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Plus I also prefer ampsims such as S-Gear 2, Kazrog and Amplitube Fender 2 over many valve amps I've used.
Not saying digital is perfect but it can be damn good. Just like any amp can be piss poor.
Set a modeller up perfectly and an amp up perfectly and blind test. I bet you'd have a great time with both.
Of course it's also very eas set up anything to be awful too.
I'm just thankful I don't need to choose.
I'm not sure I understand the motivation of coming into a thread about a particular unit just to suggest it (and/or its users) are inferior though. What's that about?
There's plenty of doubt. As a 'valve snob' of 20 year+ I've made the change and sound better than ever. Have you actually owned/gigged a high-end modeller?
Or refer to my previous answer, 'bollocks'
Yes, it's different, and possibly not quite as fun, to the days I had 2 4x12's and a 100W Marshall behind me, but there is no doubt at all that my Helix sounds better
Still, I'm looking forward to one day trying a Helix (or similar) into the stereo fx loop of my JC chorus.
I'm happier with my JC than any valve amp I've ever had tbh
It's also possible for a model to sound better if it cops the character but removes (for example) that weird thing that particular amp does if you have the presence control higher than the treble, because the circuit needs another wotsit to stop the instability. Obviously making something up there.
Now the model is designed to replicate the massive and Satanic, but at a lower volume level... which isn't physically possible. I think that has a lot to do with our perception of modellers - they sound full and demonic, but at a comfortable volume level and our brain isn't expecting to hear that.
And when you turn the modeller up to the same level as you did the amp... the amp model already sounds big and beastly... but then fletcher munson becomes your enemy and the extreme lows and extreme highs become much more pronounced and it all starts to sound a bit gash.
Maybe.
This thread is full of people talking about different scenarios BTW, making it quite confusing. There are people talking about recording, gigging through a PA, gigging through a power amp and guitar cab etc
I reckon Drew is likely one of the more qualified from an "deep experience with both rig types" standpoint..
certainly more so than me...
Genius
When I got mine though, I couldn't get that feeling or tone, and at band practice I'd get harsh feedback and very unmusical distortion. I couldn't ever really solve it, and I couldn't get loud enough to be heard in the band. So I gave up trying to use it in a band context and stuck with it just for home use, at which point I started getting pissed off that my real Diezel at the time sounded so much better and I could use it for both home and practice. So I flogged the Axe FX.
I tried a Kemper Powerhead too, not at practice but at home... and didn't like the tones. To be honest with that one, I went all in and bought the full bundle, so ended up spending a pretty penny. I regretted it, and so didn't stick with it for long enough.
But it gets me thinking - are certain speakers or cabs better than others for bringing modellers up to a loud rehearsal and gig level? Like @Digital_Igloo says, the playback system is what we're most often responding to in terms of feel. Maybe my cab works great for valve amps, but sucks for modellers?
I dunno. Just thinking aloud. If an Axe FX owner and a Kemper powerhead owner wanted to head into the studio one day with me, I could bring my Helix and we could spend the day chatting shit and comparing each setup. Might be fun.