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Questing hard right now for the next thing. I have a Peavey Musician 400 and an 810 cab. They're both nice. And fairly interesting. But not quite what I want.

Are there any forward-thinking amps out there? They don't even have to be contemporary - I just want something conceptually different or daring. The closest I've come so far are the Roland GA-212 and the Yamaha TA series. Pedaldom has exploded, and you can get almost anything you want, but amps are decidedly regressive. The most 'exciting' ones tend to be modelers that emulate famous rock tones of yesteryear.

tl;dr: are there any amps that really take chances? Bonus points for full frequency response or solid low-end handling.

Sadly, forward thinking "amps" are things like Kempers and AxeFx through powered speakers.

I guess my first thought would be something solid state, but maybe that's just a cheap guess. Those ZT amps look cool?

Quilters?

adamajah wrote:Sadly, forward thinking "amps" are things like Kempers and AxeFx through powered speakers.

Go further, we will be listening through some sort of embedded receivers in our head and speakers will be a thing from the past. People will be asking themselves "did they really obsessed with whether a corporeal FX box had a pink or black sticker?"

But vinyl and tape will still be cool.

Realistically, amps are amps. If you want weird, forward-thinking, you plug pedals into one!

I know they aren’t terribly popular here, but I think the mesa mark series has always been fairly forward thinking. I have no experience with the mark v’s and don’t find myself that curious. The mark series was one of the first with channel switching, the first with 3 channels, even though the first iterations were kind of clunky. Their simul-class technology was an interesting idea and pretty cool. Mixing power tube types is interesting and unique. But the most interesting thing about them to me was always how interactive the controls were. You turn the treble knob just a little and your gain control would behave totally different. And the graphic EQ would have a whole new set of options. They are totally not intuitive or easy amps. Which seems risky from a marketability perspective. They were always out on a limb with series. But if you got to know the amp, they’re insane and can do so much.

I’m not really a Mesa guy. I haven’t owned one in well over a decade. I can’t remember when I last played one. But I have a lot of respect for them. I think they’ve always tried to innovate and come up with new things. Some have worked out really well and some don’t seem to have really gotten off the ground. But they certainly aren’t scared to try.

SCIENCE!

adamajah wrote:Sadly, forward thinking "amps" are things like Kempers and AxeFx through powered speakers.

This is kinda what I’m thinking. Prohibitively $$$, though.

Pearce G2R?

Invisible Man wrote:are there any amps that really take chances? Bonus points for full frequency response or solid low-end handling.

Amp of the future [the way things are going ]

i went the route of just buying a solid state poweramp block (ISP one) to fit under my board and bought a nice tube preamp pedal (blackbird). In the future just going to buy different different preamp pedals (like the correct sound custom stuff, etc.) to switch out for different amp sounds. Its just so much easier for live stuff, and for in the studio you have tons of options too. If you keep your tube amps anyways you already have, then for recording stuff there isn't really all that much ground anyways you need to be covering. I know the solid state power amp isn't 'cool' here, but thats where i see things going for people in the future. Its either going to be software based stuff like kemper or the line 6 stuff like the hx stomp that just came out (another not 'cool' thing to talk about, but ive wanted to get one hx stomp to test out for a while now as well for the size format and for the quality of effects and amp sims. Know someone in Thailand here that just got one and it completely changed his world for live and recording stuff) or its going to be preamp pedals paired with power amps and/or cab sims like the cabzeus ect.

again, i know what im saying isn't hip to the ILF crowd, but in the real world thats were i see things heading, and thats what the people around me that play out and record regularly are celebrating and embracing openly. With things at the price point they are now, for the quality, its hard to rationally not embrace at least parts of it at this point IMO

ibarakishi wrote:i went the route of just buying a solid state poweramp block (ISP one) to fit under my board and bought a nice tube preamp pedal (blackbird). In the future just going to buy different different preamp pedals (like the correct sound custom stuff, etc.) to switch out for different amp sounds. Its just so much easier for live stuff, and for in the studio you have tons of options too. If you keep your tube amps anyways you already have, then for recording stuff there isn't really all that much ground anyways you need to be covering. I know the solid state power amp isn't 'cool' here, but thats where i see things going for people in the future. Its either going to be software based stuff like kemper or the line 6 stuff like the hx stomp that just came out (another not 'cool' thing to talk about, but ive wanted to get one hx stomp to test out for a while now as well for the size format and for the quality of effects and amp sims. Know someone in Thailand here that just got one and it completely changed his world for live and recording stuff) or its going to be preamp pedals paired with power amps and/or cab sims like the cabzeus ect.

again, i know what im saying isn't hip to the ILF crowd, but in the real world thats were i see things heading, and thats what the people around me that play out and record regularly are celebrating and embracing openly. With things at the price point they are now, for the quality, its hard to rationally not embrace at least parts of it at this point IMO

I have an HX Stomp and the Native software I use as a practice amp/for recording and it’s fantastic. I don’t like the idea of using it live, but it’s still in my truck with an EHX .44 Magnum as a backup for shows. I don’t love modeling, but it does the job when you need it to. If I regularly had good PA support I could definitely see bringing it if I were feeling lazy.

No, the Stomp seems really cool. Just don’t have the cash for it now, but...hm.

Which power amp, ibarakishi? That is another route I am considering. Keep a couple cabs and let the pedals do the flexing.

I ended up going with the ISP Technologies Stealth 180-watt Pedalboard Power Amp with Rack Ears. It will be arriving next month hopefully with my preamp pedal as well. I got the ISP for the following reasons:

1.) Price: They pop up discounted sometimes if you are patient. I got mine for half price, so around 150 USD or so if i remember right
2.) Size: I can mount it to just about any pedal board without it being too much of a hassle. If i don't want to put it on a board, just throw it in a backpack and you are off and ready to go.
3.) No Hype: There is very little information about these that i could find online other than people that pair them with other ISP pedals for metal or high gain stuff. They also almost never pop up used (but when they do, again, you can get them cheap) on Reverb or Ebay really, so usually stuff like that is a decent sign that people like what they are buying and keeping it. I'm hoping its a silent sleeper that will prove useful for a lot of applications
4.) Versatility: I figure even if i don't enjoy using it for guitar so much, i will definitely use it for a noise or future alternative instrument rig. Won't be wasting my money regardless, as it will serve a purpose in any situation.
5.) Power: It can run on any voltage you will find around the world, and is also 180 watts at 8 Ohms. Its also true class A/B and not D like nearly everything else on the market now, which is important for me for durability and using distortion at high volumes, etc.
6.) No Frills: Unlike the Orange Pedalbaby or other power amps marketed at pedal users, this is literally just plug in and play, end of story. No gimmicks. If i want to color or adjust the tone/sound of what i am wanting, i will do it with whatever im pushing it with in front. It isn't at all the coolest looking or most flashy, but it checks all my boxes without compromise, which is rare for stuff like this.

Don't know if this is of any help. When my stuff actually arrives, i will be sure to post on here what my impressions are of it in regards to how i play and am planning to use it too if you are interested IM