1. Test the amp with your guitar: or a similar one in the store. A good amp's tone is heavily tethered to the guitar that's plugged into it. If you want to know what I'm talking about, just plug a Telecaster into a Vox AC30 with the gain set to five and then do the same with a Les Paul. Most places stock Fender American Standard Strats and Gibson Explorers, my go-to guitars, so it's not a challenge for me. However, if you own a real oddball of a guitar, say an old Harmony H-78, just bring it in so you can test it with the amp.
2. Play closed voicings of chords: ideally using all six strings. Chords that have very close intervals will get very muddy on an amp that lacks harmonic sparkle. This is more of a quick litmus test, to determine whether or not the amp is even a potential candidate. For tube amps, dial the amp's gain/channel volume to the point where it's just about to break up and the eq somewhere around even, and then do this. If the amp is "good", these chords should sound very sparkly or shimmery.
3. Play LOUD!: Don't be afraid to crank up an amp! Most amplifiers will sound best when they are loud, in particular tube amps. If you are going to be using the amplifier for gigging, then you will definitely need to make sure the amp retains it's punchiness at a high volume so it won't get lost in the mix of a loud performance.
4. Run through every setting you can figure out: This is a no-brainer. Pretty much just fiddle around with the controls, and try to find out what settings are useable. Some amplifiers will have a lot of useable settings while others will have just one "sweet spot". Neither is better than the other, but just as long as a killer tone comes out of those speakers at some point, it can justify buying the amp. Make sure to play around with the eq, but start all the knobs at noon so you can establish a sort of audio ground zero.
Regarding Money: I am not one who wants to make you spend $5000 on a hand-wired custom made amplifier; I think that's excessive for virtually anybody. However, I will say that you are going to have to spend some money when buying an amp. Rather than purchasing something just to have it, you are making an investment. If you buy bad gear, you will sound bad, unless you are a very good guitarist, and even then it's a challenge. Buying decent gear will help you to overcome some of the initial challenges of playing guitar and making it sound good. A more expensive amp will also last longer and perform well as it gets older. I'm not going to make you spend more than $200 on an amplifier, but I'm certainly not going to let you spend less than it. Trust me on this one if you are considering buying a cheap amp, I have a few of them sitting in my garage, dead without any use anymore, and it was more of a waste of money buying those than just buying one good $1000 tube amp.
Ok, so if you read that, you either have a basic idea of how to put an amp to the test and how to go about buying an amp, or you have no idea how to sift through all that amplifier-lingo. If the latter is the case, the next few paragraphs are for you.
We'll start with the very basic, an explanation of what an amplifier is and why exactly you need it.
An electric guitar needs an amplifier in order to produce sound. The way it works is when you pluck a string on the guitar, it creates a very quiet sound that is sensed and "picked up" by electromagnets under the strings near the bridge called pickups. It is then filtered through the "tone" and "volume" knobs on your guitar and converted into a signal that can be passed on through a quarter inch patch cable, which runs to the input on your amplifier. The real magic happens with the amp, which amplifies the signal sent from the guitar so it can be heard at a comfortable (or uncomfortably loud) volume. It also modifies the sound of the guitar, based on the controls that are on the amp. Amps come in all different shapes and sizes (which we will get to later) but here's a basic overview of the controls that will be found on many amplifiers:
Equalization (EQ): Equalization is one of the staple amplifier controls, and I can guarantee that it is present on EVERY amplifier you will ever plug into. The purpose of EQ, as it is generally referred to as, is to accentuate certain frequencies in the signal, and change the tone of the guitar. The three knobs that make up a normal equalization circuit are "Bass", "Mid", and "Treble". Each one raises the volume of a certain range of frequencies. For instance, if you turn up the "Bass" knob, then all of the bass frequencies, or lower notes, will be louder and more prominent. In turn the sound will be "darker". If you turn up the "Mid" knob, the mid frequencies will be accentuated, and the notes in the middle of the guitar's range will be more prominent. And if you turn up the "Treble" knob, then the treble frequencies will be more prominent, so the notes in the high range of the guitar will be more prominent. The sound will be "brighter". EQ can work wonders, but it can be confusing, and most people just sort of turn the knobs around for about a year or so without knowing anything before they figure out what to do (that was me). To avoid this, a shortcut is that the amp will sound best with the EQ knobs all set right around noon. It doesn't take too much twisting of one knob to change the sound, so be sparing with your EQ until you're really comfortable with it.
Gain/Channel Volume/Drive: This knob has a lot of different names, but they all mean the same thing. This knob controls the amount of overdrive the signal has, and allows you to fine tune just how much "grit", your tone has. It's a challenge to explain how it sounds, but if you need an example then just listen to the opening riff on The Rolling Stones', "Rocks Off", for the killer tone of an amp with the gain set to around eleven o' clock (depending on the amp), so there's just enough grit to make it sound badass.
Master Volume: This is pretty straightforward. It's a control for how loud your amp gets. If you have a tube amp, then if you turn this up enough you can get some natural overdrive from just working the power tubes. This is arguably the best sound in the world.
Reverb: It's meant to emulate the sound of a room, and the sort of echo that results from it. This can result in a very cool spacey sound, but use it in moderation at gigs, because it can get really ugly when your "emulated room sound" mixes with the "real room sound". The guitar fails to cut through the rest of the sound and it starts sounding really muddy.
Presence: This control will bring the sound "forward" and make it brighter and clearer the more you turn it up. Not all amps have it, so you probably don't need to worry about it.
Channel Selector: This will vary depending on what amp you're using, but generally it either allows you to select from multiple amp simulators which will have different tones and drive capabilities OR it will allow you to select from a clean channel and an overdrive channel that will have higher drive capability (more ability to break up faster and distort more). Experiment with this, because it will be much different for each amp, and you'll have to do some exploring to figure out what you like.
So those are the basic controls on most amps, summarized. There will be others depending on which amp you're using, so just read the manual online or that comes in the box for an explanation of any controls you don't know. But now onto something more interesting, the Solid State VS. Tube Debate.
Solid State VS. Tube: This has been a hotly contested subject since virtually the beginning of time and neither side seems to be winning, because there are benefits to both Solid State Amplifiers and Tube Amplifiers.
A short history: Back in the olden days, electronics were made of resistors, capacitors, and vacuum tubes. These tubes were super unreliable and were always dying out, kind of like unbranded batteries, and were a pain to use in things like radios and old tv's. So, the time came when some brilliant guy decided to stick three wires into a chunk of germanium. Then the transistor was born! Solid state amps were based on transistor circuitry, using complex J-Fet gain stages and other stuff to emulate tube amp sound but without the hassle of having to replace the tubes in an amp every three years and having the danger of breaking a tube. Plus, solid state amps could take high wattages easily and were cheaper to produce, so they took over the market easily. However, sometime in the nineties, people realized that they liked the old school tube sound better, and so companies started to focus on tube amplifiers again, and even make tube/solid state hybrids. Some people like tube amps, and others like solid state amps. Much of this depends on the type of music you play- if you play classic rock and roll or blues or jazz you'll probably like the tube amp sound better, but if you play high gain metal or very clean ethereal music or alternative rock, you may like the solid state versatility and space age clean tones more than anything tube based. It's up to you, but I'll give a brief description of the pros and cons of each.
Tube Amps:
My personal favorite, just because nothing can compare to that sound of overdriven power tubes blasting out a Led Zeppelin riff (The Ocean) or a sparkling Quadrophenia line (Love Reign O'er Me). Here's the pros and cons:
Pros:
-LOUD! These things get more volume per watt than solid state ever will
-The quality of tube amps is generally a little better, because they are a boutique item and have to be top of the line in order to sell at all
-Takes effects well, including boost pedals, which can provide some of the best tones in the Universe (check out an Analogman Beano Boost into any sort of Tube Amp, and you will be surprised how much you sound like The Rolling Stones' "Midnight Rambler")
-Tube Overdrive sounds killer; this is what Solid State overdrive is TRYING to imitate
Cons:
-Fragile tubes, need to be careful with the amplifiers
-Tubes die out after three to four years, despite what the manufacturers say about it being one to two years, and it costs anywhere from $120-$400 to replace the tubes, depending on the quality of the tubes (good tubes can come cheap though)
-Not very versatile. You can pretty much get a clean sound, an overdrive sound, and a slightly more overdrive sound. Maybe some built in reverb and tremolo. The versatility will come with auxiliary effects boxes (See my effects buying guide)
-Expensive $$$. Depending on which one you buy, they can cost from $400 to upwards of $6000.
Concluding statement: Tube amps are the best sounding amp out there. No sound can come out of a solid state amp that will ever sound as killing as a tube amp set so that it's just on the edge of overdrive. That being said, they are expensive, and they don't have a lot of versatility. A solid state amp will have more effects built in and a lot more tonal possibilities. When it comes down to it though, it's worth the money, because these things will only go UP in resale value if you buy a good one.
Solid State Amps:
These things are complicated. With J-Fet gain stages and built in distortion circuits and phasing circuits and flanging circuits and reverb and delay and EVERYTHING ELSE YOU COULD IMAGINE. You won't get bored very easily with these amps, and with new options on the market that have software that allows you to fine tune your amplifier's sound, you can get some killer tones that are getting closer and closer to a tube amp every year, at a fraction of the cost.
Pros:
-The diversity is incomparable; a good solid state amp will emulate six different tube amplifiers or more
-The price can be great, with a big head and speaker cabinet costing about a fourth of a tube amp of similar size. GOOD Solid State amps will run anywhere from $200-$1800
-They allow you to experiment with a lot of effects without buying effects units
-They are pretty durable, versus the fragility of tube amps. These things can take a beating. That being said, take care of it, it's not a rock.
Cons:
-Low resale value. These things are almost as bad as toyotas when it comes to retaining their value.
-Effects like boosts will not work with these amps, and certain fuzz and distortion pedals will sound, frankly, awful in use with these amps.
-Though the emulation is great, it will never quite reach the sound of that tube amp overdrive.
Concluding statement: Solid state amps don't sound bad, they're not that expensive, and they're mind-bogglingly versatile. For the beginning guitarist who's looking to save some money and still get great sounding gear, before I say anything, you will HAVE to spend some money. I will never recommend any amplifier under $200, because it will sound like crap and will discourage you from playing. That being said, solid state amps are the way to go if you want to spend less than $400. However, in my opinion, just buy a $600 tube amp, a fuzz face clone on ebay, and an Analogman Beano Boost and enjoy the best sound in the universe.
So I want to buy an amp now, where should I start?
It can be hard to find good advice on gear anywhere, whether that's at your local guitar center or even here on the internet. When I recommend amps, I've personally put them through all the tests above and more, and they are some of the best amps I've played through. That being said, don't just go by my recommendation, go into your local guitar shop and play one of these. Then you can realize for yourself just how awesome it sounds, and be happy with what you buy! All of the amps I'm recommending can last a lifetime, and are suitable for gigging as well as practicing. The tradeoff here is that they will be more expensive than other options, but what I have learned in my years of buying gear is that if you buy something cheap, it will break within a few weeks or it will discourage you from playing the guitar and you'll quit and never realize it was just the amp that sounded bad, not you. So just pay the extra money and get something that you'll treasure and will make music with for the next twenty, thirty, maybe even forty or fifty years.
We'll start with good solid state amps:
1. The Fender Mustang II - $200
The Fender Mustang is a great amplifier. With the ability to emulate classic Fender amps like a 60's Deluxe Reverb and a Vintage Tweed Champ, it's really hard to go wrong with the amp presets. A downloadable software is available for further customization, but a warning towards this is that it is easy to get carried away by drowning your signal in unnecessary effects to the point where it sounds soupy and awful. That being said, this amp is a hell of a lot of fun, and I would recommend the Mustang II because it's small enough for a practice amp but large enough just in case you decide to start a band with that drummer you met at a bar the other day. An all around great amp, the Mustang II runs about $200 new, but you can find it for about $180. This amp comes in different sizes though, and while I wouldn't recommend anything less than the Mustang II, the other larger amps are great for live performances and serious players who enjoy solid state amps rather than tube amps.
2. Vox Valvetronix VT50 - $380
This amp is killing! For a solid state amp, it makes some of the best noise I've heard on the electric guitar firsthand. With everything from great clean tones to gritty crunchy overdrive to high gain leads, this amp has it all. Plus it's got some decent built in effects that are useable, though not comparable to a good analog stompbox effect of a similar sort. This amp is the closest you'll get to the legendary Vox AC30 with a solid state, and it does it pretty damn well. The amp comes in a 15 watt, 30 watt, 50 watt, and 100 watt version, but I don't recommend anything less than the 50 watt version, just because it's going to sound better with more wattage, and will be able to handle larger gigs and band settings. It's a bit pricier, almost to the point where I would say that you should just buy a smaller tube amp for around the same price, but if you want that big sound for under $400, this is certainly the way to go.
3. Marshall MG Series 30 Watt - $200
This amp is pretty good. Out of the three listed here it's probably my least favorite, but that means nothing because these are my three favorite well priced solid state amps. This amp is versatile, has a good Marshall sound, and will get the job done well. I personally would go for the Vox solid state rather than this one, but it's a matter of opinion, and I have many friends who prefer the Marshall sound over the Vox sound. One of my friends bought one a while back and has continued using it for a year. He says he loves it and was really satisfied with the range of tones he was able to experiment with, and based on my own experience with the amp I believe I would feel the same way if I owned it. Go play it, but don't buy anything smaller than the 30 watt version, trust me, you'll regret it if you do; not immediately, but in three or four years when you've got a gig and your amp is too quiet to be heard!
In conclusion here, each of these amps is a great option for solid state technology, and will serve you well if you purchase it. If you find an amp you like other than one of these, by all means go for it. One that I didn't list here that I like very much is the Orange Crusher, so you should also check that one out. As a side note, STAY AWAY from brands like Line 6 and Peavey, as they will not sound nearly as good as these amps here and are almost as expensive. Their ease of use and large array of options may be tempting, but trust me on this one, you will have much more luck with the Mustang, VT30, Marshall, or Orange Crusher than with a Line 6 Spider or a comparable Peavey model. One exception to line 6 amps is if you can get a hold of some of their older amps that have fewer knobs and buttons and actually sound pretty good for solid state amplifiers.
Now that we're done with the solid state amps, here are the tube amps. These will be more expensive and I will be taking less into consideration a budget here, and posting some value amps and some that are top of the line.
1. Vox AC30 - $1000
The sexiest amp in the business, and one of the best sounding. This amp is a legend, with guitarists such as U2's The Edge, Queen's Brian May, and Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page using it for both recording and live purposes. I own the black comet version and it is by far my favorite amp available for purchase new, and is also one of the more affordable options for tube amps. It's loud, despite being only 30 Watts, and if you swap out the speakers for some higher quality Celestion Alnico Blues other than the Celestion Greenbacks it comes with (which still sound great, mind you, I've got them in my AC30), and swap out the tubes for some new old stock 12AX7's and some JJ power tubes, this creates the greatest sound in the universe. I love this amp more than almost anything that I own and if I had to recommend one amp to anybody it would be this one. Despite my undying love for the AC30, still go and try it out to see if it fits your tone, or if one of these other amps is a better choice!
2. Fender Deluxe Reverb - $1050
Yet another display of just how great manufacturing and design can stay the same for fifty years. This was originally an amp from the sixties, and you can buy the reissue. Plenty of worthy clones are made by boutique amp shops, but I've personally tested the Fender reissue and I love it. Just a few warnings though, before you go out and buy this thing. You've got to CRANK it to get overdrive out of it. It's a clean amp, and you'll need a great overdrive pedal (something like a Keeley Luna Drive or a Way Huge Pork Loin) to really create that heavy sound you can get by driving the preamp tubes on a Vox or a Marshall. However, when you do drive this thing, it sparkles beyond comprehension, and has the powerful sound of a 60's Fender Bassman Cabinet, which I've played before and can attest to the similarity it has with this amp. The reverb is a nice touch too, and it's a good sounding echoey reverb that can really accentuate short notes, but not get too muddy. For bright blues, jazz, and special applications of brit rock and classic rock, this will work wonders. For the price, it's a steal.
3. Egnater Renegade 65W 2x12 - $1300
It's another amp that you won't be disappointed with. Though I personally prefer the Vox AC30 and the Fender Deluxe Reverb, this one is a great amp as well. It's a little pricier, but there are more controls so you can dial in your tone exactly how you want it, as well as two really nice sounding channels; a clean and an overdrive one. It can do good tube crunch as well as a nice sparkly clean, and I highly recommend picking up a fuzz pedal for this one, because with the two twelve inch speakers this guy can handle the Hendrix riffs with the volume cranked and a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face or an Analogman Sunface Fuzz somewhere in between your guitar and the amp. The Egnater renegade is a great option for versatility in a tube amp while still retaining that great tube sound.
Now, before we're done here, I'd like to say that these amps I've listed are ones where you will get the most out of what you pay for. My favorite amp of all time is the Vox AC30, despite it's oddly attractive price and the lack of a channel switch. However, there are plenty of other amps that I love, and that are much more expensive. If you're looking for a ridiculous amp, and you don't have a limit to just how much money you can spend, consider these two.
1. Marshall JCM-800 Reissue - $2000 + 4x12 Cabinet Cost
This thing rocks! That's all there is to say. This amp is the most famous amp in the history of mankind, and for good reason. Jimmy Page, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, and countless others used Marshall amps at some point in their careers. If you've got money to blow, this is a hell of an option, and it's just screaming at you to buy it. With just six controls it's hard to mess up your sound, and it's the only Marshall amp that still manages to sound good. There's no fancy modeling, so separate gain stages, no built in effects. Just pure Marshall tube overdrive goodness, and it is what we've been wanting from Marshall all along, none of this JVM crap! Keep in mind, I am talking about the reissue, not the original JCM's, but if you can get one of those, by all means, get it and post an audio file of how it sounds!
2. 1960's Blackface Fender Bassman Head - $1500
This amp is just amazing. There is one sound in the world that can satisfy my ears the most, and that is this amp (or a deluxe reverb or AC30) set to the point where it's just about to break up, and then with the master volume cranked up to the point where you're wondering if you'll ever be able to hear again. I had a band teacher in middle school who had one of these away in the closet, and I pulled it out and dusted it off. He let me play it as loud as I wanted after school, and I brought in my ProCo Rat distortion and just tore it up. This baby LOVES fuzzes, distortions, overdrives, boosts, and any other stompbox related to gain or fuzz! So make sure that if you buy one of these, you get some serious fuzz going, otherwise you're missing out! This amp is only available for purchase off of ebay used, and the one that I'm talking about is any Bassman from the sixties with a four speaker cabinet (this means that the head should be around 200 watts). See if you can find a place to try one of these out, or at least go to Youtube and see what it sounds like when somebody else uses it, but this is the only amp I would let you trust my opinion on, because this thing is killing. Plus, nobody wants these because they think they're just for bass, but there's a NORMAL channel, so you can plug in your guitar and it sounds like a 60's deluxe reverb but played through a four by twelve stack!
In conclusion for tube amps, these things can be expensive, but the suggestions I made are my favorite amps in the world, and they are certainly a good place to start if you're looking into buying a tube amp. There are less brands to stay away from with tube amps, because they will all sound very cool, but my recommendation is don't immediately buy a Marshall because you think you'll sound like Jimmy Page! Many of his recordings were done through tiny, cheap amplifiers called Supro's that are now selling for a lot of money on ebay because people are realizing how good they sound. If you want a Marshall, buy a Plexi reissue or a JCM-800 reissue. Don't buy a JVM head, you will be disappointed by how fake it sounds when you were expecting a very Marshall tube like tone. Also, my personal favorites of the above listed are the Vox AC30 and the Fender Bassman Stack, just in case that helps you narrow anything down.
Well, that's it for my guide, hope it at least taught you something, and better yet, I hope it helped you find the amp that you won't part with for the rest of your life!
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