If you haven’t heard, Collapsis is getting back together for a show on May 22, 2021 at the Grove Winery & Vineyards. It’s an outdoor show with limited, spaced seating.
The last time Collapsis performed was at the Cat’s Cradle anniversary show in the fall of 2018. That show was the first time I used the Line 6 Firehawk as my main amp. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to rehearse with the rig much more and explore its many features.
My favorite thing about the Firehawk is that it allows me to approximate vintage amp tones without the excessive volume needed to fully realize those tones. A hundred watt Marshall sounds great wide open, but that kind of volume is generally inappropriate unless you are playing a stadium. Power soaks and power breaks offer negative volume solutions, but sometimes to the detriment of one’s tone. The Firehawk allows me to select an amp, dial in the tone I desire, and then set the output.
Here’s an example of what I mean. I love playing a VOX AC-30 with Top Boost. Every time I’ve had the privilege of using one live, I’ve enjoyed the result. The Firehawk interface allows me to select the AC-30 model with the amount of drive I like. I can also select a distortion pedal, phaser pedal, and delay pedal from a variety of options. And then, I can turn the output up or down as needed. Before, when the sound engineer would ask me to turn down, it meant sacrificing the delicate balance of tone obtained by driving the amp tubes a certain way.
What’s more, this single amp setting gets saved in the Firehawk and is switchable with an ethernet floor controller. Within the amp, I can save over a hundred different amp/pedal combinations. I only have four for the Collapsis show, but that’s more than enough.
The other three amp models I’ll use at this show are a 200 Watt Marshall Plexi, a Matchless DC-30, and a Fender Vibrolux. I’ve paired the Marshall for a semi-gritty tone that works well with my Stratocaster. The Matchless is a darker complement to the AC-30. The Vibrolux gives a more robust tone, when needed.
Do you use digital amps? Are you an analog only person? Let me know on Twitter or sound off in the comments below.
I am digital only, and more and more players I respect (including you!) are as well. I had the privilege of meeting Adrian Belew two years ago, and he is 100% digital – no amps, straight to the mains through his processors. And his live “rig” sounds utterly amazing. My amp modeler of choice is the Tech 21 Fly Rig 5, which I am very fond of. It works really well in both live and recording applications. The overdrive section is really flexible. I know what the purists will say, but modeling has come a long long way. The benefits for a performing musician far outweigh any loss of tone, and I would argue (I know, I know…I’m asking for it…) that there isn’t any quantifiable loss these days.
I agree. Modeling has come a long way.