Just bought a Jackson SL5X Soloist. First guitar I've bought in almost 20 years. What would be a nice practice amp for a small house? Don't need anything overly loud or powerful

Carterbuzz, 10 months ago

I’d check out the Boss Katana. The 50 watt is right around $250 new and you could probably find a 100 watt one used for a similar price. It’s solid state so you won’t have a problem running it at low volumes. The Katana is super versatile and is really popular so there’s lots of good resources on dialing in various tones. The Orange Crush 35RT is another good option. It’s a little more expensive and not quite as versitile, but is pretty good for heavier tones. Both amps have tons of demo videos on YouTube.

You could also look into running amp sims through your computer using an audio interface and daw. You can get a Focusrite Scarlett Solo for under $100 then the various software runs from free to a few hundred bucks. Neural DSP has a few different metal plug-ins that are very highly rated. The learning curve on the amp sim route can be a little steep though. I gave it a try a few years ago and could never get a good tone. I came back recently and spent a lot of time learning about gain staging and how to set everything up to work together and am thrilled with the sounds I can get. I much prefer the software route to any solid state combo amp I’ve played.

eatmoregreenfood, 10 months ago

Definitely not afraid of software. I'll look into that

baronvonj, 10 months ago

In addition to Carterbuzz’s suggestions (I have a Crush 35RT and am content with it), There is also options like the Fender Mustang Micro headphone amp. It’s great for quick practice with headphones (I imagine connecting the headphone out to speakers with an Aux in works too). You can plug directly into the output of the last pedal on your board. It also has a mode to be used as a DI USB interface (for example I connect it to my phone to use Solo app). Then there’s amp-in-a-box pedals like the Strymon Iridium, the new TC Electronic Ampworx line, and the UA Dream/Ruby/Woodrow that work with headphones or as a DI or into FRFR studio monitors.

If I had known more about things when I got back into guitars a couple years ago, I probably would have gone with an Iridium since it gives you some classic Fender (Deluxe Reverb), Vox (AC30 bright channel), and Marshall (Plexi Super Lead) tones all in one pedal. Like I said I’m content with 35rt (which does have aux in and headphone out with cab sim, I’ve not used them and reportedly the cab sim into a mixer or DI interface isn’t very good), but just for home use the amp-in-a-pedal with headphones, cab sims, and DI is more flexible.

GraniteInMyChest, 10 months ago

If you have a cab already I like the 6505mh and DSL1 mini heads. The 6505MH is a high gain beast. Cleans are usable but nothing special.

DSL1 benifits from a boost for metal tones imo. Cleans are decent. delay/reverb sounds good through the fx loop

Jet City combos can be cheap. Some of those amps are Soldano inspired. Sound pretty heavy but can be best to boost with an OD pedal.

Then there are modelers like the katana. It's well regarded and is very versatile will chug for days. Might be able to get one for that price if your lucky

dorzig, 10 months ago

@GraniteInMyChest @eatmoregreenfood Will second the Katana. You can usually find a good MKII version cheap on the used market. The amp sounds good, and the effects are solid too. You can reduce the output power down to 0.5 watts which make it a perfect “Don’t annoy the neighbors” pratice amp.