Category: Amp It Up

The magical beast that turns potential into sheer tone!

Posted on

BluGuitar Amp1 Mercury Demo

Thomas Blug – the Stratocaster King of Europe – has been working on the next generation of his all-analogue Amp1 amp-in-a-pedal. He sat down with Henning, and they’ve done a great demo of the new version.

In this video, they compare the Amp1 Mercury with some of the amps from Henning’s collection – by tone matching the Amp1. Thomas dials in the tones while Henning plays.

The results are impressive.

I lost count of how many times Henning either couldn’t tell the difference between the Amp1 and his amps, or when he simply guessed wrong. In the room, he was clearly impressed – and I couldn’t tell the difference when I watched the video either.

Henning also made an important point that’s worth highlighting. In this video, he’s running the Amp1 into the UAD OX. All too often, demos of the Amp1 use the unit’s DI out, and that’s partially responsible for the lack of interest in the Amp1 in the past.

Even if you’re not interested in the Amp1, this video is worth watching just to watch how Thomas dials in each tone he’s matching. Not only a great player, but also great knowledge and understanding too.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Henning’s video.

Posted on

Morgan MVP23 Combo Amp Demo

Shawn Tubbs has posted a demo of Joe Morgan’s MVP23 combo amp – and this one has killer tones.

The MVP23 is a 23W combo amp, featuring 12ax7 preamp tubes and an EL84 power section, with a G12H-75 Greenback speaker. It has a really neat, interactive preamp gain and poweramp volume section, which allows you to dial in your own preference of where you get the drive from.

This isn’t a master volume amp. The output volume is controlled via an infinitely variable power soak. As Shawn demonstrates, you can turn the amp down in volume without affecting the tone at all.

These controls together offer a practical, easy-to-dial and flexible setup. Oh – and it takes pedals well too (thanks Shawn for covering that!)

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Shawn’s video.

Posted on

Marshall Origin 20 Demo

Not long how until Marshall’s new Origin series of amps launch! Demo units are starting to go out to the YouTube gear community, and Burgs has just posted his demo of this highly anticipated amp.

The Marshall Origin series has the potential to become the de facto pedal platform amp for a generation. It’s very competitively priced, and (unlike Fender amps) it also comes as an amp head. You could get an Origin head, a Two Notes Captor, and run that into your DAW for silent home recording.

Sadly, this demo doesn’t show us how well the Origin works as a pedal platform. But if you want to hear the Origin as an a stand-alone amp, Burgs does a great job of showing us what this can do.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Burgs’ demo.

Posted on

Does The Boss Katana Take Drive Pedals?

Adam and Tom for AStrings have responded to a YouTube comment: does the Boss Katana take drive pedals well?

The Boss Katana is an amp that’ll be on the list of possible amps for home tone fans. It’s very affordable, sounds very good, and is full of digital effects to give you lots of options.

And, when you’re ready to explore different tones, using drive pedals is one way to do so.

So how does the Boss Katana do? Watch the video to find out, and then please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Posted on

Dialling In A Classic Marshall Amp Tone

Jeff McErlain has posted a demo of how he dials in his Marshall amp to get those classic tones.

Jeff shows us how he sets up his amp to suit his neck pickup first, with the gain set to leave plenty of room for picking dynamics. From there, he uses the tone and volume controls on his guitars to get the bridge pickup sounding great without sounding too harsh. And finally, he sticks a Klone in front of the amp as a clean boost for lead tones.

This is a fantastic video if you’re chasing these classic tones.

Watch the video for full details of how Jeff does this, and then please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Posted on

Vox AV30 Amp Demo

Shane over at In The Blues has finally (his words!) gotten his hands on a Vox AV30 hybrid amp to demo.

The Vox AV30 is an affordable two channel hybrid amp. It features a real valve preamp section and a solid state power amp section to keep the cost right down. There’s built-in modulation, delay and reverb settings – very handy if this is your first amp or your spare practice-at-home amp.

Watch the video for Shane’s full demo and discussion, and then please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Posted on

PRS MT 15 Amp Demo

Shawn Tubbs has taken a look at the new PRS MT 15 amp. These were announced at NAMM, and look very interesting indeed.

This is Mark Tremonti’s new signature amp, featuring a Fender-style clean channel with 3 band EQ and a lead channel with melt-your-face levels of aggressive gain. It runs a pair of 6L6s in the power stage – very unusual in a 15 watt amp – and 5 preamp tubes.

Sadly, we don’t get to hear if it takes pedals well. That’s a shame, because this lunchbox head will launch in June for under 500 GBP. There’s nothing from Fender to compete at that price. Pair it with a Marshall Origin, and you could have a dual-amp pedal platform at an amazing price.

Watch the video for more details, and then head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment.

Posted on

Era 2 Acoustic Amp Demo

Mary Spender has posted a demo of the Era 2 Acoustic Amp from Hughes & Kettner.

https://youtu.be/W-ZBtGZzwsM

This is a dual-channel amp for anyone who wants to do acoustic gigs and performances. There’s plenty of volume on tap, a line out if you’re playing a venue that has its own PA, and even a kick stand so that you can angle it up to fill the room.

If you’re looking for this kind of amp, this is well worth a look.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed Mary’s video.

Posted on

Kemper vs Tube Amp

Camilo Velandia has posted an interesting comparison video. He’s made a Kemper profile of his Indigo Amps El Mariachi, and then put them side by side for comparison.

Have a listen, and see whether you can hear the differences between the two.

Please head over to YouTube to leave a like and a supportive comment if you enjoyed his video.

Posted on

AxeFX III Initial Demos

Camilo Velandia has received his Axe FX III, and has posted several videos to show what it can do at launch. A couple in particular are of general interest, whether you own an Axe FX unit or not.

In the first video, Camilo compares quite a few of the stock amp presets from the new AxeFX III vs the older Axe FX II. To my ears, they’re almost identical.

That’s no sleight on the AxeFX III at all. Folks upgrading from the older unit will want reassurance that the tones they know and love are still there.

https://youtu.be/w5Ymqdetopc

In the second video, Camilo does a straight shootout of the Axe FX III amp models against highly-respected Kemper profiles. It’s not quite an apples-to-apples comparison, but it does reflect how the two units are used in practice.

The results are a bloodbath.

All the problems of the Kemper’s limited frequency reproduction are front and centre. The Axe FX III has all the body and definition that the Kemper has always lacked. It sounds richer, crisper, and more detailed.

I wonder how many more years Kemper can continue to ship the MK 1 unit? The Kemper’s main defence has always been that you can’t hear most of these differences in a full mix. And, indeed, a recorded Kemper is actually easier to mix that a more accurate tone, in my experience.

Please head over to YouTube to leave likes and supportive comments if you enjoyed Camilo’s videos.