Small Practice Amp Recommendations

[TonyT]

Thanks for all the input on my search for a "practice" amp that would best suit my needs.

I ended up purchasing the Spark 40. I even got lucky and hit a sale on Sweetwater for $239 and that included a free travel bag ($40 value). I have been playing around with this amp for a week now and I am super impressed. It is plenty loud for the room I practice in and it is really easy to dial in just the right tone and sounds great. I am using the free app that is available and pairing it up with a IPad through bluetooth to the amp. It is working seamlessly and I have not encountered any issues with the setup or use.

Like many small amps the bass tends to be a bit overdone straight out of the box so I have solved that issue by dialing down the bass and they also have an equalizer now on the latest version of the app (choice #12 called "Guitar EQ") that allows you to do that as well. Super impressed with all the amp modeling options and pedals. I have not tried some of the other app features like recording, jamming, playing along with chords of streamed music, etc. but there are a lot of YT videos out there and it seems like these would be great learning tools for a newbie like me. For $239 this thing is a great value.

 

[markd21]

I'm a big fan of the mini Vox super beetle thing. Every time I plug into one I am pleased by the sound.

Mini Superbeetle

The VOX tradition of innovation carries on today with products designed to achieve unprecedented tonal flexibility. The legendary sound of VOX Amplification dates back to the 1950’s with icons like The Beatles, The Rolling Stones Queen, Jimi Hendrix, and Radiohead all part of the VOX Story. Find...

voxampshop.com

 

[RickP]

Looks like a Spark 2 is about to drop…

 

[Summer]

Thanks for all the input on my search for a "practice" amp that would best suit my needs.

I ended up purchasing the Spark 40. I even got lucky and hit a sale on Sweetwater for $239 and that included a free travel bag ($40 value). I have been playing around with this amp for a week now and I am super impressed. It is plenty loud for the room I practice in and it is really easy to dial in just the right tone. I am using the free app that is available and using an iPod through bluetooth to the amp. It is working seamlessly and I have not encountered any issues with the setup or use.

Like many small amps the bass tends to be a bit overdone straight out of the box so I have solved that issue by dialing down the bass and they also have an equalizer now on the latest version of the app (choice #12 called "Guitar EQ") that allows you to do that as well. Super impressed with all the amp modeling options and pedals. I have not tried some of the other app features like recording, jamming, playing along with chords of streamed music, etc. but there are a lot of YT videos out there and it seems like these would be great learning tools for a newbie like me. For $239 this thing is a great value.

I have one of those as well. I don't use it much unless I'm traveling and can take it with me. My main home/gig amp is my Fender deluxe reverb but it's WAY to loud for practice at home. I've been reading and watching reviews on the new Supro Amulet 15 watt and ordered one. Perfect for home as you can dial it from 15 watts down to 5 and down to 1 watt.

 

[László]

Looks like a Spark 2 is about to drop…

Could be the YouTube compression, could be the way he set it up, but it lacks 'bounce' and dynamic range, compared to a tube amp. Very transistor sounding in this demo.

 

[RickP]

Could be the YouTube compression, could be the way he set it up, but it lacks 'bounce' and dynamic range, compared to a tube amp. Very transistor sounding in this demo.

Agree. That seems to be the unavoidable compromise in these small amps. Tube amps are the ultimate spoiler to everything else, though there are a whole other range of compromises there… tone just doesn’t happen to be one of those.

 

[Kyguitar23]

How about the monoprice stage right 5 watt? It’s a pretty decent little tube amp.

 

[László]

Agree. That seems to be the unavoidable compromise in these small amps. Tube amps are the ultimate spoiler to everything else, though there are a whole other range of compromises there… tone just doesn’t happen to be one of those.

I got my son a little Epiphone tube practice amp (Valve Jr.?) that he had fun with when it was too late at night to practice with his big amp.

Didn't sound too bad, you could crank up the volume and it'd do what tube amps do when they're overdriven. It just did that thing very quietly!

I've seen them around for $100 or so, used. Kind of a fun thing to consider.

 

[GGJJGG]

How about the monoprice stage right 5 watt? It’s a pretty decent little tube amp.

Never heard of this one?

 

[DreamTheaterRules]

Never heard of this one?

They were a hit at TGP a few years back. Cheap, decent mod platform.

 

[Dasher]

I keep a Spark 40 in the RV and really like it. I also use a Tech 21 Richie Kotzen RK5 (V.ii) and go direct to headphones. For quiet(er) practice in the house I use an old 10w tech 21 amp. For reference, main amp is an Archon 50 combo and have both a Peavey Classic 30 and a Princeton - but they get a lot less use since the Archon appeared. I've been a long term user of Tech 21 gear so the RK Flyrig makes a perfect tool for me.

 

[IronSchef]

look at the all Spark Amps for sure - the Spark App is a fantastic learning tool, and even the tiny "Go" has great tones