Solid state amps. Thoughts?

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Olderama »

I suppose most if us all started our journey on SS amps
But I didn't lol
I had a WEM big 1x12 and distinctly remember thinking what's that glowing glass bottle inside and touching it lol
Knowing what I know now I wish I still had that amp
:mental:

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by kwhelan »

:clap: 3 pages ?
and I thought the title was clickbait/trolling due to the previous discussions on this forum
who knew

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Single coil »

Olderama wrote:I suppose most if us all started our journey on SS amps
Fender 15g
Fender 15r
Behringer bx600, lol
Then, a Marshall class 5, ac15, and that was that.
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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Cdog »

Congrats on the new amp Molly! :)

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by The Scarecrow »

handsoffmatt wrote:Thoughts on Solid State amps?

I own a SLO, which I love dearly, but would much rather take my Katana to the gig.
:thumbup: This is me and my Quick Rod. Never thought I'd see the day when I'd favour a $500 SS amp but you reach a point on the curve where practicality exceeds cool factor - well, for me anyway.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/The-Al ... 895?ref=ts

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Molly »

kwhelan wrote::clap: 3 pages ?
and I thought the title was clickbait/trolling due to the previous discussions on this forum
who knew
Not at all. I'd watched the VR demo after seeing one for sale and thought it sounded great. Recalled a Vox Climax 120 and other assorted SS / hybrid amps I'd quite happily used in the past, and just wondered about others' experiences.

I played the VR for a solid hour yesterday (a long time when you're on child-minding duties) and really enjoyed it; much more so with single-coils. Might not manage a loud enough clean for the band or, indeed, be loud enough overall (30w SS isn't much compared to 30w valve). Also, the footswitch needs to operate the channel and gain button rather than channel / reverb. That aside, it did sound and feel really good.

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Molly »

Coincidentally read this on Music Radar.

"The Cure frontman Robert Smith ... for his band’s colossal Disintegration gigs, he turned to ... the Line 6 Spider V.

Footage of the group’s show at the iconic Sydney Opera House ... shows Smith flanked by a cluster ... of four Spider V 120s.

Smith has never been especially loyal to any particular amp over the years, employing combos ranging from the Roland Jazz Chorus to the Line 6 Flextone Plus while, more recently, he’s been spotted with the Supro Black Magick and Roland Cube 80GX.

As a point of interest, Smith’s bandmate Reeves Gabrels relies on the Yamaha THR100 for his onstage tones. Given Yamaha’s 2013 acquisition of Line 6, we’d wager that’s how this particular partnership came about.

The sighting follows a recent flurry of unlikely digital amp users, including John Mayer’s public outing with Fractal Audio’s Axe-Fx III, while Mark Knopfler has been relying on the Kemper Profiling Amp for his recent gigs."

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by kwhelan »

Molly wrote:
kwhelan wrote::clap: 3 pages ?
and I thought the title was clickbait/trolling due to the previous discussions on this forum
who knew
just humour, funny about the 30watts not being 30 watts equiv, I know what you mean but it makes you wonder are they measured differently?

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Molly »

kwhelan wrote:
Molly wrote:
kwhelan wrote::clap: 3 pages ?
and I thought the title was clickbait/trolling due to the previous discussions on this forum
who knew
just humour, funny about the 30watts not being 30 watts equiv, I know what you mean but it makes you wonder are they measured differently?
There are folk on here better able to explain the reason for difference but it's certainly apparent.

Mr Badger?

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by sizzlingbadger »

Tube amp and guitar tones straight from 1958… amazing how believable the sounds were back then, even without the modellers...

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Terexgeek »

May I have a go, because the Sweetwater article doesn't agree with anything I have read?
All amps are rated according to their clean output, marketing figures notwithstanding.
So the output of the amp before it distorts is it's traditional rated output.
This is true of 30 Watts tube/valve power versus 30 Watts solid state.
The difference lies in what happens after distortion.
A valve/tube distorts harmonically and it usually can't be heard when it starts distorting it occurs so gradually, but it also continues to increase output as it distorts. So thirty Watts in a valve/tube AC30 is probably more like 50 odd cranked, maybe more component dependent.
Transistors don't distort the same way. Distortion occurs rapidly once the limits are met and is not harmonic, neither does output increase significantly once the transistor starts clipping, 30 Watts is it.
Tin arse!!

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by sizzlingbadger »

Terexgeek wrote:May I have a go, because the Sweetwater article doesn't agree with anything I have read?
All amps are rated according to their clean output, marketing figures notwithstanding.
So the output of the amp before it distorts is it's traditional rated output.
This is true of 30 Watts tube/valve power versus 30 Watts solid state.
The difference lies in what happens after distortion.
A valve/tube distorts harmonically and it usually can't be heard when it starts distorting it occurs so gradually, but it also continues to increase output as it distorts. So thirty Watts in a valve/tube AC30 is probably more like 50 odd cranked, maybe more component dependent.
Transistors don't distort the same way. Distortion occurs rapidly once the limits are met and is not harmonic, neither does output increase significantly once the transistor starts clipping, 30 Watts is it.
This is the same as what the article I posted described.
Tube amp and guitar tones straight from 1958… amazing how believable the sounds were back then, even without the modellers...

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Terexgeek »

Modelling amps are different since they model the behavior of the analogue bottles, rather than just replace them with transistors.
Tin arse!!

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by Terexgeek »

sizzlingbadger wrote:
Terexgeek wrote:May I have a go, because the Sweetwater article doesn't agree with anything I have read?
All amps are rated according to their clean output, marketing figures notwithstanding.
So the output of the amp before it distorts is it's traditional rated output.
This is true of 30 Watts tube/valve power versus 30 Watts solid state.
The difference lies in what happens after distortion.
A valve/tube distorts harmonically and it usually can't be heard when it starts distorting it occurs so gradually, but it also continues to increase output as it distorts. So thirty Watts in a valve/tube AC30 is probably more like 50 odd cranked, maybe more component dependent.
Transistors don't distort the same way. Distortion occurs rapidly once the limits are met and is not harmonic, neither does output increase significantly once the transistor starts clipping, 30 Watts is it.
This is the same as what the article I posted described.
No, the first line is wrong, they don't just sound louder, they are louder. Hence the confusion most non techs have. A cranked AC30 is pumping out more than 30 Watts whether or not you can hear the distortion. A transistor 30 Watt amp hits 30 Watts and that's it.
Techie fold their arms and insist it's 30 Watts, which is technically correct, but also wrong, if you have ears.
Tin arse!!

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Re: Solid state amps. Thoughts?

Post by sizzlingbadger »

Symantics...

If they are both putting out 30W the tube amp is not louder. Tube amp is only louder when you push it beyond its 30W and into distortion, hence it seems like it can go "louder without distorting" but in reality it can't.

But yes I do see what you mean, it could be confusing to describe it that way.
Tube amp and guitar tones straight from 1958… amazing how believable the sounds were back then, even without the modellers...

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