Originally Posted by Colin Ward
Tube amps can be clean or distorted or both - depends on the guitar pickups, the amp design and the volume setting. Tubes provide a pleasant sounding distortion which is what people like while solid state distortion is or was harsh and nasty sounding although solid state has come a long way.

For clean tube sound, play through a Fender Deluxe Reverb, or a Twin Reverb. Even a Fender Blues Junior is pretty clean unless you really crank it.

Vox and Marshall amps are loved for their overdriven tones more than their clean so they may not be for you.

The tone controls are there for you to use. If you like a very bright tone with the treble up and the bass down, that is fine.

Hot or overwound pickups on the guitar will lower the amount of treble and increase the distortion or muddiness. Run of the mill Tele pickups are not overwound but some Teles have way different pickups in them.


I had a blues jr a while back and I was never happy with it. Same problem, have to play rhythm with the lead pickup. otherwise it sounds like you;re wearing headphones.

Marshalls have always been really clean, which I like, but then the sound is more hard rock or heavy metal, which is not really what I do.

I guess a pedal eq would do something, but I find cranking treble only thins the sound out without cleaning it up.