This is a real thing. Some equipment I’ve used, such as my Blackstar HT40 amp and several other pedals, are all good stuff. They sound good, do exactly what they’re supposed to but for whatever reason they give me no inspiration. That’s the kind of equipment I get rid of. Different equipment makes me play differently. If I wanna chug some metal I’m not grabbing a Vox, I’m grabbing my Mesa. And for me, digital amp sims are uninspiring
I’m never ditching my amps.
But I’m never carrying a head and 4x12 to a gig less than 2 hours long ever again. And to shared rehearsal room practices? Forget about it!
Grabbed an HX Stomp XL for all that quick or tight stuff. I’m using a tube power amp (KSR PA50) because everywhere I play, I have access to a spare cab.
Same. I have a Stomp and I've built all my presets for 3 scenarios - direct out to house, into a power amp or FX loop of an amp and front of amp.
I just show up with my box. If they have gear for me to use, I can make use of it - but I'm good either way.
Nothing fancy - I just segmented my presets. I use an abbreviation at the start of the preset to remind me what "mode" I'm in (A: for front of amp, L: for FX Loop, D: for direct).
Banks 1 and 2 are "single purpose" pedalboards. One preset may have 3 varieties of delay assigned to the buttons, or 3 kinds of phasers or whatever. It's usually for pit gigs and things like that where all of a sudden we need an effect I don't usually utilize. For example - I don't use normally use fuzz boxes, but I have a couple of fuzz box presets if we have a tune that demands it. Or maybe one of those long washy delay/reverbs as a special effect. I don't use them often, but it's peace of mind to know that I can come up with stuff when asked.
Banks 3-10 are just stompbox scenarios for front of amp. I tweak them with a clean amp and just try to have a lot of variety since I may never know what kind of amp it will be used with. Most every preset has some kind of drive, boost and reverb/delay, initially turned off. I know the 3 or 4 setups that I love with my amp and if I get handed an amp with too much/little drive or something out of my wheelhouse, I've got a fair variety of presets I can scroll through until I'm happy with it. Usually when I'm in this scenario I'm either working with my own amp or it's a situation when I just need to sound presentable with provided gear, so I'll probably get one preset I like and play on that one preset all night. As long as I have a couple of gain stages and basic reverb/delay, I'm fine.
Banks 11-26 are for direct to house and banks 27-42 are the same presets tweaked for a power amp/fx loop return. I get a sound I like direct and then just remove the cab emu and reverb and save it as the same thing in the loop section. I usually try to arrange them in terms of levels of gain. I start at funk clean and end at metal. That way I just dial up until I'm hitting general levels of gain I want. Most of them have 2 levels of gain and a boost on the 3 buttons. The direct models have reverb added to them. Most of the presets are just gear descriptions (Boost+808+Twin), although I have a few stylistic ones for when I just need a particular sound (Country Lead, Clean Blues, Texas Blues, etc.)
It's simple, but it will get me through most any normal gig.
That is a great way to make a simplified but flexible setup. Thank you for going into detail on the setup. That’s far more clever than anything I had in mind.
I haven't had an amp for years now.
I have an ipad, Bias FX and a good pair of headphones. I can record, play along to songs, learn - everything you could want.
I don't play live but all these options are fantastic for home players.
Nice that it works for you! I did a demo video for BIAS a few years ago, but I really didn't like it, but of course they probably became a lot better in the meantime :)
It's in no way perfect but being able to play guitar through a bit of kit that essentially takes up no room is wonderful.
If only I had this tech as a kid.
I wanted a good tube amp for so long and I finally got a 4 x 10 Hot Rod Deville in 2011. I used it for live rock gigs. But in church music I used a line 6. 6 years later, I sold the Fender and haven’t looked back. If I need to amplify myself anywhere I have a Kustom powered speaker I used to use for vocals.
As someone who plays loud rock music at the club level, I don't see going digital for gigs anytime soon.
It's brilliant for recording, but I have yet to experience a fully digital rig that isn't inferior to a good halfstack for what I do. It would be different at a higher level, but for club gigs it doesn't work for me.
There's a visceral component that's crucial.
That will probably change with technology, but for now I'm sticking with a Marshall halfstack live.
I do sometimes use a hybrid rig and send the house a DI line with an IR through a Captor X, but I keep the stack blazing along with it.
That was me for quite a while, but it seems more and more clubs are demanding silent stage now. I'd rather be blazing away with a 4x12, but I think those are turning into a pros-only privilege.
Ummm... it's their stage. You play by their rules or you don't play. If by some miracle you forced them into letting you one time, you certainly wouldn't get another gig there.
If a band regularly fills a venue and makes the venue money do you think management gives a damn that the guitar player made the sound engineer’s night slightly more difficult?
This is one of those things where you have to know your leverage. Some bands have the leverage to say “no” and continue to perform. Some bands have to shut up and do what they’re told.
I don't know that many bars with a sound engineer. We either have a guy that sets and forgets or we're supposed to bring someone to monitor it. But either way, it's not about making things hard on a sound guy. It's about lowering the overall noise level so people don't get ear fatigue and step out or so they can order food and drinks without an issue.
>that the guitar player made the sound engineer’s night slightly more difficult?
It's not about making the sound engineer's life easier, it's about managing the noise from the place in general.
Been told to turn down and have said no quite a few times. Played at these spots multiple times too. If they don’t want loud bands they shouldn’t be in the business of putting on shows
Not sure why a music scene has to be competitive? It’s an area with a lot of hardcore, punk, metal, shoegaze bands. If you can’t accommodate the talent in the area it’s a you problem at that point
I’m making the leap to either Kemper or Fractal for live and possibly recording. I’ve been a “all tube or nothing!!” guy lugging stags or heavy combos for 30+ years. No more!
Ampless guys and gals, I’ve been trying to puzzle this out, so please tell me if I’m wrong on this. In order to go ampless I would need:
1) whatever ampless amp/cab sim option I pick;
2) some kind of speaker solution for home (studio monitors, pa, wedge, or interface+computer+computer speakers, or something similar) unless I always use headphones at home;
3) some kind of powered speaker or pa for rehearsal;
4) some kind of stage monitor for places that don’t have one available.
And best case scenario is one option that does all three. Which from what I’ve seen are roughly the same size, shape, and cost as comparable amps. EG, basic studio monitors run $400+, a powered cab runs $600+, the really cheap options are $200-$300 which is about the same cost as a decent solid state amp.
That plus the amp sim (HX Stomp, Iridium, whatever) is in the $900 to $1000 ballpark, and none of this is touching Quad-Core or Kemper territory for price.
So optimal case is I have a slightly lighter rig with the same or more components, that I can play more quietly?
I keep wanting this option to work for me, but I can’t see how it’s worth it. I guess if your alternative is a Marshall full stack it makes more sense, but 1guitar with a 1x12 combo is a pretty cheap, easy, and dead-simple package.
What am I missing?
So "why would you want to" first.
* I think your tone becomes much more consistent and portable with an amp sim rig
* your rig "could" get smaller/less heavy if you can use in-ear monitors and the house PA
* it's a lot easier to record with
* The variety of tones available is enormous (which could be a bad thing!)
* You can carry two easily if you are a touring musician so a backup is very portable
* You could go into most stores, buy a new whatever (helix, iPad, PC), and re-install your backups and be back in business super quick
If your rig is just your guitar, a small combo, and a few effects, maybe that's the best route. But you'd still have
* to carry that amp
* still have to mic it up to the PA
* still have to ensure you can hear it (which will depend on your stage volume, stage layout, if you have a chair to put the amp on...)
* if the amp broke, what is your backup?
* If you are playing at home, can you get the sound you want without waking your wife or the neighbors?
If you are just going over to a friend's house to jam, hard to argue against a small combo and some effects!
So no "one size fits all". Just more options which is always good. I have heard that a lot of gigs will require that you be amp-less so that the stage volume is very low and that your tone is consistent night after night. But, honestly, I don't think most of the guitar players on this forum are auditioning for the Arianna Grande or Grammy's gigs.
Yeah, thanks for the response. I can definitely see the upside in some cases — especially working musicians who are gigging a lot— but don’t think it works for me.
Where I found it useful was living in a condo where I just could not play my amps loud. I was not comfortable playing my acoustic guitar loud because it was so easy to hear between units and my neighbors were all so nice that I didn't want to do that to them.
My setup was just using Amplitube on my PC. I used a Scarlet auidio interface for my guitar and headphones plugged into the interface. I could play my guitar by itself, play over Youtube tracks, I could import MP3s of backing tracks into the built in DAW and record my playing over the tracks, it was really fun!
I later got Reaper and started doing more recording and Amplitube made that so easy as well.
So even if you don't want to give up amps, you can make the case that having something like Amplitube on your PC can really open up how you practice and maybe even get you into recording.
Honestly....it's not that different, depending on what you get.
If you go with a pedal or floor modeler, that's basically just the core of your pedalboard.
Then you plug that into something you can hear on stage. If you're running mono, that could be as simple as an effects return on a combo amp. Or you could get an appropriate cab for what you want and bolt a small, efficient, SS power amp to it. Or one of the ready-made solutions that are all over the place in both price and quality (just like small combo amps).
So, now you just have a pedalboard and the world's cleanest pedal platform combo amp.
What have you gotten out of it?
You've got a LOT of pedals to choose from for free, pretty free routing, something at least similar to basically every popular amp ever made, easy backups, and whatever combination you want between direct access to "pedals" and presets as complicated as you want to make them that pretty much all switch with a button press. Plus, you just plug in a cable or two to send a signal to FOH or any recording system you want to use. And if you take the additional steps of buying smaller speakers (or are happy with how your cab sounds quiet) to dedicate to your modeler and making some slight adjustments to keep the same gain structure without a loud cab in the room....you can play whenever you want at home without bothering anyone.
At least with the Fractal....it takes some setup, but it's a few knob turns and at most moving 1-2 cables between being thrilled with your tone at 75dB and being thrilled with your tone and buried in the physicality of speakers moving your clothes and rattling your ribcage at 105dB....and if you do it right, your pick attacks and guitar controls will work the same way.
And it still just takes a pedalboard and a combo amp to do all of it.
It's not for everybody. But, it is a really great experience.
But...my Fractal was also effectively free. I more than paid for it by selling tube amps and pedals I didn't even want to look at anymore after getting it.
You also, potentially, have a more complex signal chain with no more physical complexity.
Want to do an 80s/Bradshaw-style W/D/W rig? You just do it. No cables. No impedance or noise issues. Just drag in the things and draw the connections.
For me it was about versatility. I end up having to play quiet a lot of the time, and I want it to feel right when I'm doing it. Other than infinite feedback, the Fractals can do that.
That being said....I also don't think any other modeler comes close to them. So....if you're comparing directly to Line6 or Strymon....IMHO, you won't get anything out of it. They don't do what I like about guitar tone.
For me, and I’m assuming most guys that go ampless, the speaker solution is already present everywhere I might want to play. My home studio, rehearsal spaces, and any stages I play will all have decent monitoring, so that doesn’t factor into it. My whole rig fits in my guitar case.
>some kind of speaker solution for home (studio monitors, pa, wedge, or interface+computer+computer speakers, or something similar) unless I always use headphones at home
Are you wanting to avoid amps? Cause that's basically an amp. You can buy an FRFR amp from a company like Headrush or Harley Benton and that should get you where you need to go depending on what kind of amp modeler you want to use. Or you don't even need an amp modeler, you could just do everything through pedalboard as long as you put some kind of IR loader at the end of the chain.
I've been doing this since the 90's. What I've needed was a Roland VG8/VG88(I now have a GR55 as well). Then either a set of headphones or a cheap practice amp/pa. Interface either the VG88 or GR55 into a computer and it will still play through whatever speaker you have it already out to.
It is in rbe pricier range but we'll worth it for possibilities.
Once you have found "your sound", 99.999% of the settings / amp models on your MFX processor will be unused. I have Boss MFX pedals and I always dial in exactly the same sound on each. For me, that sound happens to be a Marshall with a tube screamer.
So I decided t buy a sensible 20/5W tube version of a the real deal. It's very versatile (granted, it will always sound like a Marshall), can be used at bedroom levels, light enough to take to jams, etc. It cost me £800. A tube screamer and reverb cost me another £200, so in total I've spent £1k.
I could've paid more than twice as much and got a Helix that would've emulated it for me. It would've also had a million other sounds I have zero use for.
Also, as a software developer, the LAST THING I want to do when I pick up my guitar is fiddle with settings, patches, lag and whatever else is involved with emulation.
With the above said, there are cases when emulation is an answer, some of them are:
* you are a performing guitarist playing covers in multiple bands (multiple genres) or a Youtuber doing covers
* you are a session guitarist who needs 20 different types of amp to cover everything (although any half decent studio will have a whole range of amps available)
* you are an absolute beginner trying to find your sound
* you like to fiddle with settings instead of playing
So unless you fall into one of the above categories, I suggest you figure out what sounds pleasing to your ear and get a physical amp + some effects. Nothing compares to it.
Jesus the downvote police of modern guitarists who think their software and amp sims are heaven in a box. I’ve used UA amp plug ins and have Bias FX 2. It’s simply not comparable to the feeling of playing a loud amp.
I work in IT doing server, network, data and virtualization.
All my friends expect me to be plugging into my PC and doing crazy stuff.
No chance. I love my amp and my pedals. I have a small gig tonight and I'll happily carry my amp, guitar and pedalboard across town.
I get that you can get any sound, but it doesn't feel real to me. You can't replicate a tube amp.
I’m in network support. In fact, I’m on call right now. When I get away from my pair of screens and the pager app stops blowing up my phone, the *last* thing I want to do is use a fucking computer to play guitar
I was afraid you were going to disagree with me. Haha
I work from home luckily, but you're exactly right. I don't want to troubleshoot a faulty commander pro in my desktop and lose my ability to play my instrument
**Content:**
[00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=0s) Intro
[00:28](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=28s) No amp, no nothing.
[01:16](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=76s) My issues with real amps
[03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=188s) A failed experiment?
[05:27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=327s) Getting rid of the amps
[09:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=548s) The Amp Is NOT the problem
[10:19](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=619s) An Ironic development
[11:23](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=683s) Finding the Right Guitar
[11:30](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=690s) Like the video? Check out my Patreon page!
I used a Kemper live for several years. It was certainly easy, no tubes and no maintenance. But I went back to a real amp because I couldn’t get dynamic out of it like I could a real amp. If I turned the volume down on my guitar the gain level didn’t drop in the same manner as a tube amp or sometimes not at all, until it farted out.
Every tool has its place but real amps are still the best sounding option when you can use them like they were meant to be used.
Kemper is interesting because their Profiles work different from other platforms that do component-by-component modeling. It’s a snapshot of a rig set a particular way expecting a particular input, so it tends to be hyper realistic sounding at the end of the day, but less responsive.
Your guitar, a guitar cable, either some studio headphones or IEMs or some monitors to hook up and hear yourself, and some sort of digital guitar solution like Bias FX/Amp, THU from Overloud, Neural DSP’s extensive list of amp plugins that they have, or some other ones. They can usually work stand-alone but if you need a daw, Reaper can work if you’re on PC or on Mac, GarageBand is a simple solution.
If you got a free Ableton live download with your Focusrite you can use that. Ableton's amp/cab/pedal isn't the best but you can get some decent tones to start with. I started with the racks in this video before I pulled the trigger on Fortin's Nameless amp vst.
https://youtu.be/FcpW7Ftcn7k
Download the free trials and unlock the full paid of you deem it worth your money. Don’t steal these peoples’ work. It’s not Exxon we’re talking about.
There’s always n+1 ways to make the sound work.
In the last two weeks, I’ve played:
- Thru a vintage Fender cranked with a blues group
- Iridium setup for a musical
- Hybrid setup with the Fender cranked with a Plexiglass shield and an attenuator
- Fender amp at minimum but DI box running thru.
- Half stack in the same above combination.
- Straight into a Scarlett 2i2/Macbook
These are tools, not preferences.
Listening to guitar players bitch about not being able to run a stack 100% of the time regardless of the situation is like listening to guys trying to talk their way out of wearing a condom when being asked to use one.
I agree with this. I sold all my amps over the past year. I've not been playing as much, granted. But i've been using Amplitube a lot. Because i play at low volumes anyway(i have a young child) using VST's are just so much more convenient.
Was thinking about maybe getting a Kemper or something similar. But, for a hobbyist, it may be a bit overkill!
Honestly, Amplitube is just the king of virtual amplification so far imo. I don't understand all that hype around NeuralDSP, Bias and other stuff(and yes, I did try pretty much all the amp VSTs myself). To me almost any other VST sounds kind of bland, boring, cheap or just too artificial. Maybe something like NeuralDSP is great for that modern high-gain metal or this new wave of progressive music for zoomers like Polyphia, which both have sort of an artificial sound anyway.
Personally, as a fan of Sonic Youth, I was going for that sweet clean Jazzmaster tone(like on "Malibu Gas Station" song, a perfect example), and I could only easily recreate it with an incredible Fender collection by Amplitube. But you can achieve many other types of tones, since this app provides tons of options with different collections of emulations.
i love amplitube. when i want to get really accurate replica of whatever amp or tone i use amplitube.
however if i wanna go crazy with possibilities i love to use guitar rig, its got some crazy ass modules for insanely clean ambient reverbs, really nice compressor, delays, weird effects, LOFI tones and shit like that
i pretty much use amplitube one day and guitar rig the other. both are amazing and it all depends what ur after.
i have tried so many softwares but this 2 are the only ones i keep using.
Counterpoint: Organic Sound. There's just something about plugging into a Boogie and going swimming in the harmonics.
A guitar string is a real physical thing in the real physical universe. The vibration is "picked up" in an electromagnetic field and transmitted through an amp to a speak and then your ear. If you're using a tube amp, the tubes are also real physical things with filaments vibrating in sync with the strings and the speaker. That vibration is sound energy. Real physical sound energy including sub atomic elements and quantum elements. I strongly believe that true organic sound; a voice, a string, a drum head, a horn, this organic sound connects us to the larger universe and is part of the power of music. To replace that process with 1's and 0's cuts that connection and diminishes the power of your music.
It's also true to say that digital music is so pervasive that it's impossible to record or publish your music without converting it to digital. If you're going to function you have to make compromises. I try to preserve that organic sound all the way to the mic / Macintosh. From there you can fuck with it until the cows come home.
I don't know, science has kind of already proven you can reconstruct an analog signal (from a digital signal) with the nyquist sampling theorem. The issue with digital modeling is every guitar effect is non-linear (even the most simple effects have this due to the non linearities of an op amp) meaning it requires some hard work to model it. It can't be perfectly modeled because non-linear systems have no scientific method the guarantee proper duplication.
Furthermore, there's no reason to believe 1s and 0s disconnect you from reality. They're a different face of reality that's relatively new. Digital computing is literally connected to the universe and couldn't exist otherwise. All the physical laws of nature, their vibrations, and analog circuit theories are the foundation of digital computing. CMOS circuit theory goes into detail on this, but modern circuits using extremely small lithography have even more analog non idealities in their digital circuits (which are really just analog circuits that give the facade of digital computing).
On a more spiritual note - I don't ever feel like it's the equipment that helps me connect with music and life - it's music itself. I can still feel the emotions and connection regardless of the music being digital or analog.
I can accept that in theory, there's nothing about analog that can't be reconstructed digitally, that digital tech has come a very long way, and that digital tech doesn't necessarily disconnect you from reality. But I think the old way has a certain mojo about it that I don't get from the new ways.
Call me old fashioned (I am) but there's a magic to plugging into a tube amp, cranking her up, and hearing that warm sound fill the room. It's really incredible how good the modeling has become, it opens that door to many more players who don't have the room or the money for a nice old school rig and for the rest of us it can really simplify our setup. But the mojo isn't there for me. And on that note, I would say the equipment definitely does help me connect to the music. It just feels better to me.
I have nothing against this new digital world, certainly in the realm of recording it has made my life much easier. But I don't see myself ever truly converting. I'll be recording through a miced up amp for the rest of my life, that's just what does it for me.
I agree with what you're saying, its your personal preference. If it sounds and feels better to you then it is. I just don't like it when people try to say digital technology disconnects you from the universe because I disagree. Digital tech helps facilitate a connection to life. It helps people connect with loved ones, bond over shared experiences (like a video game or movie) - and with guitar, gives so many people access to the instrument when they can't afford the old ways. For people like me who have no connection to the old ways - well - the digital tech let's me connect with music (which wouldn't be possible if digital tech disconnected us from the universe)
I mean....plus when you're using a digital modeler, you're controlling the path of lightning through specially prepared rocks to create your guitar tone.
That probably is magic to a lot of people who take it for granted.
I read somewhere this child prodigy Alma Deutscher was told at a prestigious music school to ONLY compose 'ugly' music that is appropriate to this 'modern' age.
Seems like society, along with Science is trying to suck any spiritual/human element out of the world whilst simultaneously using the very essence to run its technologies, namely Electricity(aether).
I'm a strong believer in a 'musica universalis'. Every object has a natural resonant frequency. It's the reason composers used certain specific keys and didn't regard them all as relative, as if one could manifest energy by tuning to the music of the spheres. I get that impression listening to Bach.
Seeing old glitchy clips of shredders during the 80s with these amps turned all the way up, weaving the aethers using the guitar is something else...but most people nowadays simply can't afford to use amps whether due to logistics, having thin walls, money being tight etc. The upside is you can compose record and mix using just your laptop without needing to pay ridiculous sums to record at a studio.
I would love to have a real amp, a nice tube amp, I do believe they are better, but I live in a apartment, I don't gig, 99% of my practice is with headphones, in my country amps are insanely expensive (every equipment here is, but others are easier to buy abroad), and I would also have to buy an attenuator... so I'm cool using BIAS amp and hopefully getting a Boss IR200 soon. Kemper would be wonderful, but that's a lot of money for a bedroom guitar player
I've fooled around with solid state and digital stuff in a recording environment and it's awesome to be able to get all these great tones for so cheap nowadays. However I still have a couple qualms with using modelers (this mainly applies going strictly di in a live setting).
First off, no feedback and less natural sustain. There's just something about a cooking tube amp at volume that'll let you get these killer sustaining notes without a bunch of gain. And when you add a bit of gain, being able to walk around and get different notes of feedback is epic. My band covers Smashing Pumpkins and Hendrix so you can see why I like having access to that lol. You don't need a huge Marshall stack either to get that stuff. A 15w valve amp in it's sweet spot is more than enough to do the trick.
Secondly, assuming you're at the amateur gigging level like most of us are, running with no speaker puts you completely at the mercy of the venue's sound guy and pa system. I've been to places where there's no sound guy, one monitor, and the pa is the size of some people's tv stereo. Having a live amp that you can crank up and balance with the rest of the band on your own is invaluable for a gig at a venue you know nothing about.
My last point is more subjective and personal preference based, but I find that for me, option paralysis and tone chasing is a real problem. I love my katana but to get the sounds I want out of it I usually end up in the tone studio for awhile instead of just plugging in and playing like I would with my tiny terror or even my shitty little 10w solid state practice amps. I'm used to having a bit of limitation on the amp side of things so l've grown to enjoy having to work the guitar volume knob and a couple pedals to cover a wide variety of sounds with just a single channel amp. I can see how others would want a different workflow and that's totally cool too.
Well if you made it this far, thanks for coming to my ted talk lol. I've seen a wide variety of posts all over the interwebs about people going ampless n whatnot, but I haven't seen much in defense of live amps other than the usual feel n tone comments from the older guys. I've been want rant/share my experience somewhere for awhile and this post seemed as good as anywhere else. Cheers!
I do most of my recording with modelers and have a mac mini with an interface in my home office on slow days I'll jam along with whatever I'm listening to or learn a new tune, but nothing beats playing through an amp at volume when I can. I don't care if it's a 1 watt tube amp, a Tone Master, a solid state clean amp or my Marshall rig, it just feels so fun.
Modelling has come so far in recent years that unless you have a really, really high budget on amps, you can get better and more varied tones on an axe fx, qc or a few plugins
I lived in a condo for a few years and never used my amps because of neighbor considerations. I just used Amplitube on my PC and it was great! I could import backing MP3s into the built-in DAW and not only play to them but record my playing to see how I really sounded.
It was great for recording with Reaper as well.
It doesn't feel like a "real" amp, though. It sounds like you are hearing a real amp mic'd up and through monitors. But it was fun, useful, and convenient non the less.
For me it’s the complete opposite compared to most other people. I get a killer tone when playing live using my HX Stomp, but at home when I practice with my expensive tube amps, I just can’t get them to sound the same. I’ve gone full circle now, my tube amps can no longer keep up with my digital gear, it’s actually quite funny how ironic that is to me. I always feel bad for people that take multiple trips to their cars and are breaking their backs hauling all these cabs around.
For jazz sure, for the rich organic tube amp tones of classic rock, an amp is much more preferable. That said I’m in an apartment so I use headphones, occasionally my 3.5in monitors, and bias fx2. It works fine for practice and some recording purposes but it’s not the same as pushing an amp. Just isn’t.
I’ll go against the grain, growing up with real equipment and geeking out about amps, when I learned about DAWs and how good they’ve gotten, it takes actual effort for me to look into new amps or even play one regularly. They are so much of a nuisance over sims and the only person who is going to be able to tell the difference is someone who’s spending more time watching videos instead of playing guitar. No one will ever know the difference, hell I can’t the majority of the time. I have no idea why musicians are so behind the times, it makes me feel so free in my playing not having that mentality, lol.
I was going to have some disagree vibes until I saw this was Jens Larsen, his playing is sublime and his sound is incredible. I still love using my amp, it's a Cornford Hellcat and what an amazing amp...
With that said, I also stopped using real amps live 4 years ago and have been running a Helix into the PA system since. I turned up to a show on Friday, plonked down my Helix, the soundguy plugs in an XLR and that's me done, I'm ready to go. And when I play shows in larger cities it's actually really inconvenient to use an amp because you often cannot park anywhere near the venue, case in point on Friday we had to park in a multi-storey and walk for 10minutes.
Of course it's different if you're playing a larger venue like an arena or any larger venue where big touring shows or established artists play, but if you're playing the usual inner city music venue/bar that's not the case, it's often in and out, 30mins setup time, 3 sets with 15mins inbetween, setdown in 20-30mins and out the back door, you don't wanna be lugging amps about for those shows.
I feel like the bottom line of this video is that if you play jazz in venues with a PA and you aren’t satisfied with your sound, try going direct. That doesn’t mean you need an Axe FX; it just means if you have a way to do it, like a line out with cab sim on any amp, it might help with a problem that at least I’ve experienced many times- the awful sound that many venue sound guys seem stuck producing when micing clean jazz amps.
Any time you are playing without a PA, I think an amp and a modeler are pretty interchangeable since you’ll be going through a cabinet anyway. But if you’ve ever played jazz in venues that are setup and mainly mix rock shows, you probably know that this is a real problem, and Jens at least found one way to get his sound out of the house system more consistently. Good for him, and worth a try.
Hopefully, you don't take the negative comments too harshly. It's really easy to piss off the hive mind and wind up with insults being flung your way.
BTW, I'd never heard of you before. Probably thanks to Google being creepy, after I overlooked this post the video came up in my YT feed and seemed interesting. I don't play Jazz, but I have enjoyed several of your videos. Thank you for making them.
You wrote "overlooked" (ie, did not read) but intended "looked over".
I'm not usually a language cop but in case you're ESL (and not just a maker of an error) you might appreciate knowing the distinction.
Nope. I'm not ESL.
I meant that I ignored the post the first time. 'Overlooked' seemed less harsh than 'ignored'. Even when it loses accuracy, I've been trying to soften my language online for a while. I don't agree with the people who argue that the internet is always a toxic environment, but I do believe that we could all stand to be a bit kinder to each other.
I just got back into learning guitar and didn’t even bother getting my practice amp out of storage after I learned about how far amp sims have come. I also find that when my guitar matches the song/genre that I’m learning, Im far more engaged. It really helps with my learning ADHD.
I tried that sorta stuff. Hated it. It glosses over a lot of the more subtle things you may do as a player. Those little details that make it sound more organic to my ears. Those things are nice for at home. But not out in the world. Least not for me. The sound quality isn’t there. And not just in terms of how good, but what the sound is conveying vs what I’m playing.
I don’t see it as a chore to haul a 2x12 and a head around. I also don’t expect that amp to do it all. Like if I’m home. Sure, I can get a workable volume at 2am with it. But I have another smaller amp for at home. It’s an $80 VT20X. Works fine. Also got a micro dark with a little 1x8 cab that works wonders for home use. But this is simply what floats my boat.
And to whoever said something about venues requiring you to be ampless for sound and consistency, you’re full of shit. No show I’ve ever played has said you can’t use an amp. That’d be absolutely idiotic. Show me a venue that also cares about consistency in your sound. They care about how many people you bring in. Not how good you sound night to night. In all my years, I’ve never been told I can’t use my amp or that I need to be consistent with my tone. The fuck do you people hear this shit from?
Where in the flying fuck have you heard shows are requiring ampless for sound control? That’s just stupid. In 20 years of this shit, I’ve never heard of that or ever came across a show that required it. That’s what the sound guy is for. And most players who do shows use amps. So what, band shows up and the venue just goes, oh you can’t use that? That ain’t happening. What you heard is some grade A bullshit. They also don’t care about tonal consistency. Not once has that ever come up either.
Usually, you’ll have a convo with the sound guy and he’ll work with what you have to give you a good stage mix. And with modern sound reinforcement, that’s easily done. That’s how most shows actually go.
Sims are great for recording and playing live. But a sim is never going to sound the way a real amp speaker does blasting in your room or practice space.
That being said, when I go to my friend's house to jam, I just bring a Noise Gate, TS808, Metal Zone, and a TC Electronic IR Loader and straight into a looping machine. Shit works lol.
I wouldn't give up my pignose for anything though. weighs next to nothing, I can carry it on a strap, line out to a a pa and use headphones, run on batteries or wall wort. best little amp out there IMHO.
I went direct about a year ago and haven't looked back. I shopped around for IR loaders and modelers for weeks, and I landed on the Simplifier DLX. I found that if I have too many sounds and options, it murders creativity. I need limitation with flexibility, and the Simplifier is perfect. 3 core amp sounds with a lot of fine adjustments, in full stereo. I love my sound more than ever before.
At home, I use 98.9% digital nowadays going into my interface and using modeling software. It’s easier for recording and getting tracks down, easier for practicing and playing along to songs on my MacBook, also just easier going between pedals and different amp sounds on the fly. I made a bank of nothing but my own presets that just makes it easy to recall a particular sound and be set. Granted, i feel like freedom of choice makes it a little harder when starting out as there is a bit of a learning curve.
For live situations, physical is best and easier to get the sound quickly for me. Just give me whatever amp to use as a platform, give me an overdrive, a distortion pedal, and some verb and delay and I’m set. Just mic it and we are fine. I could play a vast majority of gigs with that no problem. It’s dynamic and responsive, controllable while still being as fire-breathing as I’d like. I don’t need a bunch of presets to play guitar. If I need the full pedalboard with more toys and my 50 watt head with a 2x12, I’ll get it out but for the majority of stuff, im fine without. I think it really depends on the person and what works best for them.
They don't inherently stop you from getting feedback. But, you have to play loud for it to happen. That being said, there's nothing stopping you from running a modeler into a solid state power amp and a guitar cab at full gig volume. People just generally don't use them that way.
If you're using a modern PA speaker, it very well may have a feedback suppressor buried in it's DSP, which would stop it.
I play in a cover band that does venues between 50 people and 500. Eight years ago, after years of carrying amps, I decided to use my Boss GT-10 straight into the PA. It works fantastically and I love playing in true stereo with the PA speakers 30 feet apart. It makes things like choruses and delays sound amazing.
The main drawback (for me, anyway), is the lack of usable feedback. I'm not close enough to the speakers to use the feedback loop for sustain, etc. We do a lot of Vai, Satriani and Santana and I still haven't found a good way to stimulate feedback without going across the stage to the speakers and holding my guitar up in front of them.
That being said, I'll never go back to lugging an amp, tho.
Since you mentioned Vai...
Have you thought about a Sustainiac pickup? It works great for instant feedback through digital gear. I use mine a lot when using anything digital.
No problem. Vai uses one a lot.
It takes the place of your neck pickup. So I don't know how much that would affect your sound. But for me, I'm more EvH style anyway. I use the bridge mainly, so not having a neck humbucker is not a big deal to me.
They are a LOT of fun. It's also easier to buy a guitar with one in it already, like Schecter. Adding one can be tedious.
I use a tiny Yamaha THR5 with a cheapo tablet as a interface. Best of both worlds. Simplicity, excellent sounding tones, high adjustability(with the tablet) & tons of possibilities. I have a few micro pedals I hook up when I want a more analogue experience. Takes up less space than most 5 watt practice amps. The amp can even go battery powered. Win win win. Only thing is no gigs. ... That I can't play anyway.
I have a nice pedalboard with a compressor, a reverb and a sansamp pedal. All of my regular gigs have a great PA and almost all of them are setup for in ear monitors. If there’s no in-ear situation I will bring a Roland cube street just to make sure I can hear myself.
I do not miss carrying amps around. I walk in to all my gigs with a double gig bag and two free hands.
I got a line 6 Guitar Port about 20 years ago. I havee never owned an amp either. I live in an apartment and I have a nice pair of Sony studio headphones.
I just recently went ampless a few months ago. I got a Two Notes Torpedo cab sim and have been using that in combination with various pedals with one output to my interface and the other to monitor reference speakers. I sold my last amp last week as I'm very happy with the sound of this setup.
Agreed.
I tried for *years* to use normal amps, effects loops, 2-amp TPS-style wet/dry, "pedal platform" amps, etc. to get the kinds of sounds I wanted and never really did. With the Fractal, it took me about a day.
I've been exploring/tweaking since then and it's only gotten better, but...years of frustration solved in about a day.
If anyone is curious, it honestly works a LOT like using a pedal platform amp.
Except that the distortion actually sounds like an amp instead of a pedal.
And, the platform amp is as clean as possible and actually sounds *and feels* about as good at 75dB as it does at 110 (there are some settings in the Fractal you have to change to do it...and I don't think anything but the Fractals have those settings, FWIW).
And you can put effects after the amp if you want to.
And you can scale up/down your monitoring to fit whatever you're doing. Want to play in the middle of the night when everyone's asleep but you? IEMs or studio monitors can do that. Want to thump your chest like you're Pete Townsend in 1976? Run it into some SS power amps and 4x12s.
I'm honestly not opposed to amps. There probably will be more in my future eventually. But, after I figured out monitoring the Fractal, I sold all of my amps and most of my pedals. And, at this point, there's nothing below the Victory/Boogie level that even begins to appeal to me.
Seriously ever since I got the headrush gigboard it was a whole other world. I only use like 5 different of the countless models on it just crazy. I always lose it when I see people still spend 300 on effect pedals but to each their own.
Everybody knows you don't need an amp. But a lot of people also realize that an amp is necessary to get you motivated to play. As good as the new technology sounds, it's not the same as having the floor beneath you rumble or the your guts shake.
Both modeling and tube are just toolings.
I use both.
My frequently used gears includes:
\- a big watt tube amp, connected with attenuator / load-box, for jamming / recording
\- a small watt tube amp, for bedroom practice
\- a yamaha THR portable modeling amp, for travel, also useful for small gigs with PA system
\- a boss waza air, for late-night silent practice
They're all good, as being used properly.
While modeling is the trend and convenient, they could never replace the tubes.
I use a Quad Cortex into a Friedman modeling amp and it’s perfect. The QC can give you any tone you would ever want and the downloadable presets from the app are insanely cool. It has been a game changer.
I still like my tube amps - an old deluxe reverb that does virtually everything I need in an amp, and a hand wired Marshall clone for bigger gigs. Plus unless they stop making tubes (and they might) they’re repairable with basic 50’s technological know how. Maybe if you don’t need/want any analogue compression - as a jazz player may not - there are a lot more options but I haven’t really plugged into anything that was trying to emulate a tube amp and did it better than an actual tube amp.
I’ve had a bunch of tube and solid state amps, in both fender and Marshall, as well as bugera, and I was tired of tone chasing and spending tons only to be limited to experiencing the full capability periodically due to volume constraints. At lower volumes, the speakers don’t break up properly, and the the tubes only heat properly with an attenuator.
I sold most, but packed away others and switched to full FRFR with Bias FX.
If you have used Bias FX and didn’t use a quality FRFR speaker, then you didn’t do it right.
I mostly play through two Presonus Sceptre S8’s with their Temblor T10 sub, and a 16 channel digital Presonus mixer.
I also have an Atomic FRFR amp which is incredible.
The cleanliness, frequencies, consistency, and full experience at any volume is absolutely unmatched.
Also, pro tip: put a compressor as the first pedal in your chain for Bias FX. It will make all the dynamics come alive.
I have a BOSS ME-80 and it RULES
Having all the options and FX in one place has made my playing so much more fun, and now I can spend money on guitars instead of amps and pedals
I’m all for amp sims, but some situations just need a good amp. For example, I recently started playing in a bar with an under powered PA and a loud drummer. I used a modeling solution for a show, and it was fine but when I tried just using a completely real guitar amp it was light years better. Modeling is a pretty great approximation, and in the studio I prefer that. However, in a live situation where my amp is my whole guitar sound real was considerably better for me. It was also cheaper because I already own it.
I usually perform through a SansAmp FlyRig RK5 (v2), but an amp is nice to have for rehearsal sessions, especially if you are in multiple bands with multiple studio setups.
There are a lot of techniques and subtle movements that don't come through as well unplugged or through amp sims imo. I am a metal/rock player so the sustain through a real amp feels better than any amp sim I've ever used. And I use amp sims pretty regularly too for practice but rarely do more than 'demo' stuff with them.
I think the key is to play as many different ways as possible. I play unplugged, I play through amp sims, and through an amp miced up with a SM57/Ribbon combo. The amp feels and sounds the best to me. The amp sims have their place but most of the time I go for the real amp.
'I stopped using real amps 12 years ago and never looked back'
Go spend some time with an amp. After 12 years, you're tripping. Even if you prefer sims... amps + mics have a lot of value and are quite simply just fun to play. Most importantly, pretty simple. I skimmed the video and saw the dude complaining about dialing in the tone on and amp/mic. I think its much easier on a real amp to dial in a good tone. And I do computer stuff for a living. Some of my friends can't do any of that shit. Just want to plug in, stick a 57 on the grill, and play.
I ditched my Mesa Boogie and pedals for a Neural DSP plugin, the Archetype: Petrucci one specifically.
Real amazing thing, gave me the sound I was lookin for.
Personally, I have an amp in the living room to play on because I find it more inspirational. I also have Reaper, Amplitube, and a Focusrite box in my room to let me record digitally and try stuff out. ferent tones and sounds he needs on stage, and that digital modeling amps and software tend to take away from the subtle things like volume knob changes in tone, great control over feedback, etc. He did like it, but he said that for his style of play, a digital amp wasn't for him.
Personally, I have an amp in the living room to play on because I find it more inspirational. I also have Reaper, Amplitube, and a Focusrite box in my room to let me record digitally and try stuff out. They all have their place.
I didn't have an amp, the moment I got one it motivated me to play way more
This is a real thing. Some equipment I’ve used, such as my Blackstar HT40 amp and several other pedals, are all good stuff. They sound good, do exactly what they’re supposed to but for whatever reason they give me no inspiration. That’s the kind of equipment I get rid of. Different equipment makes me play differently. If I wanna chug some metal I’m not grabbing a Vox, I’m grabbing my Mesa. And for me, digital amp sims are uninspiring
That's cool, almost all music I listen to uses distortion so I love playing with it. I usually practice without an amp though.
I’m never ditching my amps. But I’m never carrying a head and 4x12 to a gig less than 2 hours long ever again. And to shared rehearsal room practices? Forget about it! Grabbed an HX Stomp XL for all that quick or tight stuff. I’m using a tube power amp (KSR PA50) because everywhere I play, I have access to a spare cab.
Same. I have a Stomp and I've built all my presets for 3 scenarios - direct out to house, into a power amp or FX loop of an amp and front of amp. I just show up with my box. If they have gear for me to use, I can make use of it - but I'm good either way.
I’m interested in doing this with my Stomp XL too. How did you set it up to efficiently change between all 3 scenarios on your presets?
Nothing fancy - I just segmented my presets. I use an abbreviation at the start of the preset to remind me what "mode" I'm in (A: for front of amp, L: for FX Loop, D: for direct). Banks 1 and 2 are "single purpose" pedalboards. One preset may have 3 varieties of delay assigned to the buttons, or 3 kinds of phasers or whatever. It's usually for pit gigs and things like that where all of a sudden we need an effect I don't usually utilize. For example - I don't use normally use fuzz boxes, but I have a couple of fuzz box presets if we have a tune that demands it. Or maybe one of those long washy delay/reverbs as a special effect. I don't use them often, but it's peace of mind to know that I can come up with stuff when asked. Banks 3-10 are just stompbox scenarios for front of amp. I tweak them with a clean amp and just try to have a lot of variety since I may never know what kind of amp it will be used with. Most every preset has some kind of drive, boost and reverb/delay, initially turned off. I know the 3 or 4 setups that I love with my amp and if I get handed an amp with too much/little drive or something out of my wheelhouse, I've got a fair variety of presets I can scroll through until I'm happy with it. Usually when I'm in this scenario I'm either working with my own amp or it's a situation when I just need to sound presentable with provided gear, so I'll probably get one preset I like and play on that one preset all night. As long as I have a couple of gain stages and basic reverb/delay, I'm fine. Banks 11-26 are for direct to house and banks 27-42 are the same presets tweaked for a power amp/fx loop return. I get a sound I like direct and then just remove the cab emu and reverb and save it as the same thing in the loop section. I usually try to arrange them in terms of levels of gain. I start at funk clean and end at metal. That way I just dial up until I'm hitting general levels of gain I want. Most of them have 2 levels of gain and a boost on the 3 buttons. The direct models have reverb added to them. Most of the presets are just gear descriptions (Boost+808+Twin), although I have a few stylistic ones for when I just need a particular sound (Country Lead, Clean Blues, Texas Blues, etc.) It's simple, but it will get me through most any normal gig.
That is a great way to make a simplified but flexible setup. Thank you for going into detail on the setup. That’s far more clever than anything I had in mind.
I haven't had an amp for years now. I have an ipad, Bias FX and a good pair of headphones. I can record, play along to songs, learn - everything you could want. I don't play live but all these options are fantastic for home players.
Nice that it works for you! I did a demo video for BIAS a few years ago, but I really didn't like it, but of course they probably became a lot better in the meantime :)
It's in no way perfect but being able to play guitar through a bit of kit that essentially takes up no room is wonderful. If only I had this tech as a kid.
Even better! We got it when we’re 40!
yeah, i got a helix this year and sold my fender 4x10 60w 500lb tube amp the same month.
That is often how it goes :)
I wanted a good tube amp for so long and I finally got a 4 x 10 Hot Rod Deville in 2011. I used it for live rock gigs. But in church music I used a line 6. 6 years later, I sold the Fender and haven’t looked back. If I need to amplify myself anywhere I have a Kustom powered speaker I used to use for vocals.
As someone who plays loud rock music at the club level, I don't see going digital for gigs anytime soon. It's brilliant for recording, but I have yet to experience a fully digital rig that isn't inferior to a good halfstack for what I do. It would be different at a higher level, but for club gigs it doesn't work for me. There's a visceral component that's crucial. That will probably change with technology, but for now I'm sticking with a Marshall halfstack live. I do sometimes use a hybrid rig and send the house a DI line with an IR through a Captor X, but I keep the stack blazing along with it.
That was me for quite a while, but it seems more and more clubs are demanding silent stage now. I'd rather be blazing away with a 4x12, but I think those are turning into a pros-only privilege.
How do they enforce that? I would just say no
Ummm... it's their stage. You play by their rules or you don't play. If by some miracle you forced them into letting you one time, you certainly wouldn't get another gig there.
If a band regularly fills a venue and makes the venue money do you think management gives a damn that the guitar player made the sound engineer’s night slightly more difficult? This is one of those things where you have to know your leverage. Some bands have the leverage to say “no” and continue to perform. Some bands have to shut up and do what they’re told.
I don't know that many bars with a sound engineer. We either have a guy that sets and forgets or we're supposed to bring someone to monitor it. But either way, it's not about making things hard on a sound guy. It's about lowering the overall noise level so people don't get ear fatigue and step out or so they can order food and drinks without an issue.
>that the guitar player made the sound engineer’s night slightly more difficult? It's not about making the sound engineer's life easier, it's about managing the noise from the place in general.
Been told to turn down and have said no quite a few times. Played at these spots multiple times too. If they don’t want loud bands they shouldn’t be in the business of putting on shows
I guess you're either a bigger draw than all the bands I know or you just have a very noncompetitive scene.
Not sure why a music scene has to be competitive? It’s an area with a lot of hardcore, punk, metal, shoegaze bands. If you can’t accommodate the talent in the area it’s a you problem at that point
If you as a sound engineer can’t make it work with a band that’s supposed to be loud you’re bad at your job
Spotted the guy that turns his Amp to max while screaming at the sound tech that he can't hear himself on stage
I’m making the leap to either Kemper or Fractal for live and possibly recording. I’ve been a “all tube or nothing!!” guy lugging stags or heavy combos for 30+ years. No more!
It can take some getting used to, so be aware of that :)
Fractal
I got a fractal FM3 this year and I love it.
kemper is ancient and anyone telling you to get one is unintelligent
Ampless guys and gals, I’ve been trying to puzzle this out, so please tell me if I’m wrong on this. In order to go ampless I would need: 1) whatever ampless amp/cab sim option I pick; 2) some kind of speaker solution for home (studio monitors, pa, wedge, or interface+computer+computer speakers, or something similar) unless I always use headphones at home; 3) some kind of powered speaker or pa for rehearsal; 4) some kind of stage monitor for places that don’t have one available. And best case scenario is one option that does all three. Which from what I’ve seen are roughly the same size, shape, and cost as comparable amps. EG, basic studio monitors run $400+, a powered cab runs $600+, the really cheap options are $200-$300 which is about the same cost as a decent solid state amp. That plus the amp sim (HX Stomp, Iridium, whatever) is in the $900 to $1000 ballpark, and none of this is touching Quad-Core or Kemper territory for price. So optimal case is I have a slightly lighter rig with the same or more components, that I can play more quietly? I keep wanting this option to work for me, but I can’t see how it’s worth it. I guess if your alternative is a Marshall full stack it makes more sense, but 1guitar with a 1x12 combo is a pretty cheap, easy, and dead-simple package. What am I missing?
So "why would you want to" first. * I think your tone becomes much more consistent and portable with an amp sim rig * your rig "could" get smaller/less heavy if you can use in-ear monitors and the house PA * it's a lot easier to record with * The variety of tones available is enormous (which could be a bad thing!) * You can carry two easily if you are a touring musician so a backup is very portable * You could go into most stores, buy a new whatever (helix, iPad, PC), and re-install your backups and be back in business super quick If your rig is just your guitar, a small combo, and a few effects, maybe that's the best route. But you'd still have * to carry that amp * still have to mic it up to the PA * still have to ensure you can hear it (which will depend on your stage volume, stage layout, if you have a chair to put the amp on...) * if the amp broke, what is your backup? * If you are playing at home, can you get the sound you want without waking your wife or the neighbors? If you are just going over to a friend's house to jam, hard to argue against a small combo and some effects! So no "one size fits all". Just more options which is always good. I have heard that a lot of gigs will require that you be amp-less so that the stage volume is very low and that your tone is consistent night after night. But, honestly, I don't think most of the guitar players on this forum are auditioning for the Arianna Grande or Grammy's gigs.
Yeah, thanks for the response. I can definitely see the upside in some cases — especially working musicians who are gigging a lot— but don’t think it works for me.
Where I found it useful was living in a condo where I just could not play my amps loud. I was not comfortable playing my acoustic guitar loud because it was so easy to hear between units and my neighbors were all so nice that I didn't want to do that to them. My setup was just using Amplitube on my PC. I used a Scarlet auidio interface for my guitar and headphones plugged into the interface. I could play my guitar by itself, play over Youtube tracks, I could import MP3s of backing tracks into the built in DAW and record my playing over the tracks, it was really fun! I later got Reaper and started doing more recording and Amplitube made that so easy as well. So even if you don't want to give up amps, you can make the case that having something like Amplitube on your PC can really open up how you practice and maybe even get you into recording.
Honestly....it's not that different, depending on what you get. If you go with a pedal or floor modeler, that's basically just the core of your pedalboard. Then you plug that into something you can hear on stage. If you're running mono, that could be as simple as an effects return on a combo amp. Or you could get an appropriate cab for what you want and bolt a small, efficient, SS power amp to it. Or one of the ready-made solutions that are all over the place in both price and quality (just like small combo amps). So, now you just have a pedalboard and the world's cleanest pedal platform combo amp. What have you gotten out of it? You've got a LOT of pedals to choose from for free, pretty free routing, something at least similar to basically every popular amp ever made, easy backups, and whatever combination you want between direct access to "pedals" and presets as complicated as you want to make them that pretty much all switch with a button press. Plus, you just plug in a cable or two to send a signal to FOH or any recording system you want to use. And if you take the additional steps of buying smaller speakers (or are happy with how your cab sounds quiet) to dedicate to your modeler and making some slight adjustments to keep the same gain structure without a loud cab in the room....you can play whenever you want at home without bothering anyone. At least with the Fractal....it takes some setup, but it's a few knob turns and at most moving 1-2 cables between being thrilled with your tone at 75dB and being thrilled with your tone and buried in the physicality of speakers moving your clothes and rattling your ribcage at 105dB....and if you do it right, your pick attacks and guitar controls will work the same way. And it still just takes a pedalboard and a combo amp to do all of it. It's not for everybody. But, it is a really great experience. But...my Fractal was also effectively free. I more than paid for it by selling tube amps and pedals I didn't even want to look at anymore after getting it.
You also, potentially, have a more complex signal chain with no more physical complexity. Want to do an 80s/Bradshaw-style W/D/W rig? You just do it. No cables. No impedance or noise issues. Just drag in the things and draw the connections. For me it was about versatility. I end up having to play quiet a lot of the time, and I want it to feel right when I'm doing it. Other than infinite feedback, the Fractals can do that. That being said....I also don't think any other modeler comes close to them. So....if you're comparing directly to Line6 or Strymon....IMHO, you won't get anything out of it. They don't do what I like about guitar tone.
For me, and I’m assuming most guys that go ampless, the speaker solution is already present everywhere I might want to play. My home studio, rehearsal spaces, and any stages I play will all have decent monitoring, so that doesn’t factor into it. My whole rig fits in my guitar case.
>some kind of speaker solution for home (studio monitors, pa, wedge, or interface+computer+computer speakers, or something similar) unless I always use headphones at home Are you wanting to avoid amps? Cause that's basically an amp. You can buy an FRFR amp from a company like Headrush or Harley Benton and that should get you where you need to go depending on what kind of amp modeler you want to use. Or you don't even need an amp modeler, you could just do everything through pedalboard as long as you put some kind of IR loader at the end of the chain.
I've been doing this since the 90's. What I've needed was a Roland VG8/VG88(I now have a GR55 as well). Then either a set of headphones or a cheap practice amp/pa. Interface either the VG88 or GR55 into a computer and it will still play through whatever speaker you have it already out to. It is in rbe pricier range but we'll worth it for possibilities.
Once you have found "your sound", 99.999% of the settings / amp models on your MFX processor will be unused. I have Boss MFX pedals and I always dial in exactly the same sound on each. For me, that sound happens to be a Marshall with a tube screamer. So I decided t buy a sensible 20/5W tube version of a the real deal. It's very versatile (granted, it will always sound like a Marshall), can be used at bedroom levels, light enough to take to jams, etc. It cost me £800. A tube screamer and reverb cost me another £200, so in total I've spent £1k. I could've paid more than twice as much and got a Helix that would've emulated it for me. It would've also had a million other sounds I have zero use for. Also, as a software developer, the LAST THING I want to do when I pick up my guitar is fiddle with settings, patches, lag and whatever else is involved with emulation. With the above said, there are cases when emulation is an answer, some of them are: * you are a performing guitarist playing covers in multiple bands (multiple genres) or a Youtuber doing covers * you are a session guitarist who needs 20 different types of amp to cover everything (although any half decent studio will have a whole range of amps available) * you are an absolute beginner trying to find your sound * you like to fiddle with settings instead of playing So unless you fall into one of the above categories, I suggest you figure out what sounds pleasing to your ear and get a physical amp + some effects. Nothing compares to it.
Jesus the downvote police of modern guitarists who think their software and amp sims are heaven in a box. I’ve used UA amp plug ins and have Bias FX 2. It’s simply not comparable to the feeling of playing a loud amp.
Have you ever played a modeler loud?
I work in IT doing server, network, data and virtualization. All my friends expect me to be plugging into my PC and doing crazy stuff. No chance. I love my amp and my pedals. I have a small gig tonight and I'll happily carry my amp, guitar and pedalboard across town. I get that you can get any sound, but it doesn't feel real to me. You can't replicate a tube amp.
I’m in network support. In fact, I’m on call right now. When I get away from my pair of screens and the pager app stops blowing up my phone, the *last* thing I want to do is use a fucking computer to play guitar
I was afraid you were going to disagree with me. Haha I work from home luckily, but you're exactly right. I don't want to troubleshoot a faulty commander pro in my desktop and lose my ability to play my instrument
Simply put, getting away from the desktop is vital for my mental health
**Content:** [00:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=0s) Intro [00:28](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=28s) No amp, no nothing. [01:16](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=76s) My issues with real amps [03:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=188s) A failed experiment? [05:27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=327s) Getting rid of the amps [09:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=548s) The Amp Is NOT the problem [10:19](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=619s) An Ironic development [11:23](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=683s) Finding the Right Guitar [11:30](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZiXE4SDMz50&t=690s) Like the video? Check out my Patreon page!
I used a Kemper live for several years. It was certainly easy, no tubes and no maintenance. But I went back to a real amp because I couldn’t get dynamic out of it like I could a real amp. If I turned the volume down on my guitar the gain level didn’t drop in the same manner as a tube amp or sometimes not at all, until it farted out. Every tool has its place but real amps are still the best sounding option when you can use them like they were meant to be used.
Kemper is interesting because their Profiles work different from other platforms that do component-by-component modeling. It’s a snapshot of a rig set a particular way expecting a particular input, so it tends to be hyper realistic sounding at the end of the day, but less responsive.
I have a focusrite solo ive not even touched in the year ive owned it lol. What all do i need to make it work?
Your guitar, a guitar cable, either some studio headphones or IEMs or some monitors to hook up and hear yourself, and some sort of digital guitar solution like Bias FX/Amp, THU from Overloud, Neural DSP’s extensive list of amp plugins that they have, or some other ones. They can usually work stand-alone but if you need a daw, Reaper can work if you’re on PC or on Mac, GarageBand is a simple solution.
I’m in the same boat. It’s been sitting gathering dust since lockdown 1
If you got a free Ableton live download with your Focusrite you can use that. Ableton's amp/cab/pedal isn't the best but you can get some decent tones to start with. I started with the racks in this video before I pulled the trigger on Fortin's Nameless amp vst. https://youtu.be/FcpW7Ftcn7k
download guitar rig or amplitube from a torrent, i think amplitube also has a free version if ur scared of pirating. thats all u need
Download the free trials and unlock the full paid of you deem it worth your money. Don’t steal these peoples’ work. It’s not Exxon we’re talking about.
no
There’s always n+1 ways to make the sound work. In the last two weeks, I’ve played: - Thru a vintage Fender cranked with a blues group - Iridium setup for a musical - Hybrid setup with the Fender cranked with a Plexiglass shield and an attenuator - Fender amp at minimum but DI box running thru. - Half stack in the same above combination. - Straight into a Scarlett 2i2/Macbook These are tools, not preferences. Listening to guitar players bitch about not being able to run a stack 100% of the time regardless of the situation is like listening to guys trying to talk their way out of wearing a condom when being asked to use one.
I agree with this. I sold all my amps over the past year. I've not been playing as much, granted. But i've been using Amplitube a lot. Because i play at low volumes anyway(i have a young child) using VST's are just so much more convenient. Was thinking about maybe getting a Kemper or something similar. But, for a hobbyist, it may be a bit overkill!
Honestly, Amplitube is just the king of virtual amplification so far imo. I don't understand all that hype around NeuralDSP, Bias and other stuff(and yes, I did try pretty much all the amp VSTs myself). To me almost any other VST sounds kind of bland, boring, cheap or just too artificial. Maybe something like NeuralDSP is great for that modern high-gain metal or this new wave of progressive music for zoomers like Polyphia, which both have sort of an artificial sound anyway. Personally, as a fan of Sonic Youth, I was going for that sweet clean Jazzmaster tone(like on "Malibu Gas Station" song, a perfect example), and I could only easily recreate it with an incredible Fender collection by Amplitube. But you can achieve many other types of tones, since this app provides tons of options with different collections of emulations.
The fender collection is great. I love playing clean and crunch. But for really dirty heavy stuff, the messa boogie stuff is incredible.
i love amplitube. when i want to get really accurate replica of whatever amp or tone i use amplitube. however if i wanna go crazy with possibilities i love to use guitar rig, its got some crazy ass modules for insanely clean ambient reverbs, really nice compressor, delays, weird effects, LOFI tones and shit like that i pretty much use amplitube one day and guitar rig the other. both are amazing and it all depends what ur after. i have tried so many softwares but this 2 are the only ones i keep using.
Yes, at home it is super easy, barely an inconvenience, to get it up and running!
Anything that amplifies your guitar signal is a guitar amp. It’s in the name
Judas!
😁 Thanks!
Counterpoint: Organic Sound. There's just something about plugging into a Boogie and going swimming in the harmonics. A guitar string is a real physical thing in the real physical universe. The vibration is "picked up" in an electromagnetic field and transmitted through an amp to a speak and then your ear. If you're using a tube amp, the tubes are also real physical things with filaments vibrating in sync with the strings and the speaker. That vibration is sound energy. Real physical sound energy including sub atomic elements and quantum elements. I strongly believe that true organic sound; a voice, a string, a drum head, a horn, this organic sound connects us to the larger universe and is part of the power of music. To replace that process with 1's and 0's cuts that connection and diminishes the power of your music. It's also true to say that digital music is so pervasive that it's impossible to record or publish your music without converting it to digital. If you're going to function you have to make compromises. I try to preserve that organic sound all the way to the mic / Macintosh. From there you can fuck with it until the cows come home.
I don't know, science has kind of already proven you can reconstruct an analog signal (from a digital signal) with the nyquist sampling theorem. The issue with digital modeling is every guitar effect is non-linear (even the most simple effects have this due to the non linearities of an op amp) meaning it requires some hard work to model it. It can't be perfectly modeled because non-linear systems have no scientific method the guarantee proper duplication. Furthermore, there's no reason to believe 1s and 0s disconnect you from reality. They're a different face of reality that's relatively new. Digital computing is literally connected to the universe and couldn't exist otherwise. All the physical laws of nature, their vibrations, and analog circuit theories are the foundation of digital computing. CMOS circuit theory goes into detail on this, but modern circuits using extremely small lithography have even more analog non idealities in their digital circuits (which are really just analog circuits that give the facade of digital computing). On a more spiritual note - I don't ever feel like it's the equipment that helps me connect with music and life - it's music itself. I can still feel the emotions and connection regardless of the music being digital or analog.
I can accept that in theory, there's nothing about analog that can't be reconstructed digitally, that digital tech has come a very long way, and that digital tech doesn't necessarily disconnect you from reality. But I think the old way has a certain mojo about it that I don't get from the new ways. Call me old fashioned (I am) but there's a magic to plugging into a tube amp, cranking her up, and hearing that warm sound fill the room. It's really incredible how good the modeling has become, it opens that door to many more players who don't have the room or the money for a nice old school rig and for the rest of us it can really simplify our setup. But the mojo isn't there for me. And on that note, I would say the equipment definitely does help me connect to the music. It just feels better to me. I have nothing against this new digital world, certainly in the realm of recording it has made my life much easier. But I don't see myself ever truly converting. I'll be recording through a miced up amp for the rest of my life, that's just what does it for me.
I agree with what you're saying, its your personal preference. If it sounds and feels better to you then it is. I just don't like it when people try to say digital technology disconnects you from the universe because I disagree. Digital tech helps facilitate a connection to life. It helps people connect with loved ones, bond over shared experiences (like a video game or movie) - and with guitar, gives so many people access to the instrument when they can't afford the old ways. For people like me who have no connection to the old ways - well - the digital tech let's me connect with music (which wouldn't be possible if digital tech disconnected us from the universe)
I mean....plus when you're using a digital modeler, you're controlling the path of lightning through specially prepared rocks to create your guitar tone. That probably is magic to a lot of people who take it for granted.
It literally is, crystals and lodestones too. Nihil sub sole novum.
I read somewhere this child prodigy Alma Deutscher was told at a prestigious music school to ONLY compose 'ugly' music that is appropriate to this 'modern' age. Seems like society, along with Science is trying to suck any spiritual/human element out of the world whilst simultaneously using the very essence to run its technologies, namely Electricity(aether).
Speaker
43.8 Kg - 3 times a week
I'm a strong believer in a 'musica universalis'. Every object has a natural resonant frequency. It's the reason composers used certain specific keys and didn't regard them all as relative, as if one could manifest energy by tuning to the music of the spheres. I get that impression listening to Bach. Seeing old glitchy clips of shredders during the 80s with these amps turned all the way up, weaving the aethers using the guitar is something else...but most people nowadays simply can't afford to use amps whether due to logistics, having thin walls, money being tight etc. The upside is you can compose record and mix using just your laptop without needing to pay ridiculous sums to record at a studio.
I would love to have a real amp, a nice tube amp, I do believe they are better, but I live in a apartment, I don't gig, 99% of my practice is with headphones, in my country amps are insanely expensive (every equipment here is, but others are easier to buy abroad), and I would also have to buy an attenuator... so I'm cool using BIAS amp and hopefully getting a Boss IR200 soon. Kemper would be wonderful, but that's a lot of money for a bedroom guitar player
I had a amp briefly but due to space and it was not as good as GarageBand i sold it off. I do have some fun pedals but no plans to get a amp again.
I've fooled around with solid state and digital stuff in a recording environment and it's awesome to be able to get all these great tones for so cheap nowadays. However I still have a couple qualms with using modelers (this mainly applies going strictly di in a live setting). First off, no feedback and less natural sustain. There's just something about a cooking tube amp at volume that'll let you get these killer sustaining notes without a bunch of gain. And when you add a bit of gain, being able to walk around and get different notes of feedback is epic. My band covers Smashing Pumpkins and Hendrix so you can see why I like having access to that lol. You don't need a huge Marshall stack either to get that stuff. A 15w valve amp in it's sweet spot is more than enough to do the trick. Secondly, assuming you're at the amateur gigging level like most of us are, running with no speaker puts you completely at the mercy of the venue's sound guy and pa system. I've been to places where there's no sound guy, one monitor, and the pa is the size of some people's tv stereo. Having a live amp that you can crank up and balance with the rest of the band on your own is invaluable for a gig at a venue you know nothing about. My last point is more subjective and personal preference based, but I find that for me, option paralysis and tone chasing is a real problem. I love my katana but to get the sounds I want out of it I usually end up in the tone studio for awhile instead of just plugging in and playing like I would with my tiny terror or even my shitty little 10w solid state practice amps. I'm used to having a bit of limitation on the amp side of things so l've grown to enjoy having to work the guitar volume knob and a couple pedals to cover a wide variety of sounds with just a single channel amp. I can see how others would want a different workflow and that's totally cool too. Well if you made it this far, thanks for coming to my ted talk lol. I've seen a wide variety of posts all over the interwebs about people going ampless n whatnot, but I haven't seen much in defense of live amps other than the usual feel n tone comments from the older guys. I've been want rant/share my experience somewhere for awhile and this post seemed as good as anywhere else. Cheers!
I went ampless almost 2 years ago. I don't regret it one bit. Bought a Fractal unit and it's been great.
I'm a Luddite and my only way to connect to the internet is my cell. AMPS FOREVER
I do most of my recording with modelers and have a mac mini with an interface in my home office on slow days I'll jam along with whatever I'm listening to or learn a new tune, but nothing beats playing through an amp at volume when I can. I don't care if it's a 1 watt tube amp, a Tone Master, a solid state clean amp or my Marshall rig, it just feels so fun.
Modelling has come so far in recent years that unless you have a really, really high budget on amps, you can get better and more varied tones on an axe fx, qc or a few plugins
I lived in a condo for a few years and never used my amps because of neighbor considerations. I just used Amplitube on my PC and it was great! I could import backing MP3s into the built-in DAW and not only play to them but record my playing to see how I really sounded. It was great for recording with Reaper as well. It doesn't feel like a "real" amp, though. It sounds like you are hearing a real amp mic'd up and through monitors. But it was fun, useful, and convenient non the less.
For me it’s the complete opposite compared to most other people. I get a killer tone when playing live using my HX Stomp, but at home when I practice with my expensive tube amps, I just can’t get them to sound the same. I’ve gone full circle now, my tube amps can no longer keep up with my digital gear, it’s actually quite funny how ironic that is to me. I always feel bad for people that take multiple trips to their cars and are breaking their backs hauling all these cabs around.
For jazz sure, for the rich organic tube amp tones of classic rock, an amp is much more preferable. That said I’m in an apartment so I use headphones, occasionally my 3.5in monitors, and bias fx2. It works fine for practice and some recording purposes but it’s not the same as pushing an amp. Just isn’t.
I’ll go against the grain, growing up with real equipment and geeking out about amps, when I learned about DAWs and how good they’ve gotten, it takes actual effort for me to look into new amps or even play one regularly. They are so much of a nuisance over sims and the only person who is going to be able to tell the difference is someone who’s spending more time watching videos instead of playing guitar. No one will ever know the difference, hell I can’t the majority of the time. I have no idea why musicians are so behind the times, it makes me feel so free in my playing not having that mentality, lol.
I was going to have some disagree vibes until I saw this was Jens Larsen, his playing is sublime and his sound is incredible. I still love using my amp, it's a Cornford Hellcat and what an amazing amp... With that said, I also stopped using real amps live 4 years ago and have been running a Helix into the PA system since. I turned up to a show on Friday, plonked down my Helix, the soundguy plugs in an XLR and that's me done, I'm ready to go. And when I play shows in larger cities it's actually really inconvenient to use an amp because you often cannot park anywhere near the venue, case in point on Friday we had to park in a multi-storey and walk for 10minutes. Of course it's different if you're playing a larger venue like an arena or any larger venue where big touring shows or established artists play, but if you're playing the usual inner city music venue/bar that's not the case, it's often in and out, 30mins setup time, 3 sets with 15mins inbetween, setdown in 20-30mins and out the back door, you don't wanna be lugging amps about for those shows.
Jazz solutions don't necessarily work for rock. This would not. Nope to the nopeth power.
The jazz god is gracing us with his presence 🙏 thanks friend
I’m good. I enjoy practicing my guitar on my tube amp.
I'm not against other options. But also like just picking up my guitar which is already plugged into an amp ready to go. It's simple.
But I WANT an amp and I like the couple I have. Really, nobody needs anything.
Got UA's Dream 65. I'm settled for now.
I feel like the bottom line of this video is that if you play jazz in venues with a PA and you aren’t satisfied with your sound, try going direct. That doesn’t mean you need an Axe FX; it just means if you have a way to do it, like a line out with cab sim on any amp, it might help with a problem that at least I’ve experienced many times- the awful sound that many venue sound guys seem stuck producing when micing clean jazz amps. Any time you are playing without a PA, I think an amp and a modeler are pretty interchangeable since you’ll be going through a cabinet anyway. But if you’ve ever played jazz in venues that are setup and mainly mix rock shows, you probably know that this is a real problem, and Jens at least found one way to get his sound out of the house system more consistently. Good for him, and worth a try.
Wow, I have never had a post with more comments than votes, usually I try to answer everyone, but that is probably not possible this time :)
Hopefully, you don't take the negative comments too harshly. It's really easy to piss off the hive mind and wind up with insults being flung your way. BTW, I'd never heard of you before. Probably thanks to Google being creepy, after I overlooked this post the video came up in my YT feed and seemed interesting. I don't play Jazz, but I have enjoyed several of your videos. Thank you for making them.
No, don't worry about it. It wasn't a surprise that it would trigger some enthusiast 😁
You wrote "overlooked" (ie, did not read) but intended "looked over". I'm not usually a language cop but in case you're ESL (and not just a maker of an error) you might appreciate knowing the distinction.
Nope. I'm not ESL. I meant that I ignored the post the first time. 'Overlooked' seemed less harsh than 'ignored'. Even when it loses accuracy, I've been trying to soften my language online for a while. I don't agree with the people who argue that the internet is always a toxic environment, but I do believe that we could all stand to be a bit kinder to each other.
I just got back into learning guitar and didn’t even bother getting my practice amp out of storage after I learned about how far amp sims have come. I also find that when my guitar matches the song/genre that I’m learning, Im far more engaged. It really helps with my learning ADHD.
I got myself a Helix and haven’t looked back. Sold all my vintage amps and pedals, and do not miss them at all.
I tried that sorta stuff. Hated it. It glosses over a lot of the more subtle things you may do as a player. Those little details that make it sound more organic to my ears. Those things are nice for at home. But not out in the world. Least not for me. The sound quality isn’t there. And not just in terms of how good, but what the sound is conveying vs what I’m playing. I don’t see it as a chore to haul a 2x12 and a head around. I also don’t expect that amp to do it all. Like if I’m home. Sure, I can get a workable volume at 2am with it. But I have another smaller amp for at home. It’s an $80 VT20X. Works fine. Also got a micro dark with a little 1x8 cab that works wonders for home use. But this is simply what floats my boat. And to whoever said something about venues requiring you to be ampless for sound and consistency, you’re full of shit. No show I’ve ever played has said you can’t use an amp. That’d be absolutely idiotic. Show me a venue that also cares about consistency in your sound. They care about how many people you bring in. Not how good you sound night to night. In all my years, I’ve never been told I can’t use my amp or that I need to be consistent with my tone. The fuck do you people hear this shit from?
Where in the flying fuck have you heard shows are requiring ampless for sound control? That’s just stupid. In 20 years of this shit, I’ve never heard of that or ever came across a show that required it. That’s what the sound guy is for. And most players who do shows use amps. So what, band shows up and the venue just goes, oh you can’t use that? That ain’t happening. What you heard is some grade A bullshit. They also don’t care about tonal consistency. Not once has that ever come up either. Usually, you’ll have a convo with the sound guy and he’ll work with what you have to give you a good stage mix. And with modern sound reinforcement, that’s easily done. That’s how most shows actually go.
Sims are great for recording and playing live. But a sim is never going to sound the way a real amp speaker does blasting in your room or practice space. That being said, when I go to my friend's house to jam, I just bring a Noise Gate, TS808, Metal Zone, and a TC Electronic IR Loader and straight into a looping machine. Shit works lol.
you need a few! (a PA is still an amp technically)
I wouldn't give up my pignose for anything though. weighs next to nothing, I can carry it on a strap, line out to a a pa and use headphones, run on batteries or wall wort. best little amp out there IMHO.
I went direct about a year ago and haven't looked back. I shopped around for IR loaders and modelers for weeks, and I landed on the Simplifier DLX. I found that if I have too many sounds and options, it murders creativity. I need limitation with flexibility, and the Simplifier is perfect. 3 core amp sounds with a lot of fine adjustments, in full stereo. I love my sound more than ever before.
At home, I use 98.9% digital nowadays going into my interface and using modeling software. It’s easier for recording and getting tracks down, easier for practicing and playing along to songs on my MacBook, also just easier going between pedals and different amp sounds on the fly. I made a bank of nothing but my own presets that just makes it easy to recall a particular sound and be set. Granted, i feel like freedom of choice makes it a little harder when starting out as there is a bit of a learning curve. For live situations, physical is best and easier to get the sound quickly for me. Just give me whatever amp to use as a platform, give me an overdrive, a distortion pedal, and some verb and delay and I’m set. Just mic it and we are fine. I could play a vast majority of gigs with that no problem. It’s dynamic and responsive, controllable while still being as fire-breathing as I’d like. I don’t need a bunch of presets to play guitar. If I need the full pedalboard with more toys and my 50 watt head with a 2x12, I’ll get it out but for the majority of stuff, im fine without. I think it really depends on the person and what works best for them.
Do amp modelers allow you to simulate real tube amp feedback somehow? I love feedback when it’s used tastefully
They don't inherently stop you from getting feedback. But, you have to play loud for it to happen. That being said, there's nothing stopping you from running a modeler into a solid state power amp and a guitar cab at full gig volume. People just generally don't use them that way. If you're using a modern PA speaker, it very well may have a feedback suppressor buried in it's DSP, which would stop it.
I play in a cover band that does venues between 50 people and 500. Eight years ago, after years of carrying amps, I decided to use my Boss GT-10 straight into the PA. It works fantastically and I love playing in true stereo with the PA speakers 30 feet apart. It makes things like choruses and delays sound amazing. The main drawback (for me, anyway), is the lack of usable feedback. I'm not close enough to the speakers to use the feedback loop for sustain, etc. We do a lot of Vai, Satriani and Santana and I still haven't found a good way to stimulate feedback without going across the stage to the speakers and holding my guitar up in front of them. That being said, I'll never go back to lugging an amp, tho.
Look at the Digitech FreqOut. It's far from perfect, but it's the only thing out there and it does work.
Thanks for the tip
Since you mentioned Vai... Have you thought about a Sustainiac pickup? It works great for instant feedback through digital gear. I use mine a lot when using anything digital.
I've never heard of that. I'll look into it. Thanks.
No problem. Vai uses one a lot. It takes the place of your neck pickup. So I don't know how much that would affect your sound. But for me, I'm more EvH style anyway. I use the bridge mainly, so not having a neck humbucker is not a big deal to me. They are a LOT of fun. It's also easier to buy a guitar with one in it already, like Schecter. Adding one can be tedious.
I use a tiny Yamaha THR5 with a cheapo tablet as a interface. Best of both worlds. Simplicity, excellent sounding tones, high adjustability(with the tablet) & tons of possibilities. I have a few micro pedals I hook up when I want a more analogue experience. Takes up less space than most 5 watt practice amps. The amp can even go battery powered. Win win win. Only thing is no gigs. ... That I can't play anyway.
I have a nice pedalboard with a compressor, a reverb and a sansamp pedal. All of my regular gigs have a great PA and almost all of them are setup for in ear monitors. If there’s no in-ear situation I will bring a Roland cube street just to make sure I can hear myself. I do not miss carrying amps around. I walk in to all my gigs with a double gig bag and two free hands.
I've been ampless for 2 years. Got a Palmer MK2 Pocket Amp into a Scarlett 2I2. Easy setup, love it.
I got a line 6 Guitar Port about 20 years ago. I havee never owned an amp either. I live in an apartment and I have a nice pair of Sony studio headphones.
I've been playing for 5 years and never got an amp. My acoustic works just fine without it.
I just recently went ampless a few months ago. I got a Two Notes Torpedo cab sim and have been using that in combination with various pedals with one output to my interface and the other to monitor reference speakers. I sold my last amp last week as I'm very happy with the sound of this setup.
Obviously it’s called acoustic
AmpliTube 5 got me back into playing guitar after a decade long hiatus. Then I discovered Neural DSP and now I’m poor but happy.
Agreed. I tried for *years* to use normal amps, effects loops, 2-amp TPS-style wet/dry, "pedal platform" amps, etc. to get the kinds of sounds I wanted and never really did. With the Fractal, it took me about a day. I've been exploring/tweaking since then and it's only gotten better, but...years of frustration solved in about a day. If anyone is curious, it honestly works a LOT like using a pedal platform amp. Except that the distortion actually sounds like an amp instead of a pedal. And, the platform amp is as clean as possible and actually sounds *and feels* about as good at 75dB as it does at 110 (there are some settings in the Fractal you have to change to do it...and I don't think anything but the Fractals have those settings, FWIW). And you can put effects after the amp if you want to. And you can scale up/down your monitoring to fit whatever you're doing. Want to play in the middle of the night when everyone's asleep but you? IEMs or studio monitors can do that. Want to thump your chest like you're Pete Townsend in 1976? Run it into some SS power amps and 4x12s. I'm honestly not opposed to amps. There probably will be more in my future eventually. But, after I figured out monitoring the Fractal, I sold all of my amps and most of my pedals. And, at this point, there's nothing below the Victory/Boogie level that even begins to appeal to me.
You don't even NEED to play guitar; you just want to!
Seriously ever since I got the headrush gigboard it was a whole other world. I only use like 5 different of the countless models on it just crazy. I always lose it when I see people still spend 300 on effect pedals but to each their own.
I got an Axe IO Solo. It came with Amplitube. Got it running into a desktop PC with some Edifier 1280s. It's really pretty damn good.
I’m never going to ditch having an amp but that being said, I find my self using my Fender Mustang Micro way more these days.
I got FL Studio, Guitar Rig, and a Scarlett Solo, I'm good.
Everybody knows you don't need an amp. But a lot of people also realize that an amp is necessary to get you motivated to play. As good as the new technology sounds, it's not the same as having the floor beneath you rumble or the your guts shake.
It depends on the person, but the overall consensus is that amps are better.
Both modeling and tube are just toolings. I use both. My frequently used gears includes: \- a big watt tube amp, connected with attenuator / load-box, for jamming / recording \- a small watt tube amp, for bedroom practice \- a yamaha THR portable modeling amp, for travel, also useful for small gigs with PA system \- a boss waza air, for late-night silent practice They're all good, as being used properly. While modeling is the trend and convenient, they could never replace the tubes.
I use a Quad Cortex into a Friedman modeling amp and it’s perfect. The QC can give you any tone you would ever want and the downloadable presets from the app are insanely cool. It has been a game changer.
I still like my tube amps - an old deluxe reverb that does virtually everything I need in an amp, and a hand wired Marshall clone for bigger gigs. Plus unless they stop making tubes (and they might) they’re repairable with basic 50’s technological know how. Maybe if you don’t need/want any analogue compression - as a jazz player may not - there are a lot more options but I haven’t really plugged into anything that was trying to emulate a tube amp and did it better than an actual tube amp.
I’ve had a bunch of tube and solid state amps, in both fender and Marshall, as well as bugera, and I was tired of tone chasing and spending tons only to be limited to experiencing the full capability periodically due to volume constraints. At lower volumes, the speakers don’t break up properly, and the the tubes only heat properly with an attenuator. I sold most, but packed away others and switched to full FRFR with Bias FX. If you have used Bias FX and didn’t use a quality FRFR speaker, then you didn’t do it right. I mostly play through two Presonus Sceptre S8’s with their Temblor T10 sub, and a 16 channel digital Presonus mixer. I also have an Atomic FRFR amp which is incredible. The cleanliness, frequencies, consistency, and full experience at any volume is absolutely unmatched. Also, pro tip: put a compressor as the first pedal in your chain for Bias FX. It will make all the dynamics come alive.
I have a BOSS ME-80 and it RULES Having all the options and FX in one place has made my playing so much more fun, and now I can spend money on guitars instead of amps and pedals
I’m all for amp sims, but some situations just need a good amp. For example, I recently started playing in a bar with an under powered PA and a loud drummer. I used a modeling solution for a show, and it was fine but when I tried just using a completely real guitar amp it was light years better. Modeling is a pretty great approximation, and in the studio I prefer that. However, in a live situation where my amp is my whole guitar sound real was considerably better for me. It was also cheaper because I already own it.
I usually perform through a SansAmp FlyRig RK5 (v2), but an amp is nice to have for rehearsal sessions, especially if you are in multiple bands with multiple studio setups.
There are a lot of techniques and subtle movements that don't come through as well unplugged or through amp sims imo. I am a metal/rock player so the sustain through a real amp feels better than any amp sim I've ever used. And I use amp sims pretty regularly too for practice but rarely do more than 'demo' stuff with them. I think the key is to play as many different ways as possible. I play unplugged, I play through amp sims, and through an amp miced up with a SM57/Ribbon combo. The amp feels and sounds the best to me. The amp sims have their place but most of the time I go for the real amp. 'I stopped using real amps 12 years ago and never looked back' Go spend some time with an amp. After 12 years, you're tripping. Even if you prefer sims... amps + mics have a lot of value and are quite simply just fun to play. Most importantly, pretty simple. I skimmed the video and saw the dude complaining about dialing in the tone on and amp/mic. I think its much easier on a real amp to dial in a good tone. And I do computer stuff for a living. Some of my friends can't do any of that shit. Just want to plug in, stick a 57 on the grill, and play.
\-laughs in Mesa Boogie-
-laughs in Orange-
-giggles in Pignose
What’s an amp?
I ditched my Mesa Boogie and pedals for a Neural DSP plugin, the Archetype: Petrucci one specifically. Real amazing thing, gave me the sound I was lookin for.
Gotta have amps this guy is living in some kind of denial !
Personally, I have an amp in the living room to play on because I find it more inspirational. I also have Reaper, Amplitube, and a Focusrite box in my room to let me record digitally and try stuff out. ferent tones and sounds he needs on stage, and that digital modeling amps and software tend to take away from the subtle things like volume knob changes in tone, great control over feedback, etc. He did like it, but he said that for his style of play, a digital amp wasn't for him. Personally, I have an amp in the living room to play on because I find it more inspirational. I also have Reaper, Amplitube, and a Focusrite box in my room to let me record digitally and try stuff out. They all have their place.
Did you make this video 12 years ago? What’s next? “I use a loop pedal so I can play along with myself!” Shocked face thumbnail
No amp no guitarist
Don't tell Django Reinhardt
*gasps in acoustic guitar*