Fender deLuxe Hot Rod ,2002

[Mr. Land]

Maybe you could classify it as 'intune' distortion (harmonious) and out
of tune distorion (dischordant) It`s all to do with the harmonics
produced when the signal breaks up - even and odd harmonics.

A really great guitar amplifier is alive, it has balls, it feels willing
to work. It`s responsive and eager, raring to go, the sound jumps out
and the tone comes naturally, it breathes with the player.  The
distortion slides in rich and creamy, it soars at the top and growls at
the bottom. It makes playing a real pleasure and easy.

A poor amplifier does none of these things and makes playing unrewarding
and dificult if you have to wring the tone out of the amp.

Of course it`s not just the amplifier which creates the sound, the
speaker itself adds to the distortion - those concentric ridges on the
cone of a guitar speaker help to make the speaker 'trash out' at lower
volumes, and the guitar itself will have a distinctive tone. There`s a
wide variation in the output levels of various brands of guitar pickup.
Also the way an instrument is played makes a difference, a heavy handed
player will get a more strident heavy tone than a delicate picker.

All these variants work together in producing an individuals tone

Needless to say, an amplifier which gives you a near perfect
reproduction of the input signal isnt what guitarists are looking for.

I concur with this statement - and I have proof, namely that one,
single time
when I tried plugging a guitar into a stereo with essentially flat
20-20K
response. Bleah. It sounded...sterile.

 

[Ron(UK)]

Um, which one is this??? I want to get one....

It`s the one in the shop that jumps into your arms and says buy me, buy
me[1]. just like guitars and puppies, it`s all very subjective.

Some people love Fenders, some love Mesa Boogies, some people spend
thousands of pounds on bespoke amplifiers which are lovingly tailored to
their exact requirements.

Ron(UK)

[1] that was metaphorically speaking of course.

 

[msg]

you could perhaps form hard data for a given amplifier alone, but as I
pointed out earlier, the total sound relies on other factors, the
speakers, the output impedance, the load the speakers place on the
amplifier, all are dificult to quantify. even diferent makes of output
and preamplifier valves have their own distinctive sound - even valves
from the same maker can be graded into batches which sound diferently to
other batches.

A valve amplifier is a far more organic beast than a solid state device.

This is starting to look a little like the vinyl vs. cdrom debates of
some years back However, I agree with your description of the
multiplicity of factors in any given 'sound' and suggest that for
those combination of instruments/pickups/amps/speakers/cabinets that
produce notable 'sounds', these would have been studied in anechoic chambers
with skilled musicians and engineers participating. Not everything
can be expected to evolve empirically and organically. In our area we
have several noted vacuum tube audio equipment developers who have
impressively instrumented facilities for studying the gear. One would
hope that part of their job is to document the acoustics and electrical
response of notable gear in order to reproduce it and adjust its
characteristics to a musician's tastes. Understanding the variables
and how they interact would permit subsequent designs to evolve
with more predictability and over a shorter period at less cost.

Michael

 

[Arfa Daily]

Maybe you could classify it as 'intune' distortion (harmonious) and out
of tune distorion (dischordant) It`s all to do with the harmonics
produced when the signal breaks up - even and odd harmonics.

A really great guitar amplifier is alive, it has balls, it feels willing
to work. It`s responsive and eager, raring to go, the sound jumps out
and the tone comes naturally, it breathes with the player. The
distortion slides in rich and creamy, it soars at the top and growls at
the bottom. It makes playing a real pleasure and easy.

A poor amplifier does none of these things and makes playing unrewarding
and dificult if you have to wring the tone out of the amp.

Of course it`s not just the amplifier which creates the sound, the
speaker itself adds to the distortion - those concentric ridges on the
cone of a guitar speaker help to make the speaker 'trash out' at lower
volumes, and the guitar itself will have a distinctive tone. There`s a
wide variation in the output levels of various brands of guitar pickup.
Also the way an instrument is played makes a difference, a heavy handed
player will get a more strident heavy tone than a delicate picker.

All these variants work together in producing an individuals tone

Needless to say, an amplifier which gives you a near perfect
reproduction of the input signal isnt what guitarists are looking for.

I concur with this statement - and I have proof, namely that one,
single time
when I tried plugging a guitar into a stereo with essentially flat
20-20K
response. Bleah. It sounded...sterile.

Probably, in no small part, because it was a solid state amp ...

Arfa

 

[Arfa Daily]

I look for a little crossover distortion when a client wants an early
breakup. Have a look at this blokes site;

http://www.eurotubes.com/index.htm


And view the "How To" biasing demos. This is exactly how I have been doing
it for years.

Yes, me too. I would suggest that this is a very good site to go to, if you
don't understand the importance of bias and headroom. Many 'muso' terms are
used, and it is very obvious what they mean when seen in the context of what
Bob is up to.

Definitely on "Arfa's recommended reading list" now ! Thanks for pointing me
at it.

Arfa