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£26
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04-06-2026 02:49 PM
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wow V1 one I used for 4 years, not frequently but enough times, never let me down and I just gave it away to a friend, he's still using it. I upgraded to V2 and the sound is much better, and XLR, the boost, and on/off speaker simulator is much needed upgrade. Most importantly it's analog, I can't get on with digital. Boss ME 90, or 80?I also have, it works on batteries, but the sound is a joke, I never use it for anything serious.
Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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What can I say. I’m a very special person. Emphasis on Special. Originally Posted by Hep To The Jive
I was thinking about this a lot last night when I should have been sleeping and I think it’s a philosophy thing.I upgraded to V2 and the sound is much better, and XLR, the boost, and on/off speaker simulator is much needed upgrade. Most importantly it's analog, I can't get on with digital. Boss ME 90, or 80?I also have, it works on batteries, but the sound is a joke, I never use it for anything serious.
Putting aside the portability thing (which the Boss GT1 covers well and I am happy with it as a multi FX, and it’s pretty good as a DI) what I should buy is something like the Fractal FM3 or one of the older units used which are still absolutely killer and built like tanks.
(However the new AM4 doesn’t have an XLR - what is wrong with these people??)
That’s the pro standard digital solution.
However - what is quite tempting to me is just getting a purpose designed preamp. When I need to use one I’ll generally have power. So that puts me in the direction of the Tone King Imperial, which sounds fantastic. And the same price as a Fly Rig, though obviously without effects. But the gigs where I’d need it I’d be bringing my old school pedal board anyway.
So rather than going ‘does everything’ go high end single use.
But the only thing upwards of $200 that does what the Boss does (FX and amp modelling on battery power) is the more recent Boss. Which is still a cheap unit. And still no XLR. It’s interesting. Surely there’s a market for a deluxe version of this type of unit?
For me as a working player this unit has an everyday use case which the Fly Rig or for that matter any of the Fractal units can’t fulfil. Which is kind of interesting.
I suppose it’s battery multieffects that I mostly need it for. I suppose could run my board or any digital unit off a lithium ion battery. But it’s just another thing to bring to a gig.
Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkLast edited by Christian Miller; 04-07-2026 at 06:00 AM.
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Back on topic:
Below is a picture of my Alto TX308 Active Speaker. (350W powered Speaker
)
With:
TC Electronic Deluxe 65 preamp pedal. (Jack DI out with Cab sim)
SonicCake Acoustic Guitar Preamp pedal. (XLR DI out)
Both pedals have DI output, but the TC Electronic has IR (Cab sim). (An XLR adapter is used on the TC Electronic pedal.)
I mainly use the SonicCake for Acoustic and Acoustic Archtops with floating pickups.
The SonicCake preamp pedal is very clean, but maybe too sterile sounding, so I was thinking about getting the M-Wave IR (Cab sim) pedal with XLR out.
M-Wave IR (Cab sim) pedal with XLR output.
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the Tone King Imperial yes! It does sound fantastic, but has features that I don't need. USB, midi, stereo outputs, I never use it. It's quite bulky, so I can't put it in my guitar case along with other pedals. But it has tremolo, that I dig. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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Came here to nominate the DSM Simplifier mk2
will emulate the pre and power amp flavours of fender, Marshall or Vox. You can even mix and match pre and power sections of different flavours. Then you can adjust how hot each preamp or power section runs. Once you get that set you can adjust for presence and resonance. Finally you get to have 2 independent speaker channels. You get to select an emulation ranging from speaker style (think Jensen through to greenback) and cabinet styles (combo through to 4x12), and yes, they are XLR out or line out. There is a mono send and stereo return effects loop, you can bypass the cab simulation if you want,
it is the size of a standard Boss pedal
it is all analogue
most people look at the top and get confused by the name Simplifier. Use it for 2 minutes and you realise how intuitive and simple it is to select and adjust on the fly. Simplifier was a combination of the words simulate amplifier. But it is pretty simple in use.
there are bigger more complex “dual channel amplifiers” if you need.
it’s actually quite cool. Check it out.
emike
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I think most of the Deluxe reverb simulators on the market sound pretty good. Tbf SansAmp was doing that in the 80s. It’s easier to capture the sound of a squeaky clean black panel amp than trying to capture the special flatulence of a cranked Tweed or something. So we jazzers are well catered for here. Originally Posted by GuyBoden
Back on topic:
Below is a picture of my Alto TX308 Active Speaker. (350W powered Speaker)
With:
TC Electronic Deluxe 65 preamp pedal. (Jack DI out with Cab sim)
SonicCake Acoustic Guitar Preamp pedal. (XLR DI out)
Both pedals have DI output, but the TC Electronic has IR (Cab sim). (An XLR adapter is used on the TC Electronic pedal.)
I mainly use the SonicCake for Acoustic and Acoustic Archtops with floating pickups.
The SonicCake preamp pedal is very clean, but maybe too sterile sounding, so I was thinking about getting the M-Wave IR (Cab sim) pedal with XLR out.
M-Wave IR (Cab sim) pedal with XLR output.
I tend to prefer the analog units but this maybe confirmation bias. I play the Quilter Superblock US a lot on gigs which will do double duty as a preamp and amp head. I was using the Tweed setting yesterday, which is great too. It has an XLR but I the speaker sim is analog/EQ based I think and mono. I’m not into it for recording.
That said, I strongly expect an old school analog speaker sim (ala SansAmp/American Sound, H&K, Quilter etc) will be fine for live work.
The big issue for me comes with the way the amp simulator interacts with dirt pedals - which may not be much of a consideration for jazz players. I do play dirty quite a bit and have pedals I like for this.
The higher end units (Tone King, UA) etc seem to do a better job of handling this. The Quilter, sadly, is not good at this.
I’d rather switch to a digital unit in this case and just build the sound in there.Last edited by Christian Miller; 04-07-2026 at 07:18 AM.
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I’m a dinosaur in terms of my actual needs - I like the old COSM sounds Roland/Boss had 20 years ago. I have a little Roland micro cube and all the sounds are super usable. Put that in a preamp. Job done for me lol.
They don’t make units for people like me. The market is dominated by a 50/50 split between downtuned chuggers who never leave the house and cork sniffing blues dads who all travel to their one a gig a year by stretch Humvee.
Change my mind!
Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkLast edited by Christian Miller; 04-07-2026 at 07:52 AM.
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Guitar - X - Powered Speaker
always curious why so many people prefer to spend time on this puzzle rather then just use a good ‘ol combo amp
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I’m not sure why anyone would bother for rehearsal and bar gigs. For me it’s more when there’s a PA at the venue and I'm not driving. Otherwise I’d bring my amp of course. (Sometimes there's a nice amp at the gig, which is increasingly common these days.) Originally Posted by alltunes
In theory, separating the amp, power amp and speaker in some way is better idea than a combo. You have way more flexibility, swap in speakers and pre amps and/or power amps as the need arises. Despite my moaning, I've been doing this for a while and there's great advantages. The Quilter/TOOB thing is by and large absolutely great (and isn't class D which is a bonus IMO.)
But I still don't think it gets as good as my Fender because of the way it behaves with pedals as I've said - and also because some the characteristic sound of Fender amps is actually in the cab. The Quilter preamp is as close as dammit to my ears, when I A/B them through the same speaker. And a wood cab is obviously going to be heavier than a piece of PVC piping. Pace Gitterbug, he does wonders with that stuff and the speakers do sound really good.
In general, tube amps are obviously heavier than solid state, which is a consideration for me, as driving into town here isn't something you want to do if you can avoid it.
But then there's the Tonemaster Princeton. Which has …. drum roll….
A cab simulated XLR output!!!!!!
And then plug that into FOH.
I’ve played through both the Princeton and Twin versions a lot live and no complaints. If you want to go combo, and you play live a lot, that's the way to go IMO.
Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkLast edited by Christian Miller; 04-07-2026 at 08:18 AM.
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The power amp section of Quilters are class D. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
I don't quite follow why having an XLR output (as opposed to 1/4") for plugging a line-level signal into a mixer matters. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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Some observations:
1. Since I have to bring something for vocals, why not a powered speaker that also works as a guitar amp? That is, if you can make it sound good. I've gotten quite stubborn about that for no good reason.
2. The powered speaker I use has a hiZ input. But, since I also use an ME70 pedal board with 2k ohm output impedance, I can go into any of the inputs. The impedance match isn't textbook, but sounds ok to me.
3. The GX1 has 1k output impedance, which should be good. The volume pedal on the GT1 was difficult to position precisely. And, it was too easy to accidentally get into the wrong patch -- I'd have worked that out eventually, but the volume pedal sweep issue was a deal breaker.
4. For the sounds I use, the ME70 sounds about as good as the ME80 or ME90. I gather that this opinion is somewhat short of universal. For the record, I didn't like the preamp or distortion sounds of any of them. Mostly, I use reverb and harmonizer. I also like having the four band EQ on the ME70, although I usually don't need it. The later models have three band EQ.
5. The Joyo American is also listed as 1k output impedance. Lately, I've tried putting it between the ME70 and the HiZ input of the JBL Eon One Compact, which seems to work, although it's not clear to me I need the hiZ input for this chain. Given that the output impedance is low enough, would it be correct to assume that it will work fine, for reasonably short cable runs, without the XLR or balanced 1/4" output?
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I thought so - they aren’t apparently Originally Posted by John A.
I mean you can work around it, but I’d always rather have one. And I think most live sound people would too.I don't quite follow why having an XLR output (as opposed to 1/4") for plugging a line-level signal into a mixer matters.
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A dinosaur would have a 1960's Fender Tube amp. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
I had a Fender Deluxe Reverb for over 20 years, a great sounding amp, but heavy. When I was aged 60 and beyond, I knew it was time to change Amps or my back would be in constant agony.
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Quilter IS using Class D power amps
What’s the Magic Behind Quilter Amps? – George Dyer
(whether they use the ICE module or make their own is another question)
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I think you are right. Not sure where I got that idea from, I remember reading something.
Obviously the amp is very small and light.
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Duplicate
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Well that’s what I mean? Originally Posted by GuyBoden
A dinosaur would have a 1960's Fender Tube amp.
I had a Fender Deluxe Reverb for over 20 years, a great sounding amp, but heavy. When I was aged 60 and beyond, I knew it was time to change Amps or my back would be in constant agony.
My rig is a 65 PRRI with pedals into it. Sometimes I use a Twin.
I get a digital unit and I use in that exact way. Amp at the end of the chain, pedals into it.
The young guys might be using all sorts of presets, and complex ways of routing things. A different amp for a lead tone than a rhythm tone or a clean sound. And I just go - hurrrr durrr pedals into a Fender.
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Christian you sound good and play at a very high standard. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
So, keep doing what you've been doing.
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Thanks! I'm not being self deprecating for once - I'm saying that conceptually when it comes to gear I'm very conservative and in theory should be easy to please haha (despite moaning for several pages). I just need a few usable tones and above all a good clean. And an XLR output. (I suppose I can always buy a third party battery power supply lol.) Originally Posted by GuyBoden
Christian you sound good and play at a very high standard.
So, keep doing what you've been doing.
Most jazz players are this way.
Happiness for me means a Fender Deluxe Reverb at the venue so I don't have to carry it.
What I mean is I feel the modelling market is driven by players whose needs I have little in common with. But there are TBF plenty of Fender amp modellers and some of them are pretty great. Not least, Fender's own.Last edited by Christian Miller; 04-08-2026 at 12:02 PM.
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It really depends on the mixer and/or break-out box being used. Obviously, if that gear only has low impedence XLR inputs, then the sound people would prefer your output to match that in order to avoid using a DI, but modern gear tends to have combo inputs that are switchable between different impedances and connector types. If you're encountering sound guys kvetching about you handing them 1/4" line-level output when they have a 1/4" input available, I'll take your word for it, but it would surprise me. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
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Set ups vary wildly. Modern gear is not a given…. Tbh in most situations where I’d need it I think it would be absolutely fine, they’ll have a DI box. Originally Posted by John A.
Low impedance XLR out should be standard imo if only because it is kind of a professional expectation. "Do you have a DI?" is a question that gets asked often by the booker. The subtext is that DI will be a low impedence XLR. It's what you get on professional acoustic preamps. Modern amps have them. Consequently it’s something I’ve become very accustomed to with the gear I use ESPECIALLY if it's something that is effectively replacing my amp and therefore coming at the end of the signal chain.
And yes sometimes I don't use my Fender because it has to be mic'ed and doesn't DI, which is increasingly something sound engineers don't expect, believe it or not....
It disconcerts me that things like the Iridium or the Fractal AM4 doesn't have an XLR in a way that may not be entirely rational. But I don't think I'm the only person who feels this way. Why the hell did they make that call? It makes no sense to me. I think it's something about the way the thing goes 'chunk' into the back with a clip. Feels secure, professional.
Sent from my iPhone using TapatalkLast edited by Christian Miller; 04-09-2026 at 03:20 PM.
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I've got to agree with Christian about the lack of a DI XLR on most guitar pedals. Originally Posted by Christian Miller
I need to use £45 DI box to plug guitar pedals into my mixer.
Orchid Electronics - Micro DI
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On the pedal amps side of things, I like the recorded sound of:
- Boss IR2
- Strymon Iridium
- Tone King Imperial
They all do a very good job of emulating a black panel Fender. I haven’t tried any of these so can’t comment on feel.
These all seem to take pedals well and have good sounding IRs. The Boss is cheap and super compact. It also has a built in reverb (spring and plate) unlike the Iridium which just has the weird ambient room thing.
With these sorts of units it seems that whatever the new hotness is hyped to the max and blight by all the early adopters while the older stuff falls to the wayside. One can now pick up a used iridium for £200. I imagine these units get displaced by new ones and end up collecting dust so they get sold on as things are perceived to advance.
So you get YouTube videos like ‘is the Iridium still good in 2026?’ and I can’t help think that no one would talk about an amp that way. If it sounds good (and has low latency) it is good, no?
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They are comparing digital and analog solutions in guitar->X-> powered speaker set up here. It's interesting that all the digital modelers come across as indistinguishable from the tube counterparts for clean tones. As soon as distortion is introduced, it's a different story. Distortion modelling is exponentially more complicated (at least polynomially). The distortion level changes based on moment-to-moment variation in dynamics. Moreover this happens differently for different fundamental frequencies and overtones. It also varies with the attack envelope. I am glad I don't care about distortion anymore:
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