Which type of amp suits me!? Newbie question help!

[zhijie46]

Hi fellas, I need help with some choosing of amps.
I've had a Roland 20X Cube for 3 years now (my very 1st and only amp), and that being a digital amp (right?) I don't have the experience to know what other types of amps like solid state and tube ones suit me.

I play mainly hard rock to metal mainly and a bit of the mellow range too. Mainly use pedals through the clean channel now for my sound instead of the lead side. Budget for an amp is probably at MOST 500? Just for home practice and all. I'm also looking for a lower watt amp since I don't need so much volume.

Question is which is more practical? Tube amps give better sound but have a reliability issue due to tube aging, while solid state is..........I don't know....really! And since I use pedals for my distortion how does it work with a tube amp for example a Vox AC4TV? That amp alone has that vintage British tone on its own, what happens if I run a distortion pedal through it? Is it wrong or anything?

What are the benefits of using a solid state amp anyway? Really appreciate if anyone can help with my newbie questions please! Thanks

 

[ungauged]

Everyone has faced your problem before. Honestly, I feel tube amps sound warmer.

Since you're a pedal user, I would recommend a tube amp. Something like a blackheart little giant or orange tiny terror would fall within your budget. Regarding the tube issues, tube amps that are well taken care of and used for bedroom practice would usually last for a good 2 years.

From personal experience, there really isn't much of a difference between tubes and solid state amps to the naked ears, unless of course if you want a particular sound like a Mesa, Bogner or Marshall sound then you are left with no choice but to get the damn amp. I've been through the whole "let's find the pedal that can replicate that sound" and you usually end up spending a lot of money not getting what you're searching for. Whatever is pleasant to your ears, stick with it.

Here's something to read:

http://guitarguru.blogspot.com/2005/02/tube-amps-vs-solid-state.html

 

[zhijie46]

I totally agree with the point on replicating a sound using pedals. I reckon ultimately it is the amp that determines our sound. The link was a great help, I don't know if it's the way everything was phrased but I was sold to the idea of tube amp :S

What's your take on the VOX AC4TV? gearmanndude on youtube says it's great

 

[bf0502tr]

my take on the age old "tube vs solid-state" is that u need a high wattage solid-state to compete with even a low wattage tube amp in terms of warmth. real life eg. the 50 watt ss i tried at a shop matched the warmth of my 5watt tube head.

on the vox ac4tv, i recommend u buy the head and the 1X12 cab. the projection of the sound is better this way. as for its performance, it might just suit TS since he uses pedals for his tones. this amp has serious lacking in drive tones. its after all only for vintage stuff. but its cleans are fabulous. the breakup tones on this amp is also rather interesting...plus point? its cheap

 

[loldude333]

At this price a small tube amp is probably your best bet. Ironic isn't it? A coupla years back the best you could get for 500 was some low to midrange SS amp that in all honesty sounded like crap. The Blackstar is an option, its got good drive tones on offer. I have not tried the AC4TV but if what bf0502tr said about the cleans is correct, i'd go for it if i were you. Bring a coupla of your pedals down and try it thru the amp to see if it really suits you.

 

[EugeneSmasher]

I'll be different from the rest, and recommend a solid-state for home usage. Why I say that, is tube amps normally have distortion when the volume is raised. That is not something you get with a solid-state. Therefore, you can set a clean tone, and it'll remain just as clean no matter what volume you set it at. It's for that reason that despite the lack of warmth, I'm an exclusive solid-state user.

There are dual-channel, high-wattage tube amps that have higher headroom (meaning there is far less distortion as volume is raised, so you can get a clean sound even when cranked), but $500 certainly can't get you one. And besides, it'll be way too loud. Even setting the volume at 2 or 3 would be too loud for home use.

Just my suggestion.

 

[loldude333]

A great SS amp to be had for $500 is the Sound Drive SG612R. This one really surprised me with its warmth and depth. The cleans are pretty good too. Available from Mike@SV.

 

[lazy3yed]

I would go with a solid-state if I use only pedals for the driven tone and am on a budget. The magic in a tube amp is the overdriven sound. It's warm and dynamic. Using a tube amp for a clean base sound for pedals is kinda pointless, I feel. Though some ppl like to stick their drive pedals infront of a slightly driven amp. Makes the sound rounder, warmer and fuller.

There's also the low headroom issue. Higher wattage tube amps are more expensive and VERY LOUD. Also bear in mind that most budget low wattage tube amps won't give you high gain metal drive tones, as far as I know. I may be wrong though.

Some small tube amps, like the AC4TV, have really nice cleans, but do break up at higher volumes. As bf0502tr mentioned, head and cab is the way to go. Firstly, due to the speaker cab configuration. And you have the flexibility to try other cabs and speakers in the future. Secondly, having the tubes housed in a separate cabinet isolates them from vibrations from the speakers, but that wouldn't be much of a problem at low volumes.

Perhaps, you may want to stick to your current amp, save up more and get a better quality tube amp in the further. Explore more in the mean time. You may find something you really like.

Btw, the warmth in an amp's sound has nothing to do with wattage. It's just how the amp is voiced.

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

i would recommend a Blackstar HT-5 if you want to start out with a low wattage tube amp. I own the head, with a blackheart cab and I like the different tones it can gives by the ISF voicing.

you can try it out at Woodworkz Sound Engineering, http://www.woodworkz.com.sg/

You can simply go with the combo version which is $570, but the downside to it is the 10" speaker (downside depending on how you look at it). if you'd like a 12" closed back, it's better to get a head + ht 112 cab set, which goes for $780

if either is way out of your budget, consider waiting for a good deal to snap on the buy sell forums!

 

[zhijie46]

From what I think I briefly understand is that by using solid-state amps I'm directly getting my sound from the pedals, stagnant is my feeling about it, while running my pedals through a slightly overdriven tube amp will give a warmer dynamic distortion and a better voicing from the tube amp? My lack of experience in gear gets on my nerve sometimes, many questions to ask =/
Should I just personally go down to say city music and try both types of amps?

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

yes, you should try both types of amps, bring your pedal board down also, let the sales ppl know about what you're trying to look out for. better still, find dhalif and ask him to demo for you through your gear into both tube and ss amps! =)

go with an open mind and see if you can actually tell / feel the difference between solid state and tube amps at room level. one of the most obvious thing i noticed when playing on a tube is more of how it feels and responds to my playing more than the tone. most tube-modelling ss can nail tube tones pretty well imo, but they can't emulate the feel right just yet.

 

[subversion]

you should choose the amp which you like hearing after trying them out, regardless of its solidstate/ tube nature.

 

[bf0502tr]

agree with madwerewolfboy in that most ss amps can get u that tube tone nowadays (only the higher wattage ones). and one reason why i recommended the ac4tv was cos it could be played softly. other tube amps cant be played softly, u just wont maximise their full potential. but what eugenesmasher said is also true...ss amps can give u very nice clean tones that STAY clean. so since ts is gonna get an amp to run pedals into, both ss and tube amps will work fine.