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Guitar Amps for Electro-acoustic, Bass and Electric Guitars

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Guitar amps - pump up the volume

Guitar amps, or amplifiers, are required to boost the volume levels of electric guitars. Acoustic guitars do not require amplification although there are electro-acoustic guitars which have steel strings and can be plugged into an amplifier for more sound. The vibrations produced by the strings as the guitarist plays go through a built-in pickup on the guitar. The pickup passes the sound to the guitar amp which increases the sound to a level where it can be heard through the loudspeakers. The noise produced by the electric guitar is not powerful enough to be delivered to a loudspeaker without amplification. Guitar amps enable the guitarist to control the tone and volume to change the sound. They also give the player the option of special effects such as distortion or echo.

When looking to buy guitar amps, there are various factors which need to be taken into consideration. The guitar amp plays a major part in the sound a guitarist makes so it is important to get the right amplifier. One of the first considerations would be the amp's power output. The most common way of measuring a guitar amp's output is the RMS system. RMS stands for Root Mean Square. The RMS method is based on the amount of power the amp can process at different frequencies. Therefore a guitar amp referred to as a 100-watt amp would have a power output of 100 watts RMS. However, something else to bear in mind is the minimum power level of the input required for the amp to be able to achieve its maximum power output. Preamps can boost the sound before it is passed to the amplifier. Practice guitar amps which can be used at home usually start at around 10 watts RMS. At the other end of the scale guitar amps of a few hundred watts RMS are available for gigs in large venues. Another way of increasing the volume would be to connect up to a PA. Bass guitarists need to use amps with a higher power output as lower pitches require more boosting.

As with other guitar parts and accessories it is better to pay a bit more for a better-quality product. Cheap guitar amps don't have such good speakers and electronics, and therefore won't sound as good. Another factor which affects the price is the system of amplification used. Originally amps were produced with the valve (or tube) system and then the transistor (or solid state) system was developed. The transistor system is cheaper but the valve system gives a better sound. During the 1970s manufacturers experimented with combinations of the two systems to keep the same quality of sound, but at a lower cost. However the traditional valve system still produces the best sound.

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