Solid State amp vs. Tube amp

[roylor4]

Originally Posted by perttime

I'm curious:
when people say they prefer tube amps, does that mean ALL tube amps or SOME tube amps? Does it matter if the tube amp is Fender, Marshall, Vox, Orange, Mesa Boogie, Magnatone, Supro, Blackstar, or something else?

In general, I prefer tube amps or tube/ss hybrids to SS for tone, but SS for weight. My 2 gigging amps are Fender Super Champ X2 and Orange Micro Terror w/cab. Practice amp is Bugera V5.

As to what flavor people prefer, that is like asking if you prefer chocolate or vanilla ice cream and this will be all over the place depending on musical style and tonal preference. Another factor is in a two channel amp, does the dirty channel give you the kind of "grind" you want.

Keep in mind, these are simple generalities and most tones can be achieved to some degree with any good amp and a LOT of pedals. Also depends on the guitar/p'ups driving the amp too.

I like Blackstar, but their tone while very good, doesn't really have any distinguishing characteristics.

You want great "edge of breakup" tones - might want a Fender.

Like high gain ala Metal - perhaps a Marshall.

Tons of gain with fuzz mixed in? Get an Orange.

Pair this with the Clean tone available on an amp which vary widely too and not only are there tons of amps to choose from - it actually takes a while to discover what your preference truly is.

Right now, I strongly prefer the roundness and light weight of my hybrid Orange.

[FrankHudson]

For roughly the last 40 years the general opinion that tube electric guitar amps are better. That remains so, though things are changing in some situations and could change some more.

A well built tube amp is not a big hassle. Tubes do wear out, but for many home/occasional giging users the number of hours in use take a long time to add up. Getting a tube change/bias setup once a decade isn't that big a deal. Nor are well made ones fragile.

Solid State components die too.

For many home and recording users I think there's a lot to be said for the non-tube options, including modeling. In the last decade modeling has taken over larger segments of the "pro" market as travel size/weight cost and versatility concern increase and as more stages are low-volume in-ear monitor situations.

I go back and forth myself, currently playing a couple of tube amps mostly, though readying myself for use of a pedal board with them. For recording, there's some very efficient and good sounding workflows with software plugins or modeling, and I still do that.

Guitar oriented solid state amps without modeling of any kind are very niche right now. But they can sound fine. They can suffer from a market that buys with specifications and expectations in mind rather than ears.


All types can work with pedals.

[phcorrigan]

My limited experience:

When I bought my Gretsch, my first and only electric guitar, about two years ago, I also bought a Fender Mustang LT25. I hated it. Next I bought a used Line 6 v4 modeler, and it was an improvement, but I didn't love it. At Steve DeRosa's suggestion I bought a Bugera V22 Infinium tube amp and I really like it. I did swap out the stock tubes for JJs. I also bought a used Yamaha THR10C modeler, which is fun to play with, but I don't really like the sound. I never use it and should probably sell it.

I think I like the tube amp best because the solid state amps, to my ear, sound somewhat sterile. The tube amp seems to impart a degree of warmth that enhances the signal from the Gretsch's pickups.

Of course, that could just be BS that I've talked myself into, since I paid as much or more for the tube amp than the others combined, so it must be better!

[perttime]

One funny thing is that people often compare $100 SS amps with $1,000 tube amps, and conclude that tubes is better. I don't think that is exactly an apples vs. apples comparison.

[ssstewart]

my favorite Amp, ive had since i was 15 My dad bought it and rebuilt it with extra transformer/ buffed caps & marconis. 1963 Ampeg Gemini II with wrfdale cabinet and original hammond 2 stage floating spring reverb. original echo/tremolo pedal. i have extra tubes for it,but have only ever had to replace 2 of the 12ax7 tubes in it since i got it. super warm and rich...however if i want to play on one of my decks outside and such i just use my randall rx25rm and it does the job.

the only pedals i run through the ampeg are boss DS1, a chorus and flanger.

[nightchef]

I've never found tube amps to present maintenance issues -- at least not maintenance issues that were at all tube-specific. For years I've used tube amps for guitar and SS amps for bass, and I haven't noticed that the former need fixing any more often than the latter.

The thing I get from a good tube amp that I've never gotten satisfactorily from a SS amp is a certain chimey, overtone-rich character in the clean tones. I'm not talking edge-of-breakup; I'm talking about a tone that is absolutely clean, but also harmonically complex and lively. In my experience, that's hard to get a SS amp to do -- for instance, the classic SS amps like Polytone or Roland Jazz Chorus feature a clean tone that is just too sterile for me.

But that may be changing. I played a Quilter Micro Pro in a music store a couple of years ago and was surprised at how close it came to my ideal clean tone. It wasn't quite there, but it was darn close. From what I'm hearing online, the new Aviator Cub and Super Blocks may be even closer. The Roland Blues Cubes look interesting too. And the Fender Tone Masters seem to have taken digital modeling to a new level--they have some very impressive web samples and user testimonials. I'm shopping for a second amp right now, and I am leaning hard toward one of these.

[TiffanyGuitar]

I absolutely love my point-to-point wired Fender Princeton. However, I do have a Roland Cube for when I want a more easily portable amp or I want to play into headphones. It can't touch the Princeton in terms of sound or feel, but it does OK for its low cost. I have been tempted by the Blues Cubes as well, but never pulled the trigger. My son is starting to play, and if he sticks with it, I will likely eventually get him a Blues Junior. I think it is hard to beat a tube sound, but to each their own. There are good solid state amps out there.

[BoneDigger]

I will readily admit I prefer tube amps and aside from a bass amp and an acoustic amp, all of my amps have tubes. My favorite is my Princeton Reverb RI. I have owned a few SS amps but they never stay long. I have had zero issues with my tube amps.

I will also admit that you could play me a song by a well known/good musician and I could not tell you if it was tube or SS.

[blue]

Originally Posted by perttime

One funny thing is that people often compare $100 SS amps with $1,000 tube amps, and conclude that tubes is better. I don't think that is exactly an apples vs. apples comparison.

I've posted this before. It is, let's say, informative... Jump to 13:30 for the unveiling.

[Paleolith54]

Originally Posted by perttime

I'm curious:
when people say they prefer tube amps, does that mean ALL tube amps or SOME tube amps? Does it matter if the tube amp is Fender, Marshall, Vox, Orange, Mesa Boogie, Magnatone, Supro, Blackstar, or something else?

Well, it's a generalization. What I mean is that, as a general proposition, I prefer how amps with tubes in the pre-amp and power amp sections sound and feel over solid state amps. And that is true for me regardless of volume level. Of the tube amps I've played, I prefer Mesas but there are others I'd be fine with (like Buddha) and others I don't care for (Like Fender or Vox) for what I play.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by perttime

I'm curious:
when people say they prefer tube amps, does that mean ALL tube amps or SOME tube amps? Does it matter if the tube amp is Fender, Marshall, Vox, Orange, Mesa Boogie, Magnatone, Supro, Blackstar, or something else?

I'm a big Marshall tube amp guy. Love the tone with my Les Pauls / SGs through them.

[DukeX]

Buy and play what you want, and don't worry about it.

Here's what I wanted, so I bought them:

Tweed Deluxe (Lil Dawg Amps)
Princeton Reverb (Vintage Sound Amps)
Vox AC4 HW1

There are lots of great tube and solid state amps out there, but I'm very happy to have these particular amps and have no desire for other amps, tube or solid stare. That doesn't mean you would feel the same.

[1neeto]

Originally Posted by perttime

I have found both tube and SS amps that I like. Currently, I have a little Marshall DSL tube combo and a Sessionette 75 SS combo (from early 1980s) that is in desperate need of some competent TLC.

Some say that the DSL isn't the best if you want to crank the gain. I just set it where it overdrives when I pick hard, and it works great there. The Sessionette has a nice overdrive channel and I can also mix it with the clean side, so that I get both the attack of the clean and some "hair" from the overdrive side. Award-Session has some modernized versions of the Session amps.

Sorry, I don't really use much pedals. A low gain overdrive is all I have.

.... Except I have a couple of preamp pedals with speaker emulation. A tube pedal by Blackstar and a new "nutube" one from Vox. I haven't used the Vox yet but the Blackstar gives me sounds that I like when I turn up the gain on the clean/crunch channel. I run preamp pedals into some computer speakers at home, but they should work fine into any power amp or sound system.


..... And I don't do Modeling amps. Some might be excellent but something about them "doesn't seem right" to me. It could be the millions of options in the computer, or perhaps I just try to keep some parts of my life free of computers.

Which Vox do you have? I have the Cooperhead drive and it sounds great through my clean channel. It truly has the Marshall tone to it.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by DebbieE

It'd be nice if Fender made a Tone Master amp Princeton Reverb. Something a bit smaller than the Deluxe Reverb.

With an estimated weight around 16 pounds, if they can bring it in for around $700 (not unreasonable, based on the larger/two-channel $899 Deluxe Reverb TM) Fender could have another winner on their hands - and if they keep the scalable 22W power stage of the DR they probably won't be able to keep up with the demand...

Now for a 25-pound TM '63 Vibroverb...

[captain_jack]

If you were looking for a good crunch sound at low volume, are you better off getting a tube or ss amp? Would a 10 watt ss or 1 watt tube be a better choice?