Amp Tube

What’s the difference between tube watts and solid state watts in a guitar amp?

I know that a tube amp with 10 or 15 watts can drive a cabinet that is rated for a minimum wattage of much higher than that of the amplifier. But solid state can’t necessarily do this. What is the difference between tube and solid state watt amps, and how big of a cabinet can a small 15 watt amp drive?

A watt is a watt is a watt…period. Here’s the formula for calculating power:

P = E * I
where:
P = power in watts
E = EMF in volts
I = Current in Amperes

There’s no variable for “tube” or “solid state”.

Now most folks will agree that when you turn a tube amp up it will sound louder than a solid state amp of the same wattage. This has to do with how a tube handles a signal vs a transistor when they get to the limit of their operating range. A transistor will clip the signal abruptly, and most folks don’t percieve that as a “good” sound.

A tube on the other hand will start compressing the signal as you increase it’s drive level. By doing that, the average levels of the signal are higher, and we percieve that as louder.

It’s basically the same thing that radio stations do to their audio (and now mastering engineers) to make the signal stand out.

Now, the question of “how big of a cabinet…”. Well, I suppose you could hook up a cabinet that’s rated for 1000 watts to your amp, and al long as the impedances are matched it would make noise. And that’s true of tube or solid state (again…a watt is a watt).

Don’t get too hung up on wattage numbers on speaker cabinets. What really impacts how loud a speaker system can get is it’s efficiency. In other words, how well does it turn electrical energy into acoustic energy.

Very high wattage speakers are usually pretty ineffecient compared to lower wattage ones. So, it’s entirely possible to hook your amp up to a cabinet rated for 50 watts, and it’s louder than the 1000 watt cabinet.

You usually see the “minimum recommended wattage” spec on high fidelity speakers (because they trade efficiency for accuracy). I don’t believe I’ve ever seen that on a guitar cabinet.

As long as you’re not mismatching impedances, feel free to experiment.

Good luck.

Greetings from Austin, TX

Ken

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Once you have selected your guitar, you should find an amp to go with it. Today there are several options available depending on the size, sound, amplification technology and configuration. We are here to give you some useful information needed to steer through the maze.

Several types of amplifiers

There are basically four types of guitar amplifiers: solid state (analog), Tube, Modeling (digital), and hybrids.

Solid State Amps – These guitar amps solid state recognized as transistors for their preamp and used for sections feeding tube as an alternative. They are extremely reliable and rarely need repairs. They normally have a very fresh tone, although many come with "distortion" channels as well. These amplifiers are all the rage with players looking for an amplifier of strong, reliable touring.

Tube Amps – tube amps are favored by many guitarists for their warm, fat tone and thus the distortion of the "organic". Tube amps are generally higher than the sound solid state amps of the same power and have an accurate "feel" that does not acquire solid state amplifiers. Most amplifiers tube have different channels, which could go from clean to distorted tones instantly. The performance of the tube could be deteriorating over time, so the pipes need to change from time to time.

Modeling Amps (Digital AMPS) – amp modeling uses digital processors to reproduce the sound of tube technology traditional and contemporary. Using software that "models" the sound of tube amplifiers (and cabinets), these amps put sound of various amplifiers in a box. Modeling amplifiers are programmable, and often were equipped with digital effects like delay, chorus, etc., and include some of the digital or even analog outputs with speaker simulation to go direct to border recording or PA system.

Hybrid Amplifiers – The Combining the best of each type of guitar amplifier in one package, these amplifiers use a real tube in combination with the strong power of the state your amplifier. State Marshall valve amplifiers use tubes in the preamp part and solid state circuitry in the power to make a tube tone without need for the use of feeding tubes.

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