What amps are you guys using with your Squier Teles.....

I see lots of youtube vids comparing like different level of Squiers and Fenders (and other brands like epiphone and gibson) and pickups and how they sound. Sometimes I feel like I can hear a big difference and other times maybe not so much.

I'm in the mode of trying to figure out what I want next. And I did ask a similar question in the recording forum so I apologize for kind of repeating myself but I figured some of you in here may not go in there much.

I have an Affinity Tele and the main amp I use is a Vox Cambridge 15 Korean Made V9159. I'm using it for recording. I do have a few others I've been using and experimenting with and I'm not super unhappy with the sounds. But I am trying to get something maybe a bit better soon here.

The main thing I like in guitar sounds are a nice and warm and creamy clean sound for chords. And I like a good sounding distortion. Mostly like medium gain like rock. Not metal. Although every once in a while I like that sound. The Cambridge does all those pretty well paired with my Affinity Tele BSB. But you know.... there's always room to improve. I'm guessing a tube amp would probably bring some warmer tones on all levels.

 

I hear ya. I try to listen to headphones on the ones I really wanna hear the differences but I'm sure what the sound is in the actual room is different than what's coming through especially if their using crappy equipment. However, I think my point was that a really good amp MAY elevate the sound of cheaper pick ups.

It's sort of mind boggling the amount of choices there are in pups now a days. And the amount of differences in just one model, or TYPE of guitar. I mean how many types of tele pick ups are there even just among Squier and Fender guitars. And I don't mean between different types of pickups I mean between just the lipstick neck and the single coil bridge. It feels like every factory may do them differently and within the Squiers there are so many. Then there's the Mexicans and Americans who also have more than one choice for either. At least from what I can tell. Depending on the model and all that.

The combinations of differences in tones is mind blowing. Plus you add to that just the affect the guitar itself MIGHT have on the pickups. Which I know lots of people say doesn't but IMHO any change affects stuff. Every guitar I ever play feels and sounds different to me. Among the same models. I mean yeah, maybe it's the height of the pups or whatever but I think it's kind of neat how they're like people. No two the same. You might have similarities though. But it does sort of make you go, well it won't matter if I have my heart set on a certain model cuz of tone cuz it will likely sound different when you go play one at a store. LOL.

I don't know if the changes are as drastic with amps or not.

 

@68Telebass I also have a 3rd gen rumble 40 that I just used on my last song for a few of the guitar tracks. And it's a heavier song. I used it with the gain half way up and it has like you describe "crunchy goodness". With some fuzziness that sounds pretty good. I don't love the clean sound. It sounds a bit.. dead and almost like the individual notes are too pronounced when strumming chords. It doesn't blend super well that way, IMHO.

As far as Vox's being too bright, I'm with you @tfarney. Mine isn't I don't think. But it's a solid state. It's got a pretty warm sound to it if you add the bass. Especially on high gain though. It is totally warm. Even with the 8" speaker.

I did a test between all the amps I have and I do think I came to the conclusion I'm really happy with the combo of my Vox as a head to one of the speakers in my laney cabinet. Which is an eminence speaker that was specifically made for this voice over company. I don't think it's even a guitar speaker but the magnets on it are huge and it has a nice warm sound to it.

I don't think I'm gonna be shopping for amps unless my vox takes a permanent dump. It gives me issues of crackling and popping sometime. I bought some contact cleaner for when it happens again to see if that will help. But even though I would prefer an amp with treble / middle / bass EQ (mine only has treble / bass) I think I'm gonna just stick with it for now. I've liked the sounds of it from the beginning and if it continues to work, what's the point? I wanted to have a back up and I do with the rumble 40 and even a laney head ( I just really don't like much of the sounds out of the laney yet, but maybe I have to have that one cranked too as you mention to have it sound good. It's a 100 watt tube head. LOL. I probably haven't scratched the surface of good tone with that head cuz I don't play too loud.

I think I'm gonna focus on another guitar. I like my Affinity Tele. It works and sounds decent. However, I wouldn't mind seeing what kind of sounds I can get from either a P90 equipped guitar or humbuckers. I wanna see if it will be much different. I really feel like a good Tele can cover most of the basses I want to cover. But I've got the itch to try something else. And my Squier Strat just isn't scratching it. I will probably sell or trade that. I plays decent though but I just don't love much of the sounds and I don't want to invest in a loaded pickguard with humbuckers and then still not like it. I thin I'm gonna try and find an SG. Or at least start playing them to see what I think. Some epiphones can be had for reasonable prices and I think that's where I'm leaning. Or some oddball thing.

Now if my vox takes a dump then I will buy another amp.

I will likely stick with Solid State but who knows...


As far as Fender amps go.... When I tried them back in the 90's the silver princeton old amps always sounded too.... annoying to me. Like too bitey. I did like one that was new with the red knobs. That one felt like it moved and had a nice blended sound and the distortion was wonderful. But I had a peavey classic 50 at the time and wasn't really needing another amp. It was not long after I bought the peavey though and I kind of wished I had done that particular Fender.

I think one could make a lifelong career out of understanding all of Fender's amps and how they sound. I keep coming across models I've never seen before. Like a lot. My music go round has one called a FM 212R and they were saying that one had a great clean sound. 2x12 combo. I think SS. I forget how much it was. But man, it feels like every time I turn around I'm seeing a new model of Fender amp on the used market. The blackfaces, silver faces (old type and new type and the ones with the red knobs like I said) bass breakers, tweeds, blues juniors with the black tolex. The light brown ones with the light brown screens like that country guy had them redo... Chris Stapleton. I meeeeeean, I can't keep them all straight. LOL. Modelings amps. I usually eliminate them in my mind....

And that's the hard part with amp shopping, even among just that one company there's so many choices. Although most of them are out of my budget.

Someday I'd like to try an ampeg, but I'm not sure they have one small enough that would be good for the levels I play at.