Electric Guitar Amps

Pretty much anyone who is beginning to play rock music makes a big deal about electric guitar equipment. People argue about whether a Fender single coil pickup is better than a Gibson humbucking pickup, for example, or about which string gives the best sound and feel. They talk about bridge height, string action, pick width, and of course effects pedals. One of the things that gets short shrift among beginning guitarists, however, is electric guitar amps. The electric guitar amp you use has at least as much to do with the sound you get as the guitar you are playing if not more, and yet many beginning and intermediate guitarists are scarcely aware that the amplifier even matters.

Those who are aware often take the wrong approach to them entirely. Everyone wants to rock out, so many people invest in high powered PA systems under the mistaken impression that it will give them more cred. You have all these kids who have hundred watt electric guitar amplifiers that they can never turn up to even half power because they think it makes them rock harder. If those same kids had 10 watt tube driven electric guitar amps instead, they could get all the sound they needed was a much fuller tone. Leave the half stacks alone until you're going on tour worldwide. Use a small tube amp with a thick sound and you will have them screaming for more.

Of course, that brings me to one of the central questions of electric guitar amps: tube or solid state. I've always been a fan of tube driven electric guitar amps, but I have to admit there are solid state amps that give a great sound. It all depends on what you're after. Most guitar players who play on small, tube driven amps are after a lot of distortion. They want a warm, creamy sound that breaks up nicely when they crank the volume. People who play on solid-state amps are usually looking for a greater degree of accuracy. They are jazz heads, or maybe metal players who want to hear that edgy, jangly sound that solid-state distortion gives. No one can tell you which one gives you the best tone for you. You listen to the amplifier and find out yourself.

Fortunately, any guitar store worth its salt will let you try out their electric guitar amps. The problem is that you have to try them out at volume. Don't be shy. Bring in all your gear, plug it in, play one of your songs, and turn up the amplifier a little bit. If you want to see how it distorts, there is no other way to do it. You're going to have to turn it up, blast it, and see how the signal breaks up.