Poll: best amp brand

[dave hope]

Seriously?
No Bergantino, HiWatt, Quilter or Phil Jones, etc.
But Blackstar and Peavey are listed?
This is a serious vs. popular chat-line, right?

 

[Jazzdogg]

Best amp for whom? For what purpose?

If your poll is intended to determine whether certain brands have a baked-in sound, the answers are unlikely to be helpful without some kind of context.

 

[bigshiny]

• Other.
• James Demeter.

Period.

 

[Hot Rats]

I chose Fender because they just came out with a 50 watt tube combo and that's cool as hell.

 

[Tim Skaggs]

If you changed the poll question from “best” to “most reliable”, I would expect a big shift in numbers.

 

[JohnnyBottom]

I won. I picked Mesa and Other

 

[ezstep]

No answer. There is a best one for this application or that application, but to pick one "best" is an exercise in futility.

 

[swrbass5]

Although I’m currently using Aguilar / Accugroove right now,… in my opinion, the amps that really changed the world of bass tone are probly SWR and Eden.

 

[madmaskbass]

I voted mesa just because I will always be happy as long as I own one of these amps and have been a massive fan and owner for over 20 years... but it also isnt my end game rig so it makes it a bit tricky. If there was one brand that I would happily suggest though for incredible tone it is mesa for bass and guitar. They might not be the best at everything but anything that beats them needs to be pretty special.

 

[LowEndThrasher]

For me, it comes down to Orange and Ampeg. Unbeatable tones in both. However, preamps have made it where I can get most any tone I need through any rig. All amps are great, but if I had to pick one, it’s Orange for me.

 

[4andnomore]

I've always liked the sound of carrots.

 

[Doug4321]

I always used to get Peavy amps. More watts per dollar! Also, more knobs to adjust per dollar. I had a head that was like thousands (?) of watts and two cabinets each with 2x15”.

More recently messing with amps at the store, they all sounded kind of the same but kinda not….. settled on a Fender Rumble, partially based on features. But that didn’t include some of these more rare and expensive choices.

Kind of surprising so much Mesa popularity. I did not know that.

 

[Ellery]

Genz Benz!
Out of production but still out there in the used market.
My Shuttle 6.0 is a beast!

 

[Chickenwheels]

My backline rider minimum is 200watts and a 15” driver. Anything else is gravy. I own ancient GK amps and can’t see that changing because a spade is a spade when you’re shoveling coal.

 

[DaveParker39]

I voted Fender, just because the Rumble line just consistently sounds great, is super portable, giggable, and checks so many boxes.

Lots of great amps though. Who wouldn't want the ability to plug into an SVT 8x10, the latest in Mesa Technology, a classic GK Stack, Guy Pratt's thunderous Ashdown rig, an Orange AD200B, or a 70's 2x15 Peavey Full Stack.

Also... where's SWR? I'd love to take a ride on an SM-1500 into some Goliaths and Triads. Just wouldn't want to move em around.

 

[logdrum]

Yeah I know, popularity contest? And an Ampeg B15 is a far cry from their 1x10 solid state practice amp. But anyways……

What I really wonder is, does a particular brand have a signature sound? Do they all sound the same if you tweak the eq just right? In that case just go with your preferred features and don’t worry about the tone?

It is a popularity contest specially if you don't define the parameters and classification of these parameters.

Then you also defined scope. Best in America, Europe or best on TB or best globally.

Even within manufacturers there are good and bad amps depending on the tier and model

In short there is no best.

Rest of the World, it probably is the Fender Rumble. Why? Availability, brand recognition, features and price per feature, availability and affordability. Then usable tone that is based on the Fender tone stack. Plus gigability, acceptable reliability. They are used by humble little bands in a small Caribbean country to international touring acts. It may not be the TB darling.

 

[superheavyfunk]

Prediction: Ampeg, Mesa, and GK will win and in that order.

 

[logdrum]

Best cranked loud is probably GK. They also have the lowest THD when the master is on 10

 

[mikewalker]

Traynor!

 

[johnnynitro]

I'll Always be an Ampeg fan. But I know that their all good. It's Different Strokes for Different Folks !!