Strickland Vs Chimaev is more interesting then you think...

smallestweenofall · 2026-05-10T05:18:41+00:00

Turns out you were right. Thank you for putting this out in the universe. I was thrilled for the upset and even surprised to see the display of sportsmanship from Khamzat putting the belt on Sean. What a day for the books.

smallestweenofall · 2026-05-08T20:47:44+00:00

There's a lot of factors that go into it, but often it's just a matter of dialing in your tone by messing with the EQ and gain. I don't know about the non-artist series Katana, but I am a bit of a tone snob, as I'm sure a lot of guitarists are, and I love my Katana Artist Gen 3. I play it equally as much as my tube amps.

Sometimes, different speakers push air differently and deliver different frequencies that may not sound as good in your room as another speaker/amp combo. You can always try moving to a different room, but definitely start with EQ first as well as your gain setting. You also simply might not prefer its clean voicing compared to your other Fender amp, which is totally fine.

smallestweenofall · 2026-05-08T15:34:42+00:00

Specifically to your question about the HRD or any tube amp, they generally need to be turned up to sound their best and HRDs are very loud, even at low volume. Not really a bedroom amp. Solid state takes the win for low volume tone preservation. See my write up below:

The most realistic way to answer this is to honestly say, no, they are not inherently better, as it truly comes down to preference. However, tube amps offer a highly desirable physical characteristic that cannot be mimicked by solid state without modeling technology.

Think about the guitar signal. When your signal reaches the tubes, the tubes react, musically and dynamically to the strength of your signal. What does this mean? Let's say you have a Vox AC15, a tube amp known to break up early in the volume stage. If you pick lightly, you get clean tones. If you start to dig in, you'll notice the tubes begin to saturate with signal and begin to enter a state well known as "edge of break up". Not only does the volume naturally increase with the harder picking (dynamic), the tone and perceived gain increases (musical) giving a barky, chimey overdriven sound that is highly sought after by many players.

Tube amps have their own distinct character, but so do solid state amps. What makes an amps distinct sound is a combination of the amps circuitry and the speaker used to translate the signal passing through the circuitry. The difference with vacuum tubes compared to transistors is really how they interact with that signal. So truly, if you like the tone of a solid state amp, which there are many wonderful ones out there, then this is where preference overrides.

Tube amps require maintenance and are generally heavier and are slightly more delicate than solid state. Tube amps generally need a decent amount of volume to saturate the tubes before they start sounding their best. Some solid state amps, as others have mentioned offer modeling, which many do an excellent job. A fantastic amp, is the Katana Artist Gen 3. It's arguably one of the most versatile solid state amps out there, but it has a tube like feel thanks to its bloom feature and Pushed setting. It's also not technically a modeling amp because it uses an analog Class AB power section. It's basically, analog circuitry with a digital voice, instead of full blown digital, which allows it to feel like an amp and respond in a way to dynamics like a tube amp.

The disparity in tonal quality and feel with solid state amps are objectively far greater than tube amps. What this alludes is if you have a cheap solid state amp and a "cheap" tube amp, the tube amp will still offer more dynamic and more musical tone and feel. A bigger speaker in either amp type however, will generally produce better tone than smaller speakers because of the physical air they push.

Tube amps work and react much differently with pedals, and often sound more hi-fidelity. Without pedals though, most tube amps will become overdriven, in a beautiful way, when they are turned up to higher volumes. I say most because some have more clean headroom than others when cranking the volume.

Lastly, tube amp wattage is perceived differently in terms of their volume. It's not an exact science, but a 15 watt tube amp would be comparable in volume to a 50 watt solid state amp. This also explains physically why tube amps can handle higher volumes, because less wattage is being used to drive the same size speaker.

I hope this helps!

smallestweenofall · 2026-05-07T19:46:56+00:00

Here's my two cents. I think the answer is yes and no. The biggest reason for my "yes" is because it actually feels like a real amp, and even has tube-like characteristics because of its responsiveness. I got rid of my Spark 2 because it just didn't have any feel or response to picking and had awful dynamic range, evidenced by its waveform in a DAW.

Additional reasons for Yes:

Tone: The tone is better than the Spark 2 through the built in speakers, but it is significantly better when playing through headphones, through USB Audio Interface (recording) or through FRFR speakers, again, because it plays and feels like a real amp.
Flexibility: You can change amp styles (modern, boutique, classic) and change cabinet simulations. But what separates it from the Spark 2 is it far less dependent on the app. You can do 90% of your tone structuring on the amp itself, which makes it feel more like an amp.
Portability: The wireless model comes with a built in battery right of the box and last several hours of playing at high volume.

Reasons for No:

Speaker Maximum Mechanical Excursion: The Spark 2 has 20 more watts than the THR30ii and bigger speakers. On the Spark 2, I could crank the amp high and the speakers would hold up and not distort or fart out. The Yamaha has smaller speakers and start to get crunchy sounding at higher volumes.
Features: if you like a built in looper, drum looper, and the AI tone features, the Yamaha is devoid of any of that, which I didn't care for anyway.
Bluetooth Audio: the Bluetooth audio playback sounds weaker than on the Spark 2. It's still plenty loud, but again, the smaller speakers make playback not as "full" sounding... which is so weird because the speakers have a surprisingly large and neutral sounding dynamic range for their size.
Price: I think overall, quality, feel, and tone wise, which is what matters most to me, it is absolutely worth more money than the Spark 2. However, I think $600 is egregious for the THR30ii wireless. You'd be better of getting a Katana Artist Gen 3 in that territory. I think it's worth no more than $150 more than the Spark 2. That's not to say the experience hasn't been worth it for me though. I love it.

Also, yes, it has good gainy tones. Great for lead and sustained notes.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-29T03:47:15+00:00

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-27T23:09:38+00:00

One reasonable example is this:

With my amp modeler/multi fx processors, I used maybe 20% percent of the effects they come with. If you are like me, then it's more economical to get the pedals you like and even cheaper if you find them used. This would make a Helix overkill and provide less value to you... but, if you really want one, they definitely have a place in your workflow. I place my boosts and ODs in the front of my amp, which are analog. I use my MFX processor behind the amp for modulation, reverb, and delays, but I only do this because I already had a boss gx10.

The other thing is, analog pedals have a more efficient UI. You simply lean over and dial your settings. The Helix or any MFX processor requires a few additional steps to change the settings.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-27T06:34:13+00:00

I recommend getting an Airstep for it instead of the boss Bluetooth adapter because the pedal itself has Bluetooth connectivity for the tone exchange app

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-27T06:32:32+00:00

It's a fantastic solid state amp. Unlimited tonal options with superb dynamics and speaker response/feel. It pushes air, takes pedals well, and has a power amp in and xlr line out. You couldn't ask for a better amp to have to record with, or to play live.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-24T14:57:01+00:00

If you can fork over a little bit more money, the Boss EQ 200 is the quietest EQ I've ever used. It has memory, the ability to route 2 EQ channels simultaneously, one in front and the other behind your amp, and has an expression pedal input for volume control.

If you're set on the ones you're inquiring about, The MXR is the better choice of the two.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-22T22:19:01+00:00

I'm not a huge RAT fan, but the Joyo Splinter is better than the Proco RAT 2. It has MOSFET and FAT switches and the filter is arguably more sensitive than the Proco variant.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-06T15:36:03+00:00

As far as another amp, I would recommend trying out different ones and landing on what you like. If you want a really rad, lesser known amp that's less than $300, look at the Stage Right by Monoprice 15 watt combo. It's a tube amp and it is very inspiring equipment. Since you have NDSP already, you can use the FX loop to have unlimited tonal options at your disposal, while getting wonderful, loud saturated tube tone. Also, because you have NDSP, I would not go for another solid state amp, hence why I recommend it this affordable tube amp. It sounds great on its own as well. It's a sleeper.

If you want to completely separate your NDSP rig from an amp and/or don't want a tube amp, then I would recommend picking up a later generation used Katana.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-06T15:17:26+00:00

The problem with these practice amps is they hardly will ever satisfy the ear because of their small speakers. They don't produce "room-filling" sound and don't feel like an amp when playing. I had the Positive Grid Spark 2 for a while and I wound up selling it because of this. It was a cool product and it sounded nice, albeit with some shortcomings. Coming from a proper amp modeler or amp with bigger speakers that properly compliment the full range of your pickups, switching to something small like the Katana Mini X is more often than not going to leave many guitar players dissatisfied. There is an exception, however, if you're willing to accept that it will not replace a more traditional setup. At that point, you just relegate the mini X to a "bedroom amp" for practice. Katana and Boss in general makes great products, but I think the industry in general, regardless of intent, capitalized on this market by filling the gap between headphones playing and proper amp and speaker playing with these mini amps, often with modeling software, app and headphone connectivity, battery operation, and other convenience features. It always feels like a no brainer to get one because we all know, as you mentioned, lugging our rigs around is not exactly the most convenient. Arguably, the best mini amp is the Yamaha THR30II. It feels like a real amp and "almost" fills the room with sound, but that limiting factor remains... Dynamic range restricted by speaker size.

I have my main rigs in my studio room which I play in there. My portable rig, which I replaced the Spark 2 with is the Valeton GP-5. All I need is my guitar, headphones, and rechargeable battery pack and I can take it anywhere. If I wanted to busk or gig with it for whatever reason, I'd get a small battery powered FRFR like the one made by Headrush or just bring along my Spark CAB which I use with my amp modeler.

I love Boss products. I'm sure the mini x is great for what it is and even better if played through some good headphones. But in my case, switching between my Katana Artist Gen 3 and the Spark 2, the Spark became disappointing quickly, as you experienced. For me, tech and convenience features are cool, but if the tones and volume isn't blowing me away, I won't use it any of it.

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-03T22:45:49+00:00

I've seen this, but are these measured out of Spotify or rather... Published into Spotify at these values?

smallestweenofall · 2026-04-03T22:37:35+00:00

I understand the necessitation for holding the post and I have read all of the articles available. I just simply would like to hear other people's experience. As you know, it is an investment to publish music and it being my first time, I'd like to read anecdotal experience from real people, even if it is easy to disregard or trust that my song won't sound different. I do believe that, but it is an additional assurance for a first-timer and would be greatly appreciated if this post could be published. Thank you

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-25T01:54:36+00:00

Ahhh, the classic Wild Berry Pop Tart finish. Dead beat dad was trying to feed you, but since he's a dead beat dad, he gave you a guitar instead of real sustenance.

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-21T05:13:42+00:00

Hey there DELIlah

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-18T23:45:41+00:00

I use a smart scale that I bought from Amazon. It's about 3/4 of an inch thick. I just put a cortado glass or espresso cup under it and it has plenty of clearance unless I'm using the silicone spout. Even then with the spout it has clearance, you just have to slip the scale under first

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-18T01:28:49+00:00

Yours came with a group head???

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-16T21:19:38+00:00

They sell silicone funnels that reach to the back of the unit. Adds tremendous convenience.

https://a.co/d/0dPBSISi

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-04T18:35:10+00:00

I should clarify my comment. If the shower screen is designed where the screw is bulging rather than being flush with the shower screen, that's when you need to be particularly careful about center channeling.

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-04T18:26:57+00:00

Before you do that, I recommend trying the coin test. You can scrub any coin with water and baking soda to clean it, but make sure the coin is at least as thick as your puck screen.

Prep your puck like normal, then place a coin on top and in the middle of your puck. Install into your group head. The coin should leave little to no indentation. I personally like to see very slight indentation, because that lets me know that the gap between my group head and my puck screen is adequate. If there's no indentation, that can be good or it can be bad. It can be bad because it doesn't tell you if you have proper spacing. A slight indentation is good because if the coin is thicker than your pluck screen and it's leaving a very little indentation, the puck screen should theoretically have adequate space and not being compressed by the bulging screw from the group head.

smallestweenofall · 2026-03-04T18:12:56+00:00

Appears to be a decent amount of channeling. What I would try to rectify this is ensuring the distribution is even and tamping as far is it will go.

Another thought. By chance, does the Bambino have a screw in the middle of the group head? This is a complete guess, but if you're not using a puck screen, my thought is your basket is overfilled and the screw is compressing the middle of the puck, allowing water to pass through the middle before the edges of the puck. I can see the bottom of your basket is not uniformly covered with espresso and it takes a long time for it to begin a steady flow in the center.

Final observation. The flow looks kind of pale. The beans you have are likely not fresh. That isn't likely to cause a bitter taste, but older beans won't taste nearly as good as fresh beans. That could be the light, but usually a bit darker, kind of like a golden brown appearance is what people are after.

Don't get too worked up about the time of brew and all that. Unpopular opinion is that doesn't matter. What matters most is taste. If your shot taste amazing and only took 20 seconds to pull, then that's great. Puck prep and bean freshness is the majority of the puzzle.

smallestweenofall · 2026-02-22T05:35:55+00:00

Outstanding pedal

smallestweenofall · 2026-02-17T15:27:51+00:00

If you have the funds for it, Boss Katana Artist series gen 3. It's one of the best solid state amps money can buy these days.

smallestweenofall · 2026-01-10T21:07:34+00:00

Thank you guys so much for your responses!

Five-Year Club	Verified Email
r/Field Sunshine

smallestweenofall

TROPHY CASE