GUITAR GEAR TRENDS THAT ARE DYING

#guitar #guitargear #guitarplayer
In this video, we talk about 6 guitar gear trends that are dying
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[@reverendg5937]

I've been through 5 decades of the Tube Amplifiers are dying. I love hearing this. LoL

[@user-mr1ku5iz8l]

It's funny how all these boutique amp builders keep popping up. The high end tube market is pretty strong right now, and the budget & mid-priced tube amp market is pretty strong as well. I love my Katana Artist and I love my Headrush Prime & Line 6 Pod Go Wireless. I like some SS amps as well. There will always be a unique feeling you get when plugging in to a tube amp that ones & zeroes cannot replicate. I'll let the younger generations with their anxiety avoid tube amps, while I keep buying them.

[@h20s56]

I want that new Gibson amp.

[@maxonmendel5757]

​@@user-mr1ku5iz8lI've never had the privilege of playing of full stack or anything cause I've got no money, but I do have a fender combo and I've played a bugera v22... to be honest between a solid state looks a Peavey Bandit or my old orange 35RT, or a tube amp like my fender blues jr, ill take the solid state every time. i can get more gain with less noise and they are way lighter

[@derrickbillups422]

Why do you love this? I'm frustrated by the guitar community's continued reliance on outdated technology. The increasing popularity of modelers over tube amps is due to the availability of technology that can perfectly emulate a tube amp. Cause the technology has been capable for many years now. However, the lack of data from experimentation is the limiting factor, not the technology itself i.e. its the guitar players who have been been so incredible resistant to change, its because of that stubborn, irrational attachments to antiquated technology that has held back decades of technological advancements. Cause the thing is, the tube amp was a ubiqutos items that was require for every single piece of electrical gear that needed more power than the wall could provide. And it was the only was to boost voltage until transistor became economical. Cause the glass vauum tube, all it is a transistor that boosts voltage. that's it. it only works one way, to step up voltage unlike a transistor which can step up or step down voltage. Tube are also highly inefficient. Thats why all tube gear requires some sort of transformer. Cause in order to get a constant power delivery of 120 watts or what ever The success of modelers stems from a lack of research and development in hardware to process the information. Kemper stands out for investing heavily in hardware to handle software development. The processors used in products like the Helix were already 20 years old by the time they were released in 2015, and they are now almost 30 years old. This contrasts with the longevity of the Kemper, which was released in 2012 and remains competitive. The technology already exists to perfectly emulate a tube amp, and higher processing power in products like the Axe-Fx or Quad Cortex only provides an advantage in running more effects, not in amp modeling. Amp modeling requires minimal processing power; even a basic desktop PC can handle it. We are not inventing new sounds or ideas but are using technology that has been around for decades. A tube is essentially an antiquated transistor designed to step up voltage, and it was widely used before transistors became economical in the 1970s for devices requiring more power than what could be obtained from the wall, such as TVs and computers. The TV market underwent significant changes in the 1980s, leading to smaller and more affordable TVs and VCRs due to the transition from tube to transistor technology. The complaints about amp quality today resemble those about early transistor TVs, but the TV market has had 40 years to advance its technology, resulting in no one considering tube TVs superior to modern ones. The Kemper was released in 2012, and the Helix was the first real modeler, so we are only at the beginning of this technological shift. It's amazing how close things sound now, but it's frustrating to think about where guitar amps could be if we had let go of antiquated technology when the rest of the world did. We are lagging behind and not making significant advancements.

[@user-mr1ku5iz8l]

@@derrickbillups422 "I'm frustrated by the guitar community's continued reliance on outdated technology." WIll you only be happy/satisfied once all tube factories, the entire world supply of tubes & tube amps & tube amp manuals, and all tube amp techs in existence have been thrown into a volcano? Will you have to go door to door to make sure every last *VILE DESPICABLE PATHETIC* tube amp is destroyed? Markets exist to serve the customer's needs. Tube amps still exist for a reason, just as modelers and profilers exist for a reason. Sometimes "outdated technology" doesn't need to be improved. If people want to buy modelers or profilers that doesn't bother me one bit. I like the technology but I also like the "outdated technology" of tube amps. You don't have to play through the "outdated technology" so why does it bother you what others choose to play through?

[@claypoole702]

Nothing actually ever dies... It just lingers, gathering strength, until it bursts forth with vengence

[@preston2636]

I don't really see emg making a comeback the way they were in 2008. Idk if they'll be on this video yet or not. I also see Fishman fluence dying down in popularity.

[@klap00]

...or not

[@jeidenlovell5558]

Cope

[@tobins6800]

Sounds like a blackout night Taco Bell meal

[@Acemechanicalservices]

That’s a great description of herpes.

[@npx_riff_lift-g]

Damn, I always wanted an 8 string, multi-scale guitar with active EMGs and a tube amplifier.

[@brianwells4507]

😂

[@MSNGR415]

😂 I have that guitar 😂 a ibanez weathered finish iron label multiscale with emg 909’s. Selling it though. Prefer 7’s or 6’s.

[@mitsanut5869]

Do what you love and want, don't get sucked into trends. Just because everyone else's doing it doesn't mean you have to. What needs to be mentioned here is also the fact that there's a ton of people who love to play but simply cannot afford the real gear, and that distorts the overall numbers. Personally, I don't give rat's ass what the trends are and I go after the gear that I think is best for the money I can spend. Analog still sounds the best and that comes with heavy equipment and heavy price tag. For example, I started to purchase real guitar fx pedals for my analog synths because their digital fx section always sucks in each of them. Out of 7 machines I have, only 2 are digital, and those were the first two I bought. While both are impressive on their own terms, the sound that comes out of them is not bone crashing and it's cold to my ears. It's like with cars. Both the cheap and expensive go same speed, may even same features, yet one is a clunker and the other gives you chills each time you drive it. In short, you always get what you pay for.with the music gear, it's twice the truth.

[@cellulose6322]

I only like active pick ups on bass

[@Adam-Z96]

At least, I guess you already have the cab

[@ThakkMylde]

Tube amps aren't going away. They are just moving into the studio.

[@adamwatson6916]

That's why 20 watt and under tube amps are all the rage and with modern PA systems 20 watt and 30 watt amps are plenty for stage work. Unless you play very loud and need more headroom .

[@mikesmoviemadness24]

@@adamwatson6916also 20-30 watts are great for bedroom players. And a lot of them are coming with xlr connections and built in IRs so you can play through monitors. I don’t think Cabs are dying though, just evolving and moving away from traditional 4x12 setup and thankfully the wall of amps is dying.

[@malectric]

I've built several small tube amps in the 10 to 15 Watt range which are very quiet (noise and hum-wise) and are beloved by their studio musician owners.

[@soundboy89]

I dunno man, even today it's hard for a pro to tell the difference between a software-modelled sound and the real thing, imagine how it's going to be in just a few more years. Pretty soon it won't make sense for anybody to buy an expensive tube head + cab if you can have the exact same sound for 5% of the cost.

[@BillyTheKidsGhost]

You don't need an automatic Rolex, you don't need a W12 Bentley, and you don't need a 100-watt tube amp head... But they are nice to have.

[@TheDeadeyeDuck]

so is functional genitalia but we then have the trans movement 🤷🏻‍♂🤷🏻‍♂🤷🏻‍♂

[@tomislavplaysguitar]

I think there's a certain philosophy to owning say a BMW M model or a Audi RS or a big Marshall stack. Don't need them but there's a certain soul to it. A certain thought behind owning such thing

[@garywingrove6546]

I think the tube amp thing dying is more of a thing in metal. You don’t see that as much in some other genres like country blues or jazz. But to be fair, in the genres they are often running smaller combo amps as opposed to huge cabinets which probably helps to keep the appeal of using a real amp

[@arroncusimano9169]

modellers are replacing tube amps cause tube amps are a pain in the ass, and modellers are good enough now.

[@Orange6921]

n my 30+ years of playing and gigging, I've heard this story cycle through now a couple of times about Tube amps going the way of the dodo. Its not happening and never will, these are trends that tend to go in cycles. Yes i get it that the new modeling is far superior but that's not always the issue, I've seen times where solidstate, hybrids and pre amp racks were just the rage and tube amps were "outdated concepts". Sure enough they come back around and are all the rage again, and people did not just suddenly realize that the modeling was not perfect enough, there was a lot more to it than that. At some future point just having a more stripped down setup of guitar into the tube amp will be the "cool" thing again because everyone is so computerized with all their gear. Its doesn't matter how good the technology gets, there will always be a market and demand for old school tube amps. Guitar playing and gear is very trendy and always has been. Tubes amps will never go away, and its because of a multitude of reasons and trends.

[@flyingrat492]

@@arroncusimano9169yes, but a modeller and an FRFR cab can cost more than the cost of a tube amp, and for small gigs like the ones country and jazz players are playing, it’s not worth the hassle to set up both those things, power them, load patches and all that when you can plug and play with a Princeton.

[@JeremiahDaniel1995]

I own a BlackStar tube amp from 2004 I just paid $60 not too long ago to get the head fixed one of the transformer boxes started to lose its crunch that made it spark when ignited so the tubes weren’t the problem but now it sounds good as new lol

[@garywingrove6546]

@@arroncusimano9169 in my experience amps of all types can be a pain in the ass, just in different ways. But even with the better modeling amps I’m never happy with the sound. And least not live. I’ve recorded with them and thought it worked well for that though

[@peterburi2727]

I love my tube amps. A lot depends on what style of music one plays. As an old school R&B player playing since 63', I have become accustomed to the warmth and touch sensitivity of tubes. I find them much more articulate than any modeling amps I have tried. Just my .02.

[@AIC68]

🤘😈🤘🔥🔥🔥

[@PeterCleff]

Some pretty solid takes. I think what we professional guitarists forget that most people don't buy a guitar every year. Sometimes more often than that. Most people have a dream guitar, and then they buy it. Then they're done for a good long while. So I think extended scale guitars being less trendy is, perhaps, just due to most everyone who wanted one...got one.

[@manuebg3685]

I own two extended range multi scale guitars. definitively don't need more... but I am sure if I will ever buy another guitar, it will probably be an extended range multi scale:D

[@malectric]

People love their older gear. I was fixing and restoring old amps professionally for several decades. WInding/rewinding new transformers for those that had failed which was a bonus. Very few people are/were around who could do that and it was a valued service. I still "roll my own" when I wan t to build a new one - I just enjoy doing it.

[@rocketpigrecords3719]

​@@malectriconce you figure out that practically anything you'd need to make the music you want was on the shelf by the mid 90s, it is freeing. Why a Bare Knuckle ceramic when you have like 90 models from that era or earlier that can be found locally for like 50 used? Anything from a JB to a Distortion, X2N, EMG 81, L500XL, 500T was already there and many more besides. 5150s & Rectos & DSLs, 7 strings, detuned to hell 6 strings, MT2, HM2, Screamers & SD1s. Exceptions to this rule for me are my Line 6 M13 (poor man's Bradshaw system) and being able to buy a Klon circuit for peanuts. And Fluence pickups with multiple voices. Bass is even worse, lol...P, J, or MM into an SVT. You could've been right as rain by like 1975. The new stuff is mostly old stuff made accessible through cloning or modeling. Fluence included, my Modern is an 81 and a 500T/Distortion at the flick of a switch, perfect but nothing "new" all the same. I recall an Asian girl playing a pop song clean with 2 handed tapping from a few years back...easy clone of her sound is a strat into a JC120 with a DM2. 1983 tones in the 2010s, nothing new under the sun.

[@malectric]

@@rocketpigrecords3719 My main interest is electronics. Music is secondary. I enjoy doing things. Anyone can spend money.

[@rocketpigrecords3719]

@@malectric I hear ya. I have a 70s Beltec tube portable reel I'm intrigued by. I can record on my laptop/interface,but I wanna see this thing get a 3 prong power cord, remove the death cap & come to life.

[@M.Holland]

As a touring musician, I totally understand the „no amp/cap on stage“ thing. Smaller lighter, normally a constant sound quality etc. But it realy depends on the venue if it’s cool to go completely silent on stage or playing the real deal. For smaller clubs were the audience is standing directly by the stage, no stage sound is the worst thing ever. They basically get no sound due their placement to the PA. So I try to get at least a small cap with me all the time. Since I’m a bass player and some clubs don’t have the right subs, it’s better to bring your own cab for the very lows and the feeling. On a bigger festival stage were the audience is standing a few meters away from the stage, no stage volume is great. Better sound for everyone. BTW: I tour with a Quad Cortex and a Sansamp as a backup. :)

[@mrflashmdg711]

I've seen so many bands turn up in small to mid size venues with nothing but axe-fx's - and every time you can't hear the guitars to save your life - only drums and vocals!

[@AlexhPDX]

Amps and cabinets aren’t going away anytime soon. Nothing screams “metal” like being able to easily talk to your buddy over the guitar solo.

[@TheEpicLinkFreeman]

Seriously a lot of people just don't get this. Even if they play the same venues multiple times they don't fix the problem. Then the next band lugs up their 5150s with 4x12s and you say "oh there it is" and they sound wayyy better. And it's not a gear difference, a cortex will go toe to toe with a 5150 any day when used properly. Coming from someone who uses a 5150. But direct into PA isn't it when a third of your audience is standing on the wrong side of the speakers.

[@M.Holland]

@@TheEpicLinkFreeman totally! Some venues are getting mini monitors for the first few rows. At least the midsized vanues, to get of that problem. But that’s not the same thing.

[@Vermonster23]

In the mid 90s, I’d be playing 10 or more times a month. I stopped bringing any kind of cabinet. I had a mesa boogie head and I would just DI out the back.

[@JV-rx3ov]

I'm usually an early adopter of new guitar tech. I bought a Line 6 AxSys 212 from the first available shipment. I love modeling gear. But I love tube amps too. Tube amps 'going away' won't be a function of people switching to modeling/direct recording, it will be an armageddon around tube availability. I feel like a doomsday prepper when I look at the tubes I've stockpiled over the years. We've heard forever about tube shortages & factory closures. That will be what puts the nail in the coffin of tube amp sales & new model development.

[@josephfigueroa3527]

I'm surprised that Russian tube factories have survived with the whole war BS. Hopefully, they remain after the dust settles cause I hate JJ tubes with a burning passion and only use Sovtek tubes.

[@anthonypanneton923]

LOL! I have boxes of tubes in my basement worth insane $$ now, and its mostly all stuff I bought 25 years ago when I was doing repair and mod work on other people's amps. I have some very nice old tube amps too, and I never use them anymore! And I did the same thing with incandescent light bulbs. I have enough old-style 40W, 60W, 75W, and 100W light bulbs to last the rest of my life! Actually, I think tubes will continue to be available, but they will be SO expensive. Prices will get so high, people will WISH they had bought more at today's prices. Having ANY tube amp will be something only for the uber-wealthy. It will be like having your own coal-fired, steam-powered yacht.

[@nathanstein589]

Western Electric is supposedly starting amp tube production in the US due to JJ being essentially the only new tubes available. Since WE already makes audio tubes and just underwent a massive expansion last year I’m pretty hopeful.

[@anthonypanneton923]

@@nathanstein589 They've been focused for a while on the 300B power triode tube, which is an ultra linear, low power tube used in high-end stereos. I just checked the WE website - $699 ea. for those puppies. $1499 for a matched pair. You can find single 300Bs for less than that - but like $200 ea. is considered a low price.

[@HeavyPilot83]

Oh man, The AxSys 212 was my dream amp back when I was in high school. Just couldn't afford it. lol

[@Illegal-Swede]

It was fun for me to hear your take on active pickups. I work at a company that makes those and was first tasked with designing preamps for such back in 2014. Early on, folks were debating whether to make a certain pickup sound like a vintage Strat or overwound. As an electrical engineer I was aware of the possibilities, so I suggested we could create two different filters and switch between them. The bigwigs liked the idea and we went with it! Since then, we've expanded to three "voices" or four, depending how you look at it. Regarding guitars and pickups, one aspect that works really well (in my opinion) is artist signature models. These are folks out creating great music and using the gear. They often have very formed ideas of what they want and what works for them. We then benefit from that. Fun stuff!

[@7hotfuzz7]

How was your experience getting into the music industry as an electrical engineer? Did you find it was similar to other fields in EE? All the job fairs and recruiting events never have audio or music companies. I wanted to do defense (like every one else) but I don’t have the grades and resume like the people they usually hire. Music is my true passion anyways.

[@arroncusimano9169]

to illustrate your point with signature guitars... the Epiphone Special slash signature... signature models are nothing but a way to add 33% to the cost of a guitar for a minor mod worth $5

[@Blazerghost]

@@arroncusimano9169Exactly.

[@jazzad]

Active pickups never were that popular on guitars. There's EMG and that's pretty much it. They're all the rage on bass though.

[@Illegal-Swede]

@@7hotfuzz7 Sorry for the slow reply. To work in audio, probably the best approach is to seek out those companies and contact them directly. My first nine years out of college where working low paying jobs (speaker factory technician and then pro audio design & installation company) where I learned a lot that they don't teach in school. I also play guitar and have worked on amps on my own for years. When I got hired at Fishman, I was their first electrical engineer that played guitar. The prior experience gave me added knowledge that helped me succeed where I am now. That's my story in a nutshell. Hope that helps imagine your potential path. Best regards!

[@blackbucciarati]

ERG and multiscale are actually really popular still. Maybe not the 9+ string guitars or multiscale 6 strings, but 7-8 string multiscale guitars are still incredibly popular and not even remotely close to dying. they’re more of a norm, particularly in modern metal.

[@noisebrick9248]

If anything 8 string guitars have been going more and more into the non metal world too, great compositional instruments almost like a piano for solo guitarists

[@brianbergmusic5288]

@@noisebrick9248 Just curious... do you have any non-metal players that showcase non-metal use of 7 or 8 string guitars? I can think of Rob Scallon as one example, even though he also plays metal. [EDIT] I personally don't see the number of strings over 6 being much of a hamper to compositional ability, but I'll spare the long winded nerdy explanation why.

[@noisebrick9248]

@@brianbergmusic5288 extended range in classical guitar has always been around but now it's miles more accessible, and having works from Bach or John Dowland (and baroque in general) is great, Paul Galbraith comes to mind, or Yamandu Costa for a whole other style. Other than that little tybee for electric, but also on the youtuber side Rob scallon does a lot of nonmetal and also dovidas uses a 7 string often. If you're a looper kind of player an 8 string an EQ pedal will make your life much easier. 8 string is the opposite of a hamper to composition, guess you meant that it is? I'm curious as to what the nerdy explanation is

[@WintermintP]

With some brands 9 and 10-string guitars are making a comeback. Notable examples are Legator and Agile.

[@brianbergmusic5288]

​@@noisebrick9248 I'll describe my relationship with extended range guitars as being complicated with a list of pros and cons. I have two, one of them a classical nylon string and the other a cheapo Schecter Omen-7 that is modified. I have a six-string guitar that is I always described as my favorite electric. My 'favoritism' was shaken when the day came when I wrote a clean fingerstyle/hybrid-picked tune that sounds better on a 7-string than forcing it on a downtuned 6. That was one of the times when I felt the sting of the limitations of thinking like a 6 string purist, so I'm technically on your side. When it comes to composition, I view the six string guitar as the most efficient platform to communicate the most possibilities. When I say “efficient”, I'm referring to the entire mechanical platform; including the number of strings, scale length, and spacing between the strings. This all affects composition due to both the instrument itself as well as the limitations of human hands (which is why some of my points have little to do with composition). In my experience with guitars I see a law of diminishing returns. If you take away a string from the six, you have unnecessarily removed artistic potential and if you add a string you get some possibilities but at what cost to the demands upon the human hand. These technical demands are steeper jumping from 6 to 7 than the jump from 5 to 6 strings on a hypothetical instrument. Now that's just for 7 strings, we're not even discussing 8. We could start with barre chords, as an example. There are a lot of keys that make sense on an E-standard tuned 6 string and also have the power to grant almost improvisational song-writing skill. If someone handed a fingerstylist a 6 string and said: "play me something in C# minor", that fingerpicker could jump in the root as a barre-chord in the fourth position, then switch to an A-major chord, and maybe the F# minor in the second position for more harmonic movement, and maybe walk back up to C#. In fact, once you use barre-chords there really isn't any "forbidden" keys on a 6 string. However, there are forbidden keys when you want to make logical use of open strings (these 'forbidden' keys might include: F-minor, Bb-minor, G-minor, Eb-minor). However, if you know the barre-chords, these forbidden keys are still not impossible, and they all invite a lot of possibilities other than mere powerchords and dyads (for someone as a fingerstyle player). But, alas, it doesn't make much sense to avoid the open strings of a guitar in your fretboard Sudoku, even if you're not thinking about a band, but merely a solo artist. However, jazz guitarists have done this for solo-ing and chord changes for a long time and on the humble six string. In classical guitar, lute music (such as Bach lute suites) have successfully been compacted to the six strings due to the fact that the vast majority of the harmonic vocabulary is still present even if the incorrect octaves are employed. -Bach- Back to barre chords... compare and contrast the ease of barre chords (that shift around to any key) on a six to a 7-string guitar. In 7-string standard tuning (BEADGbe), you end up with a wonky barre-chord (trying to use all 7 strings) that always has a minor-6 in the intervals unless you fret a different note on the g-string. That's kind of like building a house with a trapezoid foundation instead of a square. This might be why jazz-guitarists that fancy 7-strings USUALLY (not always) tune to Drop-A. Barre-chords in Drop-A make A TON more sense because it mirrors what already exists on a six string but with more access to chord extensions of you make use of fretting the smaller A-string. However, Drop-A opens a new can of worms, which is why I'm still keeping my 7 in B-standard as much as possible (oddly enough... I'd explain, but this message is already getting stupidly long).

[@ScotianBlooded]

I love how well plugins mix but nothing will ever feel like a tube amp

[@ZalMoxis]

Exactly.

[@leonard_spunky]

Amen. Those words are spoken in the Bible as well.

[@Swooper.x96]

As a mostly bedroom guitarist, I still prefer real heads to modelers. I run an Orange Rockerverb 50 MKIII through a TwoNotes Captor X into my interface and use IRs to sim cabs and mics.. I use analog pedals like I always have. so much better than a full modeler/plug in setup in my opinion. I will never get over how good a real amp sounds.

[@serhii-ratz]

I’m a tune lover, but sold by captor x, because for me it was like an artificial sound. So I keep my vox ac 15 to play and have a separate pure digital chain which also fine for practice.

[@katyungodly]

Strandberg's a great example of your "please everyone"-type guitars. Commonly used by prog/djent artists who go between distortion and super clean sounds. The wiring is part of this, as they have unique 5-way switches with options for split/single coils! Can get just about any sound out of it, clean, crisp, thick, or heavy.

[@bustedflatpickr]

I love my two Strandbergs, both Sälens with Suhr tele pickups which I use for EVERYTHING. I never have a situation when I think, “Boy I wish I had different kind of pickup.”

[@kollabrock]

Sooo true! They´re light and comfy and sound amazing in any situation. I got the Boden Metal NX 18 months ago and I don´t enjoy playing my other guitars anymore

[@bengreenbank]

I mostly play brutal death metal and my main guitar is a 7 string strandberg

[@6Barbarian6]

I'm going back to standard E tuning and six string guitars. Nothing fancy just gonna challenge myself to get as heavy as sound from standard tuning and minimal gear. Focus more on song writing than letting guitar tone/tuning do all work. No more going for best recording sound possible to hide mistakes. Looking back, some of the best albums (in my opinion) had the worst production but awesome song writing and over all execution. Nothing beats that. No more letting the amps and gear write the songs.

[@bnix81]

Sylosis has several albums in standard E that are heavy as fuck.

[@NehemiahHughes]

Drums/blastbeats make music heavy not tuning.

[@fredriksvard2603]

Did you rediscover metallica

[@procrasti-nation9517]

interesting approach ... weird, but interesting... 😆

[@6Barbarian6]

@@NehemiahHughes examples of “heavy” without blast beats, down tune: Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, metallica (old) obituary (first album was E flat) sodom ( standard E) kreator (Standard E) old sepultura ( E) old exodus (e) …

[@TempleOfTheMartyrs]

WE USED TO USE THOSE KIND OF GUITARS AND GEAR, NOWADAYS WE USE ONLY VINTAGE GUITARS IN OUR BAND

[@donovanrebbechi3334]

Lots of good points. You mentioned 8 and 9 strings in the "extended range" discussion .... I think there's a good chunk of the market that has settled on 7 strings today. They aren't really novel or exciting any more but have become the new normal or at least part of it. In the "olden days", metal bands would downtune to Eb, D, C# or even B and it was a pain to do on a normal 6 string. Slapping another string on it makes so much sense -- you get compatibility with 6 strings, and it goes all the way down to B. Going lower than B with any gain on is really tough without having things turn to mud. One thing I've noticed re your point about pickups is that the more versatile FF modern (which also does metal really really well) has taken the place of EMG/SD Blackouts in some models (Schecter for example)

[@Eliminator-rl9sn]

I do agree with many of your points. The tube amp thing is a little tricky for me. On stage I am using an Amp1 by Bluguitar for years now, which is soundwise the closest thing to a tube amp I ever heard. But my JTM45 and 1987x are still in my rehearsal room and every time I play them I become aware, that there ist nothing out there being able to 100% match these great amps. Anyway, I sold the JVM410 quite a while ago since it is far too heavy to carry for me. But a fantastic amp as well....

[@Orange6921]

n my 30+ years of playing and gigging, I've heard this story cycle through now a couple of times about Tube amps going the way of the dodo. Its not happening and never will, these are trends that tend to go in cycles. Yes i get it that the new modeling is far superior but that's not always the issue, I've seen times where solidstate, hybrids and pre amp racks were just the rage and tube amps were "outdated concepts". Sure enough they come back around and are all the rage again, and people did not just suddenly realize that the modeling was not perfect enough, there was a lot more to it than that. As some future point jut having a more stripped down setup of guitar into the tube amp will be the "cool" thing again because everyone is so computerized with all their gear. Its doesn't matter how good the technology gets, there will always be a market and demand for old school tube amps. Guitar playing and gear is very trendy and always has been. Tubes amps will never go away, and its because of a multitude of reasons and trends.

[@michaeltaylors2456]

Blug guitar amp 1 user here. To me they about 97 percent a “real” 100 watt monster tube amp But at quarter the price and 1/ 40 of the weight and size. Plus all the features you could ever need. They are their own thing and are quite clear and present and extremely flexible tonally.

[@Utubewrk123]

@@Orange6921I’m not getting rid of my amps I literally just got them maybe 10 yrs ago and some even less. They take pedals better too. I had the worst gear as a kid and as I got better I saved up and got really good stuff. It’s not going anywhere. I hated the Kemper and helix and the feel the constant tweaking and I do have a quad cortex and it’s really good but I still play my amps and pedals most of the time. Yamaha has a double modeler that’s overlooked. It sounds and feel great. Comes with its own power plus footswitch. $800 new. Yet I still go to my amps and pedals and a 6 string guitar. The one’s complaining didn’t prioritize they’re hobby so they have to complain. It’s an expensive hobby. They don’t love it enough to put it first. So they whine about not getting tube amps. I forgot to say look at vinyl records making a comeback. Some players have only played through a computer or plug in or only digital gear. They don’t know what a good tube amp and a good pedal feel like it sound like.

[@Orange6921]

@@michaeltaylors2456 Depends on your ear, I don't think its 97% of my tube amps. Doesn't mean they don't sound good but they aren't as close to a good tube sound and feel as some claim. I have nothing against modelling technology, I used them myself since my early days. They offer a great variety of interesting and unique sounds and spark new ideas. But they still can do what plugging straight into a good tube amp does.

[@michaeltaylors2456]

@@Orange6921 ummm, bluguitar amp 1 is Not a modeler. I guess because it’s in pedal format people assume it’s a digital modeler. Pure Analog preamp into a 100 watt nominal Class D power amp section. There is an actual tube in the circuit replicate natural power amp sag.

[@brandonharris9160]

Fishman Fluence is the new EMG 81. There are a ton of companies mass producing guitars still putting in EMGs at really low prices nowadays when back in the day you couldn't get a guitar with EMGs and neck thru design without spending a grand. There are more options than previous decades. You can get all types of great stuff nowadays for really cheap as well.

[@Chumbarley]

I just got a brand new Jackson x series king v neck thru with Emg 81-85s in it for £600 quality guitar for the price

[@villageidiot9867]

Yeah, I picked up a Schecter C-1 platinum with the same pickups last year for $550 new.

[@ChrisHopkinsBass]

My guitar teacher had a set of EMG SAs in his main guitar from the mid 80s on. He played a bitsa made of a 1970 body and a 63 neck. Even plugged into a crappy 30w practice amp he had the best strat sound I've ever heard. He passed away about 15 years ago but he was a beast of a player.

[@marchebert9813]

It sucks that your teacher passed away. I bought a Line 6 pod from a friend just because his settings sounded so good. In my hands, they sounded like crap! I gotta dig it out one of these days.

[@Soldano999]

You should watch glenn's video where he makes a shitty crate solid state sound like a millions dollars.

[@jamiemcparland]

Big loud amps are alive and well in the underground punk scene where you're not playing traditional venues with a good PA. When you're playing a packed basement show with 50 people, 100 watt Marshall is still king.

[@Stratman5150]

Great video, just came across your channel and subscribed! Old school rocker here and I've used it all as well (tube amp stacks, rack units, combo's etc..). Recently moved to modeling (Line 6) and inner ears. Takes some getting used to at first but for me, the positives have out weighed any negatives by a mile. It sounds great and just sooo much easier to transport, set up etc.. I also have it connected to a couple of powered monitors at home. I find myself playing more now then I have in years. I wish I had this stuff a long time ago!

[@sickmoshbrah]

On the point you made about companies showing clean tones when demoing gear. I would argue that not all guitarists are one dimensional and while they play gained out most of the time, they may get in a mood to hear some clean stuff and play something else to break up the monotony of metal riffing all the time. I know I get burnt out on a metal from time to time.

[@hogie1259]

I agree . It amazes me how many people that play guitar, don’t know how many different tones are available with just their volume and tone knob. It’s cause they’re on 10 with everything. I love messing around with a good clean tone and some modulation and delay .

[@guitarzilla555]

Yes and some bands mix heavy and clean tones into a single song, where there isn't enough time to switch instruments.

[@eduardolorandi3628]

Also we have come quite far with gender bending on metal, it is not uncommon to see a pop, jazz, trap, electronic whatever passage in metal songs, and those require more than just an all black bridge humbucker only guitar to go though

[@patpark3r]

Loved this video!I think a big factor of why guitars seem to be more multi-facited nowadays is because of the extended diversity of genres that folks listen to/play. Perhaps guitar companies aren't trying to sell to both metal and jazz players individually, but more so people who enjoy playing both metal *and* jazz.

[@johntravoltage959]

Adding onto this, a big part of it I think is also not even guitars necessarily being more versatile too, but some of the longstanding biases that people have towards certain guitars for certain genres that for the most part is just completely irrelevant. Some people still act like you can only play metal on an ibanez, cleans on a strat, jazz on a hollowbody, when you can play all those genres and really use the differences in their sounds to great lengths in all of them. I think one of the biggest advances is not in the guitars themselves but the accessibility to hardware/software for creating tones. I think the ads are still a bit goofy when they show that stuff, but at the same time I think its great to show that with pretty much any guitar you can play any genre.

[@jamieprater3398]

Nothing beats the tried and true Les Paul through a tube half stack. I'll never go on stage without my amp. I just don't see how you can get the sound exactly like you would get from your amp by going directly to house. I love having control of my personal sound by having my amp at my finger tips. To each his own.

[@Charlesmclark2]

Beg to differ my Tc-90 is dubbed the les paul killer. Sold my vintage custom as soon as I got it. LP without the clunk

[@jamieprater3398]

To each his own I guess​@@Charlesmclark2

[@DreadNovella]

Well one thing for sure, if you do leads, there's no better sound than a tube amp. It cuts right through. It's a massive difference from most solid state when soloing. In my opinion. But yes there are some solid states that cutt through very well too. I just got one of the old Marshall Valvestate 8100 that a lot of metal bands used in the 90s, and that thing sounds amazing.

[@Charlesmclark2]

@@DreadNovella yeah I have a discountinued mesa Lonestar....

[@zacharymicah]

The band I was in for ten years I played a Line6 Spider IV amp and i leaned pretty quick how to dial in the tone I wanted and I really enjoyed messing around with the different settings and sounds. Now, I play a Marshall amp with a fairly simple pedal board, Dunlop Volume pedal, Boss tuner, Boss Noise Suppresor, Ibanez Tube Screamer, Ibanez DS7 Distortion, Boss Chorus, and a Dunlop Crybaby wah pedal. I like a good rich overdrive but with the right amount of clarity, not muddy like a fuzz pedal (my least favorite tone), and a Mark Tremonti-esque clean tone. I like what you do with your tone and I think because of you using those single coils on your baritone Jazzmasters and the Balaguer are great for lower register guitars. The band He Is Legend uses guitars with coil splitting humbuckers for when they go for the lower register for better tone quality. I just got myself another 7 string Ibanez RG but a guitar with Jazzmaster style pickups is something I've wanted to try for a while now.

[@KevinSmithdc]

I've been playing for 40 years. It's interesting to see videos like this one where they comment about EMG's. Back when I started off, EMG's were the big thing...along with Bradshaw rack systems, and hot pink guitars with Floyd Rose vibrato systems. How things come and go. Today, I just keep it simply: Guitar --> simple pedalboard --> low watt tube amp.

[@TheDeadeyeDuck]

hot pink with a Floyd? Chiodos much? 😎😎🤣🤣

[@lfader]

Yup Bradshaw rigs were 10- 30k 90's money 😳 Customshop shred guitars weren't hanging on hooks in stores. I love Kemper but a different playout vibe then software ....etc .....🤔

[@baileywatts1304]

I know there's a move to using house sound instead of cabs, but it feels like for me anyways, there's been a lot more playing parties where there isn't a front of house system at all. I've been seeing a lot of running through flat response speakers more than anything.

[@arroncusimano9169]

this makes no sense. house pa's ARE flat response.

[@Knocker420]

Cool video, Ray. A lot of true points, especially with the use of plugins nowadays. That 8-string you showed at the beginning is the same Scheter C-8 that I bought last year. I was stoked when I saw that!

[@damianmurphy7395]

All solid points and I’ve seen a little bit of everything you’ve touched on. A lot of those things in certain circles are being phased out.

[@Qwik14]

Tube amps and cabs with great speakers will still be available imo. Just limited in quantity. Meaning most of them probably wont be mass produced anymore. Still, I see them being used more in a studio than a live setting. I'm all for modelers and I think they serve their purpose, but there's something about feeling the air being pushed on some V30's and hearing the warm low end of tubes that is exciting.

[@craigharrison5406]

Tube amps will always be around. Xander is a good guy but he falls prey to recency bias. I have modellers and plug ins but they just don't sound the same or push the air like a tube head and 4 x 12 cab. If tube amps were losing popularity I wouldn't have had to wait over a year for a new EVH stealth head because they were sold out everywhere. Mesa Boogie cabs jumped up 25% in price over the last couple of years and they are still sold out as soon as they get to the store.

[@jasondonovan1408]

There are 50+ years of used cabs out there. They aren't going anywhere.

[@captaintrips8651]

I’m not that old (I think), but I always prefer one trick pony guitars, amps and pedals. I won’t deny that there have been major improvements to digital options, but I will never be convinced that they sound just as good as a dimed out tube amplifier with a guitar that doesn’t have a million options. Sure, the more compact and versatile instruments are more convenient, but I don’t think I’ll ever sacrifice sound over ease. “Never half ass two things; whole ass one thing .” - Ron Swanson

[@matturner6890]

"I will never be convinced" I guess you've made up your mind already, then? Just wait, VST amps & impulse responses will sound 1:1 with tube amps within the next 5-10yrs. They're already practically there. I mean, if I spent a few grand on a tube amp I might be keen to defend it, too

[@Durkhead]

I didn't spend thousands on a tube amp and I think amp sims will never be as good as an in room tone of a good tube amp with a good cab. Ai will come close because it will be able to introduce more real time variables but thers always gona be that slight latency and lack of character that makes tube amps less fatiguing to your ears

[@nickgjenkins]

My big thing with coil splits and piezo bridges and other options is I start to suffer from choice paralysis. I'm sure that a big part of that is on me, but it's true. I like to know what I'm going for with a guitar and not have a bunch of stuff to futz with or try out. I like to grab my Les Paul for a Les Paul sound or my Tele for a Tele sound. It's just how I function. Again, not saying it's the RIGHT way, but it's why I tend to veer away from guitars with lots of options like that.

[@leftfordead8336]

@@matturner6890 For myself I've used some Neural DSP stuff and it sounded good but I'm just a gear nerd and have a love affair with amps and pedals, the physical nature of them is just much more engaging for myself and it's what I enjoy as a hobby. Both most certainly have a place

[@MeatMan359]

I think plugins sound “good enough” but they’re definitely going to improve as the tech evolves. I took a 10 year break from playing because of the military and college, but I started playing again recently. I think the good thing about plugins is that they’re accessible for folks like me who either don’t have space for an awesome amp head and cab or are constantly moving because of life/work/etc. When it comes to digital, because the highest level of computer language is binary and, by consequence, discrete data, it can hypothetically come infinitely close to replicating an actual amp but never 1:1; however, I feel like differences will eventually be negligible (at least to casual players like me).

[@timhoran7676]

Great to hear the opinion of you (and those commenting here) on the trends. Soon (it could be months or a year away) I plan to repair tube and hybrid amps in a new business. At least I'll be heading into this with eyes wide open.

[@jamesftoland]

Glad I stumbled on this video. I literally AM old school, in my late 50s, been playing guitar since I was a little kid. You opened my mind into some trends I should be looking at. I was stuck in the past. Anyways... SUBSCRIBED

[@ilovegreenock]

Gear gets obsolete at some point! It's not necessarily a bad thing as long as musicians still enjoy the process of creating music and sharing it with an audience. On the other hand you pointed out last week about fans expectations when they go to a show and they want to see the real thing. You got me thinking now!

[@MisterGribbles]

Was in a club where the band were some young guys with laptops as amps and drummer using electric drums. They sounded ok, but they werent all that inspiring to watch. There was a serious mental disconnect when hearing massive guitars but only seeing a tiny laptop on stage.

[@Fadegalaxy-mv4mp]

⁠@@MisterGribblesyou were def listening with your eyes with the guitar, BUT electric drums in a live setting is horrid

[@Utubewrk123]

@@Fadegalaxy-mv4mpno he wasn’t. He was probably bored with the math rock too.

[@perkristoffersson4153]

Tube amps have come, gone and come back again. Eventually, we all learn to appreciate the ease of plugging in and playing and not having to deal with software and extra hardware just to be able to have a somewhat acceptable experience. Same thing has happened with effect pedals, multieffects, solid state amps and modellers. I'm thinking pedalboard amps are becoming mainstream so that combined with a smaller cabinet/amp (1x12 or even 2x12) or a decent home PA will be the thing for a while. 100W heads, not so much, but heads that can be switched between different output levels, that can be used without a cab (connect headphones or to a laptop or whatever) might be a thing for the traditional amp companies in addition to pedalboard amps.

[@ThomasFredson]

Great Video, but I'm surprised no one mentioned True Temperament fretboards. I recall every high end guitar having a TT option like a decade ago and it now seems to have gone out sight.

[@fizzytorkoal]

I just recently got into Amp sims, more specifically, Neural DSP... Im assuming its my low quality speakers, but i find when i start to turn it up, the chords become unrecognizable.... What speakers are great for playing loud at home? Thanks

[@raspillade6027]

What speakers are you using now? You might want to go try FRFR type speakers to have the ‘do everything’ option.

[@alexh3153]

I was a hardcore emg guy, but as I have grown up and traded my ec-1000 for a Les Paul custom I tired putting emgs in it but I miss the dynamics of passive pickups too much

[@Podcastforthewin]

I kinda did the same. I sold my LTD Ec-1000 a few years ago now. But i kinda miss having it as an option.

[@the_hippykiller22]

Both are nice to have and fill different purposes. I'm a hardcore EMG fan and swear by the 57/66 live and in the studio for metal, wouldn't sell my Eclipses, EC1000 and other various EMG loaded ESPs for all the money in the world but I wouldn't put EMGs in my LP Custom either, I like it as it is for diversity. That being said dynamics are overrated in metal, I don't need huge dynamics when playing in thrash and groove metal bands even for leads and even then the EMGs still have more dynamics than people assume.

[@FrancoW1]

@@the_hippykiller22I agree. The 57/66 is a killer set.

[@CAMELOT331]

I'll never forget when I tried switching from my Randall tube to a SEVERAL thousand dollar digital setup. I tried it for weeks and I couldn't stand it. It discouraged me so hard that I didn't play guitar for about a year. Finally went back to tubes and have been in the studio a ton.

[@Shysleeves]

I think tube amps won't go away because you're looking at larger bands/musicians where local bands at least from what little I've seen, will go for an SLO that absolutely rips or an orange cranked to hell. But the big bands will be through a quad cortex or an axe fx, since they have more distance to travel and more shows to do. Local bands will likely be the make or break for tube amps continuing to exist.

[@DYLANBROCHILL]

Just a matter of time before they realize a laptop, archetype gojira, and a powered speaker is cheaper than a half/full stack

[@Orange6921]

@@DYLANBROCHILL n my 30+ years of playing and gigging, I've heard this story cycle through now a couple of times about Tube amps going the way of the dodo. Its not happening and never will, these are trends that tend to go in cycles. Yes i get it that the new modeling is far superior but that's not always the issue, I've seen times where solidstate, hybrids and pre amp racks were just the rage and tube amps were "outdated concepts". Sure enough they come back around and are all the rage again, and people did not just suddenly realize that the modeling was not perfect enough, there was a lot more to it than that. As some future point jut having a more stripped down setup of guitar into the tube amp will be the "cool" thing again because everyone is so computerized with all their gear. Its doesn't matter how good the technology gets, there will always be a market and demand for old school tube amps. Guitar playing and gear is very trendy and always has been. Tubes amps will never go away, and its because of a multitude of reasons and trends.

[@JustAdude291]

I agree cause I don't see tube amps dying off anytime soon. Tons of musicians all over the world still very passionate about gear and good amps, so I don't see that will ever change. I use plug-ins sometimes to fool around and they're a lot of fun but I don't think anything can replace a cranked tube amp.

[@TheEpicLinkFreeman]

@@DYLANBROCHILL and it sounds 5x worse. Yes you CAN just run a latoptop into the house PA and it will TECHNICALLY work. Or you can bring your Quad Cortex and run it straight into the PA with no stage sound, but in small venues the sound DOES not compare. A decent guitar cabinet is significantly better at projecting your guitar sound than the house PA of most small local venues. And setting up a power amp and wiring it with an output that can go into your cabinet is more work than many guitar players are willing to do. It's always funny having a local band come out with no cabs and thinking "i'm pretty sure these guys are good. But I can't really hear them so I'm not sure." then having the next band come out with 5150s louder than the PA and kicking your ass. It's mainly a metalcore thing, metalcore guys suck at making themselves audible. Hardcore dudes come out, crank their shit, and sound awesome. It's that simple.

[@DYLANBROCHILL]

You don't know how IRs work, they literally simulate the room and mic/mic position the cabinet is in. It's hard to accept when gear becomes obsolete but it's science bud, just let it happen lmao. @@TheEpicLinkFreeman

[@wctownsend]

Well thought out and intelligently delivered. I dig it sir! And frankly, I don't disagree with you one bit. I personally have noticed more and more extended range instruments, but possibly because I am spending less and less time looking at vintage and realizing more and more that 80's Super Strats are the new sought after "vintage" as the people that love those guitars age up. Well done. Like you I hate to see the tube amps go, but as less and less plants are able to make quality tubes and digital gets better, I think it is something that has to happen eventually.

[@altpath]

I agree with the list but there's also the guys that are getting older and came up using modelers and are now looking for their first tube amp, like myself. I'm tired of just playing and thinking "this is fine but it doesn't really quite get there". I still find it hard to get the tone I want with modelers, even now that they're great. The times I've played live or with other bands that had tube amps I always loved that sound.

[@canadiancombatwombatthe3rd782]

Its a feel thing with a real amp, it's actually pushing air in the room and grabbing yea by the throat, yngwie malmsteen called it "wrestling the elephant" makes you play completely different. Still love modeling software and hardware, but when I plug into an amp, it just gets inside you more.

[@malectric]

As a real oldie and brought up on tube technology I'd love to be able to build one for you. It's a shame we live in different countries.

[@TYLERtheMAGGOT1]

I have to disagree with the fan fret point in the beginning. It's been way more popular now and more brands are starting to add fan frets to their models and seeing more being released. Nowhere near dying in my opinion. But everything else I do agree 😄

[@SpiritofPoison]

yea i’ve seen a lot of fan frets. Mainly with extended range guitars though.

[@sr60030]

I kinda agree with you both it's like a good indie band: a lot of people (brands) like them and create a big wave of news but the average joe couldn't care less. but yeah fortunately looks like their gonna stay and grow for a long time ahead

[@GitShiddy]

I understand Xander's perspective on things is more in the high gain/metal realm than myself, so a lot of the ones listed here weren't even trends for me & my tastes, just oddities that take up space in a guitar store display. Will say I'd lump 8/9 string & multiscale in with one trick pony guitars myself. (Also noting that a single pickup Junior is badass & is the exception to the one trick rule). With regards to tube amps & cabs ...I mean... they're like comic books. They've been "dying" for decades. And yet people still buy them, still gig them, still love them; because there's something ineffable about the experience.

[@v.k.7463]

I love having a guitar with just a scorching-hot bridge humbucker & a single volume knob. I used to have some small tube amps, but I found they were still too loud for my uses. This is a great video!

[@shawnhuff3920]

Active pickups are for live shows in a big arena passive is for recording and playing at home or in a little practice amplug 😊

[@msi1985]

Having a ton of amplifiers to play seems to be a thing of the past. Having a ton of different guitars to play on the other hand, I think, will stand more of a test of time. With the capabilities that pluggin's and modelers have at this point in time, it's wild! I am happy to keep half a dozen guitars in various tunings to make my life easy for playing lots of different music. I also don't miss having a ton of pedals to mess around with!!! My only slightly regretful guitar purchase is an ibanez ext scale multi scale fan fret 5 string bass... Love everything about it. Except for the fact that certain chord shapes are just out of reach for me, quite literally due to not having alien fingers.

[@killthekaiju9219]

“Having a ton of amplifiers seems to be a thing of the past” *Kyle Bull has entered the chat*

[@jasonlee8497]

Until the live revolution comes back. Amps will always be cooler in a rehearsal space, club, theatre etc.

[@josuastangl7140]

@@jasonlee8497 I hope this happens, but I'm not sure it will in the next few years

[@nathanstein589]

Idk man nothing hypes a crowd up like an actual stack

[@msi1985]

@nathanstein589 If maintenance costs and purchasing cabinets and amplifiers weren't an issue. I would be on board. A hundred percent agree there amazing! I'm just so impressed with my big board right now. It can do so much it won't ever fully replace but it's getting darned close

[@sinakaedwards2009]

Hey Ray, I can see what you are saying about amps for sure. I just got me a 400-watt setup for my bass and they thought I was crazy for buying it. But, like I told them, I don't have to worry about a computer to play rock and roll baby. One trend that is probably dead and bloated is garage bands. That is one of the coolest things about my childhood and teenage years. Sometimes you would be outside and hear a faint but unmistakable sound of a guitar amp being pushed to the limit. Those were the days.

[@msi1985]

Garage bands are not dead!!! I turn 39 in a week, and i'm still faking it until I make it LOL 😆

[@poncho_20xx14]

There was one just down the street from my place I saw with the door wide open! Caught em on my way to get groceries!

[@User37277]

It's an interesting discussion. As someone who works for a longstanding guitar/amp maker to say the least, going to/seeing festivals and lineups of what people are running, particularly in the heavy music scenes It's definitely noticeable that people are opting for sims/modellers and into PA setups. This is even moreso in the Pop/rock world as generally overall gig volumes are getting cleaner/quieter. People want to have as much control as possible, which is totally understandable. Alot of people love tube amps and I feel like you need to have one, not necessarily for touring but it's getting less common to see them on stages. It's good to have the knowledge of how to use both and apply them to your own band context.

[@ricardorodrigues4277]

I really agree with all the points. Sometimes we must step backwards to improve our forwards. It's much common in tech areas. Overall music is our target, right?

[@fpsknifer9906]

I don't think that tube amps are dying at all. You pointed out that not many new tube amp designs have come out in recent years, but that doesn't mean existing tube amp designs aren't selling. Fender and Marshall don't need to invest huge R&D money into new tube amp designs, if players just want to buy a Deluxe Reverb or a JCM800. Unlike pedals and modelers, tube amps won't ever become obsolete (unless they just stop making vacuum tubes.) So it's sort of like buying a bed or a refrigerator - you might only ever buy one or two good tube amps in a lifetime. It doesn't matter if Windows gets an update or the driver loses support, because your amp doesn't do those things. This is also probably why companies invest so much in modelers and other ampless solutions - planned obsolescence. It's very profitable to make these things, knowing they will need to be replaced in a few years. The tube amp guy buys once and cries once. The Fractal guy is going to have to keep buying new gizmos every few years.

[@cellarcatband]

Speaking about "traditional" active pickups (and ERGs at the same time) - recently put an EMG 81-7 in my guitar. It does not sound too hot, is well-balanced in the frequencies and has a great touch sensitivity. Many modern passive pickups are much hotter and sound more compressed.

[@josuastangl7140]

Yeah, I think it's mostly a marketing trend. They aren't "sexy" right now, but they still sound just fine

[@piptyson5512]

Was about to say the same. EMG has put out many variations of actives for years, even passives and single coils or splitting options. It's like perception has a stronger hold of people's minds than reality. Wish I had a nickle every time I heard "EMG's all sound the same, and it's just sterile and overly compressed". siiiigggghhhhh

[@TobyKBTY]

Yep EMGs have always been okay. I always thought the criticism was exaggerated

[@rogershore7189]

EMG’s have always been pretty versatile. Let’s not forget that Mark Knopfler was using them in the late 80’s/90’s, and Dave Gilmour and Prince have used them in the past too. The secret is to make sure you have an amp with plenty of clean headroom. Because they have such high output, the pickups will push a low power amp into distortion very easily.

[@joebradley1968]

Thank you Ray for commenting on active pickups and clearing up the age old misconceptions and false beliefs surrounding them. I wish there were more videos and articles that addressed this topic. For instance, their versatility in all styles of music and that they are not just "One trick pony" pickups only good for metal music. Thanks again.

[@dunxy]

Actives are great! I been die hard traditional pickup guy since ever, predominantly singles and always alnico. I mostly play Tele’s and last year i got a nice old JDM Fender, already having vanilla Tele covered, i thought id try some EMG’s, so when i do feel like cranking the fain to 11 the noise level is manageable. At the beginning i wasn’t sure, id go back to my traditional Tele with fancy hand wound OG style pickups and convince myself something was better. Many months later, there isnt any difference of consequence that can’t be dialed in/out with eq. The old beat up JDM Tele with the EMG’s is my goto guitar and by far my favourite. Rarely play my far more valuable USA built Tele. Picked up a bargain mexi HH Tele from a closing down sale, when i get around to it, it will be getting EMG’s as well. I predominantly play clean to overdriven. Just like my tube amps, noisy traditional singles lay idle… EMG’s into my Kemper =

[@andretopy]

Great vid and observations

[@Mr_Woodchuck]

I feel like Tube Amps are bigger than ever. The Bogner Uber Ultra was launched in 2023 and was consistently sold out with a 6 month wait list. The Fortin Evil Pumpkin was instantly sold out. There is a lot more boutique builders out there these days: GroundZero, Headfirst, Monomyth. Bad Cat made a big resurgence with Tosin. Tube amps are definitely being used less in a live setting, but I do feel like they are more popular than ever.

[@bigczech7]

They stopped making tube amps before then they came back.

[@brianbergmusic5288]

Compared to a Helix or any other amp modeler, most tube amps on top of a cabinet stack are indeed "bigger than ever." [ Sad trombone sound ] OK, I'll see myself out now.

[@adamgh0]

Tube amps are great for studio use but I wouldn't want to gig with one. Give me a modeler that sounds just like it and fits in my gig bag. Guitar snobs will complain but the audience can't tell the difference.

[@GetH0NEY]

​@@adamgh0yo I'm new to all this. What is a modeler? Is that like a digital amp?

[@scottanderson6807]

@@adamgh0Thats where you’re wrong. Give them more credit than that. I’ve shared the stage with a guy using a Helix and it was embarrassing for him.

[@Theham772]

I saw a brief interview with Kirk Hammett recently, and from what I understand he prefers solid state amps/sims now because of their consistent sound/tone output. He talked about owning several Marshall tube/cab combos and how each one sounded different from one another and that their tone changed with age, temperature, humidity etc. (too many variables to juggle and keep consistent with other options available)

[@Blazerghost]

overrated boomer glorified guitarist

[@TheEpicLinkFreeman]

@@Blazerghost didn't ask

[@Blazerghost]

@@TheEpicLinkFreeman I was talking to your mum anyway

[@screwdriver_bandit]

The digital rig is the Vape of modern music times. Gets the job done, believable. But there’s just nothing quite like a real cigarette.

[@13Recon19D]

I also just bought a epiphone prophecy LP. What sold me was the modern designs like the upper neck access and neck profile, combined with the fishman fluence pickups. It can chug, shred, scream with that PAF classic tone, and clean up to do chimey single coil cleans. It can do a lot of things well enough and is very easy and comfortable to play.

[@margaretedwards1366]

According to Xander, your guitar has a tragic flaw. It's great for more than one style/ sound. Dumb.

[@13Recon19D]

@@margaretedwards1366 I get it though. If my wife wouldn’t murder me for owning 5 different guitars I would 😂

[@canadiancombatwombatthe3rd782]

Multiscale is needed for extended range, it's not necessarily for tuning and intonation, it's to fix the playability of the thinner strings, longer scale lengths will cause those strings to become extremely stiff, thus multiscale is used to fix the stiffness of those strings while allowing the thicker strings to keep proper tension and not become floppy. When it comes to extended range, there will always be a market for them, they invoke a different style of playing and honestly if you're planning on tuning anywhere past drop C, you benefit from the scale lengths a 7 and 8 string will give you, otherwise you have to use thicker strings and even still it's not gonna give you the same feel like adding length will give you. They aren't gonna put 6 strings out of the market but they definitely ain't going away.

[@BRZguy]

There's no way I'd switch to digital amps over a good tube amp. A lot of it has to do with just inspiring me as a person. I don't get inspired when my whole guitar setup is on my computer screen. But when I have a physical setup that I can see and touch the knobs and call it mine just like all my heroes of the past, that's what inspires me. And I don't think they'll ever go away completely. Maybe stop coming out with new amps, but I think they'll still produce the legends. There's always going to be someone who wants to have Hendrix's setup and they won't be satisfied with a Katana or something.

[@kevinschwartz3239]

Spot on friend, exactly my observations. Just picked up a FRFR speaker myself! lol

[@eugenexaviersnicklefritz104]

Great video. As an old school player as well as much as it saddens me in the case of the tube amps especially, technology and new generations keep the times changing. Never even considered (nor will I) owning a multi scale or 100 string guitar, so seeing them fall in popularity is no big deal to me. I have been buying a lot of gear recently, and I will say that the pricing is ridiculously low on some of the stuff I've always loved, so in short, I think your video is on point and a fair and accurate representation of how change is always going to be inevitable.

[@duaneharlick]

I believe the amp/cab assessment is perhaps premature, or situational. In situations where FOH is high end and mixed professionally, going direct can work, however, for other smaller scale gigs at the less than amazing level using a simple vocal PA, amp and cab still rule. I believe the tube amp decline is mostly due to expense, as the digital replacements (although disposable) are much, much more affordable. I have several modelers and use plugins for recording regularly, but all 5 of my gigging amplifiers are tube.

[@JesusChrist_IsTruth-LoveForALL]

💪

[@Orange6921]

n my 30+ years of playing and gigging, I've heard this story cycle through now a couple of times about Tube amps going the way of the dodo. Its not happening and never will, these are trends that tend to go in cycles. Yes i get it that the new modeling is far superior but that's not always the issue, I've seen times where solidstate, hybrids and pre amp racks were just the rage and tube amps were "outdated concepts". Sure enough they come back around and are all the rage again, and people did not just suddenly realize that the modeling was not perfect enough, there was a lot more to it than that. As some future point jut having a more stripped down setup of guitar into the tube amp will be the "cool" thing again because everyone is so computerized with all their gear. Its doesn't matter how good the technology gets, there will always be a market and demand for old school tube amps. Guitar playing and gear is very trendy and always has been. Tubes amps will never go away, and its because of a multitude of reasons and trends.

[@brianwells4507]

I gotta tell you when I heard mentioned tube amps are going out of style, I got prematurely excited 😅 I'm thinking this is fantastic, finally I'll be able to grab those Fender tweeds I passed on in the 70's! Hell yeah, tube amps who needs them? Just put them out to the curb and I'll be by with my old hippie van hauling them away for you! Seriously what a notion? Don't they realize all these reissue, solid state, and effect stomp boxes are there to reproduce a tube amplifiers natural sound?​@@Orange6921

[@thomassmith5199]

Nothing replaces the look of of a half stack on stage

[@xanderraymondcharles]

I couldn’t agree more. I miss that aesthetic

[@TheePoohhBear]

I’m 21 and I’m so intrigued by Cabs and Tube Amps

[@nickgjenkins]

On the tube amp/cab front, I agree. I wonder if part of that may also have to do that fewer and fewer people can afford not only a house where a tube amp/cab can really work, but a rehearsal space at all.

[@Utubewrk123]

I have the worst paying job ever. 5 yrs of college and I’m embarrassed to say how little I make. Picked the wrong career. But it’s what you spend ur money on. I save for the thing I love the most which is guitar. Save up and trade up. Yes it’s expensive but as I said before I played awful gear as a beginner as I should. As I got better over the yrs and a lot of practice I wanted better gear. It can be done. It all depends what you want to spend your money on.

[@nickgjenkins]

@@Utubewrk123 my point was that rehearsal space, or a place where you can actually USE high powered tube amps is getting harder and harder to find/afford. Not that we can't afford the gear. It's the place to USE the gear that's become an issue.

[@franklulatowskijr.6974]

I love the fact that guitar players are finally adopting things that bass players have been doing for a few decades. I’ve been gigging with DI pedals (in most cases anyway) instead of cabinets for almost twenty years at this point and my bass company has been Dingwall for a very long time. You guys may get close…eventually. 🤪

[@Viper-dz2kw]

Bass guitar tech has always been a little bit ahead of guitars just by nature of it being an instrument that’s less then 100 years old and hasn’t had the time to develop the same crazy purist following as guitar

[@planej6315]

The first modern solidbody electric bass guitar and electric 6-string guitar were introduced around the same time, early 50s. I personally think that's what counts as the beginning of the guitar culture we have today and not so much classical guitars from like the 1800s. In my opinion it boils down to the fact that opposed to guitarists who were chasing the distorted rock and roll tones at the time, bassists never stopped wanting to achieve a good solid clean tone. And bassists are probably more open to new technologies than guitarists. @@Viper-dz2kw

[@Maddogg-hg5me]

It makes sense, honestly. Carrying a laptop you can plug into is a lot more convenient than lugging around stacks of amps.

[@Ukraineaissance2014]

It's just odd that DIs arnt the main thing when PA systems have been used for so long and amps cost so much, are so heavy, big and hard to transport. Is it an ego thing like Angus young using 70 marshalls live or bands hiring empty marshall cab shells to have on stage?

[@franklulatowskijr.6974]

@@Maddogg-hg5me Granted, I still have to use a combo when there is no house sound, but having anything more than that doesn’t make sense anymore.

[@craigharrison5406]

I love my tube amps. Got a Helix and a bunch of plug ins but 90% of the time I'm using my tube amps. They just sound better with full sounding rich bass response and the feel of the air being pushed through a 4 X 12. I have yet to get that same full rich bass response from a modeller or plug in.

[@Juliosguitarstuffs]

Interesting, I find myself using the helix floor much more than my real amps. I’ll typically use my katana as a speaker for the helix when a PA system isn’t available. I think our use may differ due to our setups! I take my helix everywhere and the portability if it helps a lot!

[@themanicmechanics496]

Yeah, I get sick of computer salesmen telling me it's close enough, just buy it. I like what I friggin like, man. It's just like every year, you have to get a new cell phone. Not!

[@craigharrison5406]

Agreed 100%. People can't tell me they sound exactly the same when I have ears and own the equipment lol. If I hear a difference nobody can convince it's not there.@@themanicmechanics496

[@craigharrison5406]

I use my modellers and PC plugins for recording and that's about it. They are much easier to record with for sure as you don't need to spend money and time micing up amps. It's not that I don't like modellers, I just prefer the sound coming out of a half stack amp.@@Juliosguitarstuffs

[@threepe0]

Not offended. Good to see you, thanks for the video and sharing your insights

[@EC-ol8nz]

I love EMG when the battery explodes in your guitar :) So much fun to clean!

[@smash_adams]

Honestly im glad to see extemded range guitars die out in popularity. Nine strings and these dudes only play the bottom one.

[@johnconkling9729]

Tube amps are going to be like muscle cars. People got rid of them because of new advancements and features, but later they were collector items and outrageously valuable if you had the right model. I argue with my other guitar player in my band who prefers a helix even though he has some nice amps. I tell him it’s just like silicone titties. Lol

[@ryanfraley7113]

I like the Helix but I’d never use it for a gig.

[@draleigh8881]

I'm putting a emg 57 in my Squier mustang. Was thinking about a Seymour Duncan distortion but I'd have to solder everything with an emg you just plug in and the 57 sounds pretty damn good all around.

[@Tja23]

I love this channel. Good job dude

[@xanderraymondcharles]

I appreciate that!

[@Mar33322]

EMG pickups still rule. Fishmans sound like they have a wah stuck on.

[@Liminal.Headspace]

And they're not that expensive. There's Harley Bentons with either 60/81 or RetroActive EMGs that cost 500 Euro and are clearly built somewhere else than the cheap ones with Tesla pickups. I honestly think EMGs are just as popular as ever, but they actually have competition now from Fishmann. Hopefully Seymour Duncan will do more with their actives as well.

[@honigdachs.]

I had the Moderns and the KSE sets and eventually they got replaced with EMGs. It is true what you're saying, the Fishmans have this really obnoxious midrange thing going on that makes them sound ridiculous. The low end is not there either. EMG just works. Het Set, 57/66, Super 77, these are all flawless.

[@basicoptimalmouse]

I don't think extended range guitars are a dying trend, it's more that they're just a normal thing now. 2012 I saw a 7 string for the first time, 2016 I played one for the first time, 2018 I got my own, and I think that's when they peaked.

[@scoobybenguitars]

Great vid!

[@HeavensProtocol]

My 1985 Carvin V220 (15" radius) feels frumpy now after running a compound radius vintage Charvel. Both have Kahler 2300.

[@eulsifer]

Ah, I remember the old forum days emg has teh br00tz

[@TarekMG]

I think this is 100% true. I also think that going back to the old ways might be the new cool thing in say 2035. I think we will start to see more "vintage" gear and will hear more purposefully less-editied/less-polished tracks. This is coming from a modern metal fan btw

[@alexkrylewski3218]

Vintage gear was already a thing (and still is) since 10+ years ago in stoner/psychodelic/sludge/doom/etc scene. Not trying to argue, it's just a fact.

[@alexkrylewski3218]

Less polished, raw and lo-fi sound as well.

[@KyleDaSloth]

I definitely hear you man lol You have to remember though, trends are always diminishing then coming back. But then again, if you stick to what you enjoy, you'll be much more happier and you won't have to bow down to the next big thing around the corner.

[@Utubewrk123]

Like vinyl records being outdated. Now look what’s back.

[@KyleDaSloth]

@@Utubewrk123 my point exactly. Now, vinyl costs more than either CDs or digital music for the simple reason of nostalgia lol

[@echopoint8817]

I do agree with pretty much all you have said. In my case I was super excited about 7 and 8 string guitars but have always struggled with dialing in a good sound and in the end couldn’t really find good utility in local music scene for them. Fan frets all depend on the spread of the fan. I love my Strandberg gentle fan, i really struggled with more extreme multi scales. I gave up on tube amps several years ago, they are too clunky and not really practical.

[@canadiancombatwombatthe3rd782]

Tip for you dialing tones for extended range guitars, use less gain, in the words of Tosin, "it gives the guitar a growl like teeth" while still retaining dynamics, compression will help level the sound out also.

[@jasondesselles9168]

I'm 50. A former pro musician, guitarist. I remember the first iteration of guitar modeling heads. The Johnson Millenium. It didn't sound like any of the amps it was modeling. Then Line 6 came behind them with the the Pod and their own modeling heads. I've owned a few. I can say that digital amp modeling has come a long way. It's beginning to sound indestinguishable from tube amps, and that's a huge feat. I used to carry around 4,000 dollars worth of gear every night. It was heavy and cumbersome too. Glad technology is making things cheaper and easier for the next generation of musicians.

[@Orange6921]

In my 30+ years of playing and gigging, I've heard this story cycle through now a couple of times about Tube amps going the way of the dodo. Its not happening and never will, these are trends that tend to go in cycles. Yes i get it that the new modeling is far superior but that's not always the issue, I've seen times where solidstate, hybrids and pre amp racks were just the rage and tube amps were "outdated concepts". Sure enough they come back around and are all the rage again, and people did not just suddenly realize that the modeling was not perfect enough, there was a lot more to it than that. At some future point jut having a more stripped down setup of guitar into the tube amp will be the "cool" thing again because everyone is so computerized with all their gear. Its doesn't matter how good the technology gets, there will always be a market and demand for old school tube amps. Guitar playing and gear is very trendy and always has been. Tubes amps will never go away, and its because of a multitude of reasons and trends.

[@brandongregori995]

It's a novelty at this point. There will always be gear snobs who claim to hear a difference, but they are impractical and too expensive to justify their use for most people.

[@jasondesselles9168]

@@Orange6921 So you're saying that even when digital modelings sound just as good as tubes at 25 percent of the price, people will still choose to lug around heavy expensive tube amps?

[@richcarroll7510]

Blackstar has some really good digital amps ,And in the balckstar TVP and it nails the tub tones

[@Orange6921]

@@jasondesselles9168 YES, that is exactly what I am saying. Modern automobiles are infinitely superior to classic cars, but there are many people who will always prefer the older models. And just because a digital model sounds identical to YOU does not mean it sounds and feels identical to everyone else. There is no such thing as universal agreement on such things and never will be.

[@partyxplays]

Guitar will never die. Sure maybe a few models will come and go but the guitar is an instrument that will always be used by humans because there is so much variety and so many different sounds now and days. It's such a versatile instrument!

[@tonepilot]

I think you’re bang on. I haven’t turned on a tube amp in years. Quad Cortex does everything I want exceedingly well. As a older guy, I recently bought a used Warlock for the hell of it and I’m having fun playing jazz on it (just kidding). I did buy a Warlock though. It’s a hoot to play.

[@iviaverick52]

I do a modeler running cab impulses direct to front of house with a 2x12 cab on stage. It's helpful to have that point of reference that you can manage directly without having to request "more guitar" in your monitor from the sound tech

[@Jortdf534]

what modeler do you use? I would like to do this with my Tonex pedal, but it seems i can only choose between running amp sim only, or amp sim + cab sim out of the pedal. i would like to have a cab on stage plus cab sim running to FOH like you explained.

[@voladel]

I love the idea that a versatile guitar isn’t old school. Strat/tele/les Paul types are about as old school as it gets and are as far from one trick ponies as you can get. As for amps/cabs, I remember going to see Dread Zeppelin back in 1990(ish) and they were using little 15W combos miked up to the front of house PA with a huge sound. Full stacks made sense when PA systems were poor but now all they do is look macho and cause tinutis.

[@TheEpicLinkFreeman]

4x12s or 2x12s are usually loud enough for most venues, and for the venues that they aren't loud enough; they probably have a PA that is actually worth relying on.

[@chadr2843]

New amp heads just cost way too much. What you get with something like the QC for the money is absolutely insane and the sound quality is excellent. Even Metallica stopped playing real amps live and moved to Fractal. Never thought I’d see that but it makes sense now.

[@Ryan_Q3L]

I do believe Metallica still records with amps though. It's just touring rigs have changed.

[@chadr2843]

@@Ryan_Q3LThats my understanding as well, I think that will change too though . We’ll see

[@timbrink]

I went from a modeler to Blug amp 1 iridium. Add an IR or cab sim pedal and you have the best of both worlds in a pedal format and it sounds fantastic.

[@markallen381]

I, as well, love tube amps! I like the tube combo amps best. Less to truck around for live set-ups. I grew up listening to an old tube radio tuned into a blues station out of Boston. When I started playing guitar I had an old turntable that had been modified to accept a guitar input and then I had an old Danelectro guitar amp. So I was influenced heavily by tube sound in the 1960s. One thing that kills me is the changing connectors. Every year I cringe at the idea of some other connector than expected. I have several boxes of cables that just sit there because of new equipment that went into the studio. What I would like to see is every guitar maker out there make stereo output guitars. Left channel - neck pickup. Right channel - Bridge pickup. The same way that a mouse hears it. I learnt to hate the knife switches. All but my stratacaster are without knife switches. I had a defective switch several years ago and that unreliable technology should have gone out with Frankenstein. I treat my strat like it was porcelain. My preference is 3-way toggle with Vol Vol Tone Tone, it's simple for a 2-pup design. Strats give you harmonics that don't come out in a 2-pup design so that's why I have a strat. You can't say "5-string guitar" without thinking of a bass, NOT A BASS, what I'm thinking of is a 5-string-guitar. I occasionally look for a five string guitar for around $700, no one makes them. Stinging a 5-string guitar could be with stings 1-5 or 2-6 or maybe a Gm chord?

[@liveseytowers]

Almost all of those things you've described are things I like about guitars. Just got a fan fret 7 string, love active pickups, would rather have 10 guitars than 1 guitar that does everything, and I've got a tube amp. But I'm middleage, balding and grey so I imagine you are right.

[@scentia_est]

On point. I played round about 10 years in bands from 2000 until 2010, had a break after playing live and started again in 2022. At first I thought, damn, what happened here!? Literally everything has changed since then :) It needed approximately more than a year for me to get back in the game with all the new features and stuff. I still love the old school stuff but it's also really cool to record like a pro at home. I started recording in 2005 with a SM57 and a cabinet and that's it :) There were drum computers but they sounded like crap, however I had no issues with it. It was the style of the time. Nowadays I use the best of the old school things, but also modellers and I love the diversity, but I also bought shitty things and too many useless pedals.

[@jarredbaca8112]

I own a boss gt1000 and it is definitely impressive. Great for live! But at the end of the day the sound is still not up to par with my amps and cabs, for those reasons, as long as people care about sheer tone for recording, I don’t think tube amps will die. They still sound so much better imo. Again, I’m a user of both frequently, and sound quality a real amp will get you there much quicker with less tone tweaking etc. Gigging is a diff story haha, obviously it’s wayyy more convenient to play a freaking small ass pedal/multi effects unit. Touring costs are basically non existent since you can haul it in a backpack or a small bag. No more expensive ass rack cases etc. so economically it makes sense for touring musicians. I think there is space for both to exist, esp now that tube amps have IR options with two notes or built in IR loaders. Convenient for apartment dwellers etc. without really sacrificing tone to a plugin that has way too much low end and top end that always needs to be EQ’d tf out. So yeah if we’re talking sound, there’s a reason why modelers TRY to sound like the real thing, and that’s because they’re not the real thing! Doesn’t mean they’re bad at all, just means they won’t 100% replicate that sound, or at least not yet. But damn are they close now a days’ What a wonderful time to be a guitar player honestly

[@kenpg31]

They have been saying tube amps are dying for years but they still been hanging in there. I have both tube and solid state amps and love them both.

[@wrobinson1702]

Nice video! I'm a 1st time listener and I thought you did a good job of being both informative and approachable-not too techy. And I agree(sadly) about tube amps and cabs. You seem to be more of a metal player, but I can confirm that the same thing is happening in the Blues and Country guitar communities. I always ask about amps vs modelers/front of house when I get a gig in a new venue. I (almost) won't do it if I have to bring my own amp/cab anymore.

[@MrJingles021]

This has me excited for NAMM. Not sure why. I want to see if the companies are going to release new stuff. I think this might be NAMM that determines if it continues. Side note, I'd like to see more companies take a spin on more headless guitars and ergonomical guitars. I think there are design benefits to headless designs that aren't getting enough attention...as ugly as they can be

[@manfredmar]

Honestly I think Ola hit it out of the park with his Strandberg design. But always happy to see someone do their own version.

[@TaylorDanley]

Even my seven string is a dust collector these days... 😢

[@xanderraymondcharles]

:(

[@Hardvolume007]

Nothing beats real tube compression…I will continue to lug them around. All my road cases have wheels😂👍

[@user-yb3fb5hy1l]

That totally sucks if that's actually the case. Love the look of the cabs and just recently I've rediscovered my passion for music and have delved into electric guitar after just mostly playing acoustic guitar for 20 years, casually. I actually really like the headers, mesa boogie and evh supposed to really raise the roof. Good stuff, Ray....keep the show going.