How big a amp do you need to start giging?

[No1skewenjack]

If I want to start giging what size AMP will I need and how much do they cost? The venue say a average size pub.

[Noisyjon]

About a 350 Watt RMS amp would be about right...

[warwickhunt]

If you use the search facility there are loads of past threads on this very subject but imho (dependent upon line-up and type of amp used by other members) 250+w is a good workable size.

[warwickhunt]

Ooops missed the bit about cost; £100/£150 - £3000+... you pays your money you takes your choice!

[Protium]

You could buy the most powerful amp in the world and not be heard. Depends just as much on the speakers.

[ThomBassmonkey]

I've gigged for almost 10 years with a 150w 1x15, now I'm using a 320w 2x10 and it's probably not even as loud as the 1x15.

If you're using a good PA, you don't even need an amp.

There's really no set rules, just listen and see what your ears tell you.

[4-string-thing]

[i]I've gigged for almost 10 years with a 150w 1x15, now I'm using a 320w 2x10 and it's probably not even as loud as the 1x15.[/i]

Agreed, I've used my Acoustic 220 (125w @ 4ohms, 175w @ 2ohms) for 30 years and its always been plenty loud enough with the volume control never above 3 or 4! Mind you it was built in the days when 125w really was 125w.....

My 300w Ashdown, is certainly not any louder.

A smaller amp into more efficient speakers will always sound louder than a bigger amp into rubbish speakers, IMHO.

Edited April 17, 2010 by 4-string-thing

[Al Heeley]

I have a marshall 150w 1 x 15 combo for sale (still) if you want to get started cheaply - it has proved very reliable, is loud enough for small - med pub rock gigs and has some nice feautures like a 7-band graphic eq as well as a blend knob to mix solid state with valve preamp. Good range of tones. Its being used every now and then as a back up rig. Send me a pm if interested.

[JTUK]

I would imagine most of us started with 100w or less.
It depends how loud the rest of the band are.

As long as the band isn't silly, I'd say 200w should get you through most gigs but 350w would be better .
Drums and gtrs tend to set the levels so if your gtr is bringing along a stack, then plug in ear plugs and just hum along...or quit the band.

Edited April 18, 2010 by JTUK

[Pkomor]

I gigged for a couple of years with a £100 60watt combo, It managed ok for pub gigs and things like that, I then upgraded to a 250watt hartke combo, and have been gigging that for years! I rarely thought I needed anything louder!

[LawrenceH]

As others have said, within certain limits it's all about the speakers. There's not much difference in volume between 150 and 250 watts, through the same cabinet - the main practical benefit is a little more clean headroom for transients.
I did pub gigs quite happily with an Ashdown Electric Blue 150 watt 1x12" (old UK version, better than the current Chinese one). The driver is a Sica/Jensen unit I think, and is quite sensitive at the bottom end compared to a lot of small combos I've tried, although it lacks upper-midrange.
I guess this post isn't actually very helpful, but I think what I'm trying to say is don't worry about watts and concentrate on perceived volume and bottom end. Larger cabs with more speakers in will in general be louder watt-for-watt, and modern speaker drivers are more capable than older ones at going lower, louder. How big can you afford this rig to be and what type of music will you be playing?

[chris_b]

How important is tone and how loud is your band? If you want "good" tone then you'll need a bigger amp because you'll benefit from something called "headroom", ie you'll get a better tone if you are not running your amp on 11.

In my experience, 100 watts should be good for a valve amp but you'll need 300 watts to 500 watts for an SS amp.

[Mog]

The guys are right, lots of power is useless if the speaker(s) are sh*te. Your eq settings will also have a major impact on volume. Cutting low-mids, mids and high-mids will drop you out of the mix. Boosting them will make you cut through more. I prefer to D.I. post eq and use the amp as a monitor. I dont get these people who bring an 8x10 to a pub gig? 150-200 watts through a good 2x10 cab is plenty IMO.

[Cat Burrito]

I think a lot of opinions (away from the thread) gear towards giving you the most options so people will say 300w etc. The reality is that people can & do get by with smaller setups and soundmen often mic you up in the larger venues anyway. I managed the whole of the 90s on a Peavey 130w 1x15 and I've recently gigged with an Ampeg 100w combo that sounded great in a fairly big room upstairs in a pub (the support band seemed to get a great sound too from it).

I think you also need to consider how loud your band are too. If you have a loud drummer or the cliched guitarist who stands by his amp claiming he can't hear it whilst everybody else wipes the blood from their ears then I'd go louder but most bands you can get away with 100w. The question then really becomes do you want to just get away with stuff or do you want something in the bank when it comes to volume and tone? This may not apply if you are a quieter band though.

Personally I'm always happy with a 100w set up but then most of what I do is acoustic based or mic'd up. My standard set up these days is a 135w tube or 200w solid state. Remember there is a difference in volume between solid state and tube (i.e. tube is louder than solid state)

[Adrenochrome]

Assuming you have enough reasonable speakers then 100 watts is enough. More wattage is advantageous but not [i]necessary[/i].
...and don't believe those that will try and tell you that tube watts are magically more powerful than solid state watts. It's not true.

[Phil Starr]

[url="http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gear_maintenance/making_it_loud.html"]http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gea...ng_it_loud.html[/url]

An article I wrote on the topic which might be useful

[gelfin]

[quote name='Phil Starr' post='810550' date='Apr 18 2010, 06:28 PM'][url="http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gear_maintenance/making_it_loud.html"]http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/columns/gea...ng_it_loud.html[/url]

An article I wrote on the topic which might be useful[/quote]

Brilliant article. This should be pinned in full for all to refer to. I wish I had the patience to have written it.

Well done Phil.