It takes more than a guitar.

Dear AAP-
I've been playing electric guitar for almost 2 years. I'm figuring it out ok, but I still don't understand much about amps. I've been saving up money to buy one but it is very confusing and I don't want to get the wrong thing. What do I look for? - kay

Dear Kay-
Figuring out what amplifier to get can be pretty tricky, especially these days when there are sooooo many different choices and different technologies to sort through. You say you've been playing for almost 2 years and NOW you're looking for an amp? What have you been using up until now? Have you been using a small 'practice' amp and now you're looking to upgrade? or have you been jacking into some headphone or computer-based set-up?

A lot has changed with guitar amps in the past decade, and I won't pretend I'm completely up on all that is out there these days, but I can give you some basic guidelines. The key thing to remember is this: Do NOT walk into a guitar store with no idea what you're looking for... If you're just some stranger walking in off the street, then the "helpful" sales-dude is more likely to sell you whatever nets him the best sales commission... but if you're a regular at some local guitar shop where the sales person knows they're likely to see you again, then you stand a better chance of getting honest and helpful advice.

What will you need this amp to do? Are you just looking for a practice amp to sit in your room and play through? ...or are you playing with other people now and you just need a louder/better amp so you can be heard when you jam? ...and of course the big question is: How much are you willing to spend?

Once you figure out your price range the only question then used to be: tubes or solid state? There is a lot of snobbery around this question, or at least there used to be: "Tube" amps were old-school and were powered by actual vacuum tubes like radios used to have before transistors were invented (ask your grandparents.) Solid State amps were much cheaper and more durable but, at least to the snobs' ears, didn't produce as good a "tone." When I was starting out, the only two criteria I had for an amp were "cheap and loud." For a long while I had a Roland JC120, which I bought 'used.' It gave me what I needed, and I sure as hell didn't give a rat's ass about tone. Years later, when I could play a little better and I had a few $$ to spend, I picked up a Fender tube amp that did, indeed, sound pretty sweet (and loud.)

...but as I said, that was the old days. The electronics in amps today come in all sorts of configurations from solid state to tube to hybrid mixtures of both... add to that a few quantum leaps in electronics and now you have amplifiers that have so many on-board effects and 'sound modeling software' that there is really no telling what sounds might come out of any given amp just by looking at it.

And this leads us to the most important question of all:

Take a second and just think about what happens when you're playing your guitar. What does it feel like and more importantly: what does it sound like in your head? What is the sound you imagine your guitar is making? THAT is what you should be looking for when you start testing out amps. What is the 'voice' you want your guitar to have? ... now sure, that sound might change from month to month or even song to song, but there must be one basic sound or vibe that really pulls at your ears and heart. I know that might sound like a pretty zen/trippy thing to say for a punk, and it might not even make a lot of sense to you (yet) but just keep it in the back of your mind while you're trying to figure all this out.

I do have to add one thing - in spite of all previously mentioned advances in on-board electronics and stuff like that, you'll find that if you spend too much time fiddling with and "processing" the sound of your guitar something is going to be lost... especially if you're jamming/playing out with other people. It is hard to explain, but you'll know something is missing when you hear it. It is easy to get toooooo wrapped up in all the effects etc that are available to manipulate the sound of a guitar... be wary of that impulse...confused yet? Sorry. It is just a lot of ground to cover, and believe me, I'm only scratching the surface here. So what can I tell you? How about this:

Keep it simple.

You're a beginner still, so don't let yourself get bogged down in all the electronics. All a good punk rocker really needs out of his/her amp is VOLUME and REVERB. You can then create your distortion either by overdriving the amp (by cranking up the volume/gain knobs) or with a simple distortion box foot pedal (don't get me started on the confusing world of foot pedals...) Whether you go with a tube amp or a solid state amp will depend on your own ears and budget. ...and if you want that budget to go further, don't be afraid to check out used amps, but be careful.

...and be patient. Don't buy the first amp you try out or the first thing someone tells you that "you just have to buy." When you find the right amp for you, you'll know it and feel it immediately.

good luck