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Are modern amps "harsher"?

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pigpen1

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Aug 2, 2017
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#1
I think they are. I really do. It's been discussed to death on here before in the context of class D vs everything else and the discussion always ends with people saying its not the class of the amp, but the designer's choices. Having said that, are modern designs trending "harsher"?

I feel like the emphasis on warm, round sounding tones has taken a backseat to clarity? I quite playing for a long time and when I started again, I noticed this immediately.
 
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#5
Deak said:
Play around with a D800 or D800+ and 2x115 SW Cabs. Be sure and jack up the volume, flip the deep switch then watch your warm round sound drop you to your knees. Plus you still get the clarity.

Mesa, great stuff.

For myself I put a LeBass Pre in front. Reminds me of my old Sunn S200 warmth.
Click to expand...
I own a d800+. I'm currently playing with an aggie db212. Doesn't seem to go well together. My tone hammer seemed better with it tbh.
 
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#6
pigpen1 said:
I think they are. I really do. It's been discussed to death on here before in the context of class D vs everything else and the discussion always ends with people saying its not the class of the amp, but the designer's choices. Having said that, are modern designs trending "harsher"?

I feel like the emphasis on warm, round sounding tones has taken a backseat to clarity? I quite playing for a long time and when I started again, I noticed this immediately.
Click to expand...

If you start with what you're calling 'clarity' you can get clean warm by cutting highs with EQ. You often can't do the opposite.
 
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#7
It all depends on what you mean by harsh I guess. For the flats loving, tweeter hating crowd (;) nothing but love guys, I get it), I could totally see rigs with an extended frequency response - particularly in terms of high-frequency content as coming across as harsher to many ears.

If the harshness is due to a perceived "sterile" sounding ultra clean tone, then I could also see certain modern, high-wattage, super-clean amps being guilty by that definition.

Mind you, I'm not talking about amp class or anything, just things that personally associate with a "modern" sounding rig (it actually has nothing to do with the age of gear really).

In most cases a few knob turns, and maybe a few dollars in outboard gear can make a huge difference.

Just my 2c.
 
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#9
Raw N Low said:
Most amps today are run by software to give the amp the characteristics and style.
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Most? I don't know... sure many amps have emulation circuitry built into them, but I'd say that the vast majority are still all analog. At this point in time I believe that amps utilizing digital processing are actually still pretty few and far between. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong.
 
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#10
Kro said:
Most? I don't know... sure many amps have emulation circuitry built into them, but I'd say that the vast majority are still all analog. At this point in time I believe that amps utilizing digital processing are actually still pretty few and far between. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

I could be missing the mark as well, and I should have mentioned that it's my opinion. As more and more companies get on the class D band wagon, I believe it will come down to digital flexibility. What can the amp do in a studio, home practice, and at live gigs in addition to being portable.

In relation to the OP, more and more great sounding solid state amps are showing up. Tech 21, Ampeg , Peavey, and Carvin have been trying to pioneer SVT and tube sounding products that emulate the real legendary builds and products. All in one digital products are down the pike.
 
#11
If you ever have a chance, you owe it to yourself to try a vintage B-15N such as this 1964, then decide.

They drip tone, ooze harmonics, and define the classic sound of bass.



1964 Ampeg B15N.jpg



They also come in green. :laugh:

Green_B-15NC.jpg
 
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#12
Raw N Low said:
I could be missing the mark as well, and I should have mentioned that it's my opinion. As more and more companies get on the class D band wagon, I believe it will come down to digital flexibility. What can the amp do in a studio, home practice, and at live gigs in addition to being portable.

In relation to the OP, more and more great sounding solid state amps are showing up. Tech 21, Ampeg , Peavey, and Carvin have been trying to pioneer SVT and tube sounding products that emulate the real legendary builds and products. All in one digital products are down the pike.
Click to expand...

Digital processing does seem to be a growing trend, though a very slow moving one in this industry IMO.

There are many many things in my life that are software driven and I love them. Hell, I built my last computer for fun, and I can’t remember or imagine what life was like before having a computer in my pocket at all times. With that being said, at the risk of sounding like a luddite, there are a few areas of my life where, for whatever reason, I resist digital advances – two that immediately come to mind being my wrist and my bass rig.

I don’t know, at least as it stands, the ongoing software lifecycle of bug squashing, patches, compatibility and firmware updates just seem to add an unnecessary level of complexity and unreliability that I don’t find attractive when it comes to bass gear - at least not for live performance use. Maybe in time that feeling will change. For now, you mentioned a bunch of amps that emulate tone without software processing – they’re doing a good enough job (understatement), that I’m not so sure widespread demand will force the market to change quickly any time soon.

Sorry for the derail. Now back to your regularly scheduled programming. :)
 
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#14
The di/headphone of my mesa is great. Through every can I've try it through it is sterile, dry and seemliy uber hot above 1k. I end up running the treble at 9:00 cut hi miss and the. Tweeter almost all the way off.
 
#18
Raw N Low said:
The missing key word is "emulation" under technology. Most amps today are run by software to give the amp the characteristics and style.
Click to expand...

Really??? Ummm, I don't think so.

Kro said:
Most? I don't know... sure many amps have emulation circuitry built into them, but I'd say that the vast majority are still all analog. At this point in time I believe that amps utilizing digital processing are actually still pretty few and far between. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong.
Click to expand...

They are very few and far between. Emulation of particular aspects can be done in the digital or analog realm, most current designers tend to stick with the analog world until there's a very compelling reason to migrate towards digital.

pigpen1 said:
The di/headphone of my mesa is great. Through every can I've try it through it is sterile, dry and seemliy uber hot above 1k. I end up running the treble at 9:00 cut hi miss and the. Tweeter almost all the way off.
Click to expand...

One challenge with headphones, and this is a general comment, is that with the diaphragm right up next to the ear canal many headphones will sound brighter because there is less high frequency losses. Rolling off the high eq a little will generally get you to a better place, but it does depend on the headphones you are using.
 
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#19
My little Fender 40 sounds utterly great when it is played loud, through the speaker. So responsive! But I have to play volume down, and usually through budget phones, because I don't live in the middle of a 40-acre ranch and my neighbors are nice people. Under those conditions--thin, fizzy, flat. Loud fixes a lot.

Another random opinion--a lot of people are trying to get the sound of a an old recording board and a old compressor from their amp. That vast, cavernous depth, and the cavern is lined with velvet. Not gonna get t!
 
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