Solid state or tube amp? What's better? Or worse..

There’s a lot of confusion surrounding the solid-state vs. tube amp debate. So, what's the story?

It all begins in 1962, when a company from........ I'm kidding! It's simple:

SOLID STATE:

- high-power
- will play loud, but once they reach their upper limits, the distortion produced is not very musical (generally) (BUT some SS amps come with Soft limiters)
- solid state gear is built with enough headroom to avoid overdriving (will play pretty loud but can eventually begin to sound a bit sketchy, don’t play a solid state amp louder than what it is intended for)
- if you pay attention and don’t play your solid state amp too loud, it shouldn’t be a problem
- if you want a cheap, simple solution, buy a quality solid-state combo amp
- very reliable on the road conditions (gigs)


TUBE:

- more expensive than solid state
- more fragile
- tube amps will produce a much more pleasing overdrive
- you can play tube amps much louder and still receive the clean cut sound that you desire
- tubes sound warm (because they generate even-order harmonics)
- if you take a tube amp of X watts and over-drive it you can force more power above the X rating


What to choose? Well, depend on your budget, of course. But what's even more important, you have to like it. It can be the worst amp for somebody, but if it suits you, take it!

Be careful:
- it's impossible to judge volume from being in a music store
- you'll never be able to try every amp out there (and there's no need to), so choose one and start jamming!
- remember use the one that moves you....

Enjoy!