Guitar Center trade-in prices usually depend on what kind of gear you’re selling; drums and amplifiers tend to sell quickly and you should receive a solid return in terms of cash for these items.
Be it an at-home hobbyist or touring professional, amps are essential in meeting volume demands. While tube amps tend to produce rich distortion tones, solid-state amps offer greater clarity and reliability. Speaker configuration should also be taken into account; larger woofers typically produce deeper bass tones while smaller tweeters accentuate higher end frequencies.
Acoustic Guitar Combo Amps
These amps were specifically created to work with the piezo pickups found on electro-acoustic guitars (and microphones), providing uncoloured sounds that faithfully reproduce your tone’s subtleties. Electric amps usually offer more mid-focused tones with reduced definition at the higher frequencies; in comparison, acoustic amps often include an additional tweeter to increase high frequency fidelity.
Most acoustic amps are small enough to fit easily in your gig bag and run on either AC power or AA batteries, making them suitable for busking and other mobile applications. Some also come equipped with additional effects like reverb or chorus for adding character. Most also provide multiple inputs should you plan to play along with backing tracks or other musicians.
If you plan on playing at an outdoor venue, an amp with both headphone and line out capabilities would be useful for practice at an appropriate volume; additionally, many acoustic amps offer feedback control features which will prevent loud feedback from mics or other instruments distorting your sound and distorting its shape.
Your amplifier choice depends on both your performance needs and your budget. Beginners might opt for a small practice amp with relatively low wattage and one speaker, while professionals might use a combo amp capable of producing 30-50 watts through one or two speakers; larger events often necessitate guitarists employing larger “combo” amplifiers that deliver 100+ watts through multiple 12-inch speakers.
Tube-based acoustic amplifiers may be costly, but their warm sound appeals to many players and is less prone to feedback issues than solid-state amps.
Electric Guitar Combo Amps
Combo amps combine both power amplifier and speaker into one box, saving both space and money compared to individual head and cabinet systems.
If you’re on a budget and looking for an economical way to practice and jam, combo units may be your answer. Perfect for beginners and students alike, these small lightweight devices feature one 8-inch speaker with low watt amplifier.
Many of these smaller amps come equipped with built-in effects like reverb and tremolo. If you’re an advanced guitarist, an amp with multiple channels and boostable features may be better suited to you – this way you can keep one channel clean while using another to control an overdrive pedal or chained distortion pedal.
Some combo amps feature an additional speaker output to enable connecting an “extension cab.” Doing this changes the tone of your amp and allows you to compare various cabs for optimal sound quality.
Combo amps range from lightweight units intended for practice and jamming to larger, 100-watt amps that can power nightclub or bar performances. No matter if you play acoustic or electric guitar, there’s sure to be an amp that suits your needs perfectly!
Do Separate Amp Heads and Cabs Sound Better Than Combos? Although many believe a combo amp to be inferior, both formats can produce stunning tones depending on your musical taste and preferences. The choice lies with you as well!
Blues guitarists may prefer the open sound of a Fender four-speaker combo, as these units provide a wide range of tones from smooth to searing. Meanwhile, rock and metal players might prefer using a full stack – an amplifier head connected to two or more 4×12 cabinets connected via cable (Angus Young of AC/DC is well known for using such setups!). Marshall stacks may also work well.
When it comes to selecting an amp, your wattage requirements depend on how large a venue you plan on performing at. Most gigs take place in smaller clubs and bars where combo amps provide enough power without being overly loud.
Bass Combo Amps
Bass combo amps are a common choice of bass amplifier, offering enough power for practicing or performing small gigs at clubs or houses. Beginners and some professional musicians alike often rely on them as warm-up and individual practice devices; typically these devices combine an amp head with speaker cabinet into one device that delivers full sound reproduction while being portable enough for transport.
Most bass combo amplifiers feature a control panel with several buttons and knobs designed to customize output level adjustments, an EQ preset button to access bass tones, as well as other settings like Deep/Bright buttons which enhance low end or enhance high end for more lively sounds.
Many combo amps feature multiple input and output ports on their rear panels for input and output purposes. These could include several 3.5mm “Aux-In” ports for connecting an MP3 player while jamming along, as well as two XLR line outputs to connect to mixers or recorders when recording your bass playing performance. You might also come across ground lift switches and pre/post EQ buttons, both of which are useful in eliminating hum.
More expensive bass combo amps may come equipped with an electronic tuner and feature a mute button to muffle any noise caused by tuning during breaks or between songs. More advanced models may also feature vertical sliders to control their graphic equalizer and allow users to tweak different bass frequency bands accordingly.
Fender Bassman combo amps have long been considered one of the premier bass combo amps. You may recognize this legendary amplifier from Green Day bassist Mike Dirnt using it. This iconic device offers features like an XLR line out port with gain control knob, ground lift switch and pre/post bass EQ switch as well as pre/post bass EQ switch – ideal for playing multiple basses at once! However, increased functionality may prove too much for certain users and lead them down an expensive path.
PA Systems
A PA system, or public address system, is a multifaceted collection of speakers, microphones and amplifiers used to project sound for performances and other forms of audio output. A PA system can be found anywhere from small bars to stadium-sized arenas – with all you need for getting your voice or music heard loud and clear as well as rehearsal and recording capabilities.
Most PA systems utilize a powered mixer as their nerve center, processing audio signals from microphones and instruments through up to 24 input channels or inputs, before being amplified by the power amp in order to drive speakers with enough wattage; often this information is listed in its specifications; larger numbers indicate greater power and greater sonic performance.
Though guitarists may be tempted to simply mic up their guitar amplifiers and run the signals directly into a PA system, this approach can result in an uncontrollable and disjointed sound that is difficult to manage. By running these signals through a powered mixer first, however, you can eliminate noises such as guitar amps, bass amps and drums which don’t contribute directly to your soundscape.
If you’re shopping for a small PA system, opt for a modular tower system which houses both mixer and power amp in one compact structure that breaks down for easy transport. This type of set-up works great for solo musicians, duos or smaller bands that don’t require too much power.
Musicalian’s Friend offers a selection of PA systems from top manufacturers like Peavey and Yamaha that cater to entry-level users as well as those needing something with additional features, like digital effects, variable power control, USB direct recording output and even built-in MSDI XLR Direct interfaces which eliminate miking requirements allowing you to plug directly in without needing an amp.