Guitar Tips Part 4 - Buying an Electric Guitar Amp

I am always arguing with my peers over the relative importance
of a good guitar as opposed to a good Amp. It simply comes down
to money. Not every one can buy the exact gear that they want
so often it is a trade off. I am a believer in spending a bit more
time and money on getting a good amp but many players I know
and respect think the opposite. On that note I think it is best to try
out as many different amp and guitar combination within your
price range as you can.

Remember a bad amp can make a good guitar sound bad and a
good amp can make a bad guitar sound good. For this reason it
is important not to neglect you amp when you are shopping around.
For this reason I decided to write you a basic introduction to amps
so you could at least know the basics before you started shopping
around.

There are basically four different types of guitar amplifiers: tube,
analog (solid state), digital and hybrids. This article will give brief
description of the different types of amps out there.

Tube Amplifiers

The first amps ever made were tube amps and many players still
prefer them over analogue or digital amps. The reason for this is
that tube amps have a fat warm tone that many guitarists find
natural. Also tube amps are generally loader than analogue or
digital amps with the same wattage. There aren’t many among
us who don’t like having more power on stage. Most tube amps
have separate channels for distortion and clean sounds. The
distortion in tube amps is generally made by overdriving the
preamp. There are two major draw backs with tube amps: one is
that tubes are made of glass and can be broken easily if you don’t
treat your amp properly, also tubes wear out and need to be replaced.

Solid State (analogue) amplifiers

The reason that these types of amps are called ‘solid state’ is because
they use transistors in their pre and power amps instead of tubes.
The main problem with solid state is that they can often sound brittle
and harsh. This is particularly the case with their distortion channels.
The quality of the distortion on solid state amps can vary wildly and
it is something you should defiantly check when you are looking at a
solid state amp.

Solid state amps are very reliable, inexpensive and they don’t have
any pesky tubes to replace and for these reasons they remain
popular with some guitarists.

Digital (Modeling) amplifiers

Modeling amps use digital processors so that the amp can mimic
many other amp sounds. They can copy sounds from old or new
style tube amps using onboard software. These types of amps are
quite popular at this time and will only become more popular as
they improve in quality and become cheaper. Some of these amps
are better in quality than others, for those at the top of the range
most guitarists will not be able to hear the difference between
them and the real thing.

Hybrid amplifiers

Some guitar manufactures have come out with amps that combine
a tube preamp and a solid state power amp. The most well known
of these is the Marshall Valvestate series of amps. These amps are
a cheap way of getting a tube sound if you are on a budget.

Buying an Amp

The best way to buy an amp is to shop around. Take your electric
guitar (if you have one) into a few stores and try out a few different
amps. Try amps from different price ranges to see if you can hear
any difference. Also I recommend you take a more experienced
guitarist with you. Listen to their advice and try out as many amps
as you can. Try playing the amp at different volumes to see if
responds well. Check all the different channels to make sure it
sounds cool clean and distorted. Take your time buying an amp.
If you choose wisely and you can get a piece of equipment that
will make you sound better and should last you a long time.

Stay tuned for Part 5.

In affiliation with Ben Edwards Of Jamorama

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