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[Guitar query] Should I go in for amp or distortion?

51 posts · originally from https://geek.digit.in/community/threads/guitar-query-should-i-go-in-for-amp-or-distortion.139849/

Desmond
Desmond Original post #1
Apr 27, 2011 at 5:43 PM
I don't know if this thread is in the right section...kindly move it if it isn't.

I have an Ibanez GRG170DX guitar. I have no amp or distortion kit. But, my budget permits me to have only one of these. So, should I go in for a amp or a good distortion kit. My budget is upto about 5000.
Desmond
Desmond #2
Apr 29, 2011 at 3:25 AM
No guitarists here?
thewisecrab
Apr 29, 2011 at 8:37 AM
Not a guitarist, but go for an amp. Possibly, if your budget increases or you save money in future, you can add a distortion kit or a processor to it.

Marshall 5-10W amp should fit your budget. DONT go for Kustom amps. Horrible sound, despite being dirt cheap.

BTW how the hell are you using the guitar minus amp?
thetechfreak
Apr 29, 2011 at 8:54 AM
Get a Marshall MG-10 cd. Great amp for personal use,practice.
Yeah, I use that amp. Will cost atmost Rs.3500

For distortion, get a pedal. You will get many basic but good pedals within Rs.1500.
Total should be within your budget.
Desmond
Desmond #5
Apr 30, 2011 at 10:19 PM
@wise crab: used borrowed amps
@tech freak: my budget is abt 2500

Also, is it necessary to use an amp? Will attaching a distortion kit to my stereo work?
thetechfreak
Apr 30, 2011 at 10:31 PM
No it wont due to disparity in jack[cable] size
get the Marshal I posted. Distortion pedal may be purchased later
Desmond
Desmond #7
May 4, 2011 at 8:54 PM
I mainly play metal, Lamb of God, Slayer and stuff. Will the MG 10 be good enough?/
ssk_the_gr8
May 5, 2011 at 1:18 AM
Stranger cube22 is also an option.. find out if it fits in your budget... stranger amps are good
thetechfreak
May 5, 2011 at 7:33 AM
Stranger amps are good but Marshall are better
Buy Stranger only if the Marshall I mentioned doesnt fit your budget
Desmond
Desmond #10
May 6, 2011 at 5:00 AM
The marshall MG10 doesnot have in built distortion, has only clean and overdrive channels. Can it be good enough to support metal?

If it is that good, maybe I can flex my budget.
thetechfreak
May 6, 2011 at 10:33 AM
How much is the shop quoting the price?
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #12
May 6, 2011 at 1:09 PM
@DeSmOnD dAvId: go for amp...

Btw I wanna learn a guitar(I m a n00b in guitar)
cud u give me suggestions for the same...
thetechfreak
May 6, 2011 at 2:36 PM
@Zangetsu

Start by buying a acoustic guitar. In Rs.1500 range. They are best for beginners.
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #14
May 6, 2011 at 2:38 PM
@Zangetsu

Start by buying a acoustic guitar. In Rs.1500 range. They are best for beginners.

But I just cant hold a guitar & bang it like a monkey :banghead:
there shud be some reference..what is what..how is how etc :cool:
thetechfreak
May 6, 2011 at 2:42 PM
@ Zangetsu

See this video


*www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dXUW2wBS3I
abhidev
abhidev #16
May 6, 2011 at 2:47 PM
@DeSmOnD dAvId: go for amp...

Btw I wanna learn a guitar(I m a n00b in guitar)
cud u give me suggestions for the same...

Dude ur own father is a guitarist...why don't you learn from him???
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #17
May 6, 2011 at 2:49 PM
Dude ur own father is a guitarist...why don't you learn from him???

he doesnt have time....:hissyfit:
i m looking for other alternative if all else fails I'll
ask him to help
thetechfreak
May 6, 2011 at 2:51 PM
@Zangetsu

Did u see the vid I posted? No I didnt make that

BTW, I think there is plenty of local places that teach Guitar,etc
Why not try them :) ?
abhidev
abhidev #20
May 6, 2011 at 3:27 PM
he doesnt have time....:hissyfit:
i m looking for other alternative if all else fails I'll
ask him to help

Even i wanna learn guitar from a long time...i think until i get one I would never be able to take out time to learn it...maybe i'll gift it to myself this year on my b'day..:grin:
Desmond
Desmond #21
May 11, 2011 at 5:07 AM
How much is the shop quoting the price?

Rs. 5000

Also, what do you guys think about Roland amps like the Micro cube?

@zangetsu,

First get an acoustic guitar for about 3k. Then goto youtube or ultimate-guitar.com and go wild.

Do exercises regularly.
thetechfreak
May 11, 2011 at 9:24 AM
The quoted price is very high indeed.
The Stranger ones will be cheap, get that for practice.
ssk_the_gr8
May 11, 2011 at 7:39 PM
get stranger for now.. it's ok.. i've got one...
Desmond
Desmond #24
May 12, 2011 at 1:24 AM
I think I'll wait till my budget gets better then go in for the Marshall or some.
ssk_the_gr8
May 12, 2011 at 8:05 AM
^^ if you're willing to wait then the marshall is definitely better
V
vsher #26
Aug 22, 2011 at 6:42 PM
sorry, taking a tangent, once we have an amp and effect set how now to interface with the pc i.e. i am a lead soloist and need strumming tracks to back my lead practice, any info will be great
MetalheadGautham
Aug 22, 2011 at 11:36 PM
OK sorry for late reply. I'm gonna try to cover all possible "guitar queries" here from prospective guitarists regardless of whether such a question is asked or not. :D

According to personal experience with temporarily dead ears avoid cheap marshalls like plague. The ones you hear of in big bands, they're the JCMs costing over 1 lakhs. Cheap marshalls make sound seem horrible. Same goes for Stranger and Kustom Sound (this is a mumbai based co).

At 5k, there are only two amps you can actually consider as a beginner for practice and they are both really good: Roland Micro Cube and VOX Mini3. They are small battery/adapter powered 2W and 3W amps respectively but come with tonnes of quality in-built effects. And when you wanna perform live you can send line-out to PA system's mixer and it'll be loud then. But for practice these two are best. Check them out at a nearby store like furtados. Buy the one which has more models which suit your style of playing. But between them I bet majority of ppl will be covered and can comfortably buy one. These two are the CHEAPEST amps which WILL NOT KILL your ears, WILL NOT BORE you as they've nice effects and will make great practice amps which you most likely won't sell even after turning pro.

I bought a Kustom Sound Cube 15FX for Rs. 2250. Now I'm regretting my purchase because the distortion is hopeless and clean isn't too great either. So I had to purchase a Boss DS-2 analogue distortion pedal for 3.7k. Again a mistake because back then I hadn't researched distortion pedals. The DS-2 sounds great when played with expensive tube amps but not with a cheap solid-state amp. Nor is it powerful enough for heavy metal rhythm guitar and it can't be directly sent to PA mixer. I should've gone for a DigiTech Death Metal or something like that instead. Point is, speak to someone qualified before making a purchase. Its money you're putting in, so better invest wisely.

And then there are those multiple effects pedals. Best thing to do in guitars is to try and find these things used. I found a DigiTech RP-50 used selling for 1.7k in New Delhi. Same goes for amps and stuff and also guitars if you find someone who is experienced and can check the instrument for you. People often upgrade to expensive stuff when it comes to guitars so its really easy to find dirt cheap (often 50% to 70% of original price) used components which are pretty nice sounding for the price. This is especially true for multi-effects pedals because as technology changes, people constantly upgrade. Analogue pedals are harder to find used because they're one-time investments if you've a good amp. The only trouble you'll have is if you play lefty guitar like me. I had to spend 5 months getting a rare lefty instrument. And these definitely don't come second hand ;)

Now to answer any questions regarding practice. Best bet is go to youtube and look for backing tracks. A lot of people have uploaded those. That or simply play along with songs. You just need good sounding speakers and you're ready to go. If you wanna "synchronize" backing track with guitar you need a MIDI capable instrument and such guitars are really expensive. Instead spend Rs. 700 on a tuner-cum-metronome and practice playing to time. All songs are played to a time signature. Figure this out and you can play with any backing track.

Finally PC connectivity. Sometimes you might want to record directly via PC's Line-In jack. Problem is the sound quality will be pathetic. Some companies manufacture USB audio interfaces which retail for under 2k. Or you could get a PCI soundcard if its a desktop which supports a proper line-in jack which is 0.5" in size. On windows use GuitarFX software for amp modelling and effects. On Linux Ubuntu Studio rules.

And finally, starters should never buy Floyd Rose style floating bridge guitars. You need to re-adjust the whole setup whenever you shift between completely different tunings like D-tuning dropped to C (SOAD style), C-tuning dropped to A (Nu Metal lulz) and Standard E-tuning. Unless you would only at the most temporarily go for a half-step down or drop-D tuning and play a single song, a floating tremulo kinda kills the fun of learning to play different songs. Besides, while a whammy might look cool and you will wanna try dive-bombing and all those funky tricks with it, it gets stale after a while especially if you know NOTHING ELSE. Go Floyd Rose when you develop a proper technique and an original style. Not when starting off.
abhidev
abhidev #28
Aug 23, 2011 at 3:01 PM
@metalHead: i wanna buy a acoustic guitar...can you please suggest which one are the best in terms of sound and build quality....also which cut('O' or 'F')....I liked the sound of the 'O' cut guitar more than the 'F' cut...seemed more bold and deeper sound. Also I found 'Granada' guitars to be good,not sure about it... So please help me with this...
Desmond
Desmond #29
Aug 23, 2011 at 4:51 PM
^^
@abhidev, I suggest you start with a guitar with an O soundhole, since it gives a more prominent and deep bassy sound. But, its depends more on the size of the body. I suggest you get a guitar with an O sound hole and a larger body.

BTW, everyone, I have finally got an Roland Micro Cube, and I'm loving it XD
abhidev
abhidev #30
Aug 23, 2011 at 5:32 PM
@desmod: yea even i felt the difference in the sound between 'O' and 'F' cut...felt 'O' cut produces much deeper and as you said bassy sound....well can you please suggest a good brand...probably would get it from Furtados...since its my first 6 string...i want it to be the best one though not very costly...
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #31
Aug 23, 2011 at 6:41 PM
@abhidev: u wanna buy simple or electric guitar??
Desmond
Desmond #32
Aug 24, 2011 at 6:02 AM
@desmod: yea even i felt the difference in the sound between 'O' and 'F' cut...felt 'O' cut produces much deeper and as you said bassy sound....well can you please suggest a good brand...probably would get it from Furtados...since its my first 6 string...i want it to be the best one though not very costly...

How much is your budget? I highly recommend a budget of atleast 5000. A Gb&a guitar will be good enough for beginning, but take the larger body variant.
abhidev
abhidev #33
Aug 24, 2011 at 11:33 AM
My budget is arnd 5-6k...also I haven't heard much of Gb&A but i have seen Granada guitar and it sounded good...also i saw the guitars on Furtadosonline.com....there are many models....can you please help me with that...

Can you pls check the following links...also I don't understand the PRLD-18 CEq mean...

Furtadosonline.com : Hofner, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought, HAS-01 /Natural

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought, Cutaway with EQ, PRLD-18CEQ /Trans Blue

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought Cutaway, Curly Ash Top, With EQ, PRFLD-19CEQ /Trans Red

Furtadosonline.com : GB&A, Acoustic Guitar, Cutaway, AG150Y -Black

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought PRLD-18 /Trans Blue

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought PRLD-18 /Trans Blue
abhidev
abhidev #34
Aug 25, 2011 at 3:02 PM
pls reply guys...
Desmond
Desmond #35
Aug 26, 2011 at 10:13 AM
My budget is arnd 5-6k...also I haven't heard much of Gb&A but i have seen Granada guitar and it sounded good...also i saw the guitars on Furtadosonline.com....there are many models....can you please help me with that...

Can you pls check the following links...also I don't understand the PRLD-18 CEq mean...

Furtadosonline.com : Hofner, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought, HAS-01 /Natural

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought, Cutaway with EQ, PRLD-18CEQ /Trans Blue

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought Cutaway, Curly Ash Top, With EQ, PRFLD-19CEQ /Trans Red

Furtadosonline.com : GB&A, Acoustic Guitar, Cutaway, AG150Y -Black

Furtadosonline.com : Granada, Acoustic Guitar, Dreadnought PRLD-18 /Trans Blue

Take your pick among these. Though the equalizers are a bit excessive considering you're beginning, but the Hofner is good. The GB&A has a larger sound hole, but the Granada has a larger body. I suggest you try it at the shop before buying it, in order to check whether you are comfortable with the build, than blindly buying it online. I would recommend you accompany some guy with some experience to the shop and hear his opinion about it too as well as you try it.
abhidev
abhidev #36
Aug 26, 2011 at 12:19 PM
thanx for the reply...well will take someone experienced...but well i liked the guitar in the 4th link...it also has a cut...what do u think abt it...

Also can u pls post a pic of your guitar...
Desmond
Desmond #37
Aug 26, 2011 at 2:54 PM
My acoustic one or the electric one?
abhidev
abhidev #38
Aug 26, 2011 at 7:55 PM
both of them my frnd...:mrgreen:
Desmond
Desmond #39
Aug 27, 2011 at 3:04 PM
Check here:
*www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1556156672726.2079684.1499503525&l=2fb8d89384&type=1

The black electric is my Ibanez and the acoustic one is my GB&A.
abhidev
abhidev #40
Aug 27, 2011 at 6:42 PM
nice...from how many years have you been playing guitar...also hows ur exp with GB&A...if compared with Granada....which one do you think is better?
Desmond
Desmond #41
Aug 29, 2011 at 12:17 AM
I have only used friends Granada, it is good, sounds better than a GB&A, but the stock strings wear out very soon. So, buy an extra set.

And, I've been playing guitar for about 3 1/2 years.
abhidev
abhidev #42
Aug 29, 2011 at 9:58 AM
Hmm..so i'll go with Granada...thanx :)
thetechfreak
Aug 29, 2011 at 11:27 AM
Yes, Granada definitely better than GB&A
abhidev
abhidev #44
Sep 11, 2011 at 4:47 PM
Hey guys finally got my guitar...here are the pics..

Got a guitar cover free
*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0129.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0111.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0112.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0114.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0113.jpg

This is the microphone cable and battery for connecting it to the amp...
*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0118.jpg

These are the equalizers on the side of the guitar
*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0115.jpg
Also got a set of strings and few plectrums free
*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0116.jpg

Also bought a Digital tuner
*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0119.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0120.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0124.jpg

*i1225.photobucket.com/albums/ee397/abhidev/My%20Purchases/My%20first%20six%20string/Photo0121.jpg
Desmond
Desmond #45
Sep 11, 2011 at 8:55 PM
Congrats
abhidev
abhidev #46
Sep 11, 2011 at 10:51 PM
thanx :)
thetechfreak
Sep 12, 2011 at 8:11 AM
Congrats man. Great buy. :D
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #48
Sep 12, 2011 at 7:22 PM
@abhidev: gr8 buy....congrats..how much?
abhidev
abhidev #49
Sep 13, 2011 at 11:47 AM
6,100(guitar) + 425(digi tuner) = Rs. 6,525
Zangetsu
Zangetsu #50
Sep 13, 2011 at 12:35 PM
^^now join a guitar class...
abhidev
abhidev #51
Sep 14, 2011 at 10:41 AM
I already did before buying one... :D but sadly missed many due to office...will have to be regular from now on.