The two questions that need to be asked whenever there is a tube vs. solid state amp video is this: 1. What sound am I going for? 2. What sound works best for the style I play? 1. I am going for a razor-sharp, ultra-responsive, very percussive, aggressive and pissed off sound. I have never had any tube amp in 27+ years of playing do that for me. 2. Solid state. They have the tone I love, are reliable, cheap, lightweight, require zero maintenance & can be found in any pawn shop or guitar store very easily. This video was a lot of fun. Travis is a GREAT player, and I don't generally like any Blues stuff at all.

One thing I've learned is that if you're going for a cleanish tone a decent solid state is the way to go. I love my Roland jazz chorus.

@iidevilsspawnii6506

5 жыл бұрын

Real Heel Ryan same, I bought a jc40 a while back and use it for almost all of my projects rather than my tube amp.

@profd65

5 жыл бұрын

Yes, a Quilter can absolutely nail the opening lick of "Surfing USA" by the Beach Boys--which is squeaky clean. And it also does a great job with Chuck Berry. Pretty much all guitar music from the '30s, '40s, '50s was really clean, and the early to mid '60s stuff was pretty clean as well. The late '70s and '80s had a lot of clean stuff as well (the Smiths, U2, etc.). A good quality solid state amp will do great with any of this.

@peteytwofinger

5 жыл бұрын

@@profd65 quilter is class D - which with the right or proper "preamp" can sound incredible .

@tps1020

3 жыл бұрын

I agree, my Peavey Bandit 65 has the best clean tone of all the many tube amps I have owned.

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

4 sure ,,, If ya plugged in the back ... F X return ... Thanks ...

Just bought a Tumnus mini. Love it! Want to get the Deluxe, now. Great vid!

I don't know, but 2 sounded the best to my ears.

@cullenjames7542

5 жыл бұрын

And now, having the benefit of hindsight, it makes a lot of sense. The Marshall sure responded a lot better to that PRS than the Strat.

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

Yup ...

WOW the memories!! the Crate G40XL was literally my first amp ever!! I remember banging it around and hearing the spring and having NO earthly idea what the hell that noise was!! LMAO Thanks for the trip down memory lane.

Amp one farts out like a Texan after a burrito

Amp 1 was definitely the solid-state. I could tell by the look on Travis’ face while he was playing because he was having a blast. LOL

I won’t bite onto which is which, but I preferred #2 overall. #’ s 1&3 the low end was not appealing, for lack of a better term. Rock on!

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

Yup ,, me 2 ... Good ear ...

Surprised at how that crate sounded! I thought amp 2 or 3 was the solid state at first till I watched the rest of the vid! Sounds great!!

I wonder sometimes if what ppl really like about most tube amps is that they tend to run higher end speakers. I think that's what they're really noticing because if you put some really good speakers on like my little Peavey Transtube 112- it sounds amazing. I've played it through greenbacks before and it sounds just as good as any tube amp I've ever played- the bass response was great. The Peavey speaker that comes in my 112 sells for 19 bucks on eBay- brand new- it's cheap junk. I started just to buy one and mount it in the amp- but then I realized I could build a cab and make it sound way better- and it does. They're super easy to build- and the amp has a "speaker out" on the back so- made it really easy to upgrade. I just disconnected the one in the amp. I've considered rehousing just the head in a little box so I don't have to lug around the entire combo amp any more but- I may want to sell it one day.

They all sound clipped and fuzzy. Was something wrong with the mic?

@MrTPF1

5 жыл бұрын

I thought the same thing.

@hasserl

5 жыл бұрын

Yeah, all 3 sound pretty bad. Not a great challenge.

2-3 are the tube. For some reason they all sounded terrible

@forester057

5 жыл бұрын

Sam Nasello Bass farting out the mic 😖. Didn’t sound that bad in the room I imagine.

@mattflickinger8151

5 жыл бұрын

Hmm, i thought he was using direct and some modeling? How so bad? Totally agree, the low end is farting..

@trevordeke

5 жыл бұрын

The best you can say is the cheap solid state amp sounded the least bad.

@sillennium

5 жыл бұрын

Sam Nasello agreed, something didn't sound right on any of these

@davidbakerscuba

5 жыл бұрын

Yes! All three were terrible.

that Crate might have been fun to play, but is sure wasn't fun to listen to!

I like number 2. But what do I know? I know that I enjoy listening to Travis play. Well done guys.

What did you guys think about the tones when you went back and listened to the recordings compared to what you heard in the room?

I thought 2 was the solid state : (

Jeez Travis would it kill ya to smile and laugh once in awhile ;)

I LOVE my Peavey Renowns, Special, Special 130, and my Marshall Valvestate. I am glad I bought these, especially with what has happened to tube prices.

@MichaelDespairs

Күн бұрын

Lately I've been dreaming about what an all tube marshall valvestate would sound like.

As a rule of thumb, I can sometimes pick a valve out in a blind test of with A/B comparison, rarely in a full mix. I think a lot of it comes down to response, which you only really get a good idea of when you're actually playing

Thanks for another unique video :) I’d like to see this comparison using an Orange Crush12, a small 6” speaker amp, because I think it’s quite amazing.

Honestly, I loved the sound of that Crate! And it was from when? I might say it was “ahead of its time” way back then.

I picked 1 as the solid state amp from the first few notes. I then hoped to God that you weren't pulling a fast one and every amp was solid state! Entertaining video by the way. I'm not sure I learned anything but that wasn't the point of what you were doing was it. I smiled a lot and lightened my day more than a little.

Great and funny video. More of these. Just wondering how many beers you had prior to filming this :-D and oh, I guessed wrong (#2)

I love the first one. How spiky and rough. Fun glitchy noises. Second one not enough high end for me. But probably great in a mix. Third amp is what I'm all about.

the most fun I've seen Brian have?

It's all about feel and a good tube amp is all I'll ever use. Solid states nowadays do sound good though but tubes are just cool

the Crate sounded good on the dirty channel. I just bought a Lead 12 and it sounds awesome.

Thinking two right now. Either way, amp one sound great, which explains why it was played longest.

I liked the sound of 2 best followed by 3

My guess is that number one was the solid state. Two and three had a more iconic old school feel to it, notably with a little more distortion on the harder picks and a very clean sound on the lighter notes.

I actually didn't care much about the sound. I dig Travis playing so much! Awesome player!

I've been forced into using a SS amp due to a back problem (and getting older). Since I can no longer lug a 50 lb amp around from gig to gig, I purchased a Quilter and I must say it has a decent sound and takes pedals very well. Or course I'd rather play through a vintage Super Reverb any day, but for practical reasons needed to change things up and the Quilter is not bad at all!

@BrandonBames

5 жыл бұрын

Bob Mac which Quilter?

@guitfiddleblue

5 жыл бұрын

I really like Quilter amps

@davidbakerscuba

5 жыл бұрын

Blues Jr is light and all tube!

@MrTPF1

5 жыл бұрын

I think a lot of us are facing that same issue as we get older!

@organjoe

5 жыл бұрын

@@BrandonBames the cheaper heads without reverb - basic stuff but decent - i have 2 just in case - thanks

What pedal can turn that Crate G40 into a high gain metal beast?

THOSE ARE SOME GODDAMN FINE BLUES YOU PLAYING THERE MY MAN.

#1 sounds very SS to me. Very harsh clipping #2 sounds very tube. Much sweeter clip #3 sounds kinda in btw. So im not sure #1 or #3 is SS but i lean toward #1. And they seems all clipped somewhere after the miking. Great session guys! Enjoyed so much.

1, ss.sounds very bright and clean. 2,tube. hearing softer distortion and compression . 3 ss, brittlebreakup,

3 sounded best to me so I'll just bet on it being the tube.

Chorus pedals rock. Thickens up the sound and gives the guitar clarity at hi gain. Love it. 😜

The crate amp has a low end quality to it which is very nice

They were all far too bassy and chubby for my liking, but I think 1 is the SS amp.

My initial guess post was a bit mean so I didn't post it. What I learnt is that the torpedo can make anything sound like a dog. But I really like the video and had fun! Thanks!

I agree 1 & 3 were flubby in the low end. #2 was a nice warm sound with a very even frequency respose. The high end for me on #1 was brittle and harsh. So, I guess #1 was the the solid state. But today's solid state amps sound VERY good compared to the junk from years ago. Solid state isn't the tone distaster it once was. So it''s hard to tell solid state by tone alone these days. The main issue with solid state is that solid state just does't push as much perceived loudness for the same wattage.

What model was that crate amp please?

I have no idea but 1 and 3 sound divine.

No cheating but #2 sounded solid state to me :)

Ive been doing shows with a peavey bandit transtube for 3 years and it sounds great esp the clean channel and has held up better than any tube amp ive had. It really does sound like a tube amp. If you know your way around an eq pedal you can really dial in some great tone. Personally the orange amp sounded muddy and well crate is crate.

Amp 1 sounded great!

2 sounded best by far to me. I picked 1 and 2 to be ss. Didnt like how the dsl was set. I feel the Marshall wasnt represented properly but ill get over it. Fun comparison.

@AbeldeBetancourt

Жыл бұрын

It was flabby and kind of mute. No razor sharp definition and percussive aggression. Pure hippie-dippie BS

1 is the solid state..i guess...and the one who sounded best to me...

Hey Brian, I would be interested in you doing a review of the Boss Katana w/ pedals (or w/o pedals). I have always been a tube fan, but I bought a Katana several months ago & it is my favorite amp right now. It would be interesting to get your opinion.

I agree with Travis on the chorus pedal hate

I could tell the tube amp right away. The mellower, fatter sound and the saturated sustain are classic

It seems the highs gave it away for me. I knew 1 was solid state and 2 sounded the best. I honestly thought 3 was solid state the way it put out highs. These ear tests are really good for learning to really hear tones.

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

Yeh ,,, what I was hearing ... Good eye ... I mean EAR ...

I pretty much nailed it. I got the first one as SS right off the bat. I had a GK 400RB bass head that sounded similar if you dimed every knob cept the master and played a strat into it. Kinda liked it. Reminded me of Funk 49 James Gang. Got the 2nd as a tube amp... one I'm not a huge fan of... a bit dark for my taste. And I knew the last one was also tube... and undoubtedly a Marshall because of that tell-tale midrange splatter-roar. To me I don't care if it's SS or tube as long as it gives the sound that works for the situation.

That breakup on 2 sounds like a nice tube amp . First one had an un natural break up

First of all, congrats for the awesome and steady work Brian.Well, in my case i prefer tubes for clean sound but i stay with SS for overdriven and distortion tones. Never tried a Glockenklang ss for cleans, and i've heard is a fantastic piece of german machinery. Ive been playing a 100w head during the last 32 years, its a clone of whatever happenned in the 80s(probably Acoustic or even a mix of original design and cloning) , made in my country, Argentina. I also have an old cream machine and a Fender passport i use as a practice clean sound amp. One thing: the major development in my tone is a 4n7 cap in the tone control of all my guitars.All of them with 50s wiring (the one used in Les Pauls, not the fenderish ones) .The rest is using the volume control , rarely on 10 unless the situation calls 4 it. That's why i prefer SS with a lil boost of middle at 500k and the distortion about 10 o'clock . Right now im looking for a Katana.

#1 was a solid state amp blasted thru a speaker that couldn't handle it so that it sounded "broken up" but I wasn't fooled.

Those Crate were not bad especially for the day. I had one when I was a kid and nothing came close for the gain for the price for a kids practice amp.

Don't care. Here's my experience: I have a Yamaha THR10 and a Laney tube amp. When I plug into either, they sound great. It's only after about 20 minutes that I start to notice something is off with the Yamaha. I can't put it into words and I don't really care to. I can play the Laney for hours without getting that feeling. I'm not saying that's going to be everyone's experience, but that's the way it happens for me - and I can't change that.

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

Yeh man ,,, the real touch responce ... Is how it makes you feel ... You just like 2 enjoy that good ole tube sound ... Great point ... Thanks ...

He Brian, just watching this and I have to ask you this (you being the expert); what about pedals? I mean, aren’t they made to interact with a curtain amp? And would, lets say a boost or fuzz, work just as wel with a great solid state amp (maybe a kemper or something) as it would with a great tube amp (great being a relative term offcourse)

Important things here... Brian your shirt matches the PRS perfectly, and the Strat decal placement still bothers me for some reason but Travis plays so well I quickly forget about it...

I actually liked the crate best on first listen, then the DSL for the texas blues thing. But orange kills on distortion channel, no doubt. DSL would probably sound best with pedals on "clean" channel.

I couldn’t have told you what was solid state but I definitely liked the cleanish strat through the Crate. That VH was pretty sweet on the Orange. I think I would have used some chorus on the Crate distortion rolled off the bass and gone into sudo odd even nirvana 😆. Nice video guys!! Travis are you at all concerned about 53 passing attempts by Luck in his first game with a repaired shoulder🤔

Lots of Crate hate here but I love the clean channel on my 2x12 120 watt Crate.

Straight away I confidently said amp number 1 was solid state but normally I'm crap at tests like this, plus I was expecting some kind of trickery to throw everybody off the scent so my confidence was waning as time went by so I was kinda surprised in the end that I got it right. 😆👍

Amp 1 is the solid state - you can hear the difference in how it handles the lighter strings.

@nocaster4747

2 жыл бұрын

That was my thinking

I will probably be shunned by youtube for saying this but i actually LOVE some solid state amps. I like tube amps as well, but the Roland Jazz Chorus might be my favorite amp of all time. Cleanest cleans

@godzoo18

18 күн бұрын

The Roland jazz chorus was also my all-time favourite solid state amp, until I placed it right next to a Fender Princeton custom hand wired. That Roland which I previously loved suddenly became flat, one-dimensional and sterile in comparison. 😳

That was some kind of cloudy judgment, or should I say, smoky, what the heck man, all that laughter and all 😱 I want what you had 😏

Without hearing #2 and 3, I was quite sure about the first one!

Honest guess from a metal drummer: Amp#2. But i feel like I'm going to be educated here in a few minutes.

Tough test, as all 3 sound good enough for jamming or playing in a band. I would say number 2 was solid state. It would be easier if you were pushing the amp into overdrive that a hard clean sound.

No idea...and do I care ? no, because how many times did the analog signal of the amp got digitalized until it finally is reaching my ears ? in my humble opinion a guitar player feels the amp and the dynamic of it ... but once its PA'ed -> i doubt that one can hear a difference... it is how the amp reacts/responds on your attack. but again just my humble opinion :-) Now i heared the fine guitar playing ... and i guess amp 2

@RitusG

5 жыл бұрын

Yep. Everyone talks about how cabinets make a huge difference but then expect to judge quality through a set of computer speakers.

@cuddlymike

5 жыл бұрын

That's very true

@genekloszewski5484

5 жыл бұрын

heinbldski ,.. tubes, have more touch response, solid state, are trying to get there. ,, but i like the punch, from tubes!,, more presence!!,,..

I partially agree with heinblsdki. I think a tube amp responds to the dynamics of the player's attack. You can set it to sound clean low when playing softly and to roughen up and sound louder the harder you play. Solid state sound compressed to me. At least the older ones I was exposed to. I played through a Silvertone 1482 compo tube amp, My friend's Kustom tuck and roll silver metalflake 100 watt amp and my 65 blackface twin reverb into a 4-10 home made column. The Kustom was louder but tinny.

My favorite way to run a solid state is run my dano 12 string into a splitter send one to my dsl5c and the other to my carvin ag100d. I have both ammps stacked ontop of each other and blend in more mids from the tubes and more high end from the solid state. I also run them with different reverb settings.

Too bad Crate stopped making amps. They really were one of the best budget SS amps ever made. The distortion on the old 2x12's was very good. That said, I knew #1 was SS almost right away, but the other two didn't sound much better in my opinion.

@Kathayne636

Жыл бұрын

They were too similar for a $50 vs a $2000 amp.

@JDStone20

Жыл бұрын

Yeah, same here. I have a Crate GFX-1200H head going through a 4x12 with Fender/Eminence 50w stock/special design speakers, and it sounds great.

My guess would be #1 is solid state. #2 sounds warmest and best to me.

Of course I love tube amps. But one of my favorite amps is....don’t shoot me....the old Peavey Bandit.

@AlexRamosDrTaz

5 жыл бұрын

The Peavey Bandits and Supreme heads have awesome, dynamic distortion tones.

@jeffaroo71

5 жыл бұрын

Just bought a old supreme, love it

@felixdeschambault5648

4 жыл бұрын

Don’t be ashamed brother All hail old peaveys

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

Wish I had my ole classic ...

I just listened to the demos at the beginning, I think amp 2 sounds most like a tube, followed by 3, then 1 would be guess for solid state. Fully expecting there to be a twist that they're all solid or something though since he posed the question lol.

I'm guessing 2, because 1& 3's low end buzzed out in a similar way.

I liked 1 the most, then 3, and then 2. Dunno which is which though, seeing that anything could be designed to sound good/bad. And crap! You went to the reveal while I was typing this. I need to get my hands on a crate circuit 🤯 Edit: the bridge humbucker sounds good on the Orange! Edit2: so the Marshall is better than the orange at clean strat, almost as good as crate. Clean via humbuckers is ugly. The humbucker high gain is a nice modern sound. But I probably like the Orange's high gain a bit more because it relates to my kind of music.

All 3 have a crispy attack, but there’s an immediacy to the pick attack on Amp 1. 2 is dark and 3 is really crispy, but you can hear the pick attack bloom just a little more. My guess is amp 1. Also, Amp 1 sounds the best to my ears.

@KesslerMickschGeorgeII

5 жыл бұрын

Ultimately, I think that the od on the Orange sounds best and the Crate is so small, I put a decent speak in the Crate and lug out both because that clean tone is great.

Was Travis trying to get you to play Drop Dead Legs by any chance?

Orange Solid State amps with the 10" or larger speakers at 20 watts or more are killer. I am anxious to try the new SS amps by Hughs and Ketner that just came out. It has a sag control, and if SS amps are built well, with good transformers, speakers, etc, they sound great. Much more reliable, and much easier to maintain, etc. The Crate was not a good choice for a Solid State amp to compare to an expensive tube head. But, try it with one of the new Boss Katanas in 50 or even better 100 watt versions and it will hold it's own. Especially the high gain channel.

@nobrega79

5 жыл бұрын

katana is not SS, is digital.

For me, the give away is the attack on the amps. The tubes generally have a bit more "give" on the front end.

the DSL line has turned in to crate toneish sound alp,, UN-USE ABLE for me. can you make a pedal to save that amp??

@DANTHETUBEMAN

5 жыл бұрын

you cant get the trebble out because it is in all the cheep ass parts in that amp,, and if you do,, you cane get rid of the flubby low end

Just can’t get the tube break up without em. SS sounds fine with fuzz and clean to me but tubes for overdrive!

I'd say 1 and 2 were the tube ones and the 2nd was the solid state.

I think it's number 3. But I listened on phone speakers so there's that.

@RudyAyoub

5 жыл бұрын

Repsai same lol i dont have my earbuds

My original thought was that one was a solid state, two a valve, and three another solid state. After the reveal, it made tons of sense, since the DSL series has an odd voicing to it, that while it is a valve amp, sounds more solid state than not, at least to me.

The tube amp is nr 2 , the bass response was the give away to me , the solid states are to flubby and overpowered in the bass against the other frequenties

@AbeldeBetancourt

Жыл бұрын

You got it backwards, kid. Solid states are used because they are usually not _flabby_ in the low end as tube amps use to be without push.

No idea which sounded best. I'd pick the one that 'felt' the best in the room

These blind amp tests really drive me up the wall... I don't guess which is which when you've got a pedal OEM that could soften it up and loosen the brittleness of the solid state. I knew the first reverb and second reverb were real; however, the third was nothing near the first two. I was suspect of 3 and had nothing on 1 and 2's responsiveness. I knew I didn't like the second ones lack of sharpness and then I realize it was because I don't like the Orange amps without driving some dirt through the top of the head. Fair test... 👍🏼

@scottyd2262

5 жыл бұрын

Orange amps...The bigger ones anyway....Need some volume to get them to sound good..... I've got alot of Orange gear..

I've got a Fender Yale Reverb that has some of the best clean tones I've ever heard and it takes pedals as well as any tube amp I have including the Fender's ( I've got 3 ) Marshal and Vox. I love the idea of a comparison but why didn't you use a good SS amp like a Yale Reverb, Fender Champ 100 or Roland JC?

it may sound like a tube amp but does it feel like a tube amp(same punch)

#3 was less bad. Others sounded like Pignose with failing battery. Sad that this was my audio reunion with Travis.

Unless you messed up the settings on purpose to trick us, to my ears the first one had different characteristics than 2 and 3. Although 3 sounded closer to 1 there was still a difference there. And to all who would say that the signal has been digitized so many times by the time it reaches our ears at home, it's true, however, the response to the guitar and pedals still shows (generally speaking). I'm not dissing solid state amps, a tiny Orange Crush 12 (6" speaker) served me very well in church 57-ed up. A very respected sound engineer couldn't tell it was a small starter amp.

That was easy: amp A is solid state. By the way, I loved the fact that you guys were drunk!

@davidcarpenter9232

2 жыл бұрын

High ...

Maybe it's the YT compression or my speakers, but they all sounded shite and lacked clarity. What I love about tube amps is the clarity of the attack, even when dirty. It's in the way you set up the amp, so maybe the setup you guys were using was designed to make them all sound similar--but (when properly set up and EQ'd) a good tube amp is not mistakable.

I guessed right, but based on the guy's face, not the sound. He had the expression of "Well I'll be damned!" the whole time he played the SS amp.

I thought the crate solid state sounded the best with the strat. Same thing happened at my last gig outdoors, my fender deluxe 6v6 took a dump but I had the fender front man 212 amp and the beast pro reverb! OK now get this, the front man with Celestion 7080 speakers blew the eminence legend loaded pro reverb out of the water. I was amazed myself...