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Touch Sensitive amps/playing


djroge1

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I watched this video on the thread about "small amps, big tone" and got to wondering...

 

When you buy an amp, do this "touch sensitivity" make any difference? I guess another way of asking is, what do you look for in an amp?

 

 

Check out the video if you don't know what I mean my touch sensitivity.

 

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]
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First, I look for that quality in a guitar. I know some players are going to say "Yeah, right" but either you get it or you don't.

 

For amps, I play loud rock and roll so touchy-feely is nice but not a requirement but I do look for it. My philosophy is that if you use enough gain, you have plenty of compression happening for that sensitivity feel. Additionally, I think that that quality in an amp can go too far depending on the style of music you play; I play mostly hard rock/pop these days and, even though my Mesa has the option for either a solid state or tube rectifier, I keep it set at solid state because tube just gets to be too much sag which ends up being mud.

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I'm not sold on the guitar has as much to do with the touch sensitivity as the amp.

 

I say that because you can play soft and get clean and then play harder to get disortion out of a good tube amp with almost any guitar. But you cannot take the same guitar and plug into any old amp and do the same thing.

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I look for quality' date=' 100% tube and the fewer the knobs the better.

Some of the new amps out there have 30+ buttons and knobs to tweak. I wanna play, not think.[/quote']

 

+1. My sentiments exactly. Amps are, first and foremost, for projecting sound--and tubes sound sweeter, simply put. The only knobs I need are volume and EQ, on the guitar and the amp (well...OK. I like reverb too...)

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It's that dynamic thing, where I can play soft and it's almost clean (especially with a Strat) - or I can hit it hard and it crunches (especially with a Les Paul). Also I should be able to coax it into a nice harmonic feedback.

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My Blue Angel is the most "TOUCH SENSITIVE" amp I've ever gigged. I gigged last night with it in the 15 watt, tube rectifier mode. Cranked.

 

In this mode, it is using 2;6V6's, and a GZ34.

 

In larger clubs, I can flip the switch and use 4;EL84's.

 

I can also combine the 6 (power) tubes............

 

Randall Smith made a fine amp with the Blue Angel. It's a shame he quit after that......

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