Amp Advice

[bcalla]

My friend Al's wife asked me to help her choose an amp to get Al for Father's Day.  She wants something he can use for both acoustic guitar and bass.  Al doesn't perform any more, so it will only be used at home, or on rare occasions to play with a friend.  They live in an apartment so size is a factor.

I was thinking that a small, Class D combo bass amp might be the right choice.  They are manageable from a size & weight standpoint, but I don't know how an acoustic guitar will sound through one.

Does anyone have any experience with this?  Is this the right way to go?  Any other suggestions?

Thanks!

[EBK]

I have a GK class D combo that sounds surprisingly good with non-bass guitars.  I've never amped an acoustic guitar though, so I cannot speak to that.  Also, my combo is 500W in a 2×12" cabinet, which would be way too excessive for your friend's application.  I guess all I'm really saying that could be of any potential value to you is GK makes good stuff.   

[bcalla]

Yup, my situation is similar.  I have a 500w Fender class D and a 12" & 15" bass cab.  I used to own a GK bass combo.  My acoustic is from the early 70s, so no pickup.

I don't see why it wouldn't work, but I wonder if it might need built in EQ to tame the bass frequencies.  Or maybe an acoustic preamp pedal.

[matmosphere]

I think vox is making  nutube  bass and acoustic amps now. The mv50 series all sound really good so I'm sure these will be okay as well.

I might consider some type of computer interface if I was in an apartment though. You can do so much just through headphones and it sounds pretty good these days.

[bcalla]

I did a search for the Vox nutube and a few clicks later I found this Peavey Vypyr VIP 1, 20-watt 1x8".  From the description it seems to fit the requirements perfectly.  And the user reviews are great.  Peavey also makes a 40-watt 1x12" and a 100-watt 1x12 in the same series.

Anyone know anything about this line?

[blearyeyes]

I have an early fishman loudbox for acoustic and it is a wonderful bass amp for the house.  Full range little pa amp.


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[reddesert]

IMO, guitar sounds better through a bass amp, than bass through a guitar amp. I don't think bass amps sound particularly bassy with a non-bass signal through them.

I have a typical 20w 1x8" bass practice amp (old Peavey Microbass) and guitar sounds fine through it. But with the small speaker and cabinet, such an amp will always be limited as a bass amp, even if you don't play very loud. I would get something larger if possible.

[snz728]

How about yamaha thr10
Don't have one but was thinking about getting one for my guitar or son's bass at bedroom levels.

[bcalla]

Thanks for all the suggestions.  I'll be presenting the options to Al's wife later this week.