Re: "pushing " a solid state
john5959 said:
I find solid-state amps tend to have a sweet spot which differs from amp to amp. I dont think you want to push the amp but the speaker needs some power to make it work right.
A huge +1 on that fact!!! I just picked up a transistor driven Randall today. It totally douched the more expensive Randall tube combo that was on display for around hundreds more, FOR METAL CRUNCH! The solid-state Randall is nice and super-crunchy for my home/friends. There was no tube amp I could buy, used or new that has this amps sound at its intended volume, for its intended purpose. Tubes can sound so sweet, but I was not looking for sweet.
The Boss MT-2 Metal Zone may be the answer to boost an amp you already have. I was using it on the clean channel of my crappy 2x10 Crate POS* for a while. The tonal range is far greater than 95% of guitar players know. IF YOU WANT TO TEST DRIVE A METAL ZONE IN THE GUITAR STORE, INSIST ON SEEING THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL! Sorry for the caps. In it you will find suggested tones...and the easiest to like is the "Heavy Metal" setting on the "Sample Settings" page. I also like the "Overdrive" setting. It may be no coincidence that these two settings are featured first and second.
>>>Lots of people sh8t all over the Metal Zone pedal. I think this is largely because it is not the easiest pedal to figure out without a little guidance from the user's manual. Also, the MIDDLE/MID FREQ dual control is a powerful set of controls as well as the LOW.
I hope this helps. Let your ears decide!
edit: *buy the way, the POS is not a real CRATE model...I meant to say that my little Crate is a piece of human excrement! Your guitar has to have least better than decent pickups with any distortion pedal, or it will squeel like a pig at any volume.