Fit For An Autopsy Goes Against the Grain, Moves Back to Tube Amps

I was checking out this rig rundown with Fit For An Autopsy’s Patrick Sheridan over at Metal Sucks, expecting more Axe-FX talk because last I heard that was the band’s tone generator of choice. So I was surprised to notice that they’re back to tubes. Well to be fair the band had used tube power amps in the past (I’m pretty sure they had VHT 2:90:2s but if anyone knows for certain let me know) but now they’re back to good old fashioned heads, a Mesa/Boogie Mark V in Pat’s case.

I used digital for a long time, feeling like it was the answer to all of my tone problems until I was faced with the challenge of standing up to a tube amp in a live situation. When our other guitarist switched from the digital world back to a tube amp I got so lost in the mix that I was constantly turning up, and even using a tube power amp wasn’t enough to keep up.

I’m not anti-digital, but I am a digital skeptic. Digital agnostic, I guess you’d say. I think they certainly have their place, especially in the studio, and especially in a home studio for writing, low volume recording, getting ideas down quickly, etc. But I’ve been wondering for a while now if the steady flow of converts to amp modellers would be a one-way street. Who knows if FFAA are the exception that proves the rule or if some other bands will miss that tube power and cut?