That Sansamph doesn't have a dedicated mid control, right? IIRC, boosting the highs or lows also cuts the mids on it. Mids are what make you cut through. The newer character series pedals have a mid control, which might do the trick for you.

I obviously have my Jet City amph and love it to pieces. Do I love it because it has tubes? I don't know. I only know that I like the way it sounds. It's unfair to compare it to my AD30VT. That amph probably would have sounded better through my current cab than through its own enclosure. I've also never tried to play in a band situation with it so I have no idea how either of them would cut through. My only band experience is on bass.