Choosing the right amplifier for your acoustic guitar can be a challenging proposition, especially since so many of them offer a forest of controls, stereo speaker systems that involve woofers and
Choosing the right amplifier for your acoustic guitar can be a challenging proposition, especially since so many of them offer a forest of controls, stereo speaker systems that involve woofers and tweeters, and more DSP effects than anyone in their right mind needs to get their game on with a flat-top. An acoustic amp is like a mini P.A. system in many ways—or at least it should be—but the devil’s in the details with these things, and it’s really important to focus on how well a prospective amp translates the natural acoustic sound of your guitar rather than how many dials and buttons it has.
It’s easy to get sucked into looking over a specs list and think, “Wow, this amp has so many features, how can it not have a sound I’ll like?” And that might be true, but it definitely pays to audition any acoustic amp by dialing up its least effected sound and listening carefully to how it responds to picking and strumming dynamics across the volume spectrum. Some amps do a better job than others of handling the transient spikes that piezo pickups can put out, so playing one quietly in a showroom can lead to a much different impression once you get the thing out on a bandstand. That leads to the question of power rating too, and since most acoustic amps are solid-state, you’ll routinely encounter models with seemingly enormous wattage for their size and weight. Once again, use you ears to determine what’s enough for the gigs you plan to do. Headroom is a virtue with an acoustic amp, and, quite honestly, it seems you can never have too much when it come to amplifying an acoustic guitar.
Ready to throw down? Here’s a sample of the many acoustic amplifiers currently on the