Please educate me on SS amps

[zionstrat]

I have very specific thoughts about tube, modeling, profiling and solid state amp tones... but I'm not entirely sure who is using what and would really appreciate some thoughts and/or examples.

And I'm only interested in pop blues rock jazz country examples because that's what I play..

I've seen various takes on this conversation, but I've never really seen a definitive discussion or video for that matter..

I've been playing all four types for 40 years or as long as they've existed and see them this way..

Tubes, in general, the best way to get great fat singing thick sounds, brown sounds and light crunch. Relatively easy to get clean twin like sounds and can be a challenge to get pristine crisp clear, although it is possible.

Modeling and profiling do a good job covering practically everything. They seem to me to be a very slight step down in quality from tubes, however, their flexibility totally makes up for it, and in the mix, it's impossible to tell them apart from tubes.

Solid state.. All of my experience is with early models.. like the The lab series 7 or JC 120.. to me these are the definitive hyper clean sounds, however, this is all I've ever been able to make solid state do... Of course you can put pedals and tubes and modeling in front of them to get just about anything, but in my mind solid state by itself is either clean or farty, weak, unlike tube tones.

And just to be clear, I don't have recent solid state experience which is probably where I'm missing something...

But when people talk about liking solid state for anything other than cleans, are they talking about pure solid state amplifiers? If so what changed from lab series and JC 120 time period? Do they now include solid state circuits that emulate good crunch, so they are really more like modelers?

Or have they been retuned in some way that I can't imagine to get tube like waveforms?

The reason this seems confusing is some people talk about kemper's as solid state although they appear to be profilers or they'll talk about the katana as solid state but it's always seemed like a classic modeling amp to me.

So I guess to sum it up, are there any pure solid state amps that actually provide the gamut of modeler and profiler tones without modeling or profiling?

Maybe this is all semantics, so I'd really appreciate someone unraveling my confusion, and perhaps pointing me to songs that would help me understand what people are talking about when they rave about solid state.

[Mincer]

SS has come a long way since those Lab Series amps. Something like a Tech 21 Trademark 60 is very touch sensitive, and sounds better than a lot of tube amps.

[NotDemanic]

Ever play a SS Randall from the 80's?

[Phantasmagoria]

Something like a Quilter should do all the tones you're looking for. I played one at a friends place (Aviator) years ago & it was as tube-like as you can get with SS for low/mid gain tones.

Usually the difference with SS stuff is a slightly quicker attack/less sag so a marginal difference in feel under the fingers. But that's often seen as desirable (quicker response/tightness), especially with high gain which is why most modern tube amps have SS rectifiers..

I think my Orange CR 120 is probably the saggiest SS amp I've played and pretty much indistinguishable from any warm/saggy tube amp out there imo...but it's a one trick pony/sounds like an Orange. I know I would'nt be able to tell it was Solid State in a blind test... say with another Orange..in fact it was way more tubey/warm than the TH100 I tried. But I could say the same about my AMT Stonehead, Randall T2, Supercrush 100 & even the little 60W Laney I just bought. ..they're all mega tube-like though maybe higher gain than you seem to be looking for..

[Securb]

Like mentioned the 80's Randells have killer overdrive as do a lot of the 80s and 90s Fender solid state stuff. As far as pointing you to songs there are are so many artists that use solid state in the studio. What you see a band using on stage is almost never what they use to record with. Even EVH recorded with solid state amps time to time the most well known example was he had Holdsworth's Hartley Thompson solid state amp as a loaner when he recorded Beat It.

[jeremy]

ss means no tubes. there are analog ss amps and the more modern digital ss designs. profilers are digital ss amps. at this stage in the game, there are great examples of all topologies. is anything as good as a great tube amp? depends on what you want from your amp. i use vintage fenders for the most part, but i can make almost anything work

[ehdwuld]

the old Peavey Transtube amps sounded great
I have a SS Laney GC80A that sounds very thick Britishy,
I was disappointed that the Carvin Belair Tube amp didn't sound world better than the the Laney

I have some modeling amps that sound good
in a mix with a band
you may not notice the difference

guarantee no one in the audience will notice

there are some hybrid versions
with a preamp tube in and a Class D power section

I still think a Bandit and my Laney sound as good or better that some tube amps

[Securb]

I am still waiting on a Fender Roc Pro 1000 to fall in my lap at the right time at the right price. Gotta be the combo. I have enough heads.

[jeremy]

the old Peavey Transtube amps sounded great
I have a SS Laney GC80A that sounds very thick Britishy,
I was disappointed that the Carvin Belair Tube amp didn't sound world better than the the Laney

I have some modeling amps that sound good
in a mix with a band
you may not notice the difference

guarantee no one in the audience will notice

there are some hybrid versions
with a preamp tube in and a Class D power section

I still think a Bandit and my Laney sound as good or better that some tube amps

as i said, there are great amps of all types. personally, i like my old ass tube amps. does the audience know the difference? i dont give a **** lol. an amp is a tool to allow me to play music, find the tool that suits you best. its fine to ask for advice and input from others, but at the end of the day, you need to find what works best for you

[DankStar]

Things are pretty simple - you go to some stores and plug in and see if you like it. You buy what sounds good to you. Or you take a shot after hearing some videos online or there's simply a sale or a good deal. Sometimes it ends up working for your needs (maybe you’re just recording by yourself at home), maybe it doesn’t (in a band situation). Goes for tubes or SS stuff.

The general rule of thumb being you’ll need some more wattage with SS amps vs tube amps if you want lots of volume. And SS amps are less maintenance since you don’t have to mess with tubes.

Unfortunately (or fortunately?) you just gotta try & buy some stuff and see if it works for you.

Edit: I wanted to add that I like both. When it comes to SS, I prefer older (like 1970s/80s) amps. I just had my SS Marlboro combo amp fixed up with a proper grounded power cord and love it. It was a super cheap practice amp back in the day but sounds killer to me with pedals. One of those gritty sounds that's hard to replicate with modeling and even tube amps.

[Securb]

Solid-state amplifiers have faced a reputation challenge due to the ease of producing them cheaply, resulting in a market flooded with more affordable or inferior options compared to tube amps. However, it's essential to recognize that this prevalence of budget-friendly solid-state amps doesn't negate the potential for exceptional quality with the right engineering, premium components, and a dedicated design approach. When approached with a commitment to craftsmanship and innovation, solid-state amplifiers can indeed deliver phenomenal performance and compete with the tonal richness traditionally associated with tube amps.

[zionstrat]

Thanks for all the input guys!

So I didn't set this up terribly well because I had so many questions.. let me try again.

And to be clear, I'm not really in the market. I have way too many amps I need to sell :-) this is mainly for students who want to understand how things work and I can't explain pure SS.

Assuming solid state amps are creating a wide variety of tones without tubes, modeling or profiling,
Im trying to understand how they do it..

In a made up example, I could design a solid state amp with a clean channel, 2nd channel based on a Ds1 and 3rd on a Rat. That would be SS and cover a wide variety of tones.

Is this the general idea?

I'll check out the amps you guys listed.

Much appreciated!

[Rex_Rocker]

Personally, I would think a solid state amp with a channel based on a DS-1 or a Rat would be very undewhelming and very stereotypical solid-state fizzy, stiff, and/or fuzzy.

If I were to design a solid state amp around a pedal design, I think it would be a better idea to base it around the more moder standalone distortion pedals like maybe a Revv G3, Friedman BE-OD, AMT Legend, or the likes.

[Rex_Rocker]

Personally, when I think iconic solid state amps I think either Death Metal on a Marshall 8100, Randall RG100, Ampeg VH140C, Or Peavey Supreme 160.

Or Jazz Chorus for 80's cleans.

I can't really think of many iconic pop blues rock jazz tones on solid state other than maybe BB King?

[zionstrat]

Personally, I would think a solid state amp with a channel based on a DS-1 or a Rat would be very undewhelming and very stereotypical solid-state fizzy, stiff, and/or fuzzy.

If I were to design a solid state amp around a pedal design, I think it would be a better idea to base it around the more moder standalone distortion pedals like maybe a Revv G3, Friedman BE-OD, AMT Legend, or the likes.

Okay, I think now you've got us in the ballpark..

So I'm assuming all of the units that you have listed are solid state... So if you designed a solid state amp around them, this would be a good example of a solid state amp that has a wide range of convincing tones?