# 60w VS. 100w VS. 120w and etc. WHAT'S THE DIF!?



## CassDarkwing (Dec 18, 2011)

Hey, everyone! How are you tonight? Awesome I hope. 

So I just had a quick question. What does wattage do for a tube amp? Like, what's the difference between an ENGL Fireball 60 watt amp head, for example, and an ENGL Fireball 100 watt? I've noticed that the 60w F-Ball costs a few hundred less on eBay than the 100w does. It's just been plaguing my mind lately, but I have no earthly clue what the difference between wattage does for an amp.  Does higher wattage mean better tone? Or what? I did a little research on this, but all I could find is that, higher wattage = more tubes, which equals a much louder sound, and much more saturated, distorted tubes. I was just wondering as that helped, but didn't help too much, and I knew my good gearheads on sso could help me out and give me the breakdown. Thanks a lot!


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## Prestofly (Dec 18, 2011)

the more wattage the louder your amp will be. The tone could be better but im pretty sure that with higher wattage you would have to crank the volume louder to hit the peak of your tone and with a lower wattage the volume wouldn't have to be as high. If you planned on getting an engl and dont play out much a 60watt is probably more than enough for at home use. Also some people find 120watt to be too much and some people find lower wattages to not be enough its all personal preference really.


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## MaxOfMetal (Dec 18, 2011)

CassDarkwing said:


> So I just had a quick question. What does wattage do for a tube amp?



It effects two things primarily:

1) The amount of clean headroom the amp has. The lower the wattage the more clipping/distortion you'll get, especially when driving the amp hard.

2) Due to the different rate of clipping, the characteristics of the amp's response is different as well. Typically, you'll find that higher wattage amps are punchier, tighter, and cut better, while lower wattage amps will by bassier, thicker, and less tight. That's not always the case, but a good starting point to understanding. 

Contrary to popular belief, wattage have a minimal effect on volume. A 50 watt amp isn't half as loud as a 100 watt, and so on. 



> Like, what's the difference between an ENGL Fireball 60 watt amp head, for example, and an ENGL Fireball 100 watt?



Besides the different power ratings, the preamp of the ENGL FB100 was modified/tweaked. They are similar amps, but quite different. Just like how a Single Rec and Triple Rec are vastly different.



> I've noticed that the 60w F-Ball costs a few hundred less on eBay than the 100w does.



The FB60 was around a lot longer than the FB100, so there are more on the used market. More available means lower prices. Also, the tweaks made to the design used in the FB100 make it a more desirable amp to most.



> Does higher wattage mean better tone?



That's all subjective. Everyone tends to find their own, unique needs. 



> higher wattage = more tubes



While this is usually the case it's not always accurate. There are different ways to run tubes and different types of tubes. For instance a pair of KT88s can put out close to 90 watts, while a quartet of EL84s can usually put out 60 watts. 



> which equals a much louder sound



False. 



> and much more saturated, distorted tubes.



Not quite. You'll find that the lower the wattage the more power tube saturation you get. Though, keep in mind, just like gain, more doesn't really mean better.


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## technomancer (Dec 18, 2011)

As usual Max has it covered 

To be more precise, they typical volume difference between a 50w amp and a 100w amp is around 3db


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## CassDarkwing (Dec 18, 2011)

ss members...gotta love 'em.  I suppose my research pulled up a few shaky statements. Glad I asked more on the subject. Just out of curiosity, you mentioned tweaks made to the FB100 make it more desirable to most over the FB60, typically anyways, but what tweaks were there?


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## MaxOfMetal (Dec 18, 2011)

CassDarkwing said:


> ss members...gotta love 'em.  I suppose my research pulled up a few shaky statements. Glad I asked more on the subject. Just out of curiosity, you mentioned tweaks made to the FB100 make it more desirable to most over the FB60, typically anyways, but what tweaks were there?



From a technical standpoint, I'm not really sure. 

I do know the FB100 now has some more features and controls, such as more independent channel controls. The additions to the circuit apparently effected the overall feel and character of the amp. 

The FB60 was known to have weak mids, the FB100 not so much.


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## CassDarkwing (Dec 18, 2011)

MaxOfMetal said:


> From a technical standpoint, I'm not really sure.
> 
> I do know the FB100 now has some more features and controls, such as more independent channel controls. The additions to the circuit apparently effected the overall feel and character of the amp.
> 
> The FB60 was known to have weak mids, the FB100 not so much.



Well I heard the FB100 at a Born of Osiris show this past Tuesday night. Jason Richardson was using it. And man oh man...did it sound deliciously delicious.


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## idunno (Dec 18, 2011)

I have the engl fireball 100 watt.

It is no tthe same amp as the 60 watt. It was changed slightly to adress issues with the 60 watt people had. Users said it was too dark and not enough headroom, so they bumped the wattage and added a bright and bottom switch. I hear the tone is a little different but I have no personal experiance with the 60.

Usually The more watts the more headroom. So a 10 watt at 120 decibels will sound distorted and metal. but the same settings and volume, bumped up to 100 watts would sound cleaner.

lots of watts need to be pushed harder to sound dirtyer. Also you can play very loud and still be clean with 120 vs 50 which would be a little over drive at that point. Its why bassist run 500-1000 watts, to be clean loud.

A 100 watt amp is not way louder, everyone thinks so but its really not, too lazy to find the numbers right now though..


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## idunno (Dec 18, 2011)

Oh yeah the fireball 100 is freakin sweet. I can do anything on it except sludge, doom. Its too punchy and tight for that haha


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## CassDarkwing (Dec 18, 2011)

idunno said:


> Oh yeah the fireball 100 is freakin sweet. I can do anything on it except sludge, doom. Its too punchy and tight for that haha



Well that works out perfect and is delighting to hear...I personally can't stand doom/sludge metal.  Punchy, tight, and clear is what I want. Maybe I should get a Fireball...either that or an Invader...I can't decide.. o:


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## idunno (Dec 18, 2011)

CassDarkwing said:


> Well that works out perfect and is delighting to hear...I personally can't stand doom/sludge metal.  Punchy, tight, and clear is what I want. Maybe I should get a Fireball...either that or an Invader...I can't decide.. o:




I say you will love the fireball. If you dial the gain back a bit you get decent punk sounds. A little more you get great rock crunch.
Clean channel is very nice, brighter than i expected. you can get a great jazz tone with the bottom switch on/neck pup. Sweet amp.

And of course it djents and death metulz with extra gain on tap. And its sexy!!!

Here it is with a guitar i built blocking the view haha


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## CassDarkwing (Dec 20, 2011)

idunno said:


> I say you will love the fireball. If you dial the gain back a bit you get decent punk sounds. A little more you get great rock crunch.
> Clean channel is very nice, brighter than i expected. you can get a great jazz tone with the bottom switch on/neck pup. Sweet amp.
> 
> And of course it djents and death metulz with extra gain on tap. And its sexy!!!
> ...



The Fireball 100 it is then. Hell, its cheaper anyways. Also, OH MY GOD, that setup is so sexy. All of it.  Haha. Very nice guitar you've built. I spy delicious red LED neck markers.  Loving the setup.


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