Just want to say, that opening was one of the best sounding 'Rob' sections of playing for ages... not the playing, that's always badass, the tone and gain structure and overall fatness of it. great sounding amp.
Bias makes some very good software, and you can get some believable tube tones, clean, dirty, you name it. It does take some level of effort though, and I will say it’s still easier to dial a good tone from a good tube amp. The BIAS head never really took off, but the Spark is very popular.
Captain, if you've got it, flaunt it. No amount of product positioning or hand coverage can hide that beastly monster that roars from between your legs. Go with it. Let the world see.
With these modeling amps and modeling pedals like the xtomp you can pretty much get any tone you ever could want and only have a couple pieces of equipment, it's a great time to be a guitar player.
Every Anderton's demo video if a PRS guitar is used, it always sounds like it has phase problems. Pick up a Fender or Gibson and it sounds fine. I couldn't tell if the Bias Head was any good until the Strat. Sounds real... sounds good.
Chappers I saw this comment on another video so it isn't my idea but you and Lee should so a "lick/style playing Challenge" where you either each pick 5 guitarists and play in their style and the other has to guess which guitarist it is, or Bea plays in the style of 10 guitarists and you both have to guess ;)
chaz32 it's a guitar processor that can emulate pretty much any amp or pedal and it's the size of a pedalboard. It would cost 4 grands if it sounded awesome. But it does sound pretty decent. You can find lots of awesome tones if you're patient enough
Hi... I'm 66..recently retired with oodles of time and I've decided to finally get serious about re-learning & playing guitar. I've got several guitars, a 15 year old VOX Valvetronix and a Positive Grid Spark. In my easily confused (due to lack of experience/knowledge) I've gotten fixated on buying the "Perfect" tube amp... 'This search has turned into months of shopping/watching videos/and examining reviews.. After landing on several highly regarded tube amps I've finally come to realize that there is "NO" perfect tube amp. I've briefly considered the Hughes & Kettner Black Spirit 200 and the Boss Katana 100 route - came close to ordering a Laney IRT SLS and now am strongly considering this Positive Grid BIAS head. I've got a 212 Vintage 30 cab and live in a townhome - so neighbors/volume are a consideration. I'm pretty much deciding that if I can't reach a decision.. why not just buy something capable of being my "amp/pedal choice of the day".. Can this amp maintain a saturated tone at bedroom volumes? (Until I decide to join the old folks home gig circuit) Your thoughts and input would be greatly appreciated....
Guys... you have to choose the right preamps and power amps if you're choosing high gain amps. Right next to where it says pre amps, press the arrow and you can choose different ones. Surely, you should of noticed after the 800 Lead sounded weak at full gain lol.
The interface to BIAS is absolutely great. And it sounds great. Only thing seems to be: each and every sound is incredibly present, very trebly. Can you do most of this stuff on the head itself too?
Hey Moron! The audio doesn't go through the tablet in this case. The tablet just serves as a remote graphical user interface. The DSP and all audio processing is done on the Bias hardware unit. So latency or the lack of it has nothing to with this situation.
The application is meant to be played through the iOS device *and was updated* to add control for the BIAS Head and Rack units. So what would need to be done for an Android device is a stripped-down remote control only version. Maybe they're working on it, or just use a BIAS application in Windows or macOS to control it and pull stuff from ToneCloud if you like. I tried making a lot of music and running guitars through Android for years, including the iRig HD-A that only worked right on a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and 4 I had because of a different Samsung SDK to get around the Android latency. It sucked then, and it sucks now. No big deal. Just use a laptop with the BIAS app and you won't endure the misery of using an iDevice. :-)
Notes: Android- they don't wanna release an android version not because of the BT speed but because these devices have a high latency on the outputs, I've asked them to develop just a controller app but I don't know if they will. Amp match presets when connected to a cab- I don't REALLY know, but I BELIEVE the amp match is just an EQ on the CAB simulation, so if you're running an Amp Matched preset through a cab with the cab simulation turned OFF, I THINK that it's just running the "amp" simulation without the whole amp match thing. Correct me if I'm wrong.
I was kinda surprised to hear the BT speed being brought up as the reason, which would make *NO* sense whatsoever. The only way for that to be relevant would be if the processing would be taking place IN the Android device - which, if you have a Bias Head, it doesn't (or at least shouldn't). How sodding hard would it be to just port that GUI over? That's just plain lazy...
Google introduced better audio frameworks optimised for low-latency audio a while ago, IK Multimedia (AmpliTube devs) make quite good use of them. Not sure if they were more optimised for Samsung devices (the name cropped up in the article, as I recall). Not sure others tend to bother with them, purely because iOS is already incredibly well-established in that field.
I miss hearing Bleed the Light as the intro, it got me pumped for the video. You guys should record an updated full on Dorje recording and bring it back.
I use a ot of positive grid products for ios .Can link bias FX up with Bias pedals and or bias amp.Control the digital pedals with a blue tooth foot switch .Love all those apps.Great tones!!!!
Good review, lacks the Amp Match part, which is, in my opinion, important. According to a recent Ola Englund video, it rivals the Kempers match so I'm curious.
If you use the impulse response option over the Cabinet and use a high quality cabinet response, it greatly improves the sound when using DI, for noodling while wearing headphones the built in cabs sound okay, but custom cabinet impulses are far superior for live and recording applications.
I love this app on my iPad. I don't need the head or the cabinet, just run it through the PA out of the iPad. Or directly into something like Garageband.
Almost seems like I'm hearing a touch of weird phasing going on or panning. When he was playing for a minute I actually thought my headphone had gotten unplugged a touch or maybe broken. Went and checked it against a song I'm familiar with and everything is working on my end.
Legit answer, they actually did make an amp model called Insane in Pod Farm. One of those "this doesn't exist in real life, we designed a unique amp in the software." Don't know if they still use it anymore for their newer stuff though.
That wooden plectrums comment man, you gotta buy the right one/use it right. As someone wh0 makes/uses wooden picks all the time, the right woods and the right style of music is key. Give it time, Captain lol
Is there a way of making the original sound files available to download so we can hear changes more clearly as the UA-cam compressed sound negates all but the biggest of changes?
Captain, I've said it before and I'll say it again... you're guitar playing has come such a long way, in a relatively short time. Congrats laddy. Buy yourself a beer!
To me, the cleaner sounds are great, but the gain is still a bit off. It has a strange kind of grating buzz in the upper end of the frequency range. I'd still give it a thumbs up though, over all it's pretty cool. Not as cool as a room full of actual amps, but hey.......
It sounds shitty to me too. How come some amps sound amazing trough my speakers and this doesn't? It's not the speakers, it's taste. Everyone has a different one.
Speakers actually do make a big difference. not saying anyones opinion or taste is wrong, but if you listen to anything through bad speakers (laptop speakers, cheap ear buds, etc) it obviously wont sound great
Ethan Carpenter You didn't get what I was trying to say. Of course speakers matter. But look at it this way. Most common people listen music trough the shittiest earbuds and speakers. Make it sound good there, it will sound even better on a good pair of monitors. Mine are average speaker, not the worst and definetely not the best. To me this sounds shitty.
Nino Rašidagić OH gotcha, gotcha. my bad. To me, i like the BIAS stuff. i dont think i would drop the money for the Bias HEAD, but i enjoy bias amp and Fx. i personally think its worth the money
Can you guys let me know how James Ryan gets the awesome sounds on his Schecter Super Shredder III guitar. I tried to buy it, but it was discontinued. I have my guitar styles on my channel, but Làck the techniche saavy like you guys. My friend Guido mentioned Framus amp. I have a Kemper rackmount as well.Thank You
Would it be at all possible for you gentlemen to review some of the new Hughes&Kettner amp heads for our viewing pleasure, please? I've got a few mates that highly recommend them.
Hey if you dig this digital stuff awesome! I’m the type of person that wants to keep certain tech out of my life when I can. I don’t wanna look at my phone, tablet, the internet while playing. Guitar is an escape from the world for me. Hope it works out though. Tons of people coming up in the digital age that this is great for
Watched Rob and Captains best of and worst of andertons video where they said that shooting the bias Demo took 2 Days because its so complex to dial a tone in. Laughed hard at 14:06
Angus Young The head is more for touring/gigs. It can stand alone and not need your PC. If you're just using it in the studio there is no reason to buy it honestly.
I have a somewhat interesting question about this. I just use the desktop app as a plugin but about the hardware... so the amp adjusting has a pre amp section, power amp section and transformer that you can all change around and customize. But if you are using the BIAS AMP Head or the Preamp head version then you model the power amp and transformer sections before the sound goes into the real power amp and transformer? So if you use a real tube power amp what's the point in modeling a tube power amp and transformer? Or is there a clash in the sound? Like cab modeling before going into a real cab.
@Rob or Cap: In your opinion, would you say to either save for a Kemper or take this one? I myself am not a pro and play more like punk/metal, but like to keep it small and portable.
Eddard Snark Well, I thought portable and versatile is strong with these two... 😊 But I'm open for suggestions. My Triple Rectifier is way to bulky for me, and for softer tones at home not that good...
I have a Hellx rack and get amazing tones out of with it 3rd party IR's. I Demo'd desktop Bias yesterday and got real close to my JCM800 tone from my Helix. The demo won't let you do IR's and you probably could get a lot closer with an impulse response. Built in cabs are typically lame and lack that "3D" effect. I was more worried about the feel as you can get a good sound with tone match of you want. I'm still playing around to figure the feel out. The helix doe this fantastic. It feels exactly like a real valve amp. It's making me wonder if I want to trade to this unit as I can play live with it and not have to buy a power amp for my helix. It's all in one. The interface is brilliant. I thought Helix edit was cool but bias is just plain fun.
What amp should I get next July? I've been playing for 10 years, the last 8 of which I've only played a £110 electric guitar and a £60 Vox 15 watt amp. The two before that I only had an acoustic. Never played a tube amp or even heard one in person, and will only have a budget of £300 total for head and cab.
I may have missed it in the video but does the head also support amp matching like the software alone does? EDIT: No fx? So no support for BIAS FX or Pedal? Hmm...odd
Urgh, Bias's cab simulation is so bad. I tracked an EP with Bias Amp a couple years ago, and I like the amp sims, but the cab/mic sims are awful. Thank goodness for third party IRs.
This head should be used for those who want to get so many types of sound, from Marshall to Mesa, from Orange to Soldano, from Fender to Vox...It's a professional head for those who need to play from Pop to Jazz, from Metal to Country. In a live concert it would be useful for a session man who need versatility with an affordable cost...but is not a real amp!
***** I know but 600W in a modelling amp is good for a live. This amp is designed for live use. I don't think that the manufacturers are unable to do their job! Clearly it's not for me or for the most guitar players but it has a specific purpose for specific situations
***** You can go HK Grandmeister then. a super versatile,great sounding,great looking all-tube amp with lots of built in effects. Line 6 also has a tube amp (manufactured by Bogner,so great quality) that NAILS the Mesa sound,and is meant to be used with their POD multieffects
I am going to guess the digital signal processing DSP chip that generates the sounds is in the amp head and not the iOS device. It would before the final output drivers that couple to the speaker. The iOS device is probably just being used as the user interface to set up the parameters for the DSP chip. It looks like a very cool user interface and would be fun to play with. What is more important to know is the analog to digital (AD) converter used to sample the guitar signal before the DSP chip and the digital to analog (DA) converter that is used after the DSP chip. How many bits are they using and what are their sampling rates? Typically, the greater the number of bits and the higher sampling rates are better. The latency in the AD and DA converters as well as the DSP chip is also very important to generate the sound for the final output stage as quickly as possible. Generally, the higher the clock frequency into the DSP chip and the DA and AD converters, the lower will be latency, but the circuit design also comes into play.
that el diablo strat is the most beautiful I have ever seen..... they did it again, nail it, looks just awesome. what do you guys think? this amp or the kemper??
....Happy with the vid fellas..would love to see you cover the tone cloud a bit more in depth. cuz that's where you can catch those amp hoarding type of guys. hit tone cloud and just search "match" it will pull up tons of real matches... would love to see what y'all think of like people's matches of diezels, marshalls, Friedman's, and that aspect to hear Rob's thoughts on playing the realest sounding shit!!! and of course compare!!! something similar to your Kemper compare vid but get away from the stock stuff!! That's where the fun is! Ive collected Diamonds,Marshals,Friedmans,Boogies,Randalls,Fenders,Orange. You name it. I think Robs reactions will be emense.
can't find fault. With eyes closed - it sounds like the best valva sounds I have heard, The boutique builders should be concerned. And the studio session players should be rejoicing.
Do you need the amp to use the app? Or can you just download it and plug into your own amp and use it's wonderful tones? I have a Line 6 combo and want to expand its horizons without spending a fortune on a new amp/pedals
Great test guys! But I have little challenge for You! In beginning of the next episode try to say "Dzień Dobry" in Poland it means good morning. All the best from Poland guys:)!
Google is your friend ;) On the Bias Amp Processor page it clearly states: "BIAS Head processor features the same insane tones and characteristics as BIAS Head 600w - all in a lightweight, *non-powered version* [...]" Ie. it's basically a preamp only.
KhronX thats why i seek for answer in comments because i ve read about bias processor in their site but i am still confused...it also says that is compatible with any cab and you dont not need anything extra in order to play because of its built in interface! so i m totally confused!
That cab thing in the FAQ is just a "brainfart" on their part, i guess they just copied over all the questions from the Bias Head FAQ and added "Processor" :P Since everywhere else it states that it's non-powered, and you can't see any speaker outputs in the back photo... You do the math :P
KhronX ty mate i was so fucking confused LOL! so its like a POD thing right? can i use it as an audio interface though? cant find anywhere the AD conversion..24/96 maybe?
I wouldn't lose any sleep over that - nowadays you'd have to try preeeetty damn hard to screw up A/D and/or D/A conversion nowadays :) Especially considering that guitar speakers fall like a stone past 5-6k or so :P
Does anyone know if I can make presets on my PC and load them into the amp to use on stage without PC? and would this be possible with the processor instead of the powered? cheers
OK, so the thing that always gets me about the digital vs. valve amp debate is how do digital amps go at a gig, at loud volumes with a noisy crowd etc etc. Some amps sound ok low but when you push them just fall apart and dont have that magic your looking for. I wonder what digital amps are like in a noisy pub trying to cut through and still keeping that magic tone we all love from valve amps...Ive been badly scarred by playing live with bad amps!..Im not keen on taking a gamble these days...any thoughts/experiences with gigging these things? I mean at high volumes Like Lee Im definitely feeling persuaded on the issue but not totally convinced, wont be selling my fender deville just yet I dont think
I know you guys are mostly into guitars but Anderson's sells drums too right? I love your videos and have done for a while, but as a drummer would love to see you review electronic kits especially, maybe with an expert guest- drummer? id love to know more about Roland vs Yamaha and have the different kit options broken down, and the length of your videos, along with how enjoyable you make them, would be ideal. hope you read this and respond!
Three words: THREE WAY SHOOTOUT!
Kemper/BIAS/Valve amps. Profiled/Matched/Mic'd
Ola did that, plus helix and axe fx.
YES!!!!! I Would Love This!!!!
blindfolded of course
Throw in a low end modeller as well to throw them off
pretty sure kemper would win hands down
I don't know if it's just me or not, but The Capt has been killing it recently when he plays!
Just want to say, that opening was one of the best sounding 'Rob' sections of playing for ages... not the playing, that's always badass, the tone and gain structure and overall fatness of it. great sounding amp.
Bias makes some very good software, and you can get some believable tube tones, clean, dirty, you name it. It does take some level of effort though, and I will say it’s still easier to dial a good tone from a good tube amp. The BIAS head never really took off, but the Spark is very popular.
The only problem I see with this is, I would be spending hours upon hours going through every setting and different tweaks, and never actually play.
And you would be correct. Happens to me every time.
Absolutely
Option paralysis is the term.
That´s pretty much like Netflix
Yea.. that's like your problem not the amp problem
I see Capt. Lee still hasn't recovered from that Kemper ordeal.
Captain, if you've got it, flaunt it. No amount of product positioning or hand coverage can hide that beastly monster that roars from between your legs. Go with it. Let the world see.
GigglingDickhead I see what you did to your name and comment
With these modeling amps and modeling pedals like the xtomp you can pretty much get any tone you ever could want and only have a couple pieces of equipment, it's a great time to be a guitar player.
Every Anderton's demo video if a PRS guitar is used, it always sounds like it has phase problems. Pick up a Fender or Gibson and it sounds fine. I couldn't tell if the Bias Head was any good until the Strat. Sounds real... sounds good.
it sounds tinny and boxy and I still hear this strange mid-range thing that I couldn't tweak out of the desktop version.
Brent Bisaillion Yeah that mid range you were hearing might of been a guitar.
x a n a x ha ha ha nah I’m not having a guitar is mid range 🤣
I have played this in real life. It’s the worst sounding digital option out there.
Yeah, please tell me more about your impression through phone speakers
It's fantastic, with all the options available, you can literally do anything you want with this amp. Its great in a lot of ways!
Chappers I saw this comment on another video so it isn't my idea but you and Lee should so a "lick/style playing Challenge" where you either each pick 5 guitarists and play in their style and the other has to guess which guitarist it is, or Bea plays in the style of 10 guitarists and you both have to guess ;)
And have guitarists from different genres to make it harder
Thats actually a great idea dude! I would love to see them make a video like this!
i know it would be awesome!
ib4 nobody will be able to imitate clapton :P
JJ Gerrish they're bound to play a song they've all heard
Man! Chappers playing in the intro of this video is really great! (Yes, more than usual!.)
Tried this, the Kemper and several more. There is just no comparison, the Kemper outperforms everything else out there today, period.
Helix for me, but I do agree that Kemper and Axe FX are incredible.
Darrell McMillan people tend to underestimate the Helix because it's line6,and so did I...boy was I wrong
yeah but its like a grand for a sack of shit.
chaz32 it's a guitar processor that can emulate pretty much any amp or pedal and it's the size of a pedalboard. It would cost 4 grands if it sounded awesome. But it does sound pretty decent. You can find lots of awesome tones if you're patient enough
Loving the Dorje riffs! So many of the tones presented sound very tube-amp-like. It is an impressive amp!
Loving that flower of life intro
The Power Place noise at 8:35 made me go a little further than thumbs up and then made me "fur up" here. Spine and shoulder thrill.
Interesting tool.
Hi... I'm 66..recently retired with oodles of time and I've decided to finally get serious about re-learning & playing guitar. I've got several guitars, a 15 year old VOX Valvetronix and a Positive Grid Spark. In my easily confused (due to lack of experience/knowledge) I've gotten fixated on buying the "Perfect" tube amp... 'This search has turned into months of shopping/watching videos/and examining reviews.. After landing on several highly regarded tube amps I've finally come to realize that there is "NO" perfect tube amp. I've briefly considered the Hughes & Kettner Black Spirit 200 and the Boss Katana 100 route - came close to ordering a Laney IRT SLS and now am strongly considering this Positive Grid BIAS head. I've got a 212 Vintage 30 cab and live in a townhome - so neighbors/volume are a consideration. I'm pretty much deciding that if I can't reach a decision.. why not just buy something capable of being my "amp/pedal choice of the day".. Can this amp maintain a saturated tone at bedroom volumes? (Until I decide to join the old folks home gig circuit) Your thoughts and input would be greatly appreciated....
Criminal
About time you did another of these lee with bias fx
Guys... you have to choose the right preamps and power amps if you're choosing high gain amps. Right next to where it says pre amps, press the arrow and you can choose different ones. Surely, you should of noticed after the 800 Lead sounded weak at full gain lol.
Lee's playing seems to keep getting better all the time!
The interface to BIAS is absolutely great. And it sounds great. Only thing seems to be: each and every sound is incredibly present, very trebly. Can you do most of this stuff on the head itself too?
Apple only = immediate negative
Not on the desktop, and the reason for this on tablets (Bluetooth latency) is explained.
That is a a dumb reason. You are loading presets not running and audio from tab to amp. Its apple paying them a crap load of money.
Hey Moron! The audio doesn't go through the tablet in this case. The tablet just serves as a remote graphical user interface. The DSP and all audio processing is done on the Bias hardware unit. So latency or the lack of it has nothing to with this situation.
The application is meant to be played through the iOS device *and was updated* to add control for the BIAS Head and Rack units. So what would need to be done for an Android device is a stripped-down remote control only version. Maybe they're working on it, or just use a BIAS application in Windows or macOS to control it and pull stuff from ToneCloud if you like.
I tried making a lot of music and running guitars through Android for years, including the iRig HD-A that only worked right on a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and 4 I had because of a different Samsung SDK to get around the Android latency. It sucked then, and it sucks now. No big deal. Just use a laptop with the BIAS app and you won't endure the misery of using an iDevice. :-)
SSVplus The people who make it say otherwise. Perhaps you can tell them why they are "morons", too?
Chappers sounds killer playing through this!
Rob is so badass on the guitar!
Notes:
Android- they don't wanna release an android version not because of the BT speed but because these devices have a high latency on the outputs, I've asked them to develop just a controller app but I don't know if they will.
Amp match presets when connected to a cab- I don't REALLY know, but I BELIEVE the amp match is just an EQ on the CAB simulation, so if you're running an Amp Matched preset through a cab with the cab simulation turned OFF, I THINK that it's just running the "amp" simulation without the whole amp match thing.
Correct me if I'm wrong.
I was kinda surprised to hear the BT speed being brought up as the reason, which would make *NO* sense whatsoever. The only way for that to be relevant would be if the processing would be taking place IN the Android device - which, if you have a Bias Head, it doesn't (or at least shouldn't).
How sodding hard would it be to just port that GUI over? That's just plain lazy...
Google introduced better audio frameworks optimised for low-latency audio a while ago, IK Multimedia (AmpliTube devs) make quite good use of them. Not sure if they were more optimised for Samsung devices (the name cropped up in the article, as I recall). Not sure others tend to bother with them, purely because iOS is already incredibly well-established in that field.
I swear you guys are getting better at guitar!!
This is a monster of an amp!!
I miss hearing Bleed the Light as the intro, it got me pumped for the video. You guys should record an updated full on Dorje recording and bring it back.
Another great video. Thanks gents.
I use a ot of positive grid products for ios .Can link bias FX up with Bias pedals and or bias amp.Control the digital pedals with a blue tooth foot switch .Love all those apps.Great tones!!!!
Good review, lacks the Amp Match part, which is, in my opinion, important. According to a recent Ola Englund video, it rivals the Kempers match so I'm curious.
The best part of Bias is creating amps that don't exist and creating new sounds. I get lost for hours.
Sounds good to me lot of cool sounds
Nice meeting you in ASDA yesterday Rob. Hope you found the houmous alright.
Would be nice if you guys make a video on the new Spark Amp from Positiv Grid 😀
Don't know if I'm the only one to say this but this review feels and sounds BIASed. Jokes aside, the head sounds pretty damn good
Rob is like the king of making everything sound the same. With his riffing and playing style he makes every amp sound equaly shitty.
Nothing will ever beat valve amps!
Nothing will ever beat valve radios!
nothing will ever beat tube television sets lmao..
If you use the impulse response option over the Cabinet and use a high quality cabinet response, it greatly improves the sound when using DI, for noodling while wearing headphones the built in cabs sound okay, but custom cabinet impulses are far superior for live and recording applications.
I love this app on my iPad. I don't need the head or the cabinet, just run it through the PA out of the iPad. Or directly into something like Garageband.
Almost seems like I'm hearing a touch of weird phasing going on or panning. When he was playing for a minute I actually thought my headphone had gotten unplugged a touch or maybe broken. Went and checked it against a song I'm familiar with and everything is working on my end.
oh shit waddup kley. 'ppreciate you man, you make good thoughtful posts on r/guitar.
Crummock iPhail Hey! And thank you!
"Is insane not a model of the line 6?" 😂
Legit answer, they actually did make an amp model called Insane in Pod Farm. One of those "this doesn't exist in real life, we designed a unique amp in the software." Don't know if they still use it anymore for their newer stuff though.
It exists on amplifi which is pretty new so I presume they have it on the even newer stuff
Calum Stout Its supposed to be the 5150 III I beleive
Calum Stout everything here sounds kind of like line 6
the frets on that strat look massive.
That wooden plectrums comment man, you gotta buy the right one/use it right. As someone wh0 makes/uses wooden picks all the time, the right woods and the right style of music is key. Give it time, Captain lol
The Captain has GREAT tone in his fingers
Not the Chapman technique, bet very good tone
my knowledge of all these options is such that this would confound me. i just want to plug, in turn a few knobs, get a sound, and play.
u can tell Robs not impressed .
He just bought a kemper. He'd be pretty peed off if he allowed himself to like this more :)
Is there a way of making the original sound files available to download so we can hear changes more clearly as the UA-cam compressed sound negates all but the biggest of changes?
Captain, I've said it before and I'll say it again... you're guitar playing has come such a long way, in a relatively short time. Congrats laddy. Buy yourself a beer!
god rob is such a child... i love it
You were bloody awesome at Leeds man!!!! Yorkshire Yorkshire Yorkshire
To me, the cleaner sounds are great, but the gain is still a bit off. It has a strange kind of grating buzz in the upper end of the frequency range. I'd still give it a thumbs up though, over all it's pretty cool. Not as cool as a room full of actual amps, but hey.......
have u bought it and played through nice studio monitors?
It sounds shitty to me too. How come some amps sound amazing trough my speakers and this doesn't? It's not the speakers, it's taste. Everyone has a different one.
Speakers actually do make a big difference. not saying anyones opinion or taste is wrong, but if you listen to anything through bad speakers (laptop speakers, cheap ear buds, etc) it obviously wont sound great
Ethan Carpenter
You didn't get what I was trying to say. Of course speakers matter. But look at it this way. Most common people listen music trough the shittiest earbuds and speakers. Make it sound good there, it will sound even better on a good pair of monitors. Mine are average speaker, not the worst and definetely not the best. To me this sounds shitty.
Nino Rašidagić OH gotcha, gotcha. my bad.
To me, i like the BIAS stuff. i dont think i would drop the money for the Bias HEAD, but i enjoy bias amp and Fx. i personally think its worth the money
if you son't mind me getting off topic; would you tell me what the two pedals left of the waza craft delay behind you are? Thanks!
Can you guys let me know how James Ryan gets the awesome sounds on his Schecter Super Shredder III guitar. I tried to buy it, but it was discontinued. I have my guitar styles on my channel, but Làck the techniche saavy like you guys. My friend Guido mentioned Framus amp. I have a Kemper rackmount as well.Thank You
Would it be at all possible for you gentlemen to review some of the new Hughes&Kettner amp heads for our viewing pleasure, please? I've got a few mates that highly recommend them.
Hey if you dig this digital stuff awesome! I’m the type of person that wants to keep certain tech out of my life when I can. I don’t wanna look at my phone, tablet, the internet while playing. Guitar is an escape from the world for me. Hope it works out though. Tons of people coming up in the digital age that this is great for
No Vox samples? One of the best tests of a digital amp! How DOES it sound using an AC-15 or 30 sim?
Watched Rob and Captains best of and worst of andertons video where they said that shooting the bias Demo took 2 Days because its so complex to dial a tone in. Laughed hard at 14:06
Nice shoes, Captain!
What advantage is there to buying this head thingy above just the software (which I have and is very good)?
Angus Young The head is more for touring/gigs. It can stand alone and not need your PC. If you're just using it in the studio there is no reason to buy it honestly.
Umm...how many touring musicians out there?...LOL!
your videos are really fun keep it going {:
I have a somewhat interesting question about this. I just use the desktop app as a plugin but about the hardware... so the amp adjusting has a pre amp section, power amp section and transformer that you can all change around and customize. But if you are using the BIAS AMP Head or the Preamp head version then you model the power amp and transformer sections before the sound goes into the real power amp and transformer? So if you use a real tube power amp what's the point in modeling a tube power amp and transformer? Or is there a clash in the sound? Like cab modeling before going into a real cab.
what's the difference between the kemper powered unit to the non-powered one?! :o i got a bit confused there
@Rob or Cap: In your opinion, would you say to either save for a Kemper or take this one? I myself am not a pro and play more like punk/metal, but like to keep it small and portable.
Kemper is better than this thing, but why single out just those two? Sounds like either would be overkill for your situation.
Eddard Snark Well, I thought portable and versatile is strong with these two... 😊
But I'm open for suggestions. My Triple Rectifier is way to bulky for me, and for softer tones at home not that good...
I have a Hellx rack and get amazing tones out of with it 3rd party IR's. I Demo'd desktop Bias yesterday and got real close to my JCM800 tone from my Helix. The demo won't let you do IR's and you probably could get a lot closer with an impulse response. Built in cabs are typically lame and lack that "3D" effect. I was more worried about the feel as you can get a good sound with tone match of you want. I'm still playing around to figure the feel out. The helix doe this fantastic. It feels exactly like a real valve amp. It's making me wonder if I want to trade to this unit as I can play live with it and not have to buy a power amp for my helix. It's all in one. The interface is brilliant. I thought Helix edit was cool but bias is just plain fun.
What amp should I get next July? I've been playing for 10 years, the last 8 of which I've only played a £110 electric guitar and a £60 Vox 15 watt amp. The two before that I only had an acoustic. Never played a tube amp or even heard one in person, and will only have a budget of £300 total for head and cab.
TheRebel3000 egnater tweaker 15 is great. I like the head.
Marc Stanford Too bad they're £330 and I need a cab as well for under £300... doubt used would be much cheaper either
TheRebel3000 orange micro dark or micro terror and a Panama cab, or a peavey 1x12. You could try the used market to get said gear cheaper.
Have you guys tested a postive grid rack processor with a poweramp and cab.
I may have missed it in the video but does the head also support amp matching like the software alone does?
EDIT: No fx? So no support for BIAS FX or Pedal? Hmm...odd
yes it does but you need a DAW ιn order to amp match
so what is this exactly just a Bluetooth amp head that hooks up to a I pad and you choose sound from the bias software?
Can you roll the volume knob on the guitar back to clean up with this amp?
Urgh, Bias's cab simulation is so bad. I tracked an EP with Bias Amp a couple years ago, and I like the amp sims, but the cab/mic sims are awful. Thank goodness for third party IRs.
In a live concert environment, what would you miss by having one of these amps, rather than say a Marshall ?
I doubt that you would miss power. Tone is quite subjective. Dynamic response seems to be true.
This head should be used for those who want to get so many types of sound, from Marshall to Mesa, from Orange to Soldano, from Fender to Vox...It's a professional head for those who need to play from Pop to Jazz, from Metal to Country. In a live concert it would be useful for a session man who need versatility with an affordable cost...but is not a real amp!
Bias Head has 600W...it's enough for live show
***** I know but 600W in a modelling amp is good for a live. This amp is designed for live use. I don't think that the manufacturers are unable to do their job! Clearly it's not for me or for the most guitar players but it has a specific purpose for specific situations
not unless you're playing to a giant ass stadium, it's more than powerful enough to cut through a full kit
Maybe I'll consider it when they come out with the Bias Head WITH Effects.
Quentin James just buy a Helix already
I'm too old school. Tubes rule ! Nothing like the tone and feel of real tubes at a loud stage volume.
*****
You can go HK Grandmeister then. a super versatile,great sounding,great looking all-tube amp with lots of built in effects.
Line 6 also has a tube amp (manufactured by Bogner,so great quality) that NAILS the Mesa sound,and is meant to be used with their POD multieffects
Intrigued by the BIAS stuff...does all the same stuff as the AXE-FX but by far more fun and intuitive UI compared with AX-EDIT etc.
Are you guys going to announce the winners of the pedal board?
I am going to guess the digital signal processing DSP chip that generates the sounds is in the amp head and not the iOS device. It would before the final output drivers that couple to the speaker. The iOS device is probably just being used as the user interface to set up the parameters for the DSP chip. It looks like a very cool user interface and would be fun to play with. What is more important to know is the analog to digital (AD) converter used to sample the guitar signal before the DSP chip and the digital to analog (DA) converter that is used after the DSP chip. How many bits are they using and what are their sampling rates? Typically, the greater the number of bits and the higher sampling rates are better. The latency in the AD and DA converters as well as the DSP chip is also very important to generate the sound for the final output stage as quickly as possible. Generally, the higher the clock frequency into the DSP chip and the DA and AD converters, the lower will be latency, but the circuit design also comes into play.
Danish Pete's JNCOs really set this setup off.
YEAHHH FINALLY :(
My Rack is in the mail and i'll get it today hopefully!
That riff that Rob plays at the beginning belongs to his band Dorje??
Yes, it's called "Flower Of Life".
Thanks, this riff is awesome!
that el diablo strat is the most beautiful I have ever seen..... they did it again, nail it, looks just awesome.
what do you guys think? this amp or the kemper??
Someone probably asked this already but, how does it take pedals?
....Happy with the vid fellas..would love to see you cover the tone cloud a bit more in depth. cuz that's where you can catch those amp hoarding type of guys.
hit tone cloud and just search "match" it will pull up tons of real matches... would love to see what y'all think of like people's matches of diezels, marshalls, Friedman's, and that aspect to hear Rob's thoughts on playing the realest sounding shit!!! and of course compare!!! something similar to your Kemper compare vid but get away from the stock stuff!! That's where the fun is! Ive collected Diamonds,Marshals,Friedmans,Boogies,Randalls,Fenders,Orange. You name it. I think Robs reactions will be emense.
Would like to hear a comparison between the amp match and the real amp.
Awesome Dude!! Cheers, G :D
What about the processors through an effects loop on another amp!
can't find fault. With eyes closed - it sounds like the best valva sounds I have heard, The boutique builders should be concerned. And the studio session players should be rejoicing.
what prs is that..looks great
Do you need the amp to use the app? Or can you just download it and plug into your own amp and use it's wonderful tones? I have a Line 6 combo and want to expand its horizons without spending a fortune on a new amp/pedals
Bias Head vs Valve Amp blind test?
I'll buy one when it is possible to change the coupling capacitors and bypass capacitors values as well as anode and cathode resistor values!
Yeah .. a virtual cloth to clean the dust off the power valves would win me over..
Great test guys! But I have little challenge for You! In beginning of the next episode try to say "Dzień Dobry" in Poland it means good morning. All the best from Poland guys:)!
can someone explain what is the difference beteween Bias Amp and the new Bias Amp Processor?
Google is your friend ;)
On the Bias Amp Processor page it clearly states:
"BIAS Head processor features the same insane tones and characteristics as BIAS Head 600w - all in a lightweight, *non-powered version* [...]"
Ie. it's basically a preamp only.
KhronX
thats why i seek for answer in comments because i ve read about bias processor in their site but i am still confused...it also says that is compatible with any cab and you dont not need anything extra in order to play because of its built in interface! so i m totally confused!
That cab thing in the FAQ is just a "brainfart" on their part, i guess they just copied over all the questions from the Bias Head FAQ and added "Processor" :P
Since everywhere else it states that it's non-powered, and you can't see any speaker outputs in the back photo... You do the math :P
KhronX
ty mate i was so fucking confused LOL! so its like a POD thing right? can i use it as an audio interface though? cant find anywhere the AD conversion..24/96 maybe?
I wouldn't lose any sleep over that - nowadays you'd have to try preeeetty damn hard to screw up A/D and/or D/A conversion nowadays :) Especially considering that guitar speakers fall like a stone past 5-6k or so :P
What would the Subway Bandit have to say about this??
You guys gotta try the Bluguitar AMP1
Does anyone know if I can make presets on my PC and load them into the amp to use on stage without PC? and would this be possible with the processor instead of the powered? cheers
6:20 catalyst?
Is that Centered and one riff at the start?
Sorry no, It's Flower of Life isn't it?
OK, so the thing that always gets me about the digital vs. valve amp debate is how do digital amps go at a gig, at loud volumes with a noisy crowd etc etc. Some amps sound ok low but when you push them just fall apart and dont have that magic your looking for. I wonder what digital amps are like in a noisy pub trying to cut through and still keeping that magic tone we all love from valve amps...Ive been badly scarred by playing live with bad amps!..Im not keen on taking a gamble these days...any thoughts/experiences with gigging these things? I mean at high volumes
Like Lee Im definitely feeling persuaded on the issue but not totally convinced, wont be selling my fender deville just yet I dont think
What should i get? I'm leaning on an SG or an Explorer both Gibson, i'm in a medium-low level
Explorer
I know you guys are mostly into guitars but Anderson's sells drums too right? I love your videos and have done for a while, but as a drummer would love to see you review electronic kits especially, maybe with an expert guest- drummer? id love to know more about Roland vs Yamaha and have the different kit options broken down, and the length of your videos, along with how enjoyable you make them, would be ideal. hope you read this and respond!