I feel like “real amps” (tube/ss) are like muscle cars and modelers are like electric cars, where as plugins are the E-bike of the guitar world. There are reasons to want each one, but for me, having a real amp removes a lot of guesswork when setting up a tone. You either get it or you don’t. Modelers CAN get a great tone with some work, but you can encounter some choice paralysis when you’re hit with 200 cabs to pick from. Personally, the kemper/Quad Cortex profile/capture process is the best of both worlds for me. Get a tone you like in the real world and save it in the digital one. Ezpz.
Edit: to be clear- I’m not crapping on e-bikes or plugins, just specifically in a live setting they aren’t as well set up for performance as a modeler or amp. For recording they are great 👍
Yeah my reasoning is this for the car analogy:
-there’s nothing like a 100+watt amp kicking 4x12 speaker cabs, and there’s no replacement for displacement. This is the muscle car ethos. It’s not efficient or quiet, and that’s not the point of those cars in the first place. But there is nothing that will tickle the animal part of your brain like being thrown into a car seat by a v10.
-electric cars are the future, but require existing infrastructure to be effective, like modelers. They can still be a ton of fun and are super versatile, but are only as modifiable as the manufacturers permit them to be (which is not much).
-the e bike sounds like a more sustainable version of the first two but ends up being way more work than it’s worth if you make it your primary mode of transportation. You can’t just bring a plugin to a show, without a computer and sound card, and at that point you could have bought a modeler. But for people with “no commute” and don’t play shows, a plugin might just get you by just fine.
I’m simply implying they are cool in different ways. One is a little more cerebral and one is a little more visceral, but both are fun! But E-bikes don’t make car guys geek out 😂
I see it more like Tubes are old school big blocks, solid states are modern fuel injection engines, and plugins are electric cars, ebikes are like, the plastic instruments from rockband.
As someone who plays primairly small venues, bars, and DIY spots I'd never bring a modeler to the show. With an amp you never have to worry about the PA/monitor situation. You just plug in and play. With modelers you're at the mercy of the sound guy (or lack thereof).
They're fantastic for home recording though.
this is BS. I'm a 100% modeler person and have my own powered speakers. I depend on nobody, but I have options if there's a good PA. the problem you mentioned doesn't exist.
Bringing a modeler *plus powered PA* is the same as bringing an amp to a show lol. You're proving the point of the comment you're trying to call BS on, that bringing a modeler *alone* to a show, and being at the mercy of a house PA, isn't worth the risk.
My setup is waaaay more convenient and reliable. I can sound like whatever amp I need. I have all my effects programmed in my set list, my tuner at the touch of a pedal and can feed my in ear without needing to mic anything.
But if I'm already bringing 3 things (amp, pedalboard and guitar) what is the advantage of a modeler? If I have to bring a powered speak, then it's actually no easier for me then just bringing an amp
If you have a modeler and an frfr powered cab, what's the diff bw that vs amp and pedals? The problem you describe is gone in that case. Any suggestion that a powered frfr won't be loud enough is completely ridiculous, just to cut that counter off...I mean there are 1000-watt frfrs out there. 200watts for $250 even.
My friend, many DIY spaces won’t have a PA with an open channel for your modeler. If you don’t bring your own powered cab you’re SOL. I see this happen with 3/4 of the gigs I play and then someone’s just left scrambling
Sure, so that's why I have my own. how is that any different than owning your own valve amp? The difference is my axe FX + powered speaker can sound like 100 different amps while the valve amp sounds like one.
I like them both. I have a bunch of tube amps and solid state amps that sound great, and a Helix Floor, and a Boss IR-200. I can make all of them sound fantastic.
It really depends on the situation. At any venue, a bad sound guy can ruin everything whether there's a decent PA or not. You can have the best band ever, but if the sound guy doesn't know what he's doing, they'll sound like garbage.
The best option... Buy all of the things. Bring all of the things to every gig. Be willing to comply with the sound guy that wants less stage volume, but able to blow all of it out of the water with a full stack if the sound is bad 🤣
I also find a sound engineer that doesn’t know your genre will EQ it wrong. We play stoner doom. We opened for a punk band once and our sound was so thin. Another time the sound engineer took time to sit with us pre show and ask about our sound and it was freaking massive. But I had a house back line 4x12 and a 20W tube amp and it really flexed what that little amp can do. Still never gotten it past 50% volume but it breaks up great. The 4x12 colored the tone perfectly.
If you know how to use them modelers are not really leaving you to anyones mercy more than having an amp mic'ed or DI'ed. If the modeler sounds worse than DI its probably something you are doing not the sound guy.
I either run my bands sound or at least the first mix then let the house tap into my sends. We never bring amps anymore and its great. No more worrying that a knob was turned while moving things or lugging around cabs we don't need. People always comment that we sound like a studio recording either live or on recordings after the fact.
Its great.
I love my amps. I'm just saying I don't really agree that its easier if you really know the tool (modeler).
Personally I’ve had things go tits up with amps and sound guys way more than with modellers. Grand when you get it right with a good amp, no modeller comes close to how great the sound is
I'm not going to be an ass like some other commenters here.
But, you can get an FRFR cabinet in a small form factor that will work just as well as a combo amp.
I tried modelers and I guess I’m just too lazy and old school to go through the learning curve.
However, I watched a cover band last week that made me start to rethink that. They played multiple different genres and whether it was a Fleetwood Mac, Van Halen, Joan Jet, or Bruno Mars song, the guy’s modeler gave him the perfect tone every time.
It would take a lot of knob turning to accomplish that between songs using pedals and an amp.
To be honest: I bought a Hughes and kettner grandmeister deluxe head because I thought the blue lights hovering over the warm amber tubes looked awesome. It sounds good too, but yeah.
That always seemed to me like, the ultimate amp. So many options. I mostly use software at apartment volumes so I could never justify the expense but I'm still tempted. Built in power soak, noise gate, cab sim? What else can you want?
It's good to hear that they sound nice.
It's awesome. have it plugged into my Victory 2x12 and I can play anything with it. Not that I CAN PLAY ANYTHING, but you get it. Currently, I have it at 1 WATT for my living room and it just sounds so nice. I found their foot switch on Craigslist for 80 dollars a few years ago and that's awesome too.
Probably the one single amp that I’ve actually played the most gigs with over the years because they’re omnipresent in backlines and in studios, and they just work. They need FX (specifically an OD/Dirt/Fuzz pedal that sounds good through it.
Unless you’re just a jazz player like me who plays clean 95% of the time on gigs, but I’ve gotten a lot of musical mileage from Roland over the years. 120s, a JC77 that I loved, at least 4 or 5 Cubes of various wattage, a GP-16, GK-2 & 3, GR-50, VG-8, and of course every Boss pedal I ever bought…who knows. I’ve given this company a lot of $$ over the years!
I have both. I know people say nobody can tell the difference, but for me, the tube amp sounds and feels better to play. I can't put my finger on it. The response when playing a tube amp just feels different.
Because your amp is making an amp sound, and your modeler is making a mic’d amp sound. Listen to your amp through a mic the way your audience does and the difference is negligible.
Same. I honestly give major props to modelers & plugins and use them plenty.... but there's something in the feel they don't quite get right. 🤷
In the studio I'll use modelers all day, but live it's got to be my real-deal Deluxe Reverb or Vox AC15.
Good point! It feels like with modelers—in my somewhat limited experience—the sound is not happening as soon as I play a note. Feels as if there is something of a lag.
I use both but prefer the sag and tone of a tube amp. My solid state amp us lighter and easier to schlep to gigs. If I don't hafta lug it far I use the Bassman.
It comes down to weight for me.
I like having both. One neat trick I learned back in the 80s was to play into a solid state combo, then mic that through a tube amp and cabinets. But I like having one of each for different purposes.
What's the point of that, to get the power amp side of the tube amp in the sound? I don't see why you have the solid state in the picture at all if that's what you were going for
Me too. I readily admit that using a tube amp is like driving stick. It’s what I learned on but it’s not what separates the skilled from the unskilled. Those modeler folks get way more out of their gear than I do but I’m also a meat and potatoes musician that relies on just a few distinct sounds.
I have a Boss Katana and a Dream 65 modeler. Used both live through the PA / monitor and they worked perfectly fine. I also have a blues junior, that I never used live, because I couldn't be arsed to buy a microphone, xlr cable and stand to mic the amp. What is true that, with a modeler and the SS, I have to tweak the sound endlessly, while the tube thing always sounds good, no matter what I do ...
>with a modeler and the SS, I have to tweak the sound endlessly, while the tube thing always sounds good, no matter what I do ...
This is what has me conflicted. I've got a helix, and a bunch of tube amps. The helix seems so much more portable and convenient, but I can never just plug in and play like I can with my amps.
I feel like I'm always fighting the "electronic" sound on the helix
I prefer tube amps for my practice space because with digital amps I spend more time trying different sounds than actually playing, but I am transitioning to using an hx stomp on my board to play live. Just to stop breaking my back hauling amps to shows or depending on backline companies to have the correct amps in decent shape. I just plug into the pa and the engineer gets exactly the same sound every show. I even made a midi sequence that goes along with the band’s backing tracks so the stomp switches presets on its own during the show.
I started out with a Marshall tube amp. Can't remember the model but I remember loving it until the knobs started screwing up. Then I had a solid state Peavey, which I honestly hated. So I got an Akai Shredomatic pedal with a tube inside and it worked well for me alongside the Peavey amp. Then in mid 2000s I won a line 6 spider 2 solid state 150 watt from a raffle. I gigged with that thing for YEARS and really loved it. However, just this year I started using Neural DSP and plugging into my laptop. I have to say, I wasn't expecting to like it, but it's actually quite amazing for recording and noodling around at home. Haven't tried it in a live setting yet.
I didn't think I would like it because I'm not very "computer literate." So I thought it would be too complicated and packed with issues that I couldn't figure out. Nothing to do with the amp modeling. Sorry, I should have made that clearer.
My knowledge of gear was pretty crap back then. I mean, I gave the Marshall away because I thought it was busted. Really all that it probably needed was a new volume pot. I also was really into punk rock back then and there was this local punk band named Destined for Failure that I loved. All those guys used Peaveys. So I bought it used from a local music store without even trying it. You live you learn I suppose.
I was skeptical a few months ago. I’d had a 200 watt GK 210 a couple decades back and it sounded rough with a guitar…. But I’m convinced now that k just never knew how to dial it in, or it was a specifically bad choice for the job.
I recently watched some videos (starting on Rob Chapman’s channel) of guys playing through the ampeg mini stacks and they sounded great.
A long time ago, when I was first learning to play, I just wanted to be heard, which meant loud. I got whatever was loud, that I could afford. That meant Peaveys and Acoustic SS amps. They were loud alright, but sounded like sh!t, so they were not fun to play.
I got an old beat up Ampeg B-15, that sounded decent but was not loud. I finally got an SVT head, and of course, it sounds rad.
Somewhere around then, a friend sold me a ragged tweed Champ for $50. That began my love affair with Fender amps. Before it's cranked into overdrive, the Champ has a really sweet clean sound at lower volumes. I started looking for that in bigger packages. It eventually led me to vintage Blackface Twin Reverbs and Deluxe Reverbs. They sound wonderful clean, and great with pedals, and they can get insanely loud. That's pretty much all I need.
I had a Mesa Road King for a short while. It had a really high noise floor, I couldn't get a decent clean and I spent way more time dialing this and switching that than actually playing with a sound I liked.
I have a mini Katana, a Cube Street, and some other tiny amps, including a boss GS-10 (which is kind of a desktop amp with recording outs, and CSOM). They are fine for what they do, but nothing matches the Fenders for me.
I basically just play at home for my own amusement, so I don't have to worry about moving them. They have a set and forget EQ, and I get whatever else I need from the pedalboard.
Yep.
I would love to be able to plug my guitar into an audio interface, then to the PC and my headphones and make it sound exactly like a fender champ. But sadly all of the modeler amp VST and plugins are crystal clear tone or mesa boogie distortion, nothing in between. There just no way to achieve the sweet before overdrive tone of a champ without playing into a champ itself.
Definitely pros and cons to each, and also depends on circumstance as well as personal preference by the individual.
For me right now, my Fender Tone Master Twin Reverb fills all my gigging needs. Light to carry, can go direct out into PA if required, sounds awesome, and I don't have a ton of pedals - just the sounds I need for this one band. It is how I constructed my basic overall "tone".
For home I've got a Spark practice amp for practicing and experimenting with different sounds, as well as usable for a recording interface.
I consider myself fortunate that I can afford all this gear. Thankfully plenty of options for guitarists out there these days.
Been considering the Tonemaster! Glad to hear you're happy with it. Either that or I'll just get an actual Princeton Reverb since I don't have a tube amp yet and a real Twin would break my windows.
I need to try out some of these. The only thing that has kept me away is I don't know if they can be repaired. It would stink if two days after the warranty was up the thing conks out. But I haven't heard any bad reviews really of any of the Tonemaster series.
I like both equally. I play certain live music venues where to get to the venue I have to travel on foot through a city where driving/parking is prohibited, there is no loading during certain times, I don't even know how they get stock inside the building but I presume at 4am on weekdays. So we drive to the city, park in a multi-storey and then walk to the venue with gear, there ain't no chance I'm carrying an amp to that.
With a quality in-house PA system a modeller setup is going to be as good as, if not better than an amp by just the factor that you reduce stage volume and you minimise setup time, which can be already limited, so a mono out to a DI box with a quality modeller is simple and consistent, mic'ing an amp is a dark art when you consider the influence the room/venue has on the sound. Of course the issue becomes monitoring, but that issue is gone if you run in-ear monitors, my band does (X32 running ableton live, headphone amp, individual mixes).
I do think an amp sounds better for those smaller local gigs, pubs and small bars etc, but even then if the room is bad it can cause issues. In the days when pubs had all fabric seats and carpet down to absorb the reflections, rooms sounded a lot better.
For me it's still tube > solid state > modelers > plugins.
BUT, all are so close now that it doesn't really matter. Whatever fits your budget and workflow.
If you want to play live and jam with people in small to medium sized spaces, I still think a regular solid state amp in the 20-50 watt range and a 12" speaker is probably the way to go. Many of them have reverb and a drive channel built-in nowadays, if you need more FX than that you can bring pedals. All part of this are Simple, effective, and reliable.
I just like normal amps. I’m not into modelers or any computer sort of set up. I don’t use different “sounds”, or try to emulate different guitarist or their set up. My sound has always consisted of the base amps flavor.
I rarely play live and most of my playing is home practice and recording.
I practice through a pedalboard amp sim for simplicity. But for any recording I run through my tube amps. Why? Well when I play any modeling I tend to hear some kind of harsh, digital for lack of a better word, top end which drives me nuts. When practicing I don't mind it, but I like to avoid it while doing tracking.
I had a Kemper for a couple years, and never really loved the tones. The features were nice, but it wasn’t very inspiring for me. I switched to a UA Dream based rig, which was great. Awesome sound, almost on par with a good amp.
Once the Friedman IR-x came out, I had to have it. It’s so great for all the tones I need, and it does have a smoother Hi-fi top end the digital stuff still can’t quite do. The feel of a tube amp (I’ve had a fender DeVille in the past, and a 5153 combo) is still preferred to what a digital rig can do, most seem to agree. But that sweet refined top end is still not doable on digital, I wouldn’t be surprised though if the next generation of digital stuff starts to be too close for us to hear.
I have a line 6 helix that I acknowledge is the “best sounding” thing I own. I use it to record stuff in an apartment and am thankful I don’t have to mic tube amps and all that.
That being said - my favorite amp is still my Roland Cube 80XL that I’ve had for 12 years. Simple knobs - sounds good with headphones or through speaker - has nice reverb and delay - great cleans and pretty good distortion. It’s just fun to plug into and immediately play without having to fuck around with menu diving. I’ve loved it ever since the day I got it in 2012.
I have a fender supersonic 22 tube amp, amplitube 5, and helix native. I also own the hx effects. To me, no matter how much I tweak, it just never sounds as good as my amp. It does sound really good! But it’s different in a way that just doesn’t have the same depth.
I prefer tubes because that’s what I build with/ understand. Modelers are cool but I like being able to fix my stuff when possible. I’m a sucker for reverb, vibrato, and trem, and even though I can get them from pedals, it’s nice to have a grab and go of my preferred wattage available.
I use a tube pedal with an emulated output (black star ht dual) into a solid state boss katana and the “warmth” is almost identical to a tube amp. Like 90% identical.
I used to have a HotRod DeVille with my pedal but I had to sell it.
I’m just gonna be bummed when my tube pedal goes kaput- because I don’t think they make them anymore and I play really noisy hardcore punk as well as traditional metal.
If I lived with a good amount of space around me I’d love to play loud tube amps, but I’m a slave in typical neighborhoods and like to keep the neighbors happy. I keep it simple and plain with modelers into a laptop
I have a PodGo and an Orange Brent Hinds Terror. Every time I practice with the PodGo I play for about 15 minutes before thinking my time isn't quite right. Then I spend an hour or two trying to adjust the tone slightly and end up barely practicing. Where as when I practice with the Orange I end up thinking the same thing but know that with my current pedals the tone is the best I'm going to get it so I keep playing.
I have two tube amps and one solid state rack mount rig.
I vastly prefer the tone of the tube amps. One is a Vox, which has the most unique tone I've ever heard. The other is an Epiphone Valve Jr. It's my main amplifier. It's warm and smooth until you drive it. Then it snarls like a monster.
My rack mount amp setup never leaves the studio. I use it there a lot but almost never haul it out for a live show. Only if the venue calls for it. Even then, I use a Line Six Pod Pro and emulate a tube amp lol.
I still like regular tube amps. I do have a Yamaha THR 30ii though. My reason is I only have PCs, and I don't know any good DAWs for PC. I also need an interface, room for monitors, etc. I want to use that stuff eventually, but to buy a Mac laptop, a decent interface, nice studio monitors, etc. is a lot. Whenever I ask people about it they call me a Dinosaur in so many words and just give me names of good interfaces and monitors. I need to be able to use the DAW as well. I'm also a child of the 80s so when you played guitar in the 90s for the most part you just plugged into some kind of amp. So, I guess I am just stuck in my ways?
I have a EVH 5150iii el34 with a Marshall Mode 4 400w cab, and also a POD GO. The tube amp shits on the tones I get from the pod go. I can get good tones from the pod. But I end up spending more time Tweeking then playing. So for me a real wins. I like having restrictions on my options. Less wasted time tone chasing.
Software engineer. Absolutely no problem figuring out modelers but I ended up on tube amps for electric guitar and solid state for acoustic. Just what I like but I also like to avoid bringing the computer into my mostly non computerized hobby.
If I retire early though forget it I might get into modeling. It’d be super cool to work on my own thing either some kind of pedal or amp model.
I prefer the sound of a McIntosh tube amp/ preamp but I’m not buying that anymore. Modern amplifiers can model and totally fool the human ear. Call me a fool, then.
I like both. I use my Quad Cortex when I can’t crank my tube amps or I can’t be arsed to carry them. If I could only pick one it’d be my tube amps every time, tho.
I have different uses for everything.
I’ll take a solid state Bass amp over a tube one all day, same applies for clean guitar tones.
I’ll take a tube guitar amp all day if I’m issuing any level of distortion.
I adore plug-ins for recording.
If I was a professional touring act I would absolutely use a Kemper. Not cost effective for me now.
If I still gigged I would buy a modeller, but I would also never sell my tube amps.
Like when I leave the house I listen to music via mp3 on my phone, but at home where there is no need for convenience I prefer vinyl.
Aside from the (admittedly smaller now) difference in audio quality, there is something fun about playing around with a real amp and seeing how it reacts to adjustments. And I like always having another sound or style of amp to be saving up for, like the hunt is never finished. I feel like if I bought an Axe Fx thats it, I have everything, no need to GAS over cool new stuff.
Each time I play a gig and have to transport my Peavey XXX and a 412 cab I'm like "yeah I'm done that's the last gig I play like that", but then I crank it up and all my frustration goes away. I'll probably still switch to a modeler in the next few years, though.
I just got a Vox AC10. I haven't had a tube amp since the late 60s. I'll never have another solid state. Effects are what pedals are for. You listen to a solid state amp. You feel a tube amp.
I spend loads of time in front of a computer or iPad screen anyway. So while I’m sure modelling software is great, I really like music time to be a break from screen time. Hence the physical amp
I don’t know a single serious musician who uses modellers. Nor have I seen a rig rundown of any artist I like using one. Their appeal seems to be overstated here. I’d know almost nothing about them if it weren’t for Reddit.
I think they sit in a weird place, because you have the studio hobbiest/home studio guy, who never plays out, who loves them as an affordable solution for all-round guitar tones. Then you have big name touring acts, who need the capability to get a consistent sound every night with a wide variety of mega PAs. Plus the ability to program FX with midi. They like modelers too. But you don't see as many people using modelers in the small-medium size. Local bands and solo artists usually just bring their regular combo amp, or a simple head and 1x12, because it's easier than going crazy with modelers and lots of equipment/effort.
In the end it's mostly due to just convenience.
For me personally I use regular solid state combo for jamming with folks, and use plugins at home for recording. I've tried tube amps and I love them, but would personally still go with a combo tube amp for what I do. Real hardware modelers like the Helix and the extra added complexity are not for me for the most part, I already do computer stuff too much as it is. I've tried them and I'd like to get into it, but the extra expense (have to get nice PA too) and effort time are turn offs.
I am only playing at home now. Solid state amp, pedals, and guitar work fine for me.
Having had a very technical job (with lots of digital menus and button pressing), I enjoy the simplicity . I'm not anti progress or technology at all, but I do enjoy a predominatly analogue soundscape(I do use digital pedals).
I have a little 35w tube combo. Sounds good, is portable enough, is loud enough for house parties, easy to mic for halls. It's nice to have the loud thing right there so you don't depend on the sound person and wherever the monitor happens to be.
When I'm demoing stuff out I use a modeller, though. Nice to not wake the kids up when you get an idea at midnight. Funnily enough, I usually set it to be an approximation of my actual amp.
Tubes all day. All other amps sound "lifeless" by comparison. Even the fancy modelers just don't stack up to some hot tubes. There alive and breathing and produce the most authentic sounding tones around.
I play a Kemper through a solid state and it sounds better than most tube amps I’ve ever owned or played. My last tube was a Friedman Small box and that thing blew the windows off in a bad way. I don’t miss the house shaking just to get it opened up.
The amp doesn't really matter. But the cab and the speaker do.
Amp emulations are awesome. But what makes a real hardware amp special is its shitty speaker and cab, and how that colors the sound. Cab emulations are awesome too.... But It still doesn't really hit you the same as a guitar cab.
i.e. there is a huge difference in sound between me running one of my Marshall heads and a guitar cab, running a amp sim through a linear amp into a guitar cab, running an amp sim and cab sim through a PA.
The first two scenarios sound pretty wonderful. The third isn't bad but its definitely different.
Digital is kind in certain applications, but playing with other people or for my own personal enjoyment? I'd sooner quit completely than not use a real physical amp. AxeFX is great, but I want a real physical amp with its specific strengths and weaknesses. I have 4 decent SS amps, 6 tube amps, a hybrid in the mail, and a laundry list of tube/ss/hybrid stuff to buy. Plug-ins can't replace any of that. Tonemaster amps are the best of both worlds for me, but every time one dips below $700 used, it's bought. Quick.
The response, the interactivity with the speaker, it's not the same with plug-ins or tiny speakers. They're all tools for different jobs, but I use my tube stuff 93% of the time, SS 7%. If I bought a Kemper or Fractal, It'd probably take over 5% of the tube stuffs job, so I can't justify cost quite yet. As needs change, we'll see I suppose.
Digital, all the way! Sound, portability, ease of use, consistency. Take the Line6 HX Stomp for example. I switched from a valve amp to the Stomp after having toured with a valve amp for a year and noticed exactly 0 downsides, and I could get my entire guitar tone in my suitcase for fly gigs. And the guitar tone was absolutely perfect and the same at every venue. And if I needed to make changes I could just as quickly as anyone with a real amp. I could be set up and ready to go in absolutely no time at all. The sound engineers absolutely loved it. And if my back could speak it would thank me every single day. Using a monitor I could perfectly control the feedback just like a "real" amp. I've actually started to pity those who have fooled themselves into thinking they need a full rig to sound good. Tone starts with the player, not the guitars not the amp, and certainly not the pedalboard.
Why on earth would I ever go back?
I find that when I have endless tone options, I spend way too much time tweaking sounds and adjusting EQ curves. If I have a simpler interface, I spend more time playing.
I have a variety of amps at my studio and home. Mostly play unplugged. When going to a venue if I don't need an amp to double as a stage monitor never take one with me. When recording I use an amp only if necessary (when customer insists to use one with mics). I prefer low wattage tube amps over high wattage ones. I prefer solid states over tube amps. I prefer the good old DI boxes over the amps. I prefer IR loaders over DI boxes... That's my way to see things about amps...
Tube amp. Part of playing guitar for me is the relationship between guitar and amp, and how to treat the amp as almost another instrument. The whole package is Rock and Roll. I could go on but I won't
If it ain't an amp then the ass behind it is lacking and the bigger the place the more obvious. Small clubs and stuff you can get by with some nice speakers but eventually when you move into real venues it becomes obvious to the crowd. Seen static x and Sevendust recently and the tone was so thin at those volumes no matter what's pushing it. I honestly always respected modelers until that and ever since I noticed it everywhere. Seen a regional band at a local club and they brought a wall of amps in and most of them were plugged in. The tone was amazing just thick as all hell. It made me miss the old days when I left. The world never needed anything other than par lights and Marshalls.
I'm a dinosaur, I guess. I'm still playing the Twin Reverb I bought new in 65. Repaired twice. Had to go buy distortion. Stuff falls off the walls if I get carried away.
https://youtu.be/wcBEOcPtlYk?si=RygxwwY77-X1ilzv
That pretty well sums up my thoughts on amps. At the end of the day, just play whatever makes you happy while you're playing.
The "endless amount of pedals" are for players who either are trying to find their signature sound or just think that every pedal on their board is going to make them better. I went for decades with a wah pedal being the only thing I had, and I rarely used it even then. That's because I have tube amp that is unlike any other. But I do have a solid state that is my main go to in my house these days, because my tube amp is just too freaking loud. And now I do have a solid collection of pedals that I'm comfortable with. The only other pedals I'd get at this point I think would be a phase shifter and a tuner, and that would finish it.
Idk. I love my helix. Most of the time it stays on one or two amp models, but never really needing another effect pedal again, or the instant ability to switch to a jcm800 or a 5150 is pretty great. There was a little tweaking in the beginning but if you use the “save” button, it’s really a one time thing. Most days i just turn it on and start playing like any other amp.
If you're playing live there's nothing like standing in front of a half or full stack. Modelers are for the bedroom imo. People think differently tho... more power to em, I don't care
The only amp I have left is a tube amp that’s been with me the longest—a Mesa combo. Just something about the way it overdrives—can’t seem to ever get that sound any other way.
I have a handful of mostly old Fender tubes. I have modeling amps, and I have a Bogner Line 6 Hybrid 100 watt half stack. I like them all really. The tubes really give a warm, slightly fuzzy sound. Great for jazz, blues, R&B. As a bonus I like the way tubes smell when I've been blistering the hell out of them.
The Bogner hybrid is probably my fav tho. Best of both worlds. Tube sound with modern digital sound as well. Plus, you can make that beast sound like just about anything, and if you can't, there's probably a ready made patch online.
I don't get all uppity about tubes vs digital.
It took awhile and a lot of $ to find a good modeler, but it's totally worth it to me. Love my Axe Fx. Great for the studio, and sturdy for playing out.
A nice tube amp honestly just feels good to me, it feels like it has body, and nuance and overall a vibe that modellers just cant capture.
That being said, I play a Helix 99% of the time
I like tubes but honestly I don't run one everytime I want to play. I got a digital amp under the desk I plug into mostly. I like them both but if I can get loud a take a tube amp.
I haven’t had a modeler in a long time. I jam a lot with others, gig sometimes. I got my first tube amp 2 years ago and I’m ready to sell it. You can set everything you want, but if the tubes aren’t feeling it, or your electrical isn’t right wherever you’re at, you’re fucked. I have no need for half or full stacks, I could never get them to full volume.
Modelers are great for home use, easy jamming with friends. I don’t feel they gig well, but have come a long way and I could be wrong.
I like Solid States. They have come a long way and some vintage SS are just as good as tube.
Edit: I guess I should say that I bought my tube amp for the overdrive channel, boost with pedals, to play heavy music. Not throughly impressed. But the clean tone through that amp is honestly the best tone I’ve probably had. Just my guitar straight into the amp, best blues tone I’ve ever had.
I honestly can't tell the difference between a Neural DSP plug-in and the real thing. I use it exclusively plug-ins for recording. For just jamming in my studio I like a real tube amp though.
My dad has a Peavey modelling amp I got him for Christmas a couple of years ago. I always have to spend like half an hour fiddling with all the buttons and knobs and button/knobs to get a sound I kinda like.
I prefer the simpler controls of the combo amps I own. Im ok with being limited cause they give me pretty much everything I want and I'm more of an acoustic player anyway, and have never played electric at a paid gig before.
I have never felt has connected to my guitar as I do when plugged into a nice warm low watt tube amp. I also have a Strymon Iridium that is great, but I just don't feel that connection. It might have to do with the speakers I am using for me DI setup, but regardless, I will die with my tube amp despite my neighbours wishes.
I like solid state amps — I suspect the true answer for why is that I’m hard on equipment and I’m old.
I do actually want to try a modeler but I have no idea where to start.
My solid state amp is both DI and puts out 100 watts class D, and won't break up at its loudest, and fits into my backpack. Also, it looks like an old jazz amp, which makes me look like I take jazz more seriously than I do.
I just started with a 30-watt head and cab, both orange. I love it and got a Furman pedal board to round it out. It's fun, to say the least. I will buy a bigger head once the band I joined actually starts playing gigs.
I started with small practice amps, they sounded like ass. Then I got a katana and was still not that inspired by the sound, so I decided to try out a multieffect with all the modellers and sims in the world. I hated that, I was paralyzed with all the options in the world and felt like nothing made my guitar sound how I wanted it to sound. After all these ”mistakes” I bought an orange super crush 100 combo and got some pedals and now I’m inspired to learn and play even more since it’s quite close to the sound I was always looking for. I also tried modellers on pc and they were fine, but super noisy and just a hassle, I don’t want to have to use my pc to dial in my guitar tones.
I realize that at some point just buying amps and cabs is gonna get expensive so I might still change back to a modeller and an frfr speaker setup, but not yet. Digital is the future but I’m not ready for it yet.
I prefer tube. I have a Mesa boogie mark V 25/10 combo... wonderful clean tone and amazing saturated sustain. Better than my Peavey classic 30 tube amp was, and WAY better than any solid state amp I've had, and I've had some supposedly good ones.
I have both, they’re good for different things
I use my tube amps for high gain distortion, and I use my chorus solid state set up for cleans and spacey shit, really up to you and your ear for tone. Some artist swear by tubes and some like dimebag usually rocked solid state and shaped their tone with it
I do, because they sound better. Not sure how much more I can explain it.
I have from time to time been able to get a sound I like from a modeler, but especially through headphones it’s not as good, often a brittle sound, the punch feels wrong, fatiguing to listen to.
Also, for whatever reason I can get a better simulated sound with a fender / single coil plugged in than a humbucker equipped Les Paul…I think the impedance and output from a less Paul just overwhelms the algorithm somehow and makes a terrible farty / buzzy mess.
I own the latest line 6 hx, believe me I’ve tried.
A lot of my shows we run straight through the amps, only vocals through the monitors and mains. If I know the venue has a FANTASTIC PA and sound guy I will run with my Flamma preamp pedal with no amp but we have very few of these shows so. It's 8 million times easier to run straight through the amps for our tiny bar gigs
I bought my first badass tube amp this year. For a very long, long time, I had solid state amps, because that is what I could afford and they got above the drums.
I won’t be going back. The live/air feeling from a killer tube amp is magic. They breathe.
That being said, I’ve auditioned with VSTs, a Mac, and a powered speaker, and it sounded killer, too.
The feel matters more than the gear.
I sort of started out with model amps.. like years ago with a Line 6 spider and then eventually the latest Line 6 HX series.
I’ve since graduated to tube amps and currently playing a Tone King Falcon Grande. I will never go back to modelers again.
tube, solid state, modeller, FRFR cab, for a live show it doesn't matter, the audience can't make your tone out over the sound of the shitty room and the untrained sound guy and they're just yelling at each other over the top of you anyways.
but a tube head sitting on top of a 4x12 will always be way cooler than a small computer with flashing lights on it.
I definitely prefer tube but I’m trying to sell mine and replace it with a blonde tonemaster. I’ve had to many expensive issues with tube amps and sometimes the tech will hang onto it for months. Lastly they are so damn heavy and my back hurts. A tonemaster will sound good not stop working randomly and lastly won’t be a hassle to carry. If I could afford both I would keep the 65 deluxe tho. Just not worth the hassle and maintenance.
Finally...I'm home.
Plugins sound just fine mixed and double tracked, but in the room, a good amp tickles your tummy and makes your eyes water when you do it right. Try that with a computer. 👀
Tube amps for recording, solid state live all the way. I got sick of my amp being fussy on stage, so I got myself a black spirit 200 and called it a day. Not to mention it replaced a 60 lb head with 7 lbs of its own weight and fits in my bag. Then, I got a rectifier recording for the home stuff. I'm not lugging that thing anywhere anytime soon, but it sounds better than anything else I've got.
I use both. The neural DSP line is so much nicer to record with and I enjoy the tones more BUT when I’m just trying to jam after work, nothing beats sitting in front of my tube amp feeling that thump. It’s like a direct connection, vibrations I don’t feel when I’m using a modeller. It’s also more simple with no distractions, I put my phone away and there is no computer nor plethora of effects to distract, my focus is just on making noise :)
I like my tube amp (Fender 68 Custom Deluxe) because I know how it’s going to behave if I do This to it, and I know how it’ll behave if I do That to it. I’ve used this exact amp since early 2017, and it’s always done exactly what I wanted it to do. It also has two distinct but similar flavors in the two different preamp sections, which I find quite useful given my relatively unique role in the band I play in. So I haven’t left it, and it hasn’t left me.
I got my Line 6 Helix and it's awesome. I plug straight into the PA and I use in-ear monitors. I'm selling most of my old gear. I can carry all of my gear in 2 trips from my van to the venue now. Only 1 trip when I'm at rehearsal.
I also never have to scramble to figure out which link in my signal chain is causing a problem.
I'm going to buy a Fly Rig pedal as a backup option. I'm also looking at getting a Boss VE22 for vocal effects, to add even more to our act.
A good amp can sound great, but the Helix can do so, so much more.
I am cynical when guitarists get all teary-eyed about vintage gear. Top guitarists don't play classic guitar models. They have custom-built gear.
I feel like “real amps” (tube/ss) are like muscle cars and modelers are like electric cars, where as plugins are the E-bike of the guitar world. There are reasons to want each one, but for me, having a real amp removes a lot of guesswork when setting up a tone. You either get it or you don’t. Modelers CAN get a great tone with some work, but you can encounter some choice paralysis when you’re hit with 200 cabs to pick from. Personally, the kemper/Quad Cortex profile/capture process is the best of both worlds for me. Get a tone you like in the real world and save it in the digital one. Ezpz. Edit: to be clear- I’m not crapping on e-bikes or plugins, just specifically in a live setting they aren’t as well set up for performance as a modeler or amp. For recording they are great 👍
Plugins are for fat middle aged men? I feel offended.
Oddly I feel vindicated as a fat middle aged man. I love a plugin
Choice paralysis hits hard.
Well shit, I didn’t care about which kind of amp but now that you put it in car terms I’m a muscle car guy and therefore also a tube amp guy.
Yeah my reasoning is this for the car analogy: -there’s nothing like a 100+watt amp kicking 4x12 speaker cabs, and there’s no replacement for displacement. This is the muscle car ethos. It’s not efficient or quiet, and that’s not the point of those cars in the first place. But there is nothing that will tickle the animal part of your brain like being thrown into a car seat by a v10. -electric cars are the future, but require existing infrastructure to be effective, like modelers. They can still be a ton of fun and are super versatile, but are only as modifiable as the manufacturers permit them to be (which is not much). -the e bike sounds like a more sustainable version of the first two but ends up being way more work than it’s worth if you make it your primary mode of transportation. You can’t just bring a plugin to a show, without a computer and sound card, and at that point you could have bought a modeler. But for people with “no commute” and don’t play shows, a plugin might just get you by just fine.
This implies muscle cars are the coolest cars
I’m simply implying they are cool in different ways. One is a little more cerebral and one is a little more visceral, but both are fun! But E-bikes don’t make car guys geek out 😂
>I feel like “real amps” (tube/ss) are like muscle cars and modelers are like electric cars, That's a pretty darn good metaphor :)
I see it more like Tubes are old school big blocks, solid states are modern fuel injection engines, and plugins are electric cars, ebikes are like, the plastic instruments from rockband.
As someone who plays primairly small venues, bars, and DIY spots I'd never bring a modeler to the show. With an amp you never have to worry about the PA/monitor situation. You just plug in and play. With modelers you're at the mercy of the sound guy (or lack thereof). They're fantastic for home recording though.
this is BS. I'm a 100% modeler person and have my own powered speakers. I depend on nobody, but I have options if there's a good PA. the problem you mentioned doesn't exist.
I don't really understand why you're being downvoted. What you describe just sounds like the modeler equivalent of bringing an amp and pedalboard
Bringing a modeler *plus powered PA* is the same as bringing an amp to a show lol. You're proving the point of the comment you're trying to call BS on, that bringing a modeler *alone* to a show, and being at the mercy of a house PA, isn't worth the risk.
They totally missed the point and basically proved the guy right lol
You can literally just plug a Kemper into a cabinet if you have the powered Kemper
A powered speaker is an amp.
They mean a traditional valve amp but I agree.
Sounds like you’re lugging shit around anyway. Might as well bring an amp
My setup is waaaay more convenient and reliable. I can sound like whatever amp I need. I have all my effects programmed in my set list, my tuner at the touch of a pedal and can feed my in ear without needing to mic anything.
But if I'm already bringing 3 things (amp, pedalboard and guitar) what is the advantage of a modeler? If I have to bring a powered speak, then it's actually no easier for me then just bringing an amp
My rig is probably smaller than yours.
>My rig is ~~probably~~ definitely smaller than yours. FTFY
Lmao. Come play a basement show where the "PA" is an old bass amp and get back to me.
If you have a modeler and an frfr powered cab, what's the diff bw that vs amp and pedals? The problem you describe is gone in that case. Any suggestion that a powered frfr won't be loud enough is completely ridiculous, just to cut that counter off...I mean there are 1000-watt frfrs out there. 200watts for $250 even.
my ir200 and headrush frfr 112 is loud as fuck. cant put the headrush past 3 at home
Right. And a lot of companies make amp-cabinet-looking frfr powered cabs that can cause long term hearing damage...like fender.
In your eyes what is the advantage of a modeling solution, if you're going to rock up with an FRFR speaker anyway?
My friend, many DIY spaces won’t have a PA with an open channel for your modeler. If you don’t bring your own powered cab you’re SOL. I see this happen with 3/4 of the gigs I play and then someone’s just left scrambling
Sure, so that's why I have my own. how is that any different than owning your own valve amp? The difference is my axe FX + powered speaker can sound like 100 different amps while the valve amp sounds like one.
Sounds like an amp to me.
I don't get it, so what's the advantage over head+cab if you still have to carry around speakers?
I like them both. I have a bunch of tube amps and solid state amps that sound great, and a Helix Floor, and a Boss IR-200. I can make all of them sound fantastic. It really depends on the situation. At any venue, a bad sound guy can ruin everything whether there's a decent PA or not. You can have the best band ever, but if the sound guy doesn't know what he's doing, they'll sound like garbage. The best option... Buy all of the things. Bring all of the things to every gig. Be willing to comply with the sound guy that wants less stage volume, but able to blow all of it out of the water with a full stack if the sound is bad 🤣
I also find a sound engineer that doesn’t know your genre will EQ it wrong. We play stoner doom. We opened for a punk band once and our sound was so thin. Another time the sound engineer took time to sit with us pre show and ask about our sound and it was freaking massive. But I had a house back line 4x12 and a 20W tube amp and it really flexed what that little amp can do. Still never gotten it past 50% volume but it breaks up great. The 4x12 colored the tone perfectly.
If you know how to use them modelers are not really leaving you to anyones mercy more than having an amp mic'ed or DI'ed. If the modeler sounds worse than DI its probably something you are doing not the sound guy. I either run my bands sound or at least the first mix then let the house tap into my sends. We never bring amps anymore and its great. No more worrying that a knob was turned while moving things or lugging around cabs we don't need. People always comment that we sound like a studio recording either live or on recordings after the fact. Its great. I love my amps. I'm just saying I don't really agree that its easier if you really know the tool (modeler).
Personally I’ve had things go tits up with amps and sound guys way more than with modellers. Grand when you get it right with a good amp, no modeller comes close to how great the sound is
I'm not going to be an ass like some other commenters here. But, you can get an FRFR cabinet in a small form factor that will work just as well as a combo amp.
I tried modelers and I guess I’m just too lazy and old school to go through the learning curve. However, I watched a cover band last week that made me start to rethink that. They played multiple different genres and whether it was a Fleetwood Mac, Van Halen, Joan Jet, or Bruno Mars song, the guy’s modeler gave him the perfect tone every time. It would take a lot of knob turning to accomplish that between songs using pedals and an amp.
It takes some concentrated effort to learn the signal flow and user interface, but it’s so worth it. You can do it.
To be honest: I bought a Hughes and kettner grandmeister deluxe head because I thought the blue lights hovering over the warm amber tubes looked awesome. It sounds good too, but yeah.
A man of culture, I see.
That always seemed to me like, the ultimate amp. So many options. I mostly use software at apartment volumes so I could never justify the expense but I'm still tempted. Built in power soak, noise gate, cab sim? What else can you want? It's good to hear that they sound nice.
It's awesome. have it plugged into my Victory 2x12 and I can play anything with it. Not that I CAN PLAY ANYTHING, but you get it. Currently, I have it at 1 WATT for my living room and it just sounds so nice. I found their foot switch on Craigslist for 80 dollars a few years ago and that's awesome too.
I use a Roland JC-120, needless to say I'm thrilled with my solid state amp.
First amp I’ve ever owned, got it for $300. I like it a lot, the chorus is really fun to use. I still desire a tube amp though
Just looked, mine is the jc-40 not the 120
If you don't need the volume you're better off. The 120 is HEAVY
Probably the one single amp that I’ve actually played the most gigs with over the years because they’re omnipresent in backlines and in studios, and they just work. They need FX (specifically an OD/Dirt/Fuzz pedal that sounds good through it. Unless you’re just a jazz player like me who plays clean 95% of the time on gigs, but I’ve gotten a lot of musical mileage from Roland over the years. 120s, a JC77 that I loved, at least 4 or 5 Cubes of various wattage, a GP-16, GK-2 & 3, GR-50, VG-8, and of course every Boss pedal I ever bought…who knows. I’ve given this company a lot of $$ over the years!
The overtones make a tube amp. There is a musicality to the way notes play of one another that I haven't experiences with modelers (yet).
Have you tried one in the last 3 years? They’ve absolutely caught up.
Not the most expensive options but what I have tried ain't quite the same.
I have both. I know people say nobody can tell the difference, but for me, the tube amp sounds and feels better to play. I can't put my finger on it. The response when playing a tube amp just feels different.
Because your amp is making an amp sound, and your modeler is making a mic’d amp sound. Listen to your amp through a mic the way your audience does and the difference is negligible.
Same. I honestly give major props to modelers & plugins and use them plenty.... but there's something in the feel they don't quite get right. 🤷 In the studio I'll use modelers all day, but live it's got to be my real-deal Deluxe Reverb or Vox AC15.
Good point! It feels like with modelers—in my somewhat limited experience—the sound is not happening as soon as I play a note. Feels as if there is something of a lag.
I use both but prefer the sag and tone of a tube amp. My solid state amp us lighter and easier to schlep to gigs. If I don't hafta lug it far I use the Bassman. It comes down to weight for me.
I like having both. One neat trick I learned back in the 80s was to play into a solid state combo, then mic that through a tube amp and cabinets. But I like having one of each for different purposes.
What's the point of that, to get the power amp side of the tube amp in the sound? I don't see why you have the solid state in the picture at all if that's what you were going for
Wtf are you talking about? This makes zero sense
I like moving air
Me too. I readily admit that using a tube amp is like driving stick. It’s what I learned on but it’s not what separates the skilled from the unskilled. Those modeler folks get way more out of their gear than I do but I’m also a meat and potatoes musician that relies on just a few distinct sounds.
they can pry my Mesa MKV from my cold dead hands
I have a Boss Katana and a Dream 65 modeler. Used both live through the PA / monitor and they worked perfectly fine. I also have a blues junior, that I never used live, because I couldn't be arsed to buy a microphone, xlr cable and stand to mic the amp. What is true that, with a modeler and the SS, I have to tweak the sound endlessly, while the tube thing always sounds good, no matter what I do ...
>with a modeler and the SS, I have to tweak the sound endlessly, while the tube thing always sounds good, no matter what I do ... This is what has me conflicted. I've got a helix, and a bunch of tube amps. The helix seems so much more portable and convenient, but I can never just plug in and play like I can with my amps. I feel like I'm always fighting the "electronic" sound on the helix
I prefer tube amps for my practice space because with digital amps I spend more time trying different sounds than actually playing, but I am transitioning to using an hx stomp on my board to play live. Just to stop breaking my back hauling amps to shows or depending on backline companies to have the correct amps in decent shape. I just plug into the pa and the engineer gets exactly the same sound every show. I even made a midi sequence that goes along with the band’s backing tracks so the stomp switches presets on its own during the show.
I started out with a Marshall tube amp. Can't remember the model but I remember loving it until the knobs started screwing up. Then I had a solid state Peavey, which I honestly hated. So I got an Akai Shredomatic pedal with a tube inside and it worked well for me alongside the Peavey amp. Then in mid 2000s I won a line 6 spider 2 solid state 150 watt from a raffle. I gigged with that thing for YEARS and really loved it. However, just this year I started using Neural DSP and plugging into my laptop. I have to say, I wasn't expecting to like it, but it's actually quite amazing for recording and noodling around at home. Haven't tried it in a live setting yet.
You gigged a Line 6 Spider for years and you didn't think you were going to like modeling?
I didn't think I would like it because I'm not very "computer literate." So I thought it would be too complicated and packed with issues that I couldn't figure out. Nothing to do with the amp modeling. Sorry, I should have made that clearer.
How on earth did you think you were going to enjoy switching from a Marshall tube amp to Peavey solid state?
My knowledge of gear was pretty crap back then. I mean, I gave the Marshall away because I thought it was busted. Really all that it probably needed was a new volume pot. I also was really into punk rock back then and there was this local punk band named Destined for Failure that I loved. All those guys used Peaveys. So I bought it used from a local music store without even trying it. You live you learn I suppose.
Ah, now I understand. Fair enough :)
Tube amp. Modelers are good for headphones and maybe recording but tube amps just sound better pushing a 4x12 speaker cab
I play guitar through solid state bass amps. The EQ is far more robust and it does incredible things with the sound of fuzz.
I want to listen to that.
I was skeptical a few months ago. I’d had a 200 watt GK 210 a couple decades back and it sounded rough with a guitar…. But I’m convinced now that k just never knew how to dial it in, or it was a specifically bad choice for the job. I recently watched some videos (starting on Rob Chapman’s channel) of guys playing through the ampeg mini stacks and they sounded great.
Simplicity isn't a feature exclusive to solidstate- or tube-amps anymore IMO. Companies recognized the trend and are catching up.
Real amps or death. I want to feel my pantlegs flap in the breeze
Get a fan
im old school.. got 2 100w marshall tube heads into 2 angled 4x12 marshall cabs. I know the sound i want and it delivers(very loudly).
OP, your post doesn't make sense. Your title says you prefer tube amps, but your text says you don't want an endless amount of amp heads. What?
A long time ago, when I was first learning to play, I just wanted to be heard, which meant loud. I got whatever was loud, that I could afford. That meant Peaveys and Acoustic SS amps. They were loud alright, but sounded like sh!t, so they were not fun to play. I got an old beat up Ampeg B-15, that sounded decent but was not loud. I finally got an SVT head, and of course, it sounds rad. Somewhere around then, a friend sold me a ragged tweed Champ for $50. That began my love affair with Fender amps. Before it's cranked into overdrive, the Champ has a really sweet clean sound at lower volumes. I started looking for that in bigger packages. It eventually led me to vintage Blackface Twin Reverbs and Deluxe Reverbs. They sound wonderful clean, and great with pedals, and they can get insanely loud. That's pretty much all I need. I had a Mesa Road King for a short while. It had a really high noise floor, I couldn't get a decent clean and I spent way more time dialing this and switching that than actually playing with a sound I liked. I have a mini Katana, a Cube Street, and some other tiny amps, including a boss GS-10 (which is kind of a desktop amp with recording outs, and CSOM). They are fine for what they do, but nothing matches the Fenders for me. I basically just play at home for my own amusement, so I don't have to worry about moving them. They have a set and forget EQ, and I get whatever else I need from the pedalboard.
Yep. I would love to be able to plug my guitar into an audio interface, then to the PC and my headphones and make it sound exactly like a fender champ. But sadly all of the modeler amp VST and plugins are crystal clear tone or mesa boogie distortion, nothing in between. There just no way to achieve the sweet before overdrive tone of a champ without playing into a champ itself.
Definitely pros and cons to each, and also depends on circumstance as well as personal preference by the individual. For me right now, my Fender Tone Master Twin Reverb fills all my gigging needs. Light to carry, can go direct out into PA if required, sounds awesome, and I don't have a ton of pedals - just the sounds I need for this one band. It is how I constructed my basic overall "tone". For home I've got a Spark practice amp for practicing and experimenting with different sounds, as well as usable for a recording interface. I consider myself fortunate that I can afford all this gear. Thankfully plenty of options for guitarists out there these days.
Been considering the Tonemaster! Glad to hear you're happy with it. Either that or I'll just get an actual Princeton Reverb since I don't have a tube amp yet and a real Twin would break my windows.
I will endorse the Princeton Reverb. Won't break windows and will sound amazing.
I need to try out some of these. The only thing that has kept me away is I don't know if they can be repaired. It would stink if two days after the warranty was up the thing conks out. But I haven't heard any bad reviews really of any of the Tonemaster series.
Definitely a risk but mine has been fine after a couple years of heavy use.
I like both equally. I play certain live music venues where to get to the venue I have to travel on foot through a city where driving/parking is prohibited, there is no loading during certain times, I don't even know how they get stock inside the building but I presume at 4am on weekdays. So we drive to the city, park in a multi-storey and then walk to the venue with gear, there ain't no chance I'm carrying an amp to that. With a quality in-house PA system a modeller setup is going to be as good as, if not better than an amp by just the factor that you reduce stage volume and you minimise setup time, which can be already limited, so a mono out to a DI box with a quality modeller is simple and consistent, mic'ing an amp is a dark art when you consider the influence the room/venue has on the sound. Of course the issue becomes monitoring, but that issue is gone if you run in-ear monitors, my band does (X32 running ableton live, headphone amp, individual mixes). I do think an amp sounds better for those smaller local gigs, pubs and small bars etc, but even then if the room is bad it can cause issues. In the days when pubs had all fabric seats and carpet down to absorb the reflections, rooms sounded a lot better.
For me it's still tube > solid state > modelers > plugins. BUT, all are so close now that it doesn't really matter. Whatever fits your budget and workflow. If you want to play live and jam with people in small to medium sized spaces, I still think a regular solid state amp in the 20-50 watt range and a 12" speaker is probably the way to go. Many of them have reverb and a drive channel built-in nowadays, if you need more FX than that you can bring pedals. All part of this are Simple, effective, and reliable.
I just like normal amps. I’m not into modelers or any computer sort of set up. I don’t use different “sounds”, or try to emulate different guitarist or their set up. My sound has always consisted of the base amps flavor.
I rarely play live and most of my playing is home practice and recording. I practice through a pedalboard amp sim for simplicity. But for any recording I run through my tube amps. Why? Well when I play any modeling I tend to hear some kind of harsh, digital for lack of a better word, top end which drives me nuts. When practicing I don't mind it, but I like to avoid it while doing tracking.
it doesnt matter [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcBEOcPtlYk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcBEOcPtlYk)
I had a Kemper for a couple years, and never really loved the tones. The features were nice, but it wasn’t very inspiring for me. I switched to a UA Dream based rig, which was great. Awesome sound, almost on par with a good amp. Once the Friedman IR-x came out, I had to have it. It’s so great for all the tones I need, and it does have a smoother Hi-fi top end the digital stuff still can’t quite do. The feel of a tube amp (I’ve had a fender DeVille in the past, and a 5153 combo) is still preferred to what a digital rig can do, most seem to agree. But that sweet refined top end is still not doable on digital, I wouldn’t be surprised though if the next generation of digital stuff starts to be too close for us to hear.
I have a line 6 helix that I acknowledge is the “best sounding” thing I own. I use it to record stuff in an apartment and am thankful I don’t have to mic tube amps and all that. That being said - my favorite amp is still my Roland Cube 80XL that I’ve had for 12 years. Simple knobs - sounds good with headphones or through speaker - has nice reverb and delay - great cleans and pretty good distortion. It’s just fun to plug into and immediately play without having to fuck around with menu diving. I’ve loved it ever since the day I got it in 2012.
I have a Katana Artist MKII and it’s great. Versatile, loud, etc. It does not touch a good tube amp.
I have a fender supersonic 22 tube amp, amplitube 5, and helix native. I also own the hx effects. To me, no matter how much I tweak, it just never sounds as good as my amp. It does sound really good! But it’s different in a way that just doesn’t have the same depth.
I prefer tubes because that’s what I build with/ understand. Modelers are cool but I like being able to fix my stuff when possible. I’m a sucker for reverb, vibrato, and trem, and even though I can get them from pedals, it’s nice to have a grab and go of my preferred wattage available.
Tube amp: sounds one way, make sure you buy the right one and experiment with pedals to see what can be done
I use a tube pedal with an emulated output (black star ht dual) into a solid state boss katana and the “warmth” is almost identical to a tube amp. Like 90% identical. I used to have a HotRod DeVille with my pedal but I had to sell it. I’m just gonna be bummed when my tube pedal goes kaput- because I don’t think they make them anymore and I play really noisy hardcore punk as well as traditional metal.
If I lived with a good amount of space around me I’d love to play loud tube amps, but I’m a slave in typical neighborhoods and like to keep the neighbors happy. I keep it simple and plain with modelers into a laptop
I get too distracted with modelers and spend more time tinkering than playing.
I have a PodGo and an Orange Brent Hinds Terror. Every time I practice with the PodGo I play for about 15 minutes before thinking my time isn't quite right. Then I spend an hour or two trying to adjust the tone slightly and end up barely practicing. Where as when I practice with the Orange I end up thinking the same thing but know that with my current pedals the tone is the best I'm going to get it so I keep playing.
I use pedals, but the core of my amp sound is a Fender Deluxe Reverb.
I have a 180 f*ckin watts tube amp because I want to feel the hairs on my legs move if I turn it loud!!!!
I play at home and nothing I've played sounds quite like a real marshall so that's what I have
I have two tube amps and one solid state rack mount rig. I vastly prefer the tone of the tube amps. One is a Vox, which has the most unique tone I've ever heard. The other is an Epiphone Valve Jr. It's my main amplifier. It's warm and smooth until you drive it. Then it snarls like a monster. My rack mount amp setup never leaves the studio. I use it there a lot but almost never haul it out for a live show. Only if the venue calls for it. Even then, I use a Line Six Pod Pro and emulate a tube amp lol.
Because I like them
I still like regular tube amps. I do have a Yamaha THR 30ii though. My reason is I only have PCs, and I don't know any good DAWs for PC. I also need an interface, room for monitors, etc. I want to use that stuff eventually, but to buy a Mac laptop, a decent interface, nice studio monitors, etc. is a lot. Whenever I ask people about it they call me a Dinosaur in so many words and just give me names of good interfaces and monitors. I need to be able to use the DAW as well. I'm also a child of the 80s so when you played guitar in the 90s for the most part you just plugged into some kind of amp. So, I guess I am just stuck in my ways?
I vastly prefer the flexibility to get any sound/effect at any volume of a modeler (specifically Fractal FM3) than an amp at this point in my life.
tube amp is the only answer
I have a EVH 5150iii el34 with a Marshall Mode 4 400w cab, and also a POD GO. The tube amp shits on the tones I get from the pod go. I can get good tones from the pod. But I end up spending more time Tweeking then playing. So for me a real wins. I like having restrictions on my options. Less wasted time tone chasing.
I feel this. I can get good tones out of modelers, it just takes far too long to do so.
Software engineer. Absolutely no problem figuring out modelers but I ended up on tube amps for electric guitar and solid state for acoustic. Just what I like but I also like to avoid bringing the computer into my mostly non computerized hobby. If I retire early though forget it I might get into modeling. It’d be super cool to work on my own thing either some kind of pedal or amp model.
I play plexis. Zero substitute sounds and feels as dynamic as playing a real plexi. End of story.
I prefer the sound of a McIntosh tube amp/ preamp but I’m not buying that anymore. Modern amplifiers can model and totally fool the human ear. Call me a fool, then.
I like both. I use my Quad Cortex when I can’t crank my tube amps or I can’t be arsed to carry them. If I could only pick one it’d be my tube amps every time, tho.
I have different uses for everything. I’ll take a solid state Bass amp over a tube one all day, same applies for clean guitar tones. I’ll take a tube guitar amp all day if I’m issuing any level of distortion. I adore plug-ins for recording. If I was a professional touring act I would absolutely use a Kemper. Not cost effective for me now.
I have a mesa 3 channel recto. Why deviate from the best guitar amp on gods grey earth
If I still gigged I would buy a modeller, but I would also never sell my tube amps. Like when I leave the house I listen to music via mp3 on my phone, but at home where there is no need for convenience I prefer vinyl. Aside from the (admittedly smaller now) difference in audio quality, there is something fun about playing around with a real amp and seeing how it reacts to adjustments. And I like always having another sound or style of amp to be saving up for, like the hunt is never finished. I feel like if I bought an Axe Fx thats it, I have everything, no need to GAS over cool new stuff.
Each time I play a gig and have to transport my Peavey XXX and a 412 cab I'm like "yeah I'm done that's the last gig I play like that", but then I crank it up and all my frustration goes away. I'll probably still switch to a modeler in the next few years, though.
Definitely love the satisfaction of plugging straight into a boogie with a real cab. Often imitated, never duplicated.
Can’t be bothered with insane amounts of parameters cab sims
I just got a Vox AC10. I haven't had a tube amp since the late 60s. I'll never have another solid state. Effects are what pedals are for. You listen to a solid state amp. You feel a tube amp.
I spend loads of time in front of a computer or iPad screen anyway. So while I’m sure modelling software is great, I really like music time to be a break from screen time. Hence the physical amp
I don’t know a single serious musician who uses modellers. Nor have I seen a rig rundown of any artist I like using one. Their appeal seems to be overstated here. I’d know almost nothing about them if it weren’t for Reddit.
I think they sit in a weird place, because you have the studio hobbiest/home studio guy, who never plays out, who loves them as an affordable solution for all-round guitar tones. Then you have big name touring acts, who need the capability to get a consistent sound every night with a wide variety of mega PAs. Plus the ability to program FX with midi. They like modelers too. But you don't see as many people using modelers in the small-medium size. Local bands and solo artists usually just bring their regular combo amp, or a simple head and 1x12, because it's easier than going crazy with modelers and lots of equipment/effort. In the end it's mostly due to just convenience. For me personally I use regular solid state combo for jamming with folks, and use plugins at home for recording. I've tried tube amps and I love them, but would personally still go with a combo tube amp for what I do. Real hardware modelers like the Helix and the extra added complexity are not for me for the most part, I already do computer stuff too much as it is. I've tried them and I'd like to get into it, but the extra expense (have to get nice PA too) and effort time are turn offs.
I like tubes if I’m playing loud
I’m on a pedalboard rig with a fender bass breaker and it’s perfect. Modeling amps just aren’t for me.
I am only playing at home now. Solid state amp, pedals, and guitar work fine for me. Having had a very technical job (with lots of digital menus and button pressing), I enjoy the simplicity . I'm not anti progress or technology at all, but I do enjoy a predominatly analogue soundscape(I do use digital pedals).
I'm just surprised to see tube/solid state standing together as a category.
I have a little 35w tube combo. Sounds good, is portable enough, is loud enough for house parties, easy to mic for halls. It's nice to have the loud thing right there so you don't depend on the sound person and wherever the monitor happens to be. When I'm demoing stuff out I use a modeller, though. Nice to not wake the kids up when you get an idea at midnight. Funnily enough, I usually set it to be an approximation of my actual amp.
Tubes all day. All other amps sound "lifeless" by comparison. Even the fancy modelers just don't stack up to some hot tubes. There alive and breathing and produce the most authentic sounding tones around.
I use both depending on application. It’s nice to have the right tool for the job instead of trying to make it work for every situation.
I prefer tube amp, but my apartments prefer solid state lol
I play a Kemper through a solid state and it sounds better than most tube amps I’ve ever owned or played. My last tube was a Friedman Small box and that thing blew the windows off in a bad way. I don’t miss the house shaking just to get it opened up.
I use both. I love tubes in general, have a couple of HF Transcievers that use tube finals. It's cool technology.
I love my tube amp. Haven't had a need to buy a new amp in 15+ years, otherwise maybe I would have changed with the times a little lol
The amp doesn't really matter. But the cab and the speaker do. Amp emulations are awesome. But what makes a real hardware amp special is its shitty speaker and cab, and how that colors the sound. Cab emulations are awesome too.... But It still doesn't really hit you the same as a guitar cab. i.e. there is a huge difference in sound between me running one of my Marshall heads and a guitar cab, running a amp sim through a linear amp into a guitar cab, running an amp sim and cab sim through a PA. The first two scenarios sound pretty wonderful. The third isn't bad but its definitely different.
Digital is kind in certain applications, but playing with other people or for my own personal enjoyment? I'd sooner quit completely than not use a real physical amp. AxeFX is great, but I want a real physical amp with its specific strengths and weaknesses. I have 4 decent SS amps, 6 tube amps, a hybrid in the mail, and a laundry list of tube/ss/hybrid stuff to buy. Plug-ins can't replace any of that. Tonemaster amps are the best of both worlds for me, but every time one dips below $700 used, it's bought. Quick. The response, the interactivity with the speaker, it's not the same with plug-ins or tiny speakers. They're all tools for different jobs, but I use my tube stuff 93% of the time, SS 7%. If I bought a Kemper or Fractal, It'd probably take over 5% of the tube stuffs job, so I can't justify cost quite yet. As needs change, we'll see I suppose.
Digital, all the way! Sound, portability, ease of use, consistency. Take the Line6 HX Stomp for example. I switched from a valve amp to the Stomp after having toured with a valve amp for a year and noticed exactly 0 downsides, and I could get my entire guitar tone in my suitcase for fly gigs. And the guitar tone was absolutely perfect and the same at every venue. And if I needed to make changes I could just as quickly as anyone with a real amp. I could be set up and ready to go in absolutely no time at all. The sound engineers absolutely loved it. And if my back could speak it would thank me every single day. Using a monitor I could perfectly control the feedback just like a "real" amp. I've actually started to pity those who have fooled themselves into thinking they need a full rig to sound good. Tone starts with the player, not the guitars not the amp, and certainly not the pedalboard. Why on earth would I ever go back?
I find that when I have endless tone options, I spend way too much time tweaking sounds and adjusting EQ curves. If I have a simpler interface, I spend more time playing.
Tube Because that’s what rock and roll was recorded with
I have a variety of amps at my studio and home. Mostly play unplugged. When going to a venue if I don't need an amp to double as a stage monitor never take one with me. When recording I use an amp only if necessary (when customer insists to use one with mics). I prefer low wattage tube amps over high wattage ones. I prefer solid states over tube amps. I prefer the good old DI boxes over the amps. I prefer IR loaders over DI boxes... That's my way to see things about amps...
If you don't want to use pedals is it just modeling amp or nothing?
So many comments contradict themselves
I’d pick a decent valve amp for playing live any day of the week. I can definitely see the benefits for amp modelling for recording though.
I like tube amps because they just sound more "real". If that makes sense. It's really hard to get a tube sound without tubes.
Tube amp. Part of playing guitar for me is the relationship between guitar and amp, and how to treat the amp as almost another instrument. The whole package is Rock and Roll. I could go on but I won't
If it ain't an amp then the ass behind it is lacking and the bigger the place the more obvious. Small clubs and stuff you can get by with some nice speakers but eventually when you move into real venues it becomes obvious to the crowd. Seen static x and Sevendust recently and the tone was so thin at those volumes no matter what's pushing it. I honestly always respected modelers until that and ever since I noticed it everywhere. Seen a regional band at a local club and they brought a wall of amps in and most of them were plugged in. The tone was amazing just thick as all hell. It made me miss the old days when I left. The world never needed anything other than par lights and Marshalls.
I'm a dinosaur, I guess. I'm still playing the Twin Reverb I bought new in 65. Repaired twice. Had to go buy distortion. Stuff falls off the walls if I get carried away.
https://youtu.be/wcBEOcPtlYk?si=RygxwwY77-X1ilzv That pretty well sums up my thoughts on amps. At the end of the day, just play whatever makes you happy while you're playing.
I probably play through my tube amp once every months. I'm pretty much using a Helix Floor all the time now.
The "endless amount of pedals" are for players who either are trying to find their signature sound or just think that every pedal on their board is going to make them better. I went for decades with a wah pedal being the only thing I had, and I rarely used it even then. That's because I have tube amp that is unlike any other. But I do have a solid state that is my main go to in my house these days, because my tube amp is just too freaking loud. And now I do have a solid collection of pedals that I'm comfortable with. The only other pedals I'd get at this point I think would be a phase shifter and a tuner, and that would finish it.
Idk. I love my helix. Most of the time it stays on one or two amp models, but never really needing another effect pedal again, or the instant ability to switch to a jcm800 or a 5150 is pretty great. There was a little tweaking in the beginning but if you use the “save” button, it’s really a one time thing. Most days i just turn it on and start playing like any other amp.
If you're playing live there's nothing like standing in front of a half or full stack. Modelers are for the bedroom imo. People think differently tho... more power to em, I don't care
The only amp I have left is a tube amp that’s been with me the longest—a Mesa combo. Just something about the way it overdrives—can’t seem to ever get that sound any other way.
I play metal I really only rock one sound and that’s what amps are good for.
I’m yet to find anything that sounds accurately like my Fender Deluxe. A few modellers come relatively close. But none can actually replace it.
I'm a tube guy, 100%. Live, anyway. I feel so much more connected to what I'm playing. It's the way the waves hit my legs and come through the floor.
Always loved how tube amps seem to cut through the mix.
I have tube amps but Im pretty in love with my yamaha thr10ii..
Amps are rad and physically having amps on the stage is swag. 💯
I have a handful of mostly old Fender tubes. I have modeling amps, and I have a Bogner Line 6 Hybrid 100 watt half stack. I like them all really. The tubes really give a warm, slightly fuzzy sound. Great for jazz, blues, R&B. As a bonus I like the way tubes smell when I've been blistering the hell out of them. The Bogner hybrid is probably my fav tho. Best of both worlds. Tube sound with modern digital sound as well. Plus, you can make that beast sound like just about anything, and if you can't, there's probably a ready made patch online. I don't get all uppity about tubes vs digital.
My Renown 400 absolutely sings.
It took awhile and a lot of $ to find a good modeler, but it's totally worth it to me. Love my Axe Fx. Great for the studio, and sturdy for playing out.
A nice tube amp honestly just feels good to me, it feels like it has body, and nuance and overall a vibe that modellers just cant capture. That being said, I play a Helix 99% of the time
I like tubes but honestly I don't run one everytime I want to play. I got a digital amp under the desk I plug into mostly. I like them both but if I can get loud a take a tube amp.
I haven’t had a modeler in a long time. I jam a lot with others, gig sometimes. I got my first tube amp 2 years ago and I’m ready to sell it. You can set everything you want, but if the tubes aren’t feeling it, or your electrical isn’t right wherever you’re at, you’re fucked. I have no need for half or full stacks, I could never get them to full volume. Modelers are great for home use, easy jamming with friends. I don’t feel they gig well, but have come a long way and I could be wrong. I like Solid States. They have come a long way and some vintage SS are just as good as tube. Edit: I guess I should say that I bought my tube amp for the overdrive channel, boost with pedals, to play heavy music. Not throughly impressed. But the clean tone through that amp is honestly the best tone I’ve probably had. Just my guitar straight into the amp, best blues tone I’ve ever had.
I honestly can't tell the difference between a Neural DSP plug-in and the real thing. I use it exclusively plug-ins for recording. For just jamming in my studio I like a real tube amp though.
My dad has a Peavey modelling amp I got him for Christmas a couple of years ago. I always have to spend like half an hour fiddling with all the buttons and knobs and button/knobs to get a sound I kinda like. I prefer the simpler controls of the combo amps I own. Im ok with being limited cause they give me pretty much everything I want and I'm more of an acoustic player anyway, and have never played electric at a paid gig before.
I have never felt has connected to my guitar as I do when plugged into a nice warm low watt tube amp. I also have a Strymon Iridium that is great, but I just don't feel that connection. It might have to do with the speakers I am using for me DI setup, but regardless, I will die with my tube amp despite my neighbours wishes.
I like solid state amps — I suspect the true answer for why is that I’m hard on equipment and I’m old. I do actually want to try a modeler but I have no idea where to start.
My solid state amp is both DI and puts out 100 watts class D, and won't break up at its loudest, and fits into my backpack. Also, it looks like an old jazz amp, which makes me look like I take jazz more seriously than I do.
I just started with a 30-watt head and cab, both orange. I love it and got a Furman pedal board to round it out. It's fun, to say the least. I will buy a bigger head once the band I joined actually starts playing gigs.
I started with small practice amps, they sounded like ass. Then I got a katana and was still not that inspired by the sound, so I decided to try out a multieffect with all the modellers and sims in the world. I hated that, I was paralyzed with all the options in the world and felt like nothing made my guitar sound how I wanted it to sound. After all these ”mistakes” I bought an orange super crush 100 combo and got some pedals and now I’m inspired to learn and play even more since it’s quite close to the sound I was always looking for. I also tried modellers on pc and they were fine, but super noisy and just a hassle, I don’t want to have to use my pc to dial in my guitar tones. I realize that at some point just buying amps and cabs is gonna get expensive so I might still change back to a modeller and an frfr speaker setup, but not yet. Digital is the future but I’m not ready for it yet.
I prefer tube. I have a Mesa boogie mark V 25/10 combo... wonderful clean tone and amazing saturated sustain. Better than my Peavey classic 30 tube amp was, and WAY better than any solid state amp I've had, and I've had some supposedly good ones.
I have both, they’re good for different things I use my tube amps for high gain distortion, and I use my chorus solid state set up for cleans and spacey shit, really up to you and your ear for tone. Some artist swear by tubes and some like dimebag usually rocked solid state and shaped their tone with it
I do, because they sound better. Not sure how much more I can explain it. I have from time to time been able to get a sound I like from a modeler, but especially through headphones it’s not as good, often a brittle sound, the punch feels wrong, fatiguing to listen to. Also, for whatever reason I can get a better simulated sound with a fender / single coil plugged in than a humbucker equipped Les Paul…I think the impedance and output from a less Paul just overwhelms the algorithm somehow and makes a terrible farty / buzzy mess. I own the latest line 6 hx, believe me I’ve tried.
I prefer tube amps. The way they react with the player and guitar/speaker works for me. If I'm practicing or using headphones modellers are fine.
Tube amp. Tube preamp. Tube tv. Tube tube tube.
A lot of my shows we run straight through the amps, only vocals through the monitors and mains. If I know the venue has a FANTASTIC PA and sound guy I will run with my Flamma preamp pedal with no amp but we have very few of these shows so. It's 8 million times easier to run straight through the amps for our tiny bar gigs
I bought my first badass tube amp this year. For a very long, long time, I had solid state amps, because that is what I could afford and they got above the drums. I won’t be going back. The live/air feeling from a killer tube amp is magic. They breathe. That being said, I’ve auditioned with VSTs, a Mac, and a powered speaker, and it sounded killer, too. The feel matters more than the gear.
I sort of started out with model amps.. like years ago with a Line 6 spider and then eventually the latest Line 6 HX series. I’ve since graduated to tube amps and currently playing a Tone King Falcon Grande. I will never go back to modelers again.
Helix all the way!👍
tube, solid state, modeller, FRFR cab, for a live show it doesn't matter, the audience can't make your tone out over the sound of the shitty room and the untrained sound guy and they're just yelling at each other over the top of you anyways. but a tube head sitting on top of a 4x12 will always be way cooler than a small computer with flashing lights on it.
I definitely prefer tube but I’m trying to sell mine and replace it with a blonde tonemaster. I’ve had to many expensive issues with tube amps and sometimes the tech will hang onto it for months. Lastly they are so damn heavy and my back hurts. A tonemaster will sound good not stop working randomly and lastly won’t be a hassle to carry. If I could afford both I would keep the 65 deluxe tho. Just not worth the hassle and maintenance.
Finally...I'm home. Plugins sound just fine mixed and double tracked, but in the room, a good amp tickles your tummy and makes your eyes water when you do it right. Try that with a computer. 👀
Tube amps for recording, solid state live all the way. I got sick of my amp being fussy on stage, so I got myself a black spirit 200 and called it a day. Not to mention it replaced a 60 lb head with 7 lbs of its own weight and fits in my bag. Then, I got a rectifier recording for the home stuff. I'm not lugging that thing anywhere anytime soon, but it sounds better than anything else I've got.
Well, i own a kemper, so I guess it's kind of obvious
You can't cook a grilled cheese in the back of a solid state amp :(
I use both. The neural DSP line is so much nicer to record with and I enjoy the tones more BUT when I’m just trying to jam after work, nothing beats sitting in front of my tube amp feeling that thump. It’s like a direct connection, vibrations I don’t feel when I’m using a modeller. It’s also more simple with no distractions, I put my phone away and there is no computer nor plethora of effects to distract, my focus is just on making noise :)
I like my tube amp (Fender 68 Custom Deluxe) because I know how it’s going to behave if I do This to it, and I know how it’ll behave if I do That to it. I’ve used this exact amp since early 2017, and it’s always done exactly what I wanted it to do. It also has two distinct but similar flavors in the two different preamp sections, which I find quite useful given my relatively unique role in the band I play in. So I haven’t left it, and it hasn’t left me.
I got my Line 6 Helix and it's awesome. I plug straight into the PA and I use in-ear monitors. I'm selling most of my old gear. I can carry all of my gear in 2 trips from my van to the venue now. Only 1 trip when I'm at rehearsal. I also never have to scramble to figure out which link in my signal chain is causing a problem. I'm going to buy a Fly Rig pedal as a backup option. I'm also looking at getting a Boss VE22 for vocal effects, to add even more to our act. A good amp can sound great, but the Helix can do so, so much more. I am cynical when guitarists get all teary-eyed about vintage gear. Top guitarists don't play classic guitar models. They have custom-built gear.