Collection: Guitar Amps 14 14 products

Combo or head and cabinet

A combo puts the amplifier and speaker in one cabinet and is easiest to carry and set up. A head is the amplifier alone and connects to a separate speaker cabinet, which lets you choose speakers and size independently. When pairing a head and cabinet, match the impedance and never run a valve amp without a speaker or load connected.

Valve, solid-state or modelling

• Valve amps use vacuum tubes and react dynamically to your playing. They tend to sound their best when pushed.
• Solid-state amps are reliable, lighter and consistent at any volume.
• Modelling amps offer many amp types and effects and often include headphone and USB outputs.

Power and volume

Wattage does not translate directly into volume. Valve amps sound louder than solid-state amps of the same rating, and speaker efficiency and size matter too. For home use, a small amp, a power attenuator or a master volume control helps you get a driven sound at sensible levels. For gigging with a drummer, you need enough headroom to stay clean if your sound depends on it.

Features to look for

Look at the number of channels, built-in reverb, an effects loop for time-based pedals, a footswitch input, a headphone or line output for silent practice and recording, and the speaker size. Larger speakers give more low end; smaller ones are punchier and more focused.