Why acoustic amp?

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Why do you need a different amp for an acoustic? What does an acoustic amp do that a regular guitar amp doesn't? :confused:
 
Hi

acoustic amps are made to work with the frequencies of acoustic guitars...just like bass amps are made for bass guitar frequencies.

I think also that most acoustic amps give you an eq that is set up specially for acoustic instruments as well as a few other goodies like a notch filter to help with feedback.

you dont "have" to have an acoustic amp to get a good sound but when you do have one and compare it to a normal guitar amp or PA system you will hear the difference straight away.

Trace elliot makes an awsome acoustic amp (dont have one but play it every time I'm in my favourite guitar shop)

hope this helps
 
You will get a more natural tone with an acoustic guitar amp mostly because of the tweeter, as it will help reproduce the high frequencies better. Most of the keyboard or general purpose full-range amps will give you about the same result as well because they also have tweeters, although the acoustic amp will have an eq section and features that suits better acoustic isntruments. Electric guitar amps will have only large speakers with no tweeter (2X12) or (4X10), which is more suitable for electric guitars. These also have specially voiced speakers and eq's that suits the tonal range of electric guitars. It doesn't mean however that you can't have a good sound from an acoustic guitar to a electric guitar amp, it will just sound less natural and less acoustic. The best thing is to try a few ones and compare.

Hope this helps!

Regards

Phil
 
In my experience acoustic amps sound like shit. Maybe not quite as shit as through a PA but still shit all the same.

It's an acoustic instrument, you're not going to reproduce the sound accurately by plugging it into anything.
 
watermelon said:
Why do you need a different amp for an acoustic? What does an acoustic amp do that a regular guitar amp doesn't? :confused:
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You don't need power for an acoustic amp!!........ :eek: :D :D
 
Kevin DeSchwazi said:
In my experience acoustic amps sound like shit. Maybe not quite as shit as through a PA but still shit all the same.

It's an acoustic instrument, you're not going to reproduce the sound accurately by plugging it into anything.
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OK, but obviously we need amplification of acoustic instruments from time to time, and going into an amp and/or PA is the only practical way of doing it in a live setting. It won't sound just like it would in a studio with a couple of expensive mics, but if it's done with some attention to detail it's serviceable for most of us.

That said, what others have posted is correct; an acoustic amp or keyboard monitor will sound much better for reinforcing the sound of an acoustic guitar than will a standard electric guitar amp due to the emphasis on producing clean, undistorted sound with enough high frequency content to sound more "real".
 
ggunn said:
OK, but obviously we need amplification of acoustic instruments from time to time, and going into an amp and/or PA is the only practical way of doing it in a live setting. It won't sound just like it would in a studio with a couple of expensive mics, but if it's done with some attention to detail it's serviceable for most of us.

That said, what others have posted is correct; an acoustic amp or keyboard monitor will sound much better for reinforcing the sound of an acoustic guitar than will a standard electric guitar amp due to the emphasis on producing clean, undistorted sound with enough high frequency content to sound more "real".
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Absolutely, all i'm saying is don't expect it to sound great.

I toyed with the idea of getting one thinking it would be a step up from DI into the desk. I tried quite a few and was pretty disappointed, I really don't understand why people use them if they're doing gigs with a PA.

Each to his own though.
 
Kevin DeSchwazi said:
Absolutely, all i'm saying is don't expect it to sound great.

I toyed with the idea of getting one thinking it would be a step up from DI into the desk. I tried quite a few and was pretty disappointed, I really don't understand why people use them if they're doing gigs with a PA.

Each to his own though.
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Well, one possible motivation is for stage monitoring without relying totally on the PA monitors. In a lot of cases, there is only one monitor mix for everyone on stage, and when the acoustic player has enough of his guitar in the mix, everyone else has too much.
 
I totally agree as far as most acoustic amps sounding like trash. I've tried everything that i've been able to find locally (carvin, fishman, fender, etc.) with little to no luck. I did like the Roland AC60 in comparison with the other non-boutique acoustic amps. A little bit less harsh and brittle than the opposition.

I liked this old Trace amp that a friend of mine used to own; i believe it had 4x5 speaker config. with a tweeter in the middle. Of course, they're now so hard to find save on eBay, and that's always a little shaky. I've learned my lesson as far as spending large sums of money on unseen items goes...
 
Acoustic amps sounding like shit aren't the acoustic amps, usually it's the pickup in the instrument. Most acoustic-electric guitars use Piezo pickups, unless you're playing a Taylor with the 3-pickup system, or a Wechter. Acoustic amps reproduce the signal from the guitar faithfully enough, it's just that said signal sucks major... rear. If you want an acoustic guitar to sound good, you can still run it through a PA. Just get yourself an acoustic with a 3-pickup system or go to stew-mac.com and pick up one of those GHS mic things on a gooseneck that goes inside the guitar through the endpin.
As to the amps: Fender's Acoustasonic amps are pretty good. Myself, I use a Roland Jazz Chorus, it's always worked well enough. Consider getting an Exciter pedal, too.
 
zacanger said:
Acoustic amps sounding like shit aren't the acoustic amps, usually it's the pickup in the instrument. Most acoustic-electric guitars use Piezo pickups, unless you're playing a Taylor with the 3-pickup system, or a Wechter. Acoustic amps reproduce the signal from the guitar faithfully enough, it's just that said signal sucks major... rear. If you want an acoustic guitar to sound good, you can still run it through a PA. Just get yourself an acoustic with a 3-pickup system or go to stew-mac.com and pick up one of those GHS mic things on a gooseneck that goes inside the guitar through the endpin.
As to the amps: Fender's Acoustasonic amps are pretty good. Myself, I use a Roland Jazz Chorus, it's always worked well enough. Consider getting an Exciter pedal, too.
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I think people are missing my point.

Of course we have to go direct or use an amp playing live but it's a compromise. And I understand that there's quite a range of quality options available (from really shitty all the way up to not quite as shitty ;) :D ).

If there's something out there that sounds good to you that's great but they all sound shitty to me.

Nothing I've heard gets anywhere near the sound of a half decent mic picking up the ACTUAL SOUND of the instrument.

That's all I'm saying.
 
Kevin DeSchwazi said:
I think people are missing my point.

Of course we have to go direct or use an amp playing live but it's a compromise. And I understand that there's quite a range of quality options available (from really shitty all the way up to not quite as shitty ;) :D ).

If there's something out there that sounds good to you that's great but they all sound shitty to me.

Nothing I've heard gets anywhere near the sound of a half decent mic picking up the ACTUAL SOUND of the instrument.

That's all I'm saying.
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Said half-decent mic picking up the sound is equal to a decent non-piezo pickup system.
 
best live acoustic sound I've ever heard was Katy Moffatt's martin with a sony lavalier TV mic from the 70s in the centre of the sound hole stuck to the back in foam & pointing up to the neck

however about the amp thang, handy for a personal monitor when working in loud band settings
 
zacanger said:
Said half-decent mic picking up the sound is equal to a decent non-piezo pickup system.
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You are entitled to your opinion.
 
I like the idea of an acoustic amp. Coming from a soundman.... I get tired of a guitar player saying "I can't here myself through the monitor" because he adjust his volume knob on the guitar. Amen for the acoustic amp for monitoring. In a live sound situation i don't think the sound quality will be much different (di vs AA).
 
gcapel said:
I like the idea of an acoustic amp. Coming from a soundman.... I get tired of a guitar player saying "I can't here myself through the monitor" because he adjust his volume knob on the guitar. Amen for the acoustic amp for monitoring. In a live sound situation i don't think the sound quality will be much different (di vs AA).
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Question for you, seeing as you're a soundman. Do you let guitarists rely on backline when they're going electric? I've met a lot of resistance from guitarists on this board who will not let a soundman mic an amp, they insist on cranking louder and louder to be heard over the band.
 
zacanger said:
I suppose I am. Ever heard of Michael Hedges? Amazing acoustic guitarist, may his soul rest in peace. The best acoustic guitar tone I've ever heard. Check out his gearlist at http://nomadland.com/Point_A.htm
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Yeah Michael hedges was something special. Like one of his live guitars my seagull has an L.R. Baggs ribbon transducer system.

Why do you suppose he and the engineers he worked with chose to mic his guitar when recording as opposed to using pickups?
 
::Shrug:: because it sounds better. But live that's not always the best idea.
 
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