind of like, who cares that it can make a very close profile/model and a particular amp sound the same?