subversion
Moderator
not an applicable philosophy if you value tone per se...
Why do some pple find tube amps better than ss amps?
- Thread starter kym
- Start date
MadWerewolfBoy
New member
Its all about objective tone vs subjective mojo!!!
i observed that many pple r biased towards tube amps. the pricing of amps seems to reflect the fact that even manufacturers feel that tube amps r better. so i became curious and started to question: whether r tube amps generally better than ss amps? hence, i started this thread.
i gotta a feeling that a little history between tube and ss amps play a part to the sentiments that tube amps r better than ss amps. perhaps, when the first batches of ss amps were introduced, they were very much inferior as compared to tube amps, thus giving many musicians the first impression that ss amps r not as good as tube amps. unfortunately, this first impression has a rather lasting effect which is still being felt today.
i gotta a feeling that a little history between tube and ss amps play a part to the sentiments that tube amps r better than ss amps. perhaps, when the first batches of ss amps were introduced, they were very much inferior as compared to tube amps, thus giving many musicians the first impression that ss amps r not as good as tube amps. unfortunately, this first impression has a rather lasting effect which is still being felt today.
subversion
Moderator
guitar players' tube exposure are arguably restricted to instrument amplification, not knowing that tubes are the holy grail of an audiophile's sound amplification, even before they were incorporated to accentuate instrument signals.
it should be understood that the primary purpose of tube inclusion is to amplify the signals- do not let anyone tell you different. the entailment of warmth et al, is a by-product of this engineering.
generally, tube voicings give off a more organic 'pleasure' which wins lots of fans who appreciate sonic pleasantries in general, guitarists included. as time goes by on the guitar front, many people prefer this voicing as it is much devoid of the harsh ouputs of its transistorized siblings especially when overdrive is concerned (jazz cats are more accomodating when it comes to solid-state technology).
on a personal note, i believe that those who favour the tube tone are into warmth, while the solid state proponents are into precision.
it should be understood that the primary purpose of tube inclusion is to amplify the signals- do not let anyone tell you different. the entailment of warmth et al, is a by-product of this engineering.
generally, tube voicings give off a more organic 'pleasure' which wins lots of fans who appreciate sonic pleasantries in general, guitarists included. as time goes by on the guitar front, many people prefer this voicing as it is much devoid of the harsh ouputs of its transistorized siblings especially when overdrive is concerned (jazz cats are more accomodating when it comes to solid-state technology).
on a personal note, i believe that those who favour the tube tone are into warmth, while the solid state proponents are into precision.
Whitestrat
New member
Hahahahah... Well put!!!:mrgreen:
3rd_stone_fr_the_sun
New member
will a tube amp sound as good when driven at lower volume using a pedal as it is cranked?
subversion
Moderator
not all...
Maybe it's only some people in this forum.
What I don't get it is.....kids who spend lots of money to buy expensive guitars or tons of pedals, and then plug into their cheapo solid state amp. Is that their idea of tone chasing? Shouldn't it be the other way round, since amps contribute much more of your sound?
JMguitars
New member
if we're talking about the equipment in the signal chain that plays the largest deteminant of tone .... then Yes, I find it very important.
Sure tube amps are the way to go tonewise(for me anyway). But I wouldnt want to lug my 50kg amp around just for my weekly jamming practice. I guess the more portable pedals are the way to go for certain folks.
3rd_stone_fr_the_sun
New member
and i think asians tend to lean towards hybrid amps and low wattage tube amps due to our living environment
asians doesn't mean small house squeezy environment
angmos doesn't mean big house, nice garden and can blast 100W amp at 10
hahaha juz kiddin
cheers
angmos doesn't mean big house, nice garden and can blast 100W amp at 10
hahaha juz kiddin
cheers
MadWerewolfBoy
New member
Quite true.. Who knows? Maybe you play very well + you have neighbours who appreciate what you play. Even if your living in a HDB flat, you can crank up a 100 watts amp past 12 o'clock! (at the right time of course)
3rd_stone_fr_the_sun
New member
i've driven my neighbour nuts once with voodoo chile
MadWerewolfBoy
New member
Must be your wah too powerful.. My dad onced pumped techno blue double dee double daa on our home theater system (some harman kardon amp into JBL's, they aren't working now cause the sub woofer's caps and amp caps are blown thanks to constant insane volumes) so damn loud (it was barely near the max output of the amp though).
I was walking home from school (my flat's on the 8th floor) and when I heard it 2 blocks away, I was wondering, "who the fcuk's blasting techno like an asswipe? Gotta admit his sound system must be damn pro" (barely syspected my dad because he doesn't dig techno). When I climbed ou my stairs and the sound got louder I was like... "what the... no way..." Haha and true enough, it was my dad who borrowed my cd to test out the sound system. Slight ear damage when I opened by front door though... :twisted:
I was walking home from school (my flat's on the 8th floor) and when I heard it 2 blocks away, I was wondering, "who the fcuk's blasting techno like an asswipe? Gotta admit his sound system must be damn pro" (barely syspected my dad because he doesn't dig techno). When I climbed ou my stairs and the sound got louder I was like... "what the... no way..." Haha and true enough, it was my dad who borrowed my cd to test out the sound system. Slight ear damage when I opened by front door though... :twisted:
MadWerewolfBoy
New member
No la, actually they complained before..
"Can turn down your Bass a lil bit?" (he pronounced it as sea bass, bass.. i almost laughed)
"My son having exams he need study.." (ok it really was exam period)
And some other random thingys I can't remember... But no police at my door before though! Heng ah! Haha so now my amp and sub's blown, can't antagonise them no more! My com speakers are quite powerful but then my bed room is quite isolated and sound absorbent than say, the hall...
All these are SS amps by the way. Not enough cash to get any tube amps for home theatre system though I would love to hear what they sound like!
"Can turn down your Bass a lil bit?" (he pronounced it as sea bass, bass.. i almost laughed)
"My son having exams he need study.." (ok it really was exam period)
And some other random thingys I can't remember... But no police at my door before though! Heng ah! Haha so now my amp and sub's blown, can't antagonise them no more! My com speakers are quite powerful but then my bed room is quite isolated and sound absorbent than say, the hall...
All these are SS amps by the way. Not enough cash to get any tube amps for home theatre system though I would love to hear what they sound like!
EugeneSmasher
New member
Pantera used solid state? I thought Randall only had tube amplifiers.
Initially the solid state amp will sound more powerful, because the tube amp will need some time to warm up its tubes. But after that, perhaps 15 mins, then you can effectively judge and compare each tone. More stable? I'm not sure. Probably solid state because no tubes inside, if overheated, there won't be any tubes to blow.
Which is why I intend to get a tube-sounding solid state amp instead. (No more Marshall JCM800 for me) Its more stable that way, and much cheaper too for the higher wattages. Most of my solid tube-sounding tone will probably come from my pedals, but for cleans it will be the amp all the way, so I'd choose a tube-sounding solid state amp over a full solid state amp.
Initially the solid state amp will sound more powerful, because the tube amp will need some time to warm up its tubes. But after that, perhaps 15 mins, then you can effectively judge and compare each tone. More stable? I'm not sure. Probably solid state because no tubes inside, if overheated, there won't be any tubes to blow.
Which is why I intend to get a tube-sounding solid state amp instead. (No more Marshall JCM800 for me) Its more stable that way, and much cheaper too for the higher wattages. Most of my solid tube-sounding tone will probably come from my pedals, but for cleans it will be the amp all the way, so I'd choose a tube-sounding solid state amp over a full solid state amp.
