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January 2006
Posts: 2120
Location: Chicago | I have a new custom Legend with OP preamp etc. and have been trying various "acoustic" amps. Not quite satisfied. Have tried the Crate acoustic, the California Blonde etc..
Has anyone found THE best? I'd like to hear the Loudbox or one of the Genz Benz'es.
Legend74/ Greg |
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March 2002
Posts: 15664
Location: SoCal | When you ask for "the best", that's a tough call, as picking amps is the same as picking guitars or women... it's purely subjective.
You might consider doing some searches thru the archives here to see what people have said about them in the past. As usual, once you start into the archives, you're going to need a margarita and some nachos. Once you get in, you're not going to want to leave..... |
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June 2002
Posts: 6197
Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by gregory dobrov:
I have a new custom Legend with OP preamp etc. and have been trying various "acoustic" amps. Has anyone found THE best? Greg, What exactly would "THE best" sound like? You ask an almost impossible question - such as "What does air taste like". I'm not trying to bust your chops, but it's kind of like going into a restaurant and saying "give me the best bottle of wine". There is a REASON they have 40 different types of wine on the menu.
Side note to Al - YES some of us actually do eat at restaurants where you don't fill your own 32 oz. Big Gulp at the soda dispenser...
So what's BEST mean? Is it the amp that sounds exactly like the acoustic guitar, only louder? I would suggest you get as many opinions as you can here (that's obviously why you posted), and check out as many amps as you can. BEST is a loaded word. What you like and others like might be totally different. My next door neighbor says he has "the best" wife. As far as I'm concerned he can keep her ...
Dave
PS - I don't own an acoustic amp and really know nothing about them, so my rant here is basically all hot air, but you probably knew that already. Good luck amp hunting. |
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Posts: 616
Location: cincinnati, ohio | Hi, Greg--
I play out 3 to 4 times a week, and I use a Roland AC-60 acoustic chorus amp with a 1971 Ovation Balladeer retrofitted with a Fishman Supernatural II active pickup, and an Ovation Pacemaker 12-string with the identical pickup. They sound glorious. The Ovations don't have an EQ on them-- they're simply straight acoustic guitars with the undersaddle pickup-- and quite frankly, they don't need EQ with those great pickups and that amp. I have an Ibanez AEF 18TVS that I also use, which has a Fishman Sonicore pickup with a preamp and SSQ Shapeshifter EQ, and the Ovations sound cleaner than the Ibanez. Of course, they're just better guitars.
I wondered about the size and power of the Roland, but it has plenty of guts and the sound is awesome. It has built in chorus/reverb/and delay on two channels (vocal and guitar)plus EQ and feedback control, plus stereo outs that will patch it into a PA in case I'm ever playing arena rock (ha-ha!). Best of all it's small, only weighs 20 lbs.(!) and comes with its own slick carrying case. I've also used a Peavey Ecoustic 112, another combo amp which really sounds great but weighs about 80 lbs (and seems to get heavier every year!). Now, if you just need a dedicated guitar amp without vocals, the Fishman Loudbox is supposed to be great.
Hope this is useful.
Rick |
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May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Speaking of amps, at the next open mike, I'm going to be bringing a desktop computer speaker and just point that thing into the house mike. (I have a pre-amp built into my electric papoose) Why use such a speaker? It's so wonderfully cheesy!
So the best, is sometimes not "the best", but also depends on what you want to do. Where will you be playing and for whom? What do you want to sound like? Who do you want to sound like? That's probably the "best" question. Determine whose sound you like, and then see what they use. The caveat being is that so much of how we sound like, is determined by how we play, not by what speaker we use.
Some people like a distorted sound from barely working combos. Others like purity. It all depends.
Now, I'm going to the soda dispenser for a refill. |
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Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | Paul and Dave,
I agree with you on the amps, but would have disagreed with you on wives. I thought mine was the best until she told me last night that she thinks I have too many guitars.
Someone else's wife once told me that she figures if guitars make her husband happy, then he should have as many as he wants. I don't think her husband would give her up, but she was a little too homely for me anyway.
Back on point, I don't know how you could even do a valid comparison of amps. You'd have to take a bunch of them to wherever you play and see what sounds best in that forum. There are too many variables. But then I rarely leave the basement. |
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December 2003
Posts: 13987
Location: Upper Left USA | Skinny Baby,
I am grinning ear to ear over your electric Papoose post.
I picked up a dented OSP1 from Ebay and I am absolutely loving it!
The headphone jack works great with a pair of PC speakers! At first I thought that the tone knob was broken and then I discovered the "PHAT FUZZ" lift switch that provided that "Dimestore Darrel" distortion (controlled by the "tone" switch of course)
It is the least expensive and most fun guitar I have. I have plans to reveneer the back and face in some sort of wood tone eventually.
I also have a Papoose neck I want to mount to a scaled down "Limited" body.
But speaking of Amps - Genz-Benz Shenendoah, Fender Acoustasonic and the "Jr." series seem to pop up fairly often. |
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November 2005
Posts: 4827
Location: Campbell River, British Columbia | My Swissarmyknife headspace makes me want one amp for everything. So I have an old small Fender bass amp, sealed cabinet job.
Full range sound for the acoustic, loud enough for the electric, (and I have all the fancy sounds in a separate module) and good to go for rehearsals with the bass.
Fine for small venues, and large venues it goes through the PA so the amp is for my own reference only.
Works for me. |
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January 2005
Posts: 167
Location: Waxahachie, Tx | Ah, Genz Benz of course! Oavtion recomended and a Kaman owned company. :D |
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June 2002
Posts: 6197
Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by moody, p.i.:
picking amps is the same as picking guitars or women... it's purely subjective. I would have sex with an ugly woman but I wouldn't be caught dead playing an ugly guitar ... |
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November 2003
Posts: 11039
Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | Amsterdam just shrugged...
Would you have sex with an ugly woman playing an ulgy guitar? |
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August 2005
Posts: 616
Location: cincinnati, ohio | Hi again, Greg--
To clarify my earlier post (and to echo what Dave said), "best" is difficult, if not impossible, to define. I like the Roland AC-60; it works for me, so I guess that makes it best for ME-- but not necessarily for someone else. You need to come up with your own parameters for what defines "best." The irony of calling something an "acoustic" amp is that, once you plug in, you're no longer acoustic. Any sound you get is going to be a compromise. People who go looking for "pure acoustic tone" from an amp are chasing the Holy Grail. Technology isn't there yet, and may never be-- although we are getting closer. Even Ovation guitars, great as they are, can't deliver that.
So what do you do? Take your Legend and go shopping. Plug it into anything and everything you find. Try to go to stores that have a separate acoustic guitar room so you don't have to compete with the pimply-faced 16 year old Goth kid shredding out the riffs to "Stairway To Heaven" or "Smoke On The Water;" most of the big places (Guitar Center, Sam Ash) have rooms like that. If you're lucky, you'll hear an amp that just reaches out and grabs you. Or you may have to listen and listen until your ears drop off, have two amps side-by-side so you can switch back and forth to hear the differences (or similarities) quickly. In the end, something (hopefully) is going to sound really good to you. That's YOUR best.
Rick |
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Joined:
January 2006
Posts: 16
| i love the sound of the ovations straight into my bose 402's. sometimes i'll ad a bit of tube compression as an insert through the board (allen and heath). for my taste, it's what sounds best.
that new preamp sounds really interesting with the built in compression. have to research it a bit more.
-m |
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March 2005
Posts: 1421
Location: Orange County, California | Bang for the buck? I like the Fender acoustisonic JR. DSP if you don't own (or intend to) exteranl effects. Otherwise save more $$ and buy a used non-DSP model.
It's got plenty of power. It's not too big. It sounds really nice!! |
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Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | Dave, you better make sure your wife isn't there when I arrive Saturday. |
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November 2002
Posts: 1300
Location: Madison, Wisconsin | Genz-Benz gets my vote with Ultra Sound second. |
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March 2005
Posts: 12755
Location: Boise, Idaho | I heard someone playing on a Behringer acoustic amp that sounded pretty good and was very reasonably priced. She bought it or else I might have. I was told awhile ago that Trace Elliot was the standard, but I haven't seen much of them lately. |
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January 2006
Posts: 2120
Location: Chicago | Thanks for the advice my friends. I think I understand: I plug my guitars (ALL of them) into my wife, go to Guitar center, order some wine while being sure that my laptop is up and running. I try shredding Smoke on the water through a Genz Fender Jazz Stack, right? Fantastic, gives the term Pro Tools a whole new spin!
Seiously, though, I do like the idea of fitting my totally acoustic (old 1974) Legend with something like the Fishmans. As soon as John Budny returns it from the Factory in good order!! greg "legend 74" |
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Posts: 616
Location: cincinnati, ohio | Greg,
If you put a pickup in your old Legend acoustic, you'll love it even more. I had mine done by a luthier in Rising Sun, Indiana, named Jamon Zeiler of Zeiler guitars. He does them for @ $189.00 installed. He builds his own acoustics and outfits them with the Fishman Supernatural II's, and he also works on every brand of acoustic under the sun. I like the Fishmans because they don't have that "oinky" sound you usually think of with undersaddle piezo pickups. They're smooth and CLOSE to a true acoustic sound with just a little EQ and a smidge of chorus. Here again, a whole 'nother discussion-- which is the best undersaddle pickup? There are a lot of good brands out there. You're pretty safe with Fishmans or L.R. Baggs-- a lot of pros use them. The problem with undersaddles is that you CAN'T try them out since they have to be installed. James Taylor has one of the most natural acoustic sounds I've ever heard; he uses an L.R. Baggs pickup in a handmade Olsen guitar, run through a very nice (and very expensive)D.I./preamp. I love the way Baggs pickups sound, but I'm not crazy about the design. The pickup IS the saddle; it's made of brass and has to be shaved down to get your best action, which incurs additional labor costs when it's being installed. |
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Posts: 812
Location: Hicksville, NY | Hi Greg,
I think it's just a matter of personal preference, along with other factors to consider, such as money, available space and features. I have my balladeer (with an Op-24 preamp) plugged in an Ibanez TA-35, and I couldn't be happier with the sound that I'm getting from it. My living room space isn't all that big, and I mainly use it either for personal use, private practice, or for gigs with very small, intimate gatherings. |
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February 2006
Posts: 140
| Maybe Im different, but I like the sound straight to a PA |
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July 2004
Posts: 474
Location: Anchorage, Alaska | I gotta say that every time I plug ANY of my Ovations into my Genz Benz and strum the first chord, heads turn. A match made in Heaven! |
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Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | Trace Elliot |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Are Trace Elliot still building the acoustic amps? Who owns Trace Elliot these days? |
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March 2002
Posts: 389
Location: RI. That small State out East | Try a small PA with all the rest.
Kustom Profile works fine for me.
Mine came with a roller bag and speaker stands...
I do like the PA flexability.
Woz |
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March 2003
Posts: 555
Location: Wooster, Ohio | Genz Benz 200 stereo with extention speakers. Great on guitar and even better on vocals. I use this acoustic amp for my vocals and guitar, this amp is pretty hard to beat as a stand alone. I plug into a large pa at church but I have used it for solos and it will fill any size room. I would like to know what acoustic amp beats this one on vocals.
Steve |
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November 2004
Posts: 1330
Location: ms | I love my Fender Acoustasonic jr. Its never let me down, but I`ll most likly sell it. I have not used it in about a year, most places i play have sound, and i play more drums than guitar these days. |
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Posts: 651
Location: Australia | Try the AER compact 60. |
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votes for BEST amp for ovation?