Practice Amp Setups

[nostatic]

When I went away to college (and then dropped out ), I took my '65 Strat and a Pignose. So many more viable choices these days - and I wish I still had that Strat...

https://pignoseamps.com/pignose-history/

[Rolph]

Yamaha THR series and a good set of headphones.

[CASD57]

The Boss Katana head 2 100watts looks interesting... 5 in speaker for practice or hook it up to a cabinet for playing out...

I think I'm going this route.. I do wish they would've made it with 2-5in speakers for stereo

[Rukulele]

Originally Posted by CASD57

The Boss Katana head 2 100watts looks interesting... 5 in speaker for practice or hook it up to a cabinet for playing out...

I think I'm going this route.. I do wish they would've made it with 2-5in speakers for stereo

I'm with you. I think with two speakers it would be a no brainer alternative to the THR. I still think I am going to go this route. It seems to be the most versatile small amp you could possibly get. AND it's cheaper than the THR 30.

[JackC1]

Originally Posted by Rukulele

I'm with you. I think with two speakers it would be a no brainer alternative to the THR. I still think I am going to go this route. It seems to be the most versatile small amp you could possibly get. AND it's cheaper than the THR 30.

I think they serve different purposes.

The THR has a built-in battery and tuner. As a portable practice amp, having a battery is incredibly convenient. Paired up with its built-in wireless, you only need to carry (worry about) 2 things: your guitar (with the wireless transmitter attached) and the THR amp.

[89bruin]

I received a Mustang Micro for Christmas and it’s an amazing piece of kit for what it is. I enjoy using it but if you’re a constant knob tweaker it might not be a good choice since the controls are a bit difficult to operate on the fly.

With respect to the Spark: I’ve used both IK Multimedia’s product (Amplitube) and Positive Grid’s offering (Bias FX) extensively and the Bias FX offerings just sound inferior to my ears … by quite a degree. I’ve also had the displeasure with interacting with Positive Grid’s “customer service” and won’t ever put myself in a position to do so again. Consequently, I’m a hard pass on the Spark. YMMV

[maxed]

Check out the BOSS Pocket GT. Full-featured headphone amplifier and multi-effects processor. Loads of amp sims, distortions, over-drive, reverbs, delays, chorus, etc. More fun and more tweakable (actual knobs on the unit) than the Fender Mustang Micro, which I also own. The app allows even more control over the effects parameters. Also has a built-in tuner.

It has bluetooth and USB for recording straight to your phone or computer. And with the proper cables, you can also aux-out of the headphone jack to an amplifier, PA or powered speaker. Built-in rechargable battery and all this in a compact unit the size of a cellphone. (A thick cellphone, lol)

Under $130 at Sweetwater, Guitar Center, etc. They were $99 when I got mine before Christmas. Happy hunting!

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...ects-processor

[89bruin]

Originally Posted by maxed

Check out the BOSS Pocket GT. Full-featured headphone amplifier and multi-effects processor. Loads of amp sims, distortions, over-drive, reverbs, delays, chorus, etc. More fun and more tweakable (actual knobs on the unit) than the Fender Mustang Micro, which I also own. The app allows even more control over the effects parameters. Also has a built-in tuner.

It has bluetooth and USB for recording straight to your phone or computer. And with the proper cables, you can also aux-out of the headphone jack to an amplifier, PA or powered speaker. Built-in rechargable battery and all this in a compact unit the size of a cellphone. (A thick cellphone, lol)

Under $130 at Sweetwater, Guitar Center, etc. They were $99 when I got mine before Christmas. Happy hunting!

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...ects-processor

This is a good suggestion - Boss makes some nice gear! I looked at the Pocket GT but ended up with the IR-200 which might scratch the practice itch as well. It has the headphone & USB connectivity as well as several amp models, reverb and noise suppression and a long list of cabinets.

I rarely use any effects so the IR-200 works great for me either through headphones or into a FRFR speaker. An added benefit is being able to load third party or your own IRs … I’ve got several acoustic IRs loaded right now.

[Rolph]

Originally Posted by JackC1

I think they serve different purposes.

The THR has a built-in battery and tuner. As a portable practice amp, having a battery is incredibly convenient. Paired up with its built-in wireless, you only need to carry (worry about) 2 things: your guitar (with the wireless transmitter attached) and the THR amp.

Even though smaller, the THR sounds about 100X better than the Katana. Really awful tone, but nice if you like to spend your time fiddling with mediocre effects.

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by Rolph

Even though smaller, the THR sounds about 100X better than the Katana. Really awful tone, but nice if you like to spend your time fiddling with mediocre effects.

I'll have to listen to a few youtube videos...compare 100x is a lot

I haven't listened to or played either one "Live" but I like the idea that the Katana Head has a speaker built-in... for practice or for mic'ing if you don't have a cabinet or want to haul one to a gig..
I like the attenuator on the Katana for practice...
And the Katana with a Power Station will still be under the Price for the THR30II

But in the end its about the sound,,,

[nostatic]

Originally Posted by Rolph

Even though smaller, the THR sounds about 100X better than the Katana. Really awful tone, but nice if you like to spend your time fiddling with mediocre effects.

Did you use the free software to tweak the global eq? The Katana can sound quite good, but it does take some work. I understand that some don't want to use a computer with their amp, but in the case of the Katana it takes a fizzy amp to something that is totally giggable. And once set you really don't have to mess with the global eq again.

If you just plug in and twiddle the knobs on the amp, it tends to sound like a fizzy lifting drink. Watch out for the blades...

If you're talking specifically about the small head in the Katana head I can't comment on that as I've never heard one. But the 50w combo is small and works for anything from practice amp to live shows. As always, ymmv.

[1neeto]

Originally Posted by Rolph

Even though smaller, the THR sounds about 100X better than the Katana. Really awful tone, but nice if you like to spend your time fiddling with mediocre effects.

lol you another one of those that played with the panel knobs for 5 minutes and gave your final judgment right after? The Katana 50 is what it is, a $250 digital modeling amp. But it doesn’t have “really awful tone”. Not if you put some effort, and experiment with the parametric eq. It makes all the difference.

[GCWaters]

I have the THR 10 and the Katana 50…I like the 50 best; I use the clean channel mainly, with pedals, and don’t mess with the software. I think the tones are very good. The THR is a great little amp for practice and fooling around, but the Katana is more versatile, especially if you want to play out.

[Aspiring]

For fun and for the op I slapped together some quick recordings on clean using my phone in a room..

They are the Katana head mkii through built in speaker
(Edit)Rerecord on katana different phone placement
Yamaha thr30ii
fractal audio FM3 through studio monitors


I was in a hurry so please excuse the playing.

https://on.soundcloud.com/x6HG8
https://on.soundcloud.com/5pXWP
https://on.soundcloud.com/zNq6s
https://on.soundcloud.com/DufRa

For the Yamaha and the Katana I only spent a few seconds on the tone on the fractal I've been working on this song on it so the tone has a fair bit of time put into it.

On all three i was using some of the built in effects.

At any rate I think it shows for clean you can get decent tones out of both the Yamaha and the Katana even through the built in 5" speaker for practice.

The Fractal is clearly in a different category at least to my ears recorded and very much so in person but that is a $1k piece of equipment playing through $1k studio monitors (although it also sounds great though headphones). I may have to rerecord the katana as the phone was placed on the carpet in the room for the recording the others had a bit better placement.

[Rukulele]

Originally Posted by Aspiring

For fun and for the op I slapped together some quick recordings on clean using my phone in a room..

They are the Katana head mkii through built in speaker
(Edit)Rerecord on katana different phone placement
Yamaha thr30ii
fractal audio FM3 through studio monitors


I was in a hurry so please excuse the playing.

https://on.soundcloud.com/x6HG8
https://on.soundcloud.com/5pXWP
https://on.soundcloud.com/zNq6s
https://on.soundcloud.com/DufRa

For the Yamaha and the Katana I only spent a few seconds on the tone on the fractal I've been working on this song on it so the tone has a fair bit of time put into it.

On all three i was using some of the built in effects.

At any rate I think it shows for clean you can get decent tones out of both the Yamaha and the Katana even through the built in 5" speaker for practice.

The Fractal is clearly in a different category at least to my ears recorded and very much so in person but that is a $1k piece of equipment playing through $1k studio monitors (although it also sounds great though headphones). I may have to rerecord the katana as the phone was placed on the carpet in the room for the recording the others had a bit better placement.

Wow thanks for doing that!