Need amp suggestions for small club gigs

[Fattymagoo]

Hello everyone, it's been about 5 years since I've been here, and I'm locked out of my old account (I was Cheetotoe). I'm looking to start gigging again and need a small setup to accommodate guitar and vocals. I've owned two fishman loudbox minis, back to back, because I loved the sound but they were BOTH defective and I lost faith and moved on. Obviously I didn't get to test it out on a real world gig to form an opinion. I exchanged the second mini for an Ultrasound AG30 and did not really like it. I'm scared to try another loudbox mini, but every one else seems to have good luck with them. Another contender is the Fender Acoustasonic 90. I've never heard one and don't live near a music store that stocks new gear.

Budget is around $300, as I will be selling a Peavey classic 30 to fund the purchase. Thanks for any suggestions.

[CASD57]

Bugera AC60 $250
Fender Acoustic 40 $199 (New Item) 40 watts might not be enough

[Fattymagoo]

Hmmm... I've never even heard of the Bugera acoustic amps. I don't get into gear much unless I need something. I'll have to check them out if I can ever make it to a guitar center.

[Marty C]

It's a bit above your budget, but I love the concept and idea.


http://www.musiciansfriend.com/ampli...live-amplifier

[Rev Tim T]

Hi,

My wife and I both use Fender Acoustasonic 150's. There's not a love on the forum for Fender Acoustic amps as in truth Fishman Loudbox's are good amps. However, in our opinion, the vocals on the Fender are better. (This is our experience and our opinion) The Acoustasonic 150's have 2 channels (inputs). The second channel accepts regular XLR mic cables or 1/4" (It's a combo jack) These amps have proved adequate for venues that hold up to 150 people. The majority of our experience is in church sanctuaries so we may not have the "background" noise that you may encounter.

If you are not afraid to purchase from Guitar Center you can pick up (or have shipped) one in your budget. If there is a GC near you it can be returned to them for a refund if it doesn't work out.

I am not familiar with the Acoustasonic 90 (which replaced the Acoustasonic 100) I am familiar with the 100 as that's what my wife had until we were able to upgrade her to a 150. We prefer the power of the 150's (they have 2 speakers) Both the 100 and the 150 have legs that come out the side so you can tilt the amp. We however use amp stands and have the amps off the floor.

Hope this helps.

Tim

[YamahaGuy]

https://www.amazon.com/PowerWerks-PW.../dp/B005JSGPNO

I have two PA 50s that are reliable and sound great. This should be decent and in your price range.

[jonfields45]

My Bugera AC60 testimonial in this thread:

http://www.acousticguitarforum.com/f...d.php?t=459379

[TRW1]

I'll have to second (third?) the suggestion for the Bugera AC-60. I bought one after reading the write-ups here and I am well pleased with it. Sounds good for guitar and vocals with decent effects for both.

[CASD57]

I had one... I only sold it because I needed to fund my next guitar... and I don't play out anymore
It was loud...Clean... and I thought it sounded great..The effects where decent(Reverb) I never used the other effects...
I tried it out in a Bar size room with furniture in it.. probably 50x60 room..
I set it up facing out towards where the people would sit and had it up against my mic stand on the floor tilted with it's tilt leg(It can be pole mount)
I was at one end...
It projected with no problem and I could hear it with no problem..
It's a light easy to carry package....nice big handle on top...The finish looks pretty durable
and it has a small foot print...
I think it's a heck of a deal at $250

[Fattymagoo]

Wow, alot of love for the Bugera AC60 in this thread. I didn't even know that amp exsisted (shows how long I've been out of the loop )

I guess I need to make the 2 hour drive to guitar center and try them out.

[Mr. Jelly]

I have a (old) Fender Acoustasonic Jr. DSP. It's 40 watts x 2. I haven't used it for awhile as I quit performing. It won't take over a room but it does a fine job. It does guitar a vocals.

[strangebloom]

Are you acompanying others, or solo? Are you just needing stage volume?

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

[Fattymagoo]

Originally Posted by strangebloom

Are you acompanying others, or solo? Are you just needing stage volume?

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

I will just be solo guitar with vocals for the time being. My current guitar is a Bluridge BR-163a with an LR Baggs active Element. My gigging rig (when I was gigging) was a Martin D-35 with LR Baggs M1 into a Baggs para DI, straight into a PA. But all that gear has been sold and all I have now is the Blueridge.

[roylor4]

Originally Posted by YamahaGuy

https://www.amazon.com/PowerWerks-PW.../dp/B005JSGPNO

I have two PA 50s that are reliable and sound great. This should be decent and in your price range.

The powerwerks are the exact same thing as marketed by Kustom. We have a Kustom PA50 that we started out with but sent two defective one back to MF before we got one that worked properly. That said, I find it a good unit for a beginner that's on a budget but sonically inferior to the Fishman units that the OP has already had.

Depends on how big a venue you are playing. We have a Samson 308i but always take our Roland Cube Street EX for most gigs.

The smaller Cube Street is only rated at 5 watts but I have heard rave things about them and they are lightweight and can also be run on AA batteries (just like our EX). We play small club (think 1000-1500 sq. ft.) with our Cube EX on the lowest power setting (10 watts - it goes to 50) and only turned about 1/2 way up.

The small Street Cube is good for acoustic (guitar, banjo, whatever) & electric + vocals. Remarkable little units.

[RustyAxe]

If I were starting again (I have all the PA gear I can possibly use) I'd get a nice small passive mixer with FX, and a good quality powered speaker. Better than most acoustic amps with vocals, great for guitars, and more flexible.