Alesis TransActive 50 for Acoustic Guitar?

[seeto]

I just dropped by my local guitar store and stumbled upon the Alesis TransActive 50. On their website, it's supposed to be a keyboard/PA amplifier. I'm just wondering how this amp will perform as a guitar amp? Anyone has any experience? The thing that catches me is this amp is really compact and it packs 50W of power! That's a lot for a small amp when my current amp at home is a Ibanez Troubadour TA35 which only churns out 35W. I have not tried out the amp but I am wondering whether I should sell of my TA35 to get thie TransActive 50?

[BuleriaChk]

I had one of these for awhile, but sold it. I wasn't that impressed with it after I had used it for awhile.... even though I did give it a good review at Harmony Central....

[Herb Hunter]

Originally Posted by seeto

I just dropped by my local guitar store and stumbled upon the Alesis TransActive 50. On their website, it's supposed to be a keyboard/PA amplifier. I'm just wondering how this amp will perform as a guitar amp? Anyone has any experience? The thing that catches me is this amp is really compact and it packs 50W of power! That's a lot for a small amp when my current amp at home is a Ibanez Troubadour TA35 which only churns out 35W. I have not tried out the amp but I am wondering whether I should sell of my TA35 to get thie TransActive 50?

The difference between 50 watts and 35 watts is so small, in terms of volume potential, that the Troubadour TA35 could conceivably be louder depending on the efficiency of the speakers of each amp. A 70 watt amplifier is only 3 dB louder than a 35 watt amplifier but if the 35 watt amplifier were fitted with a speaker whose efficiency happened to be 3 dB higher than that of the 70 watt amplifier, the 35 watt amp would be just as loud as the 70 watt amp. It is not uncommon for speaker systems to have efficiency ratings that differ by 3 dB. Since the Troubadour TA35 has a 10 inch speaker and the TransActive 50 only has a 5 inch or 5.5 inch speaker (the manufacturer's web site lists it as 5 one page and 5.5 on another), it is likely that the smaller speaker is less efficient as it has to work harder to reproduce the lower frequencies.

I'm unfamiliar with either amplifier. It is entirely possible that the TransActive 50 is no louder than the Troubadour TA35. Of course, maximum volume doesn't determine which is a better amplifier.

[seeto]

Originally Posted by Herb Hunter

The difference between 50 watts and 35 watts is so small, in terms of volume potential, that the Troubadour TA35 could conceivably be louder depending on the efficiency of the speakers of each amp. A 70 watt amplifier is only 3 dB louder than a 35 watt amplifier but if the 35 watt amplifier were fitted with a speaker whose efficiency happened to be 3 dB higher than that of the 70 watt amplifier, the 35 watt amp would be just as loud as the 70 watt amp. It is not uncommon for speaker systems to have efficiency ratings that differ by 3 dB. Since the Troubadour TA35 has a 10 inch speaker and the TransActive 50 only has a 5 inch or 5.5 inch speaker (the manufacturer's web site lists it as 5 one page and 5.5 on another), it is likely that the smaller speaker is less efficient as it has to work harder to reproduce the lower frequencies.

I'm unfamiliar with either amplifier. It is entirely possible that the TransActive 50 is no louder than the Troubadour TA35. Of course, maximum volume doesn't determine which is a better amplifier.

Thanks Herb Hunter... That was superb technical info... I'm just wondering which one will produce a more 'realistic' sound. When I say 'realistic' I mean the real sound that comes out from your pickups. I'm sure that there will be some difference in the sound quality, but what kind of difference will we hear when we connect our guitar out to a keyboard amp and a acoustic guitar amp?

That 'itch' to switch has gone... so I've decided that I'll stick with my TA35 cos it's been serving me so well these 1-2 years. The sound that comes out from it is just great...

[min7b5]

I rent a TransActive (not sure which one) a few times a year for remote weddings and party gigs when I need an amp that runs on a battery. It holds a charge for a long time, and the rental place only charges me $20 a day... but other than that I find this thing very unimpressive. It has surprising little volume or projection for it’s size, weight, and wattage. The eq is useless, there no phantom power so I have to also rent a dynamic mic for my guitar... I keep renting it for what it is, but if it plugged into the wall I wouldn’t go near it.

[BuleriaChk]

Get a Behringer MPA-40BT - sounds great...

https://www.amazon.com/Behringer-MPA.../dp/B00EMDNLKC