I have news: The ZVex Nano amp is a 0.5 Watt all-tube monster. But owners agree IT IS LOUD ENOUGH TO PUSH A 100W 4x12.
Let me get this straight. I have used practice amps, and some sound GREAT. All the more if you hear a cranked up Fender Champ or Supro. But everyone seems to miss the point. I am not all for loudness. What I am saying is that the effect of using different amps makes us appreciate the concept of the Fletcher Munson effect. And by saying that Joe Walsh, Duane Allman, and all those guitar greats, used practice (tube most of the time) amps in the studio is testament that the air being pushed by amps is what they enjoy most. But by using a DI modeller, all of a sudden, a 100W Plexi patch, or a 5W Champ patch, work on the same volume level, depending on the monitoring conditions in the studio. And for me, I don't get the point when people bring up the concept of practice amps being used in the studio as, in the first place, I've been saying it time and again that using different amps in different songs in different production scenarios produces different levels of inspiration for different players. Does loudness have something to do with it? YES, IN A HEARTBEAT. But more than the volume, is the character of different amplifiers and how they sound so differently at different volumes. Modellers do not exemplify this trait as you are working within the loudest volume level your monitoring can muster.
When I was in 3rd year high school, I had an El Cheapo 10W Genesis Amp. After 2 years I owned a glorious Zoom 1010 pedal. For some reason, I was able to fake some EVH sounds with those gear, because whenever I listened to a Boombox, they sounded similar. But what I did not know was once I start recording my rig using a mic and a cassette recorded, it would sound completely different from EVH's Plexis. That was because I had no idea of the Fletcher Munson phenomenon.