Such digital signal processors already exist. I've seen them and used them. They can mimic tubes, all sorts of distortion, and create a unique sound in many ways:
A Black Box to Solve Everything
Tubes vs. solid state?? There's a thread out right now about this exact question (there always is), but I didn't want to take it off subject. So my question is; is there a device that could go between the preamp and amp that has variable harmonic distortion capabilities? I know there are tube buffers, but they are not really addressing the point because they use line level signals and don't have the distortion of a good 300B tube being pushed beyond its limits. My thinking is that of a black box with switches and knobs to adjust harmonic distortion to mimic different tube types. It would also have to have a bypass switch so we could readily and quickly A/B the thing. Any ideas?
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For you DIYers, Ethan Winer provides directions on how to build his Mojo Maestro box, which he states is: "...a simple box that can add distortion ranging from very subtle—to add a little grit to a sterile sounding instrument track or to help “glue” a full mix together—through severe clipping to add “mojo” or “dirt” to any musical source that will benefit. The Mojo setting also switches in a capacitor to gently roll off the highest frequencies to counter the added buzziness. With gentler settings, the overall effect is similar to running music through a tube amplifier or an analog tape recorder but without the added tape hiss and flutter.": https://audioxpress.com/article/you-can-diy-build-the-mojo-maestro |
Many of us have used tube preamps with SS amps to bring some desirable tube qualities to our systems, and others use SS preamps and tube amps. In 1973 as a college kid I ran a PAS3x with an H-K Citation 12. Later a Motif FET pre with av MV55 amp. All worthy experiences. There is no single silver bullet, for this or any other system voicing conundrum. |
@bdp24 Yes a preamp and a reasonably easy kit to build. Nelson is brilliant with solid state devices and while Ralph and Roger are/were known for their brilliance with tubes, Ralph has now demonstrated he can manufacture a solid state amp with similar distortion characteristics as tubes. Somewhat of a little known fact, Roger's first amp to be manufactured was the one he designed for the Beveridge 2SW speaker. It was a solid state amp designed specifically for the woofer section. This required him to develop the RM-3 active crossover to act as a frequency dividing network as the 2SW required biamping. The RM-3 also used sold state devices. Getting back to the B1, Nelson's choice of the Korg Nutube is interesting and I'm sure was selected to support his circuit requirement to allow for the adjustable harmonics. However, it's probably the worst tube I have ever dealt with. Many examples of this tube are extremely microphonic. I went through 3 of them building that kit and none of them were quiet enough. So I never could really test out the adjustable distortion feature. |
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