What if there was a way to get the classic Deluxe Reverb experience without the various practical drawbacks of a valve amp? That’s what the boffins at Fender managed to achieve with its most ambitious digital modelling offering yet. Coupling the latest in cutting-edge modelling tech with a hefty solid-state power stage, the Tone Master comes in a lightweight but resonant pine cabinet housing an equally back-friendly Jensen N-12K speaker, and there’s no faffing with presets or menus here. Simply turn it on, plug in and be greeted with a sound that captures the authentic tone and feel of the original at both stage and home-friendly volume levels. It sounds too good to be true. But that’s the point.
While it might look like an everyday stompbox, it’s helpful to think of the Iridium as an amp itself, sitting at the end of your signal chain the way one of the three vintage amplifiers it simulates – dubbed ‘Round’, ‘Chime’ and ‘Punch’ – might. ‘Chime’ is modelled after the Brilliant channel of a Vox AC30TB, the ‘Round’ voicing is based on the Normal channel of a Deluxe Reverb, and ‘Punch’ is based on a 100-watt Plexi with additional gain on tap after two o’clock on the drive control. And that’s only the tip of the iceberg here.
This collaboration between Blackstar Amplification and blues-rock force of nature Jared James Nichols is a 1×12 combo version of his EL84-powered signature amplifier. While ostensibly a twin channel amp, the JJN-20R MkII features two distinct voicings for both clean and overdrive channels, offering the player four footswitchable voices to explore, with accents from both sides of the Atlantic.
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The amplifier. The basic specs suggest this device isn’t so much a Swiss Army knife as a Red Army tank regiment, with the power and range to cover most players’ needs both live and in the studio. And it’s programmable – with 128 editable presets – but it’s analogue, with H&K’s proprietary Spirit technology claiming to recreate the tone and feel of valve-based circuitry. The core amp sounds are remarkably good – it’s all very ‘valvey’ and makes this just about the most versatile non-digital amp we’ve ever used.
Though the original Matchless models were influenced by classic British designs, the new Laurel Canyon has been inspired by sounds and circuit designs that are much closer to home for the Californian amp company. But the Laurel Canyon is still every inch a Matchless, with stellar point-to-point wiring, a steel chassis, a heavy Baltic birch plywood cabinet and a custom-voiced UK-made Celestion Heritage G12H30.Once upon a time, tube tone was all that mattered to players. But thanks to modern digital modelling technology, pro-quality tones are accessible to everyone.
Although solid-state amplification dates back to the early 1960s, the lion’s share of the greatest electric tones of all time were generated by vacuum tubes rather than transistors. For many years, the flattering compression, clipping, saturation and non-linear response of valve amps that most ists crave seemed beyond the capabilities of solid-state technology.
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Other than the Roland Jazz Chorus and a handful of other notable exceptions, throughout the 80s and 90s, solid-state amps were mainly confined to the bedrooms of beginners, with even the space-station-sized digital racks of stadium ists having valve preamps and power amps at their core.
Over the past two decades, digital modelling has changed everything. Harnessed to a solid-state preamp, digital modelling tech is now so convincing that it can be hard for even the most discerning listener to hear the difference between the modelled sound and the ‘real thing’, especially in the context of a band mix. Although tube tone and feel is still the high-water mark, there’s never been a better time to make the jump to a amplifier based on solid-state or digital architecture.
Lighter, more affordable, no tube changes – what’s not to like about solid-state amps, right? Well, it’s not quite as simple as that. Sure, valves fail, but they are easy to replace, and tube circuits tend to be much easier for amp techs to repair than modern digital ones. A well-maintained tube amplifier from 1955 is more than capable of delivering the goods on stage and in the studio for decades to come. On the other hand, how’s that smartphone from 2010 working out for you? See, we told you it wasn’t that simple.
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That said, many of the new generation of digital modelling amplifiers offer a stunning and endlessly inspiring array of tones and effects to play with, not to mention the ability to swap tones with other users and download profiles of classic tube amps that are way beyond the budget of mere mortals. And even low-powered valve amps are
. Kemper and Axe-Fx are the go-to digital systems for touring pros but these days, you don’t have to spend a fortune to sound great, so let us be your guide.
Impulse responses, amp-modelling, hybrid designs… there’s a lot of jargon to navigate but before you dive into our list, think about what you need from a amplifier. Solid-state and digital amps don’t need to be driven hard to sound good, but on the other hand, the perceived volume of valve amplifiers is much greater.
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Where a 20-watt valve combo will be just fine as a gigging amp, a 20-watt modelling amp likely won’t be heard above your drummer. For example, Fender’s Tone Master Deluxe Reverb utilises a 100-watt solid-state power amp to emulate the output of a 22-watt tube amp.
Then there’s the user experience. Do you want your digital amp to emulate the look and feel of a vintage valve amp, with just a simple array of controls to navigate? Or are you happy to navigate menu after menu on an LCD screen, or fire up an app for deep editing over Bluetooth? All of these options and more can be found in the list that follows. Time to dive in.
When we compared the Tone Master Deluxe Reverb to an original ’65 Deluxe Reverb, it proved to be a much closer thing than anyone anticipated, with the Tone Master series offering some of the closest digital emulations of the vintage valve-amp experience than ever before. There are more versatile options out there, for sure, but few modelling amps get as close to the vintage tube amp experience.
Vox Ac30 2x12 Guitar Amp Combo (ac30c2)
Price: £869/$899 Type: Digital modelling combo Channels: 2 Power Rating: 100W (Switchable to 0.2W) Speakers: 1×12” Jensen N-12K Neo Effects: Reverb, tremolo
One of the best things about Blackstar’s Silverline Stereo Deluxe is how it nails valve-like feel and response – which arguably is the deal-breaker for many players. But on top of that, it packs some seriously immersive stereo effects.
It’s easy to lose hours sitting listening to your dance from one end of the Super Wide Stereo image to the other, and there’s just something so musical and inspiring about this combo’s combination of long delays and reverbs that it’s sure to be the jumping-off point for a lot of music.
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Price: £749 Type: Digital combo w/ 6 voicings Channels: 1 Power Rating: 2x100W Speakers: 2×12″ Celestion V-Type Effects: Modulation (Phaser, flanger, chorus, tremolo) Delay (Linear, analogue, tape, multi), Reverb (Room, hall, spring, plate) Presets: 128
The most iconic solid-state amplifier of all time is still going strong today, thanks in no small part to the huge list of star players who fell for the Jazz Chorus following its launch back in 1975. The JC-120 really hit its straps in the 1980s, when hitmakers from all ends of the spectrum gravitated towards the amp’s idiosyncratic, crystalline cleans – from Andy Summers and Robert Smith to Kirk Hammett and plenty more besides.
While it may look just like a multi-effects unit, the Black Spirit 200 Floor isn’t just an alternative to your amplifier; it
Line 6 Spider V 30 Mkii 1x8 Guitar Amp
Almost everything on the Black Spirit 200 can be assigned to presets. So you can easily set up a clean tone with tremolo… or even a high-gain scream with phaser, delay, boost, less sag, more presence and all 15 fuzz pedals in your effects loop switched on. That may be an extreme example, but you get the idea.
Price: £899/$1, 119 Type: Solid-state ‘stompbox’ amp w/ built-in FX Channels: 4 (Clean, crunch, lead, ultra) Power Rating: 2W, 20W, 200W Speakers: N/A Effects: Reverb, delay, modulation (Chorus, phaser, flanger, tremolo) Other Features: IDB (Intelligent Dual Breakpoint) Noise Gate, MIDI in + out, Bluetooth
Kemper’s game-changing Profiler is one of the most faithful and convincing digital modelling systems around, and gets its tones by quickly creating profiles of specific amps (even your own) with impressive fidelity. A library of vintage classics at your fingertips, and even more to download online? Why not?
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Price: £1542/$2, 800 Type: Digital modelling unit Channels: 1 Power Rating: 600W Speakers: N/A Amp Models: 200 Other Features: 8-band graphic EQ, 4-band parametric EQ
The rivalry between Kemper and Axe-Fx for the modern tech-savvy ist is like Nintendo vs Sega for 1990s gamers, but it’s fair to say that Fractal’s impact on the world has been just as seismic as its rival’s. Offering unprecedented control and versatility for
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