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When do you predict tubes will be obsolete??


RaceU4her

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Anyone want to guess when wheels will become obsolete?

 

 

+1

 

Its not gonna be till we have standard commercialized hovercraft.

 

even then nothing can surpass the satisfaction knowing that there are little glass things with FIRE in them in the back of your amp.

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Never.


take cars for example, for years there's been 4 cylinder cars capable of smoking 8 cylinder cars, but have V8's lost popularity/panache/desirability? No. People will always want a V8. Or V12 if they got the $$.


just for the sake of being able to say "It's a tube amp".



I agree with that argument (I'm a die-hard V8 guy myself). But look at televisions - something a little more relevant to tube amps. Tube TV's are not made anymore - its all digital displays of some form. Heck, the closest to tube is plasma and even that technology is almost done. Pioneer released a statement last year saying they were switching to LCD.

Having said all that, when will Guitar Hero replace actual guitar playing? :D:idk:

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I agree with that argument (I'm a die-hard V8 guy myself). But look at televisions - something a little more relevant to tube amps. Tube TV's are not made anymore - its all digital displays of some form. Heck, the closest to tube is plasma and even that technology is almost done. Pioneer released a statement last year saying they were switching to LCD.


Having said all that, when will Guitar Hero replace actual guitar playing?
:D
:idk:



Tube TV's still have their advantages, but due to al ot of other factors, namely everything switching to digital, going to digital televisions makes sense.

I think it's more like Vinyl vs CD. Vinyl has its place among certain circles, and CD's have their place also. And especially with sound, it's so easy to hear what you want to hear. We will always manage to hear a difference, real or not, and I don't think tube audio will die for a very long time. There's al ot of nostalgia over tube stuff even now.

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it has already been done,just depends on if a person likes it,but tubes will always be around for those who like them better,
check out software tubes,play guitar with amp,run it thru software line 6,its not really as good,but good,the new digitech rp 250 sounds like tubes to me,even though they don't have that same super playing effect when cranked up,

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Demand will decrease as time goes by. So eventually, they should die off. Now, whether people remain die hard about tubes enough to keep demand high enough for manufacturing of them, is hard to predict. Canada and US military got rid of their last tube operated radios about a decade ago. Countries with slower technology adopting militaries will probably still use tubes for decades to come. As they all switch to SS, the tube market will start taking heavier hits. Once the military market for tubes declines enough, NOS will be the only supply for musicians to feast uppon. Educated theory of mine obviously...

Once the dudes at Vox/Peavey/Line6 etc.. either produce or have the guts to release something that actually challenges their expensive tube lines, they will kick into high gear and tube will become today's turntables. This change is inevitable. Its getting so damned close its scary. Tubes will become something people get because they've got to have the original.

I give tubes about 10-15 years in the music industry. The next generation of hybrids in about 3-5 years of time should be pretty much bang on to nail tube sound, then the generation after that should do it without the need of a tube. Meh... my prediction :poke:

-D

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Tubes will always exist aslong as their is a millitary application for them, which there always will be. It will be the unavailability of tubes that that will kill amps, not a change in design.



What modern military technology(s) utilizes vacuum tubes currently?:confused:

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What modern military technology(s) utilizes vacuum tubes currently?
:confused:



This is what I have been wondering as well. :confused:

The only references that state this information tend to be the websites that hype tubes and tube amps. Only un-biased websites discussing the EMP vs. military issue pretty much tell about developments that have made solid-state technology less vulnerable to EMP. When I was in military all the radio and metering equipment was 99% solid-state, the 1% of tubes (they were those finger-size tubes) was there only because some of that technology was fairly old - not because of EMP withstanding. Of course I didn't drive tanks or fly planes but about the only ones of those that I knew were using tubes were some old russian pieces of junk that are pretty much becoming obsolete nowadays as well. So, unless you're able to back up this claim with a solid reference I can't take it seriously.

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Even if that's true, it's irrelevant. First of all there are many tube amps which are highly versatile and can cover all kinds of ground. Second, if you have the sound you want, why do you need 90-something others? That's like asking, why buy a regular knife when you can buy a Swiss Army knife? It's got the knife, and scissors, and a toothpick, and tweezers...

 

 

 

I guess that depends onyour definition of "versatile".

 

 

It's been said that the Deliverance is a "versatile" amp. Now I recently demo'd rockitsauce's, and I tell you what, a damn fine amp, I fell in love with it.

 

But "versatile"?. Hmmm...not really.

 

 

I tell you why a "musician" SHOULD want "versatile". It forces you....or rather guides, I should say...to play things you wouldn't normally play. Some people say "I don't play clean, so therefore I don't need a clean amp/channel". To me, that's ridiculous. When I click on a clean, it makes me play certain things I wouldn't play on an overdriven sound. Which makes me a better guitarist than if I hadn't.

 

If you have no interest in being a better musician, or at least attempting it, that's fine too.

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This is what I have been wondering as well.
:confused:

The only references that state this information tend to be the websites that hype tubes and tube amps. Only un-biased websites discussing the EMP vs. military issue pretty much tell about developments that have made solid-state technology less vulnerable to EMP. When I was in military all the radio and metering equipment was 99% solid-state, the 1% of tubes (they were those finger-size tubes) was there only because some of that technology was fairly old - not because of EMP withstanding. Of course I didn't drive tanks or fly planes but about the only ones of those that I knew were using tubes were some old russian pieces of junk that are pretty much becoming obsolete nowadays as well. So, unless you're able to back up this claim with a solid reference I can't take it seriously.



Well, my question was more rhetorical than anything. With the exception of really old technology still being used by countries with a smaller military presence, vacuum tube technology is not being used for any current military applications. Thus, it does not drive the market.

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Sorry Cibyl, I wasn't questioning your statement but the statements of those that claim tubes are used in military equipment.

For example, many military radios over here are battery powered and have short, removeable antennas. This is enough EMP protection in most cases. No need for fancy vacuum tubes that have limited lifespan, need shock protection and consume a lot of power. Something like that sounds like a crappy choice for a battery-powered equipment that gets battered severely during combat situations (as well as during combat training).

That said, I have little experience with vehicles such as tanks and planes. None of the electronics in vehicles such as trucks and jeeps was tube powered, though.

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Tube TV's still have their advantages, but due to al ot of other factors, namely everything switching to digital, going to digital televisions makes sense.


I think it's more like Vinyl vs CD. Vinyl has its place among certain circles, and CD's have their place also. And especially with sound, it's so easy to hear what you want to hear. We will always manage to hear a difference, real or not, and I don't think tube audio will die for a very long time. There's al ot of nostalgia over tube stuff even now.

 

 

Yes, tube TV's still hold superior values in black level and color accuracy, and overall may still yield the best picture IMO, but they're a dying breed because of the switch to digital like you said.

 

About vinyls, are they on a comeback (I hope so)? BB has a lot of "reissue" vinyls on the shelves . . .

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Yes, tube TV's still hold superior values in black level and color accuracy, and overall may still yield the best picture IMO, but they're a dying breed because of the switch to digital like you said.

 

 

 

 

watching an old tv compared to watching a new flat screen HD tv is like comparing an atari to a ps3 if you ask me :confused:

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And, yes. Vinyl is making a comeback of sorts... However, the actual amount being sold is still practically microscopic.

 

 

I think that the vinyl resurgence is really more nostalgic than anything else. However, there are a few benefits to analog sources vs. the current crop of digital.

 

1) No copy protection, DRM, or other user-hostile actions.

2) A quality analog source sounds better than almost any MP3 encode.

3) There is no issue with audible artifacts caused by inadvertent bit-rate conversions.

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Having said that, I will always prefer them to anything SS that comes out. Ever.

 

 

 

 

alot of people were saying that in Feb when the thread started, and i know plenty of them have since ditched their toobs for axe-fx's. thats why i was wondering what people are thinking now

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alot of people were saying that in Feb when the thread started, and i know plenty of them have since ditched their toobs for axe-fx's. thats why i was wondering what people are thinking now

 

 

I've tried a bunch more SS/digital modellers since Februrary, and I am still convinced that nothing SS/digital can come close to the tone I get with my Bogner XTC.

 

We're a heck of a long way away from obsoleting the really good all-tube amps.

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I've tried a bunch more SS/digital modellers since Februrary, and I am still convinced that nothing SS/digital can come close to the tone I get with my Bogner XTC.


We're a heck of a long way away from obsoleting the really good all-tube amps.

 

 

 

 

did you try an axe-fx though? that is the modeler that is setting the tone

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