A good solid state amp in 1993 was about $450. Would you pay $999 for a great one today?

Would you pay $900-$999 for a really good solid state amp?

  • Yes, if it were well made and sounded great, I’d plunk down $999 for one

    Votes: 15 46.9%

  • Are you f*****g kidding me? Tubes for life!

    Votes: 8 25.0%

  • I use modelers, bro. Amps are dead.

    Votes: 9 28.1%
  • Total voters
    32
  • Poll closed .
P

paisleywookiee

Rock Star
Messages
3,871
My friend (who owns the shop I’m at PT) and I were discussing that YouTube has been awash with “Are T00bz Dead?” clickbait BS, and yet it’s always the same single amp (that does indeed sound great), the Super Crush 100. Okay, so there’s ONE solid state amp in production that sounds awesome. Where are all the others? If tubes are on their deathbed because solid state is SO good (looking at you, Fricker ya douche), where‘s the cavalcade of great-sounding SS amps In production?

There isn’t. Because no one‘s willing to spend what it would cost to build a really good one. $450 today is roughly $950-$999. I just think that even with tube amps climbing in price, people still aren’t willing to spend a grand on a solid state amp. If an amp sounded as good as the old Hughes and Kettner Attax, or Trace Elliott SS stuff, I think it could be really interesting.

Thoughts?

P.s. modeling is a whole other ball of wax, that I can assure you, regardless of how awesome it is, does NOT appeal to everyone.
 
Randall RG100 has entered the chat. :LOL:

It's like 1985-6 all over again. That amp was supposed to replace Marshall JCMs
and was HEAVILY endorsed and hyped at the time (Lynch/Dokken, Campbell/DIO).

I ended buying one in 1987 as my first big boy half-stack. It was a killer amp, and
Dimebag truly put them on the map in ways no one could predict.

That said, I am not sure it is doable (or needed). The one plus they seem to have is a
reputed greater reliability. :idk
 
la szum said:
Randall RG100 has entered the chat. :LOL:

It's like 1985-6 all over again. That amp was supposed to replace Marshall JCMs
and was HEAVILY endorsed and hyped at the time (Lynch/Dokken, Campbell/DIO).

I ended buying one in 1987 as my first big boy half-stack. It was a killer amp, and
Dimebag truly put them on the map in ways no one could predict.

That said, I am not sure it is doable (or needed). The one plus they seem to have is a
reputed greater reliability. :idk
Click to expand...
Not in production though, is it?
 
Nah, I wouldn't.

There are too many great tube options at that price point or even lower.

Plus you can pick up a used Randall RH100 for under $400 or a clean RG80 for half that.

I think the market isn't there because it doesn't need to be there.
 
Steinmetzify said:
Nah, I wouldn't.

There are too many great tube options at that price point or even lower.

Plus you can pick up a used Randall RH100 for under $400 or a clean RG80 for half that.

I think the market isn't there because it doesn't need to be there.
Click to expand...
I tend to agree with you, but I think that’ll start changing again, with tube amps getting so expensive, so fast. Still, used is a very different situation than it was in the 90’s.
 
I dunno, the more I think about it, maybe this is a dumbass thread 😂

I just got to thinking about it, after seeing all these stupid Orange Super Crush videos.
 
I and I think many others would be tripping over each other to get a vh140c reissue for $999, I’m not sure what they are waiting for
 
paisleywookiee said:
I dunno, the more I think about it, maybe this is a dumbass thread 😂

I just got to thinking about it, after seeing all these stupid Orange Super Crush videos.
Click to expand...

It’s an interesting topic for discussion either way. Digital was in its infancy in 1993, the term “modeling” was still three or four years away.. There were still people/companies trying to get analog SS to behave like tubes. Nowadays, digital has taken over the non-tube end of things.
 
Different dollar, but those BluGuitar amps are $1200+ here in Canada. I guess someone’s buying them at that price, though I don’t see many around or in the used market.
 
paisleywookiee said:
Not in production though, is it?
Click to expand...

Uhmmmm.... news to me. :wat


My point was that if we revisit history we can learn from the past. It can help us determine what the future
might hold, and why something like this doesn't exist.

Pretty sure that is what manufacturers, in their product development phases, do.
 
AMT Stonehead - I would love to pick one of these up one day, as the demos are usually a good showing.

AMT Stonehead-50-4 - Guitar Head Amplifier

CHECK USER S MANUAL FOR THIS DEVICE >> AMT Electronics Stonehead 50-4 - 50-watt 4-channel solid-state guitar amplifier All 4 channels of the amplifier s preamp section are built on the proprietary JFET technology which effectively emulates vacuum tubes-based devices The increased power
amt-sales.com amt-sales.com
 
RaceU4her said:
Arent those nanotubes or whatever?
Click to expand...

Right, forgot they had that little tube. I guess it’s a solid state power amp with a nanotube preamp?

Here’s what Guitar World says:

The Amp1 Iridium preamp is solid-state analogue. The Nanotube drives the 100-watt class D output stage/power amp. So it’s a combination of solid state and valve with a pinch of digital in the brew too…
 
TubeStack said:
Right, forgot they had that little tube. I guess it’s a solid state power amp with a nanotube preamp?

Here’s what Guitar World says:

The Amp1 Iridium preamp is solid-state analogue. The Nanotube drives the 100-watt class D output stage/power amp. So it’s a combination of solid state and valve with a pinch of digital in the brew too…
Click to expand...

Ah, I thought the tube was for the power, either way I’ve yet to see a bad review of those things, if I was currently gigging I’d definitely be looking into one
 
My daily player is the Amp1 Mercury. I still love the thing, definitely recommend trying one out if you can. Too bad there aren't many dealers for these, as I really think a lot of people would dig them if they could actually give them a spin without ordering one blind.

Cool SS amps are out there. :guiness
 
Stone said:

I use modelers, bro. Amps are dead.​

Click to expand...

Nervous Cat GIF by sheepfilms
 
(Though I’ve been basically saying same thing at other place, in regards to Marshall’s future.)
 
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