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#291749 - 13/01/12 06:52 AM
Who can tell what they hear
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old but not out
Professional Forumite!
Registered: 15/07/11
Posts: 118
Loc: Wiltshire
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Morning all.
There is a lot of debate on the tube vs SS.
It goes, i have tried for a long time to get the sound that only a tube can do.
Lets all be honest just once, how many of you folks can tell at a listen, which is which.
No swinging the lead, just the truth.
I been in the shops and listened, played, some of the time with a good player,,,,,,
Truth please.
Edited by old but not out (13/01/12 06:53 AM)
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#291754 - 13/01/12 07:40 AM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: Jocko]
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old but not out
Professional Forumite!
Registered: 15/07/11
Posts: 118
Loc: Wiltshire
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Yep same here, ears gone.
There is a amp i really like, a AC30 cc, its a hybrid, now to hear it is just right. Then you are told it is a tube and SS.
How many times have we read, a member of the part at the gig came and said that is a nice tube, only to inform that person it is SS.
The world has moved.
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#291764 - 13/01/12 09:40 AM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: stickyfiddle]
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Ape09090
Old Timer
Registered: 01/12/11
Posts: 1197
Loc: South Wales
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I used to be able to tell you straightaway if an amp was valve or ss with a 90% correct rate or higher but that was 20 years ago so things may well have changed since then.
I think you can also know how much life a battery has in it in a pedal too just from listening to it.
Edited by Ape09090 (13/01/12 09:41 AM)
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#291768 - 13/01/12 10:02 AM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: Ape09090]
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Megi
Old Timer
Registered: 08/07/11
Posts: 1281
Loc: Lincolnshire
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I think when you get into that slightly overdriven (or very overdriven!) territory, probably there is a subtle something that only valve amps can really do. Although I don't have much experience with this, I don't own a valve amp myself, and almost always use a clean tone - and for clean tones, I really think it can be hard to tell. I have 2 amps (a Polytone Minibrute and an old Yamaha G50 112) and have had both of these mistaken for valve amps by people listening.
When I have needed distortion in the past, I've always relied on pedals to do it, and these do get a good tone IMO (although I concede not the same as an overdriven valve amp). Why makers of solid state amps can't come up with better distortion sounds I don't know, but they are often pretty rubbish I find! My Roland Cube 80XL can do a reasonable distortion sound, maybe the benefit of modelling. Possibly we are heading to a future where modelling amps really can do a very convincing valve amp sound, but I personally feel we are not quite there yet.
_________________________
Graham, jazz guitar nut!
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#291771 - 13/01/12 10:28 AM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: Lester]
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Megi
Old Timer
Registered: 08/07/11
Posts: 1281
Loc: Lincolnshire
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Might that be due to the difference between the way a valve and a transistor distort?
I'm also sure there are SS amps out there with good distortion sounds BTW - would not wish to tar them all with the same brush. Just I haven't come across many myself!
_________________________
Graham, jazz guitar nut!
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#291917 - 17/01/12 01:33 PM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: Megi]
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Pete Buchan
Professional Forumite!
Registered: 22/03/02
Posts: 384
Loc: Aberdeen
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I have found that modelling and solidstate amps tend to sound alright on their own. However, when introduced into a band situation, I find that they begin to sound very fuzzy/mushy and are very difficult to hear in the mix. They disappear into the background, while valve amps tend to hold their own and cut through the mix.
Having said that, I'm basing this on a Marshall MG100DFX (solid state) and an old line6 that was in a rehersal room I used once. These are obviously quite old technology now. I have a Fender Mustang i now which is a modelling amp. It's surprisingly convincing - especially for £90 (or however much it is). On some settings it's possible to get a 'processed' sound out of it but, generally speaking, it's probably one of the best valve amp alternative I've heard.
Moving away from amps, but keeping with modelling, I have a Roland GR-55 guitar synth. It has an extensive guitar/guitar amp modelling section which I'd never even considered looking at. I recently set up a few patches for use in my cover band and it's proving to be excellent. I can get very good strat tones, acoustics, 12 strings, etc even though I'm playing it on a Gibson.
I would say that technology has certainly improved drastically but, for my ears, I still prefer good old valves!
Pete
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#291918 - 17/01/12 04:20 PM
Re: Who can tell what they hear
[Re: Pete Buchan]
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Scrooge
Old Timer
Registered: 30/11/02
Posts: 1270
Loc: Aberdeen
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On recordings, you don't know what you're listening to. In these days of VST and the kind of sound sculpting available to producers you can make loads of things sound good, especially in a mix.
SS amps can be nice, especially good quality ones such as the aforementioned Fender Mistang, and especially at low volumes when they actually sound better than most of their valve counterparts.
But, at the point of gain where you're just getting that sweet breakup, which changes dynamically with your playing, you can hear it.
Its as much about control as it is the resultant noise, and then we start thinking about that unknown variable thats hard to analyse where one player manages to sound completely different from another, the relationship between a musician and his gear gets more complex the more you think about it, with all the permutations of playing style, genre, axes and amps. Would you notice if Blink 182 used Solid State amps? What about Eric Johnson?
...George Lynch? 
Its hard to be unbiased as a guitarist observing and listening to gear at the same time, and blind tests only prove that 2 things sound sort of similar under a certain set of controlled circumstances. So I'm going to throw it all out of the window and make 4 statements that I can be sure are true:
1. I have heard a solid state amp sound nice.
2. While listening to mediocre bands, it rarely matters what amps they're playing through.
3. I've never had a solid state amp make me go 'wow'. Valve amps have.
4. Placebo effect or not, Valve amps are simply more fun to play.
Steve.
_________________________
I've always prefered natural sounds to the synthetic...and valves grow on trees, dammit! 
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