I think in an ideal world weād all have a rack of valve power heads and a UA Ox or something but thatās not likely.
And many people who do have that di to a pc and use plugins over dry because itās still more versatileā¦
I want a tube amp same reason I want a real r9 Gibson burst but itās not practical or rational haha
I have no idea what you said there.
Direct Input ie Guitar into AI into PC/DAW no amp involved. DI is a dry input as no effects.
Wet refers to input that has gone through various FX on or many.
Yep - far more versatile for recording. You can re-amp it and add whatever effects/levels of reverb you like later.
The comments on tubes being better than modellingā¦ thatās only true for some el-cheapo modellers. Not the good stuff.
Youāve got guys like Metallica, Offspring, John Mayer, Joe Satrianiā¦ using modellers to record albums and play live. They wouldnāt do that if they didnāt sound great.
Iām not a spring chicken but reasonably adept computer wise, Iād love to get any use at all out of my Quad Cortex which Iāve had now for 2 years and I will do one day I guess, I also have a Boss Katana Mk2
I see both sides and gigging musicians are using the modellers now to great effect now that they supposedly sound so similar to the real thing, whether you get the feel or not I donāt actually know, my stumbling block every time I approach one of these pieces of kit is the dreaded menu, basically I have an hour to practice and for me I donāt want that time to be taken up just getting a sound I like, I will one day set half a day aside to go through and try and dial something in but I also feel it will be similar in tone to my regular amps but weāll see, an advantage is lower volumes through the monitors if your receiving household complaints I guess 
both options have a place for the individual, Iām sure of that ā¦
The trick here is to set up a few patches and just use those.
And, aside from the menus (it can help to use a PC based editor) this should be as easy as setting up a tone on a traditional amp.
The trick is to start with an empty patch, just add an amp model (maybe a cabinet and mic too) and then focus on getting a sound you like from that amp and cabinet.
That will be using the gain control and the EQ controls, just as on a conventional amp.
If you do this, you should be able to come up with a handful of tones you like which you can then store as patches and recall for future use (and you donāt need the PC any more).
The only other challenge with a modelling system is you have a selection of amp models to choose from, whereas with a physical amp you only have one (unless you have more than one physical amp).
IMO thatās a case of picking one that you vaguely like the sound of, and using that as your base tone.
Typically you would want a clean (maybe edge of breakup) tone, a slightly higher gain crunch tone, and a lead tone which is much higher gain.
From there, if you wanted, you could add simple boost or distortion pedals to the patch. But the trick is to add one thing at a time and play with it a bit, and work out how to use it (and if you need it) before adding anything else.
Itās pretty much what you would do with a physical amp and pedals, except you donāt have to go to the shop and buy them, cable them up, attach them to power, etc.
Cheers,
Keith
I think they both have their place. I own and use both. The new tech is very convenient and has a lot going for it. I find the old tech more inspiring and satisfying to play, though.
Thanks Keith
Iāll definitely give it a go, Iām thinking of capturing my amps too, I need to book myself a day dedicated to faffing around, I agree, just a few base tones and build from there
Cheers
Glyn
Yep, I get that for sure. I just donāt want to deal with menus. I just wanna plug in and play with good tone.
Iām sure these new modelers and guitar processors produce some great tones. Myself, I just donāt wanna have to learn to use them as Iām not big into tech and it pretty much bums me out when I have to read a manual or have someone tell me how I should be using my gear. Heck, Iām so bad I could go back to a rotary dial telephone and not be unhappy. Well, almost anyways.
volume, eq, reverb, tremolo is pretty much what I want or need for amps that I have.
+
Iām a bit concerned about these new amps when they fail. My concern is that they will be like my smart phone or my computer or my tv. When they fail, and they will I assume. I just go get a new one. Will that be the same for these computer driven amps, processors?
Ultimately, yes, but I would expect them to have at least a 5 to 10 year life. And, frankly, the same is going to be for the cheaper tube amps out there: they just arenāt made to be easily repaired.
On the other hand, they typically cost 4-5 times less than similar repairable tube amps so, even if you have to replace them every 5 years (worst case) then you get 20 years of life from them for the same cost. And, in reality, itās probably going to me more. I gave a away a modelling amp recently that was probably 12 years old and still in perfectly working order.
Cheers,
Keith
Agreed, thatās about the lifespan of my telephone or computer. In my experience.
I also agree about the repair costs of tube amps. They will fail too at some point (tubes for sure fail). I may be weird, but I get attached to this phone or that tv. When it fails and I gotta get a new one it just starts the learning process all over again with the new tech. Gotta get familiar with the new phone or tv or amp.
Like I said, I just wanna plug and play.
With my amps, I will likely have to spend some bread on them over time, but assuming itās fixed proper I should go back to square one with gear that Iām familiar with, tone that I already like. That makes me happy.
While I try to embrace change. It still is difficult for me, sometimesā¦
And thatās entirely fine. All I can say is enjoy what you enjoy. You donāt have to justify it to anyone except yourself.
Cheers,
Keith
I use a combination of both technologies, I have a nice Bugera 5W (with 1W & 0.1 options) tube amp and a Hotone Mojo Diamond 5W S/S amp plus a Blackstar BEAM and a Harley Benton S/S Bass amp, plus the Sonicake Matribox multi Fx (which can go straight into GarageBand). I can get any of my combinations into Speakers or GarageBand and get decent results.
I personally donāt think you should restrict yourself to one technology or the other, both work well and can sound pretty decent with careful choice.
I always used to use Tube amps years gone by but as technology progressed I became more receptive to the alternatives. The Orange Crush amps were my first real experience with S/S amps and as theyāre designed as Analogue, they really do sound good. The only thing that took some getting used to was the power rating, a good 5W tube amp can be as loud as a 20W S/S amp 
What I would advise anyone is to try stuff out, donāt buy before you try, you could easily get a bit of a surprise (especially with how loud a valve amp is).
I agree on the valve amp volume, it can become the Bain of your life or reduce the playing feel when someone [the wife] ask for it to be turned down a little bit and the dynamic range and natural sag and compression just disappear from your tone, I use attenuation which gets me there but again, you can attenuate but the speaker still needs to be pushing enough air to get the benefit of the wonderful tone you spend hours crafting, so it is a balancing act, I am going to make a concerted effort though with my quad cortex which Iāve decided to be Octobers mission given Iām away for the next 2 weekends on the bounce, one with work and one pleasure, I have a Seymour Duncan power amp for this I saw as a tip once so your not restricted to using your interface and monitors which gives the freedom to plug into one of your regular non powered favourite cabs, I also see Kemper do a FRFR powered cabinet which might be interesting