Why Guitar Players Are Throwing Away Their Amps

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[benjamin]

We want full guitar center story.

The people have spoken Mike, can’t ignore it.

[Mike-tohb]

I'm 68 and still playing a Fender Princeton Reverb with a Fender Telecaster and a bunch of pedals. I think I'll stick to that. It has served me well. Your videos are great though. Thanks for the knowledge.

[andyhayes]

After 40 years of using Marshal and Fender amps I converted to helix about three years ago. It’s easy to use, no more back aches, and people say my tone sounds better than ever. My amps are now gathering dust in my in my garage but I just can’t make myself get rid of them.

[gregscottperry]

I've been using a Boss ME-80 for about two months. It's very easy to dial in a usable tone and it's much easier to travel with for a 68 year old man. Thank you for your commitment to share information.

[amphitheatre]

The pure versatility of modelers is unmatched. Plus most people are able to get more amp and effects options from a modeler than they could ever afford in real life. It's really amazing that people can record the sound of a cranked tube amp in their bedrooms with modeling units and a laptop.

[juanpaju]

I recently ordered a pod go and im extremely excited, i never really had the financial capacity to invest into really good amps or pedals, so having it all in a small pedalboard that costs around 500 bucks is crazy, the facty that it can emulate things such as amps and even pedals like the klon centaur which are extremely expensive and rare is insane to me

[ryanvergara]

I'm a HD500x user for nearly a decade now and it has served me well in countless gigs. For its price and sound quality, the ROI I got was beyond imagining. As you said, the audience will not care if you have accurately nailed Eric Johnson's tone from whatever expensive gear you have or not. As long as you get the job done and earn a decent income from your life as a musician, that is enough.

[tomfoolery]

I'm considering "Slowly" transitioning to amp modeling/digital. I have about 175 pedals, about 7 tube amps and I've always love them. I am now divorced and living in a single apartment and the amp/pedalboard thing is not working out for me and my neighbors. I bought a little Spark Mini that I play thru and now record with and it sounds awesome. Thinking of selling some amps and pedals and diving into the digital world.

[ryanleeoakes]

I’ve had the Headrush core for a little over a week and I have to say that I love it! The versatility of using a cab and speaker emulation into my interface and achieving a tone that I love is fantastic. Then on a different channel I have no cab or speaker and I run straight into my Vox AC15 and use it as an effects pedal. Best of both worlds

[PrimitiveNoiseVideos]

I typically use a four-cable method with a bunch of pedals and a tube amp.

It sounds great, but whenever I had an issue during a gig, it was virtually impossible to troubleshoot quickly. I almost always had to scrap the whole thing and play the rest of the gig with one cable going from my guitar into the front of a backup amp.

Then I got a Helix.

I now run the line-out from the Helix into the effects return on my tube amp, and it gives me incredible tone and versatility with a super simple setup that eliminates almost 30 fail points from my previous four-cable method with pedals.

If my tube amp fails, I quickly replace it. If my backup amp fails, I can run the Helix straight to FOH (and through the stage monitors or IEM). If the Helix fails, I break out a couple of pedals.

I love simple, but mostly I love great tone.

My setup: Helix => 6V6 tube amp => 2x12 w/ Celestion Creamback speakers.

[GrayCities]

Got a HeadRush Prime a few months ago and I honestly can't ever see myself using an external amp again. Ended up selling almost all of my pedals and gear that I knew I would no longer use or have a need for. Not only are the built-in tones, effects, and amp models amazing, but there's a TON of resources out there where you can download new ones (some even for free) and even artist packages that perfectly emulate the tone of different songs from different artists if you do covers, or just really like the tone of the guitar used on a certain song and want to incorporate it into your own creations. It cost a pretty penny but so far has been unbelievably worth every cent.

[GiantSFaithfuL]

I was (and really still am) a major amp snob. I have a few vintage amps that are all absolutely phenomenal. I turned my nose up in 2016 when a good friend went Helix. I had heard the Line 6 Pod and a Johnson Millennium back in the day. Both sounds were lackluster and sounded very poor IMO. Fast forward to 2020 and I decided to pull the trigger on a Helix Floor. My mind was blown. I cannot believe that this unit is still the standard this far along. It has changed they way I create sounds because of the ease in which I can get any tone. But unlike those earlier products the reason I finally realized it was time to go this route... I COULDN'T PASS THE HEADPHONE TEST! When I was unable to tell which was a Marshall or Fender in my headphones I knew it was time. Best decision I ever made.

[MrTPF]

You're right about the learning curve. I'm a Baby Boomer and I've always had amps and effects with knobs and switches. I tried a couple of my Millennial and Gen Z buddys' digital units and the learning curve was just too steep for me. They had no issues with learning how to use them, and the units sounded great though.

[ICee]

I'm 68 years old and still using a 2x4 stud with fishing line (4 lb test up to 16 lb test mono - light gauge monofilament of course. tinkered with fluorocarbon but that's too new age for me). It's served me well. Thanks for the knowledge.

[RyanWright]

Been using a Helix (LT) for years now, and it is (still) absolutely amazing. It has just gotten better and better as they have done updates and added new models, and the versatility is amazing. Quite honeslty, I could never see myself going back to a regular amp/cab/pedalboard type set up. I am just hooked on the ability to switch from a fender clean to a marshal stack at the press of a footswitch.

I actually picked up a powercab+ and a Variax guitar a year or two ago, and that combo (Variax into Helix into Powercab+ with the "link" cables) is the ultimate in versatility IMO.

[billhuang]

I did it years ago as soon as I could get my hands on a Helix. Sold a tube amp and dozens of pedals. Now Helix only. Love it. For me, it's perfect. You didn't mention the firmware updates that give you new amps, pedals, and features with each update (about 2 a year). This is a PLATFORM for guitar tone driven by software. You're really discussing the difference between software solutions and hardware solutions. BTW, same with AxeFX and other modelers. Play what sounds good to you. For me, the convenience of changing dozens of settings with one stomp is unbeatable...ever!

[MarkGardnerBonnie]

Great video and content Mike.... three or four years ago there was a great debate on the merits of a Helix vs tube amps in our church band. One guy bought the Helix and loved it the other guys in the band were giving him crap for "selling out"... long story short... everyone owns a Helix now and absolutely love them. Plugging straight into the PA is another advantage.

[peaceman]

Love your video! I'm 50/50 on tubes vs modelers/profiles. Just gigged with a guy who the Kemper Profiler Stage & EVERY patch sounded PHENOMINAL!!

[steveliberty]

I made the transition because of volume. With a small tube amp, they were never loud enough to present clean tones. With a bigger tube amp, they were always too loud get get crunch tones from. With my HX Stomp and ToneX, I amplify with a class D power amp and a guitar cabinet. This arrangement lets me be as loud or as quiet as I need to be without sacrificing my tones.

[dreamscuba]

I remember trying an ElevenRack in a guitar shop for a friend and thinking, “wow, this feels like a real amp”…and I got one. I loved it. But the screen eventually died after 11 years. I have a Quad Cortex these days and love it.
I live in a small apartment with wafer thin walls. Even my Marshall tube amp on 0.1w is too loud a lot of the time, so the modeller works really well.
Great video.