Guitar Amps are a great addition to your guitar arsenal, some may even say it’s not just an addition, it’s needed. Amps do a great job of enhancing the volume and sound quality of a guitar. There is nothing like getting the best warm sound while playing your favorite songs.
The thing is they can get a little pricy and back then you would need to spend a ton to get that great warm sound. However, technology has evolved and we have found a way to bring down the price without sacrificing too much sound quality. Now, which one is the best?
We spent over a week researching and testing cheap guitar amps. So here in this passage we broke down what’s the key ingredients to making a good decision on a guitar amp and made our rankings accordingly.
Hope you enjoy!
Top Music Spot's Pick
Fender has earned itself a GREAT name in the guitar industry. All of their guitar products are high quality and satisfies many and this guitar amp is no exception. Its 10 watts give it a lot of power while still keeping the price low. It’s literally a bang for your buck!
Mini Reviews
1. Fender Frontman 10G
Pros
- 10 Watts of power
- 2 band eq (instead of one)
- Aux input for CD
Cons
- Only one channel
- A bit heavy
Sound
Fender is known in the guitar world for making guitar products second to none. This amp is no exception. With 10 watts of power this thing could pack a punch. Its closed back is designed to give a a heavy bass response.
Freatures
The features on this thing are ok. Its got everything you would need for a guitar for that price. With its 2 band eq, heavy bass response and aux input for CD makes this amp well-rounded in its features.
Portability
The potability on this amp is not the best on this list but its also not insanely hard to move. it comes in at about a weight of 8lbs (other on this list can get down to even 1lbs). But thats the only price you have to pay when getting a 10 watt amp.
Overall Score
98
2. Blackstar Mini
Pros
- Very portable
- Battery option
- Has delay
Cons
- Only one band eq
- Only 3 watts
Sound
Blackstar was made in 2004 so they’re the rookie on this list but their sound quality is what got them to be so known with in such a short period of time. This thing is really small and the fact that it can still pack 3 watts in it is impressive. Its also got a delay option which can add some flavor while you’re jamming.
Freatures
The features are also great like mentioned before its got delay (the only one on the list to have it) and its also got 2 channels to provide you with clean tones.
Portability
Everything mentioned above is great to have, but to pack that all in such a small device is very impressive. This amp is only 2 lbs.
Overall Score
95
3. Sawtooth 10-Watt
Pros
- 10 Watts
- Rubber non-slip base feet
- Durable leather handle
Cons
- a bit heavy
Sound
This amp is the second amp on this list to have 10 watts. This would be great for playing loudly. there are also many knobs to adjust the sound to your liking. And out of this list its a pretty cheap guitar amp for 10 watts.
Freatures
The features are mostly to enhance the sound. The sound is very configurable on this amp. Its has an overdrive option to get a rock n roll sound.
Portability
The portability is pretty good. Again, not the best on this list but its not terribly heavy. its about 7lbs but pretty small.
Overall Score
94
4. Orange Amp Crush Mini
Pros
- Very portable
- Built-in tuner
- Uses batteries
Cons
- Only 3 watts
Sound
This amp has 3 watts but its exceptional for how small it is. The sound configurability is not the best.
Freatures
The features on this is ok. The sound configurability is not the best its only got 3 knobs (and one of them is just for volume nothing special). The thing that is really worth mentioning is the built-in tuner
Portability
Portability on this amp is very good. Not heavy at all only 2lbs and pretty small.
Overall Score
92
5. Marshall MS2
Pros
- Extremely portable
- Cheap
- Uses batteries
Cons
- Not so versatile
- Only 1 watt
Sound
This amp only has 1 watt which doesn’t sound great but we just had to add this one since Marshall has acquired a great name for itself in the amp industry. another reason we needed to add this amp is because of its incredibly small size.
Freatures
Features also not great not that much you can do with it but the features is not where this amp shines. Its small size is what gets its name out there. Its also a really cheap guitar amp.
Portability
This thing is only .34lbs and is pocket size! The portability is great. it may not be the best amp on this list but if you may be looking for a backup one that you wanna take on the go or for practice this one would be perfect
Overall Score
89
Buyers Guide
What to look for
Its really hard to pick a best amp since everyone has different taste of sound, different genre, different amount of space etc… It’s really a preference based product.
So aside from us telling you which one is the best we will also show you how to pick the best one for YOU.
Sound
Obviously, one of the main ingredients to a good amp is its sound quality. So the best option would be to go to your local music shop a listen for an amp that may fit your genre or that may give you a warm sound that you simply adore.
For example, if your a rock n’ roll type of person you may wanna go with a more punchy type of amp. If you like blues you might wanna go with a more soothing type of amp.
Portability
If you are someone that is always one the go with your guitar take into account the weight your gonna have to carry around with you, you might wanna go with something a bit smaller. You may be sacrificing the sound quality but that is up to you.
Nowadays its not that big of a difference since technology has become so great that you wont sacrifice too much sound quality.
Watts
Watts in an amp is how much power it has. The higher the watts the higher the power. If you want an amp just to practice at home you shouldn’t need a whole lot of watts to do that. If you’re preforming on a small stage however you might need some more.
Again, nowadays it shouldn’t matter too much since they found a way to shake the wall even with a low amount of watts. But thats why going to a music shop would be helpful so you can see for yourself.
Different types of amps
Tube Amps
A tube amp was the first of all amps. They aqcuired their name of a “tube amp” because of the tubes running inside of it that lets energy flow through it.
These amps are known to be more warm and natural. The thing is they can get heavy, expensive and they are less versatile. Also, many amps nowadays are able to mimic the sound you get from the tube amp so the only reason you should get a tube amp is if your willing to spend the extra buck for the warm sound.
Solid State Amp
A solid state amp is everything the tube amp cant achieve. It can get cheap, portable and versatile. Theres much more things you can do with a solid state as opposed to a tube.
Modeling Amp
A modeling amp is kind of a mixture of both but it is very very versatile some even have delay and reverb to add flavor to your guitar playing.
Modeling amps are full of features some even have presets that mock other types guitar amps.
Different Controls
Gain
Gain is not volume! Setting the gain means setting the level of distortion in your guitar regardless of how loud your playing.
Eq
Setting the eq means you are tampering with the audio frequencies. this has a lot to do with the tone of the audio.
Reverb
Reverb is accomplished when sound waves are reflecting off the walls in your room. Do you feel your voice sound different in a big room than in a small bathroom? That has to do with the reverberation in the room. So when an amp has reverb it gives the guitar that sound as if the audio is bouncing off the walls its makes it sound great!
Delay
This one is pretty self explanatory. Its basically echos the sound coming in.
Conclusion
An amp is a really preference based product. there are these little sound nuances that can make some musicians go crazy and some not care about it at all. thats why we recommend trying one out in a store. We provided you guys with what to look for now its your turn to make a decision. If you’re just looking for anything that sounds good then you can trust our list we spent a long time making it.
Check out our page Best Guitar Amp Headphones if you wanna jam in silence with your new amp.
You can also use amps with bass guitars. To see which one is the best for you check out our page bass vs guitar.
Thank you, hope you enjoyed!
