Set up your amplifier
Amps… just plug in, switch on and you’re good to go, right? Well, yes, but it helps to know how your amplifier works too. Treat it right and you’ll get years of faithful service from the loud box…
1 Input jack
Guitar amps use the quarter-inch jack plug/socket. You’ll need an ‘unbalanced’ jack-to-jack instrument cable to plug your electric guitar into your amp.
2 Channelswitch
On a two-channel amp one channel sounds ‘clean’ and the other has a distorted tone better suited to rock, metal and so on. Three-channel amps offer clean, low-gain and high-gain channels – handy for setting up three different tones. Two for rhythm, one for lead, perhaps?
3 Gain
This varies the amount of distortion you hear from each channel. Even a ‘clean’ channel may have a gain control to move from super-clean tones to a little light sizzle. Some single-channel amps offer a gain boost button to effectively give you a second channel.
4 Eq
Two-channel amps often have EQ knobs for both channels, allowing total tonal control. Start your amp up with its bass, middle and treble controls set to their middle position – this should give a balanced tone. Then tweak ’til your heart’s content.
5 Reverb
This may be an analogue spring-based circuit or even a digital emulation. Either way, the reverb control is there to provide ambience – like playing in a big hall or arena. Most amps have way more reverb than you’ll ever need to use.
6 Effect loop
Often found on the back of an amp, this allows you to wire in effects pedals after part of the preamp circuit. The alternative is to plug effects straight into your amp’s input jack. Generally, drive, wah and compressor pedals work best plugged into the input; modulations and delays may sound better in the loop – but experiment!
7 Mastervolume
In theory, the master volume just turns everything up. In reality, most amps introduce more distortion at the master volume stage, particularly valve amps. Generally, though, use the gain controls for tonal shaping and the master volume for level. Keep the level down when you power up.
8 Speakeroutput
Some combos include an output for a second speaker cabinet. A head (an amp without its own speaker) needs to be plugged into a speaker, and valve amps shouldn’t be powered up without a speaker attached. Make sure to match the impedance of your amp’s output to that of the speaker.