One of many nice debates within the guitar neighborhood in 2024 lies in digital amp simulations vs conventional tube-driven amplifiers. On one hand, some guitarists, together with Nita Strauss, have switched to digital amp modellers for stay reveals as a result of their portability and ease of use. 

On the opposite, guitar legend Eric Johnson lately mentioned he’d dabbled with amp modellers, however is but to search out one convincing sufficient for him to undertake, and IDLES guitarist Mark Bowen had stronger phrases, calling amp modelling “whack”.

Now, in a brand new interview with Final Guitar, former Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse has added his voice to the latter aspect of the controversy, saying that whereas he brings a Kemper on the street for observe in resort rooms, he nonetheless swears by his ENGL tube amp for stay reveals.

“With any digital amp, I’m not in a position to get the interplay between lowering the extent of the guitar within the enter and having the tone change from distorted to barely distorted to smoother and to scrub, like I can with the ENGL,” he causes. “That and possibly the scientific tiny little artefacts of digital distortion that I nonetheless can hear after I work together with it and do a number of modifications.”

He continues: “Nevertheless, for those who have been to do a set half the place you’re simply chugging alongside, hardly anyone would have the ability to inform for those who have been enjoying via a digital amp or not. Nevertheless, if I have been to be soloing and enjoying a super-saturated sound after which change pickups and produce down the amount to about three out of ten, you’ll hear that it’s not the identical roundness, or full. It’s an elusive high quality that hasn’t actually been captured by modelling amps.”

Making use of each a Kemper and his ENGL tube amp to completely different conditions reveals Morse has a considerably measured strategy. He mentions the unwieldy logistics of bringing his ENGL amp on the street.

“Once I play gigs, it’s at all times me utilizing my ENGL tube amp. And I do carry it myself generally, however on tour the street crew carries it. However largely, they only raise it right into a case, and it simply wheels onto a truck in a case. On these dates, I’m going to be bringing the ENGL.”

Steve Morse is at present on tour within the US. For a full checklist of dates, head to his official web site.