Advice on practice amps

[Inflames626]

Hi all,
So I usually prefer to practice for extended periods through the plugins in my DAW. They have totally replaced my tube amps now. I consider tube amps like V8 engines--still usable, slightly impractical, and a bit much when a V6 or even V4 will do.

With that said I've been browsing for small practice amps. Mainly I want to use them to test out pickups at my table to see how the pickups sound. So I really need a clean portable PA system more than an amp.

That said clean tones with cheap solid state amps seem to be improving all the time and, while they may not be musical, they will probably be very clean and flat.

And while I'm at it I might as well get something with a halfway decent distortion tone in case I want to practice in another room away from my DAW.

I would prefer a small combo amp.

Speaker size does concern me. Since 12" is the standard I figure a 1x12" is enough. Smaller speakers may make the guitar distortion more than usual or not sound like it would in a 4x12 situation.

There isn't much use for increased wattage since to my knowledge doubling wattage only produces about 3 db difference in volume. If you want loudness you actually need more speakers moving more air, and a lower wattage will break up at a lower volume than a higher wattage amp.

(Still, I have heard some people say "Avoid the 50 watt version of amp X because it's garbage compared to the 100 watt version.)

The thing is we are at a technology crossroads where it is hard to figure out where you'll get the most bang for your buck.

You've got tubes, solid state, and digital options all competing for the same space, and now with Internet connectivity, tone capturing, and impulse responses available, shelling out for a 25-50 watt solid state 2 channel amp just seems a bit underwhelming these days even if they are only $200 or so.

I'm thinking $300 tops. It's easy to spend a bit more and then you're just chasing a better amp.

The 50 watt Boss Katana seems really hot right now. I am leaning toward it. Still, the Yamaha TH line also seems very competitive. Roland Cubes and some of the Fender Champ practice amps seem decent.

Every small solid state Marshall I have tried sounds terrible. As I live in the South I have more experience with small Peavey amps. Their Transtube stuff was not bad but not great, and I think I would be better off paying for a more modern option than something like a Solo, Bandit, Rage, etc. I also played a lot of Crate stuff in the 90s when I was just starting out but as they are defunct now that doesn't matter.

At this price range I would prefer to buy brand new direct from the manufacturer or at a slight discount from a third party. I am leery of buying from Reverb. I'm afraid I'd get an amp that wouldn't be in very good shape.

Any other suggestions?

Thanks.

[Securb]

I would check out your local Mom & Pop. Mine always has a bunch of used practice amps at around $50. Lots of kids pick up the guitar and lose interest, those 20-watt solid staters are everywhere cheap.

[Mincer]

I am a huge fan of the 50 Watt Katana. I use one for teaching, and it is essentially a mini PA system with a modeling engine. It sounds great for acoustic and bass, as well.

[Animal]

If you can stretch the budget to a Katana 100 Head, you can use the internal speaker for grab n' go practicing, then hook up to an external cab for when you want to move some more serious air.

This would be a much smaller foot-print compared to the 50 watt combo version for practicing purposes.

I've seen Katana 100 Heads on Facebook Marketplace locally for less than $300 USD.

Here's one now on Ebay now for $299:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/27550804684...Bk9SR-qBo_6PYQ

[Aceman]

The 50 watt Boss Katana seems really hot right now. I am leaning toward it. Still, the Yamaha TH line also seems very competitive. Roland Cubes and some of the Fender Champ practice amps seem decent.

Right here you mentioned everything I'd look at.

Ignore Tube/Solid/Digital. You are already going in with a predisposition. Good sound is good sound - period. And it can happen anywhere.

I usually play through my Cube (30 watt - silly loud), my Marshall VS100 (Hybrid, with a 25 watt power switch), or for tube snobs, my Hughes & Kettner Tubemeister 18. Tubemeister is a bit more expensive used...but 1/5/18 watts, clean channel, Tubes, and a Red Box built in. There is a combo, or you need a cab with the head.

Consider a 12" powered wedge also, if you just need a "PA"

There are other routes, but listen to the stuff you already mentioned

[Inflames626]

Animal Thanks, I didn't know the 100 watt head had an internal speaker.

I'd have to dig my Carvin 4x12 or my old Randall 2x15 out of storage and move it to the living room. As I already have about 20 guitars in there I'm not sure the space would be optimal. A smaller, portable speaker would be better for my situation, and I'm concerned the internal speaker might not replicate the sound that well.

But I'll keep it in mind, especially if the 100 watt is priced at or below the 50 watt version. There's got to be a big batch of these in good shape come on the used market at some point. I'm thinking of the (in)famous popularity of the Line 6 Spiders at one point.

[Inflames626]

Aceman , thanks. As usual you are always on point.

Mostly back in the day we were saturated with Crate and Peavey stuff. Crate being out of St. Louis and Peavey being out of Mississippi meant the small retailers in our area (Memphis) got mostly that stuff as opposed to Mesa and Marshall, which were West Coast stuff meant for rich people.

My first amp was a Crate GX130C 2x12" which had a great clean and chorus tone. The distortion of course was terrible. The worst part was they didn't put any kind of cooling in the combo. So once the solid state head got hot it would start doing weird stuff. Distortion would lose saturation or die off all together. Channels would switch suddenly without warning. Usually a good stomp on top of the head would make it work better for a while. In later years it spent a lot of time as a portable coffee table.

I had a buddy who did electronics work in the Air Force open it up in the side with a hole saw and install a little fan that would kick on. Fixed the problem right away.

I've been kind of down on combos, especially Crate, since that experience. I would usually use some digital preamp of the era, like an ART SGX-2000 Express (which I still have), through the amp's clean channel ad it would work fairly well.

We've come a long way since the early/mid 90s. A lot of you guys can attest to having experienced more change than I can.

[GuitarStv]

You can get great practice sounds with a Katana, and in a pinch use it for jamming with people (although the 100 would be better for this than the 50). There's a reason it's the best selling amp out there right now.

[PFDarkside]

I agree 100% with your V8 comparison. My big amps and rack are like a bunch of dragsters and using them for grocery getting is overkill. I absolutely love the Waza Air I have for practice late at night, I think I am going to get one of the Katanas for practice. It seems like the “weak point” if there is one is the speaker. Putting a better guitar speaker in there takes it to the next level from what I’ve seen on YouTube. I like the idea of the head… small for practice then plug into my 2x12” for louder needs.