To create guitar amplification back in the middle of last century, guitar amplifiers used valves (frequently referred to as tubes) to produce the power they needed.

These valves are what you used to see in old radios from the 50’s and early 60’s, before transistors were developed which then lead to solid state circuitry being used in amps in order to generate amplification.

Solid state circuitry is now very common in the majority guitar amps you find in shops today.

The reason why is because solid state is cheap to produce, and for entry level musos it enables them to get started with a guitar amp that doesn’t break the bank.

These consumer type entry level guitar amps do have a weakness though in that the sound they deliver can be thin and a little concocted – even though you get a lot of wizardry included such as crazy fx and distortions.

With a solid state amp the sound is of course manufactured, and hence there has been a subsequent movement back towards the original design guitar amplifier, powered using valves (tubes) which deliver a warmer and fuller analog sound – which in one word is called tone.

All guitarists worth their salt will at one time or another attempt to discover and develop their own sound, their own tone so to speak and most will head down this road by searching out and acquiring a tube based amplifier.

An awesome entry level tube amplifier would be the Vox ac15. Not only is it easy to move around being a single speaker 15 watt valve amplifier, but it can produce enough grunt to be able to be heard along with the rest of a small group.As a soloist jazz or blues player this Vox ac15 is perfect for small gigs such as cafe’s or restaurants. Don’t be confused by the 15 watts either, this is equal to more like a 40-50 watt solid state amplifier.

Most tube amps you should have cranked up to around 60-75% of their volume as this is normally there most efficient range where they deliver the warmest tones.

Moving up in performance you can try the Vox ac30 amplifier, with 30 watts of tube grunt.
These Vox tube amps use the same design as when they were first produced and they accompanied the British band invasion of the ’60’s.

The ac30 is in effect a reissue from 45 odd years ago which confirms the saying that old guitarists give out before their amps do.

Next on the lineup is the Orange Rockerverb 50, basically a head and cabinet unit squeezed into a tube combo amplifier with tons of power yet still light enough to move it around single handedly.

A large number of well known musicians such as Madonna and Prince, use these tube amplifiers in their bands. Being versatile enough to be used both on stage or in the studio, this amp suits Blues, Rock, Rock’n’roll and pop music enabling you to develop your own tone and style.

Bugera 6262 Tube Electric Guitar Amp Demo by Armand

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