Amp Emulators

Finally tired of lugging amps and struggling balancing big amp sounds in tiny venues. I need to update my old Digitech RP-6 and buy something similar with good clean sounds and an excellent emulator so I can plug stright into the PA and still get a great miked-amp sound.

There are soooo many units out there so I thought I'd ask the question here. What should I be looking at? What are the best buys?

Sorry to say, unless you wanna sound like ass, keep lugging the amp. Just my opinion. Live is where the rubber meets the road. The road has not shortcuts.

I hear you bro. But I guess the lugging really isn't the central issue for me. It's the overall sound.

We all know that to get any real decent tone out of your amp you have to wind it up a little right? The amp then sounds great but the reality is that in some places, it is just too darn loud. If you turn it down, it becomes more bearable for the audience (and your fellow players) but the amp ends up sounding like a strangled chicken. Yeccchh!

If there was a way I could turn down the gain on my amp (Marshall Valvestate 8080) and still have it sound great, I wouldn't even be thinking of going direct. The world I am in however, forces me to start exploring these alternatives

They do have that thing where you can crank the amp, but it keeps the overall volume down. I think it only works for tube amp though.

Another thing you can do is to semi-isolate the amp on stage. Get some plexiglass and make a barrier to put in from of your speakers.

Originally Posted by: elklanderccThey do have that thing where you can crank the amp, but it keeps the overall volume down. I think it only works for tube amp though.

An Attenuator - A Marshall Powerbrake or THD hotplate for example.

I used one of them, but now I've got an amp that seems happy at all voume levels. I can get the same tone with my Laney TT50 and a tubscreamer with the volume on 2 or on 10, no worries. I used to use a PODxt Live on stage, and it really doesn't 'sound like ass'...

You have to spend a fair bit of time tweaking, and maybe you'd be better looking at a higher end unit but you can get good results. Vavlestate? You can emulate the sound of that OK with a POD (or similar) I reckon...

My vote is for a PODxt live with all the model packs added. Or, you could just opt for a lower wattage amp.

I use a 5150 2x12 combo, and it is amazingly loud. But, since it gets most of it's gain and tone from the preamp, it still sounds good at more manageable volumes. I've also got a Traynor YCV50 1x12 combo, but it sounds a bit too thin when played at very low volumes. You don't have to crank it to insane levels to get it cookin' though.

However, I can get similar tones to either of those amp, plus a butt load more, with my PODxt, and a Behringer DEQ2496 when I need a little help reaching that extra 5% of the tone I'm missing. The best thing about it is, I can get those tones at any volume I want.

If you go the PODxt (or any modeler for that mater) route for live stuff, I would definitely suggest a good monitor system. Also, be prepared not to be able to "feel" what you're playing. In the end, you're making a sacrifice, but the audience won't know the slightest difference, and the soundman and your bandmates will love you for it.

Originally Posted by: renAn Attenuator - A Marshall Powerbrake or THD hotplate for example.

Thanks, I wasn't sure of any names or what to search on google. I always see ads for the HotPlate though. :o

Thanks to all for your valuable input. I have been looking around at multi-FX units and the POD XT-live looks like a front runner as does the Digi Tech GNX4.

Actually, amp isolation can definitely work sometimes but it isn't always a viable option so I am going to give these MFX units a go and see how they perform.

Thanks again for your input

in my opinion if you are gonna model go line 6. i got a line 6 amp and i like it.

Had a PODxt and I got rid of it, didn't do it for me. Boss GT-Pro was a nice piece of gear but I traded it in for my grailtone in a Rocktron Prophesy. Pricey piece of gear but worth it if you have the cash. Even playing through headphones it feels like playing through a real amp or cab, something even the GT-Pro couldn't achieve. Not cheap though...

I agree with da_ardvark's point. I don't like modelling amps or multi-effect amp simulators because they're fake, the sound coming out of them isn't real it is JUST AN EMULATION. I really don't like lugging heavy gear around either but the desire to get a great sound is large enough to overcome the work involved in the process!

What most people forget is, and what usually puts them off when they hear modelers is, the fact that they are not supposed to sound like an amp that you're standing in the same room with. They are supposed to sound like an amp that is being mic'd in a separate isolated room, and you listening to it in a separate room through a pare of monitors. If you're playing live, the sound that the audience hears coming through the FOH will not be what you hear on stage with a real amp. It will be an interpretation of your amp, through whatever mic is being used, through the mixer, then to the FOH speakers. So, unless you're playing at a venue where your guitar will not be going through a PA, then there is no audible advantage over using a real amp to using a modeler... the sound that the audience hears will be the same either way.

However, if you're not happy with your tone, then you're playing will most likely suffer to an extent. So, use whatever gives you the best practicality to tone ratio. ;)

I use Guitar Rig 2 with great results.

I don't use it live, just for recording, but many people do use GR2 live with a good laptop computer fed into the PA or their own amp/monitors.

I have a stack of hand made tube amps, but I prefer to record with Guitar rig 2.