Amp modelers have become veritable alternatives – and in some guitarist’s cases, the top option – to full-blown heads and cabs.
Even players who were once closely associated with tube amps and iconic amp brands, such as Tony Iommi, Dave Mustaine, and Chris Shiflett, are making the leap to their Quad Cortexes and Helixes, and reducing their stage footprint. One other guitarist who’s joining this brave new world? Bad Religion’s Brian Baker.
“I was never an amp guy,” Baker admits in an interview with Ultimate Guitar. “I had old Marshalls only because I’m of a certain age and I had Marshalls that I bought in the ’80s. That was just always my thing – the amp was a Marshall, and the guitar was how I got different sounds. I didn’t understand Fender amps, that you had to turn them all the way up, that the small ones sounded better.”
This isn’t the first time Baker has dabbled with amp modelers; he previously owned a Line 6 Pod and a Vetta II 2×12 combo, which he used exclusively for recording demos. However, he admits that, until now, he’d only considered amp modelers as tools for practicing guitar at home.
Bad Religion – Hellfest 2022 (Full Concert) – YouTube 
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This all changed when he decided to give the Kemper a try.
“The Kemper came into play obviously as a convenience. But when I profiled my first Marshall, it sounded identical,” he exclaims.
“I couldn’t tell the difference. Once I got out in the wild, I see that yes, you’re missing just a little cream, just a little bloom. I can’t control the feedback the same way. But these are such minor details when I’m playing at HellFest to 80,000 drunk people at midnight, god love them.
Baker says he made this commitment “for the good of the team.” However, while it sounds great on stage, he’s not ready to pack his Marshall stacks away just yet. “I still don’t think I’d record a record with it. I have the source material,” he concludes.
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