Anyone else question your dedication to a specific amp?

B

Ben.Last

Experienced
So, background, I've always had a thing for Mesas. I "grew up" in the 90s, those were my formative years with regard to building my musical tastes, and Dual Recs were all over the place. I've never actually owned one.

So, when I got my Axe, that was immediately where I gravitated toward. At the same time, I've explored the other amps that people around the interwebs seem to like. I have found that I also like the Das Metall and Uber (and I'm slowly building a Mark 4 type patch).

BUT... I keep coming back to the Dual Rec 1 Red Modern. And I find myself wondering if that has more to do with a desire to make this digital representation of an amp that I've appreciated for a while work, or if I just plain like it more. I know being content with what I'm hearing is the only thing that actually matters; I'm just wondering if anyone else finds this happening.

TL;DR

Does anyone else find themselves gravitating towards models whose real life counterpart they've held in high regard, despite people pointing to other models as being potentially even "better"?
 
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I found a video of a Carr amp (I don't remember which right now) that I liked so much, I started dialing in the Rambler on the Axe and it's been my primary patch ever since.

Also, I had ALWAYS wanted a Savage. Were it not for the Axe Fx, I'd probably have one. That's been my primary metal patch since its induction into the hall of model fame.
 
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Nope. Too many amazing amps to stick with just one. Getting hung up on a single model would be like having a Swiss army knife and using the corkscrew for every task.
 
Hellbat said:
Nope. Too many amazing amps to stick with just one. Getting hung up on a single model would be like having a Swiss army knife and using the corkscrew for every task.
Click to expand...

Then again, if the corkscrew does everything you need to do... j/k
 
Always use a Fender for cleans ... probably better choices, especially for many of the sogs I do ... but grew up with Bandmasters and Twins, and there it is ...
 
I loved my Roadster and miss it badly. I've come pretty close to nailing my roadster's tone, but fuck did it take TONS of tweaking and EQ but after playing on one again, it still is off. Really want Cliff to model channel 3 & 4 with all 3 modes. But in the Axe itself, it keep staying with the Bogner Shiva, both clean and lead. Also lately, I have been on an AFD kick too. But if I were to own another tube amp, it would be a toss up between the Roadster, Shiva, and AFD. I do play around with other amps and get some killer tones, but its obvious my personal tone lays within the shiva/roadster/AFD amps. Last night I dialed in a pretty solid tone with the Plexi 100 High and USA Lead Brit+
 
Not when I use my ears, and not my eyes to read the amp name, and then avoid all the positive and negative associations that go with it.

I think everyone has bias for certain amps, because of their history, stars who play them, what we've owned before, what we always wanted, but when I just listen to the tone, and take away all the other stuff, I'm often surprised at the models I end up liking
 
Ben.Last said:
Does anyone else find themselves gravitating towards models whose real life counterpart they've held in high regard, despite people pointing to other models as being potentially even "better"?
Click to expand...

I did that when I was brand new to the Axe, and maybe still do to a slight degree. I would say I work harder (that is, put forth more effort) making patches with amp models that I KNOW from their head forms can be made to sound great... the assumption that with modeling tech this good, similar results are likely... and they are.
 
I've been a Mesa guy for years, but in the Axe, I can't stop playing the Plexi and JCM800 models. They just sound so good and are so dynamic and responsive. They clean up with the guitar volume knob better than any Mesa I've ever tried. That said, there's too many great models in there to use just one.
 
I own a JVM 410h which I love to death.
Can not use the one in the Axe. Just doesn't sound good to my ears.
Also since I used the JVM I want to experience other flavours so since getting the Axe last October I have not turned on the JVM once.
Can't bear to sell it though.
 
I've used modelers for so long that it's become natural for me to just go for whatever seems to fit the sound I want, especially when I'm recording and looking for different sounds... and often I'll pick some new amp just to try it out, or I'll play around w/ the Tone Stacks just because I can. When I'm playing in the band I do tend to go for the "expected" amps, or at least I start there - Twin/Deluxe, Plexi, 800, Recto, 5150s, Vox. Not that I mind ;-) ... they all sound amazing. And there are still plenty of amps in the Axe that I've basically never touched...
 
Been a mesa / recto guy for a long time, settle on the recto orange for my sound, use the plexi and BE a lot... going to be spending some time with the other stuff soon... (keep saying this).
 
MESAS! I always use Usa Clean 1 for every kind of cleans, only jazzy ones I go Jazzchorus. And signing lead tones ALWAYS Mark series mesas.

But I was a marshall-hater before axe... Now I use marshall clones for nearly every single mid gain tones.
 
Always have used real fender amps for my primary sound (based on a 'clean-to-break' kind of aesthetic) - with much ribbing from Marshall and Mesa guys back in the 80's. Super Reverb was on ALL of my Axe patches (and before it, the Twin), but now that's down to about 80 percent as some Vox and boutiques (Dumble etc.) have crept in.

I had a blond Mesa, about the size of my Princeton, in the 80's (came with a studio I bought). Could never get it to sound as good as my Princeton or my Twin. Was hairy and high gainy, and the clean wasn't very clean. I should'a kept it as an investment, but to tell the truth, I HATED that amp, and was glad to see it go out the door.
 
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