I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

[QUOTE=ehdwuld;4344028]I have the Bugera G5
The head is 199 over at Proaudiostar.com

I when back to the store and the only Bugera they had on floor was the V22 combo. I got to say it sounded better to me than the dsl except for the high gain part.

To bad I can’t try other tubes. There’s is not that much to try

I want a versatile amp. From blues to modern metal. The employees said for the V22 I will need A distortion pedal but it won’t be same thing, for example the internal distortion of a modern Metal amp is the best tone. ( to bad didn’t try a pedal Didn’t have time)

Should I just order the Bugera g5 or g20 plus the Harley cab without trying it and hope for No regrets lol or get V22 plus a distortion pedal? I really like the amp to be honest but there’s allot of things that stop for making any purchase. For example g series ordering online waiting to arrive and than not liking it and not liking the V22 with a pedal.

I know some of you will say just save for the Marshall or other. But to be honest this amp on the funk, bluesy, clean and crunchy side beat the marshall. Maybe it’s just me placebo lol

[ItsaBass]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

You played a good sounding amp (to you, at any rate), and IMO that's how it should be thought of. Things don't sound "good" just because they have tubes (Lord knows there is no shortage of mediocre to crappy sounding tube amps). They either sound good or they sound bad, and you shouldn't even think about whether they use tubes or not. Just use your ears.

"Good" and "bad" are, of course, subjective terms, which will change for each player.

[ehdwuld]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

Sure you can order one sight unseen

I did

Bunch of videos and reviews online
The G5 has way more features and is more versatile than the V series or the T series

The Harley Benton cab comes with a vintage 30
Hard to beat the deal

[BenPerkins]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

https://youtu.be/gHsNEKoam1Q

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[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

It looks like no master volume on most small amps. Isn’t better to have it there like the g20?

Now I can’t decide between a head or a combo. I’m gonna go back to the store and put an od in front Of the V22’s and see what happens

[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

https://youtu.be/gHsNEKoam1Q


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It sound really nice and thanks I’ll take a look at that brand

[Despair]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

and what is more convenient for late night recordings hardware ( helix , headrush etc..) or plugins??

Convenient is hard to call. But plugins are more powerful, with extreme ease of reamping & effects adjustment.

I like the Helix line, particularly because you can combine the hardware unit as your audio interface with using the plugin for tracking. Plugin gets discounted to $99 if you own Helix hardware. If you have a good audio interface (plugin experience is made or broken by the audio interface and the monitoring system), there's a 15 day trial. Note it's just the plugin, you need a DAW (like Reaper) or other plugin host (like savihost) to use it at all.

A modeler is a great way to figure out what you like. Don't get roped into blindly following amplifier marketing regarding effects. There's an awful lot of very well regarded metal players who use boost, overdrive, distortion and/or EQ in front of the amp, and a parametric or graphic EQ in the loop. Tons of guys using a Tube Screamer to cut bass into their 5150 for tightness (too much bass into preamp tends towards uncontrolled distorted bass flub), then EQ in the loop to give more bass and give a mid notch if they are doing rhythm parts that call for that. There are definitely effects that are best through the loop, particularly with higher gain. Also, a serial loop gives you options like using a different preamp instead of the onboard, so if you use a modeler for effects with 4CM (4 Cable Method), you can use the modeler for effects before your preamp and after, or use amp sims instead of your preamp, all while still using the power amp and speakers that you may well prefer outside recording. Speaker simulations rarely give the same experience as standing offside from a guitar cabinet... Many of them are aimed at sounding like a miked up speaker cabinet, which isn't necessarily what a guitarist used to standing next to a roaring speaker cab wants.

All that said, there's a lot of ability to mod an amp (things like tube swapping to alter tone/compression/distortion character, bias adjustment) even before you get into altering the circuit, that aren't really modeled yet by most modelers. It's all tradeoffs. There aren't tube amps that get new amp channels multiple times a year, either.

Tube amps can be a lot of fun, but there's a lot of things to consider, even beyond maintenance costs. If you want to be able to use it late night, it'd better have a really amazing master volume, power scaling, or a good attenuator. Or a power output switch. Even less than a watt into a single typical highly efficient guitar speaker can be more than conversationally loud when you have a high gain, high compression preamp going into it. I have a Laney IRT Studio with a <1 watt output that I couldn't use for practicing at night with my EVM12L.

I'd tend to go for a head and cabinet over a combo, tube life is generally better, though portability suffers a bit.

[Aceman]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

To me tone when playing is one of the most important things, it's what makes you feel good and what makes you feel proud to play in front of others. Many of us strive our entire life for a specific tone.

You should really find an amp you like and save up for it, otherwise you will always be less than you could be.

See - I believe the opposite of this, especially if playing for an audience. Your “Tone” ears are something the audience doesn’t have. What they care about is the lyrics/melody, and that the music has a good mix, and is played with good energy.

They expect you to be MORE than any tone that you find inspiring or crappy. The audience does not give a crap about “Tone”. And if you play out enough, you have to learn to get over meh tone or stay home.

[Lake Placid Blues]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

Get an amp that’s cathode biased. This way swapping tubes is easy......

The DSL20 is cathode biased and uses EL34s same as the DSL40 he liked. Less features and modes than the 40, but less maintenance for the beginner, and it should do the music styles he wants to do .

[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

See - I believe the opposite of this, especially if playing for an audience. Your “Tone” ears are something the audience doesn’t have. What they care about is the lyrics/melody, and that the music has a good mix, and is played with good energy.

They expect you to be MORE than any tone that you find inspiring or crappy. The audience does not give a crap about “Tone”. And if you play out enough, you have to learn to get over meh tone or stay home.

I’m with auto_tune on that one. If I don’t like how it sounds I lose interest in playing So when I played the Marshall the other day It felt different. Maybe when I get more experience down the road probably won’t care if the tone is not ok when playing live because I will then have more experience with modelers, tube amps , guitar playing.

[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

The DSL20 is cathode biased and uses EL34s same as the DSL40 he liked. Less features and modes than the 40, but less maintenance for the beginner, and it should do the music styles he wants to do .

What is cathode biased? Do Bugera amps have that feature?

Im probably going with an amp that has a master volume.
So the g5 doesn’t have one. only an attenuator.

[BenPerkins]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

Cathode biased is when you can swap tubes easily by pulling one out and putting another one in. Egnater, Orange, Hughes & Kettner and Bugera are some of the companies that have cathode biased amps.

Amps that are Fixed bias require an amp tech to adjust the amp when new tubes are installed.


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[BenPerkins]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

Here’s another video that explains the features of the Tweaker 15. Essentially it’s like having 3 amps in one.

https://youtu.be/_iEB5CYeqBg

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[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

The DSL20 is cathode biased and uses EL34s same as the DSL40 he liked. Less features and modes than the 40, but less maintenance for the beginner, and it should do the music styles he wants to do .

Thanks I’ll take a look at the dsl20

[Willy25]

Re: I just played a tube amp for the first time! ( newbie)

Cathode biased is when you can swap tubes easily by pulling one out and putting another one in. Egnater, Orange, Hughes & Kettner and Bugera are some of the companies that have cathode biased amps.

Amps that are Fixed bias require an amp tech to adjust the amp when new tubes are installed.


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Thanks for explanation and I’ll take a look at the video.

Thanks for everyone’s help. I’ll go back to the store and put an OD infront of the V22
And see what happens.
I’ll be getting an amp with master volume and I’ll be thinking about getting a combo or head+cab.
I’ll post pics when I get something