Electric Guitar Amplifier Equipment

One of the most important and exciting investments an electric guitar player can make is the purchase of electric guitar amplifier equipment. Whether you need a little combo amp for practice or a 100-watt powerhouse for big club gigs, you'll definitely benefit from having some foundational research under your belt before you hit the music store. The information below is designed to give you an overview of the many different types of amplifier equipment that are available on the market and point you in the right direction to help you make the best purchase.

When it comes to electric guitar amplifier equipment, there are two basic types: tube amps and solid-state amps. When electric guitar amps were first produced, the technology that was available at time involved using vacuum tubes for both the power amp and pre amp circuitry. The recordings of music from the 1950s through the early 1970s exclusively featured this type of amplifier.

In the late 1970s, amp manufacturers began to experiment with newer technologies that didn't involve vacuum tubes. These new amps were lighter, more dependable, more affordable and produced a different tone that gave guitarists more tonal options. Today, some amp companies have continued to use technology to push the potential of their amps even further. Some have even begun to put complex effects processors in the amps themselves. While many musicians prefer the older tube sounds, there are plenty of excellent options available today in both amp types.

The tube amp market has a few standard bearers that everyone who is looking for a tube amp should be aware of, but recently, many more options have begun to appear on the scene. Smaller amp companies that produce "boutique amps" have begun to spring up all over the world. These companies make unique, fabulous sounding amps. However, they will cost you a bit more than the amps produced by the larger manufacturers.

• Marshall Amps – Arguably, the most famous tube amp company in the world is Marshall. Their all-tube half-stack amplifiers are responsible for some of the most famous rock-n-roll guitar sounds in history from Jimi Hendrix to Eddie Van Halen to AC/DC. The company has branched out recently and has started to produce amps of all sizes and prices, but their bread and butter remains the vintage 50-watt or 100-watt amps that harken back to the '50s and '60s.

• Fender Amps – Fender is as important to the history of the tube amp as Marshall. Their Deluxe Reverb, Twin Reverb and Bassmaster amps are as much a part of 20th century guitar music as their Stratocaster and Telecaster guitars. Like Marshall, Fender has begun to produce a wider variety of amps in recent years, but nothing can compare to the classic tube models that they still produce.

• Orange Amps – Orange amps not only sound great, they are the most distinctive looking amps in the world. This British company has been making simple, powerful, classic tube amplifiers for years. Groups like Prince, Oasis and The Black Crowes have all played Orange amps in the past. Don't buy a tube amplifier without first giving Orange amps a try.

While Marshall and Fender both make solid-state amplifiers as part of their more economical amplifier lines, there are other companies that are better known for their solid-state amps. The following list highlights some of the best available amps of this type.

• Roland JC-120 – The Roland JC-120 is one of the most successful solid-state amplifiers ever manufactured. For over thirty years, this amp has produced legendary clean guitar tones in true stereo sound for guitarists of all genres. While solid-state amps are sometimes looked down on for not sounding as pure as tube amps, the JC-120 has always risen above that argument.

• Line 6 – Line 6 has been on the cutting edge of amp designs for the past decade. They originally produced a guitar amp modeler effects pedal called the POD that was designed to emulate many different classic amp sounds. Because of the POD's breakthrough success, Line 6 started to produce amps that had PODs built into them. The Flexitone III is a solid state amp that can model some of the most famous classic amps with the turn of a dial. The sound is quite good, and the variety of sounds is astounding. These amps might be some of the most fun amps on the market today.

The following online retailers carry a wide selection of electric guitar amplifier equipment. The links below will take you directly to the companies' guitar amplifier sections.

• Musician's Friend
• Sam Ash
• Guitar Center

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• Ibanez Electric Guitars

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