Fender amp expert Rick Heins breaks it down.<\/p>\n
By Mike Duffy<\/p>\n
More often than not, the first decision to make when looking for the right amp is whether you want to pursue a tube amp or something digital, also known as solid-state.<\/p>\n
To Rick Heins, one of Fender’s resident amp experts, there really isn\u2019t one right or wrong answer. The most important thing is to test things for yourself and determining what sounds right to you.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a personal quest, and ultimately, the player has to feel it,\u201d Heins said.<\/p>\n
To help you on your journey toward an amplified life we asked Heins to break down some of the most common questions and misperceptions about vacuum tube and solid-state amps:<\/p>\n
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Heins believes that the tube sound tends to come to life when the volume is above 3, whereas digital amps \u201cshould sound good from the bottom up.”<\/p>\n
This means that if you\u2019re looking to rehearse at home or play in your bedroom with headphones, solid-state amps may have the edge there.<\/p>\n
\u201cPracticing at night, you don\u2019t have to worry about annoying anyone,\u201d he said with a laugh.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWith with a good tube amp, you can typically play the guitar with the volume all the way up,\u201d Heins said. \u201cWhen it\u2019s set for distortion, not metal distortion but rock distortion, and you roll back your volume knob, you can get the amp to clean up. It\u2019s called \u2018touch sensitive.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s one of the hardest things to replicate in a digital amp. It\u2019s not impossible, but you really feel it when playing certain tube amps.\u201d<\/p>\n
Solid-state amplifiers have made significant strides in that area, however, especially with Fender\u2019s Mustang GT Series<\/a> and Champion Series<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ve got to have a good clean tone and a good mid-crunchy tone,\u201d Heins said of Fender’s above-mentioned solid-state entries. \u201cThe effects sound good, not just generic.\u201d<\/p>\n