a bit OT considering the forum but....

[ThisIsOurMusic]

ive heard people say that how well a tube amp responds to different pedals you run through it. but what about solid state amps? how do they respond to pedals?

[scolfax]

I read in this book that analog effects manufacturers typically have tube amps in mind when designing their products.

[mike.sartori]

To me, a tube amp is very forgiving to pedals, many pedals will sound good with it, whether or not the pedal is anything special. With the SS amp, you really get a better idea of how the pedal sounds. Good pedals will still sound good with a SS amp, I had a Barber Direct Drive that sounded awesome even with a cheap yamaha bass amp I have. Probably the only thing that will sound noticibly worse are some Boss and DOD overdrives and distortions which seem thin and trebbly, especially the metal pedals.

[metallica_00]

Some tube amps respond better than others, and I'm sure the same applies to solid state amps.

 

There are literally hundreds of different overdrive pedals out there, and from my experience pedals react to different amps in unique ways. You have to get pedals that respond well to your specific amp and playing style.

 

The only solid state amp I have right now is a Roland MicroCube. Both of my overdrive pedals sound pretty bad with it...as in that $150 OCD would be a total waste of money if your only amp was a MicroCube. It sounds completely different (and much better!) through my Deluxe Reverb RI. The differences between the pedals are also more pronounced with the Deluxe. But I wouldn't draw a conclusion from that...the MicroCube is barely a real amp.