I spent some time researching analog amp simulators for guitar. The process was kind of time consuming, partially because stores like Sweetwater and Musicians Friend don't seem to be organized to make finding them easy. They seem more oriented toward traditional guitar amps. It took a few rounds to find what I was after. I thought I'd share what I found, in case others might find it useful. So here goes.
For starters, I'm a Rockman user, with both a Sustainor and Distortion Generator. They are both what are called "Rockmodules" that were produced by SR&D as rack mount gear that complemented the better known Rockman headphone amplifiers. The Sustainor and Distoration generator both act as amplifier replacements, providing amp and cabinet simulations. I've been trying to build something similar on the pedal board.
When it comes to the amplifier/cabinet simulation, I wanted something that would fit on the regular pedal board. The idea was to keep the cabling for unbalanced audio as short as possible. I also wanted an analog solution, something akin to the Rockman gear. These are the products that I eventually found.
The Radial JDX Direct-Drive provides a full amp cabinet simulation, along with balanced output to the board. It seems more sophisticated in that it has a polarity switch for the audio output along with a ground lift. It also has a selection of speaker types, along with microphone placement. What it doesn't have is an amp-like pre-amp for distortion. It seems like more of a clean machine, where upstream pedals are responsible for controlling the levels, and amount of distortion. It also has a pass-through for sending audio to another guitar amp, say one you have on stage as a personal monitor. It doesn't have a headphone out or auxiliary-in, limiting it's use as a tool for practice, unless it's combined with other equipment.
The next one I'll mention seems to be the primary source for the others that follow. It's the Tech 21 SansAmp GT2. While it lacks balanced output for the board, it does provide an amp/cabinet simulation with switchable microphone placement. It also provides "Tweed", "British", and "California" amps which I take to be Fender, Marshall, and Mesa amps. It has clean, crunch and lead settings for each amp. It also has drive and output controls, along with bass and treble controls.
The Behringer TM300, is functionally a knockoff of the SansAmp GT2. Its controls and input/output are identical. The form factor is smaller and the case is plastic like a number of the other Behringer pedals.
The Palmer Pocket Amp MK 2 is mostly like the SansAmp GT2, but adds more input/output choices. It has an auxiliary-in, headphone jack and XLR out. It also adds a ground lift.
Finally, there is the Behringer GDI21 V-Tone Guitar Driver DI Pedal. It seems to be a close copy of the Palmer Pocket Amp, minus the auxiliary-in and headphone out.
So, I wound up buying the Palmer Pocket Amp, because of the headphone-out and aux-in. You can use it on stage or in the studio to go directly into the board, or to play quietly without a bunch of other gear. It's very flexible in that respect.
I also bought the Behringer TM300, because I wanted to use its distortion with downstream modulation effects (Phaser, Flanger, and Chorus). I didn't need balanced output in that use case, because that would be downstream. It also has a form factor smaller than the SansAmp GT2, making it an easier fit with my pedals. I did give some thought to how sturdy the TM300 is, but I thought that it would experience pretty light duty with me. It's the kind of thing that just gets left on once set.
Those are my thoughts. I hope they are helpful. I'm sure there is other gear out there that I didn't find. I'd be curious to hear about it.
For starters, I'm a Rockman user, with both a Sustainor and Distortion Generator. They are both what are called "Rockmodules" that were produced by SR&D as rack mount gear that complemented the better known Rockman headphone amplifiers. The Sustainor and Distoration generator both act as amplifier replacements, providing amp and cabinet simulations. I've been trying to build something similar on the pedal board.
When it comes to the amplifier/cabinet simulation, I wanted something that would fit on the regular pedal board. The idea was to keep the cabling for unbalanced audio as short as possible. I also wanted an analog solution, something akin to the Rockman gear. These are the products that I eventually found.
The Radial JDX Direct-Drive provides a full amp cabinet simulation, along with balanced output to the board. It seems more sophisticated in that it has a polarity switch for the audio output along with a ground lift. It also has a selection of speaker types, along with microphone placement. What it doesn't have is an amp-like pre-amp for distortion. It seems like more of a clean machine, where upstream pedals are responsible for controlling the levels, and amount of distortion. It also has a pass-through for sending audio to another guitar amp, say one you have on stage as a personal monitor. It doesn't have a headphone out or auxiliary-in, limiting it's use as a tool for practice, unless it's combined with other equipment.
The next one I'll mention seems to be the primary source for the others that follow. It's the Tech 21 SansAmp GT2. While it lacks balanced output for the board, it does provide an amp/cabinet simulation with switchable microphone placement. It also provides "Tweed", "British", and "California" amps which I take to be Fender, Marshall, and Mesa amps. It has clean, crunch and lead settings for each amp. It also has drive and output controls, along with bass and treble controls.
The Behringer TM300, is functionally a knockoff of the SansAmp GT2. Its controls and input/output are identical. The form factor is smaller and the case is plastic like a number of the other Behringer pedals.
The Palmer Pocket Amp MK 2 is mostly like the SansAmp GT2, but adds more input/output choices. It has an auxiliary-in, headphone jack and XLR out. It also adds a ground lift.
Finally, there is the Behringer GDI21 V-Tone Guitar Driver DI Pedal. It seems to be a close copy of the Palmer Pocket Amp, minus the auxiliary-in and headphone out.
So, I wound up buying the Palmer Pocket Amp, because of the headphone-out and aux-in. You can use it on stage or in the studio to go directly into the board, or to play quietly without a bunch of other gear. It's very flexible in that respect.
I also bought the Behringer TM300, because I wanted to use its distortion with downstream modulation effects (Phaser, Flanger, and Chorus). I didn't need balanced output in that use case, because that would be downstream. It also has a form factor smaller than the SansAmp GT2, making it an easier fit with my pedals. I did give some thought to how sturdy the TM300 is, but I thought that it would experience pretty light duty with me. It's the kind of thing that just gets left on once set.
Those are my thoughts. I hope they are helpful. I'm sure there is other gear out there that I didn't find. I'd be curious to hear about it.
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