Acoustic amplifiers
Your acoustic guitar becomes a whole new instrument with an amplifier.
We usually associate amplifiers with electric instruments such as electric guitar or electric bass. But you can easily amplify the sound of your acoustic instrument. The advantage is simply that you can play louder, which is very handy if you're playing at a festival or other places with background noise and lots of people.
The acoustic amplifier is initially intended for an acoustic guitarbut it can usually also be used for other acoustic stringed instruments such as mandolin, violin or ukulele.
An amplified vocal system for the street musician
If you have an acoustic guitar and a dream of performing on the street or in small venues, consider buying an acoustic amplifier. Many times the amplifier can make up for an entire sound system, amplifying both guitar playing and singing into a microphone.
The amplifier gives your guitar a bigger sound without compromising on the original acoustic sound. The guitar suddenly feels more vibrant and nuanced in sound.
Consider whether you prefer the pure guitar sound amplified or you want effects to play with. Often you get both reverb and chorus through the acoustic amplifier, but you can consider whether a looper is also for you - many people love it. With the looper, you can record riffs and effects in layers, allowing you to accompany yourself through the amp for an even richer sound experience.
A little tip: If you're actually going to be playing on the street or other places where it's not easy to find a power outlet, look for an acoustic amplifier that can use batteries. Then you can play on the open road - as long as the batteries last.
Why you need an acoustic amplifier for your acoustic guitar
It can be tempting to plug your acoustic guitar into an amplifier designed for electric guitars if you already have one. But don't give in to temptation. Using an acoustic amplifier for what it's intended for, the acoustic guitar, makes a big difference.
The acoustic amplifier is built to reproduce the acoustic sound as accurately as possible without adding a lot of power, kun amplified sound. That's why you need an amplifier that kun is for your acoustic guitar - even if you already have another type of amplifier. The most important difference is that the acoustic amplifier takes into account the entire frequency range - including the high notes where the acoustic guitar really burns through. You don't want to miss out on that.
3 things to consider before buying an acoustic amplifier
Once you've decided to buy an acoustic amplifier, here's a summary of what you should consider before making your final choice:
- Where will you be playing? Do you always have easy access to power outlets or do you want the amplifier to run on battery power?
- How much output do you want? There's a difference between playing at home in your living room or on a huge stage.
- Do you want to use the amplifier as a mini sound system so you can also perform vocals? Then make sure the amplifier you buy has a built-in pre-amp for vocals.