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| OT: Acoustic amps... http://w-ww.luthiersforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10102&t=5977 |
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| Author: | John Elshaw [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:43 am ] |
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What acoustic amps do you all prefer? I'm looking for something <$500 for just playing around the house and occasionally a small venue such as a coffeeshop, etc. Thanks! John |
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| Author: | Pwoolson [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 12:56 am ] |
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Zeta makes a nice (to my ears anyway) acoustic amp. They are a very little known company that started making electric fiddles which sound remarkably good. |
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| Author: | Don Williams [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:01 am ] |
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I too am wondering about this. A coworker is looking for a good amp for his acoustic. Anyone else with suggestions? |
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| Author: | Colby Horton [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:08 am ] |
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I have a Crate that I like a lot. I'm not sure of it's model number. It's a 60 watt with two speakers in it. It also has nice spring reverb and chorus. I think it runs about $500.00. Look into the Ultra Sound acoustic amps. I haven't played through one but I've heard they are the best there is. |
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| Author: | Terry Stowell [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:14 am ] |
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Fender acoustisonic jr is one I used at church for a while and I liked it. |
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| Author: | Mattia Valente [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:15 am ] |
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I hear a lot of good things about AER, but I don't know if they're out of your price range or not... |
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| Author: | letseatpaste [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:28 am ] |
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I had a little 30W Ultrasound for a while that I loved, really great natural acoustic sound. I sold it only because I almost always plug into a PA and it wasn't getting used. Good looking amp, and solid, has that "feel" of really good quality. I think some of the bigger models have a mic input so a solo performer could use it as a mini-PA. I don't keep up with that group anymore, but they used to get rave reviews on the RMMGA usenet newsgroup, and the owner was a pretty active contributor there. |
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| Author: | Todd Rose [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 5:18 am ] |
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I am totally happy with my Genz Benz Shenandoah Jr. |
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| Author: | Brock Poling [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 5:51 am ] |
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Look on ebay, you can probably find a SWR California Blonde for under $500 used. |
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| Author: | Bill Greene [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 7:08 am ] |
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Just bought a little Marshall acoustic amp, AS50R, with twin 8" cones, a real tank reverb and a mic input. Wonderful sound, fairly lightweight and seems to be quite rugged. Walked out, new, with just over $300 in it. Felt like I got a decent deal. |
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| Author: | DaleH [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 1:43 pm ] |
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Fishman makes a very nice one for just under $500. |
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| Author: | Rick Turner [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 3:03 pm ] |
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Quadruple the budget and you could get a Bose PAS which is the best system I've ever heard for acoustic instruments. It's absolutely awesome. Rule of thumb...spend as much on the amp as the guitar is worth...and don't expect a $3,000.00 guitar to sound really good through a $500.00 or otherwise cheap amp. Also, you need lots and Watts of headroom for an acoustic amp to sound right and not compressed. |
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| Author: | Anthony Z [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 3:33 pm ] |
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[QUOTE=Rick Turner] Rule of thumb...spend as much on the amp as the guitar is worth...and don't expect a $3,000.00 guitar to sound really good through a $500.00 or otherwise cheap amp. Also, you need lots and Watts of headroom for an acoustic amp to sound right and not compressed.[/QUOTE] With one qualifier ... I had a buddy long time ago who used a twin stack Marshall... |
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| Author: | John Elshaw [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 4:05 pm ] |
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I'm sure the Bose sounds fine, but holy cow, look at all the stuff you need to lug around: 
That's what I'm trying to get away from--lugging an entire PA system around. There's no need to spend $2,000 on an acoustic amp to get it to sound good. There are a lot of choices out there for much less. It's the 95% solution again. You end up spending an additional 4-6 times as much to get that last 5% improvement. Law of diminishing returns. Cheers! John |
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| Author: | Rick Turner [ Wed Apr 05, 2006 4:47 pm ] |
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I've got a California Blonde, and there's no comparison. The Bose is not 5% better, it's a good 300% better. Not kidding about that, either. |
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| Author: | John Elshaw [ Thu Apr 06, 2006 4:06 am ] |
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I played an Ultrasound today (50 watt amp, $549) side by side with a Rivera Sedona DD model ($2,300) and they are both very comparable. I'm a life long classical player so I'm picky about natural sound. It was about a 50/50 split with people in the music store who preferred the sound of the Ultrasound over the Rivera. I think what I'm finding is every amp sounds like me when playing, meaning the player drives the sound of the amp more than anything. I was able to get some great sounds out of a little cheapo Kustom for $199. I think the amp doesn't make nearly as big a difference as the player, and there are some great sounds at every price point. 
Cheers! John |
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| Author: | Anthony Z [ Thu Apr 06, 2006 12:00 pm ] |
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Rick - I'm with you on the sound of the Bose system. I heard a fellow play a reasonable sized coffee shop with half his Bose system and it was amazing. That's coming from a guy who is not a Bose endorser in the home and car audio stuff I've heard over the years. John I hear you about the lugging thing. Years ago I played with a drummer whose motto was a good club player is: 1 part weight lifter, 2 parts entertainer, 1 part musician and 3 parts business man. |
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| Author: | luthier24 [ Thu Apr 06, 2006 1:57 pm ] |
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If you are looking for an occasional amp with extreme portability, very nice sound, and relatively inexpensive, you should audition the Roland AC-60. This is a very small amp with great features and value. We have been using it for two years and really enjoy the amp - great for plugging in an acoustic guitar and voice mic around the house or in a small venue. It has a DI output to plug into a PA system when needed. |
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| Author: | John Elshaw [ Thu Apr 06, 2006 11:58 pm ] |
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I'll have to check it out. I have a Roland Jazz Chorus 120 now and think it's an outstanding amp for my electric guitar. It has the best stereo chorus of any amp I've ever played, and it's clear as a bell. I did,'t realize they made an acoustic amp. John |
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| Author: | Don Williams [ Fri Apr 07, 2006 1:04 am ] |
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What's really bizzare to me is, (well...I have to preface this with....I dream in color, very vivid and realistic dreams that can seem totally real to me, and sometimes I lose track of what I've dreamed and what's real....no, I'm not schizophrenic!), I could have sworn I saw an ad somewhere for an acoustic amp that Grit Laskin is selling under his name...and I've been looking for the ad with no luck. Must have been another one of those stupid realistic dreams again!  Maybe I am nuts!
Sorry Mr. Laskin...but what a great idea! Just don't put inlay on them all...
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