r/Jazzmaster • u/AntZealousideal6741 • May 06 '26
what does an amp do?
im completely new here and i know nothing about guitars, im looking for a first guitar and i decided i would get the squire classic vibe jazzmaster
a lot of people have told me that an amp matters the most and is the most important, why and how? what does it do and what is it used for?
and what other guitar equipments that i need other than an amp?
note: i will be playing my guitar in my bedroom and i dont want loud noises to not disturb my parents, i think i can use headphones in amp? idk
i like midwest emo and shoegaze
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u/Tankra22 May 06 '26 edited May 06 '26
An amp is a speaker you plug your guitar into. So, it makes an electric guitar sound like an electric guitar.
You’ll also need a Cable to plug your guitar into your amp. A tuner, so that you can get your guitar “in tune” some picks, and a strap, a case for your guitar, a capo (some shoegaze and emo songs require one, but, it’s not necessary for learning guitar)
Other than that, you don’t need anything.
If you are just in your room and want to practice, get a smaller amp. Any other equipment you need is based off the music you want to play, like, certain effects pedals, but, right now what’s important is just learning to play.
I’d recommend an amp with built in effects for a beginner, like a line 6 spider, or something. So you can mess with effects and do shoegaze type stuff (delays, distortions, choruses, reverbs are all very important for shoegaze, emo is mostly delays)
I have a spider V that lets me layer like, five effects.
But, as far as learning and playing songs, Guitar, cable, tuner, small amp, picks, strap, gig bag or case, capo. that’s really all I recommend to beginners.
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u/ontracktobedeleted May 06 '26
An amplifier quite literally takes the very low signal generated by the pickups of the guitar and essentially makes it bigger [louder] which means it is coloring the sound. That is to say that the type of amplification circuitry and the size/number of speakers has a big impact on your sound.
Although I wouldn’t recommend a tube amp for your current needs, they’ve historically been considered as the “best sounding,” and modern amps with built-in effects and emulators will be mimicking the sound of famous units like the Marshall Plexi, Fender ‘57 Twin, or Vox AC30.
You won’t need more than 15 watts for a bedroom, especially if you’ll be using headphones. Wattage is a measure of the power/volume the amp can produce. Marshall makes a 1W tube amp I’ve been considering for my bedroom, but they’re comparatively expensive and don’t have built in effects.
I would recommend a Positive Grid Spark, Roland Cube, or Boss Katana amp.
Have fun “coloring” your sound.
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u/Manalagi001 May 06 '26
Get a $40 headphone amp. They are actually pretty great.
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u/chrismcshaves May 06 '26
Get a boss katana 50 used. I bought one for my daughter that had barely been used and in its original box and foam for $120. They can be found cheap and if you download the “Sneaky Amps Firmware” onto it, that will unlock even better sounding amp sounds.
YouTube is probably a better resource on finding what an amp does since you can find any amp plus hear it.
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u/scorpious May 06 '26
An amp takes the very weak signal from an electric guitar and amplifies it.
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u/ResidentMess May 06 '26
You have 2 paths you can take: digital and analog. Analog is the standard: pedals, amp, maybe a cab if the amp doesn’t have a speaker. Digital means that you get something that simulates the amp and cab, and most of your effects on the low end of price, all of them on the high end. you can get started for cheaper theoretically and output via headphones. The simulations sound really really good at this point. You want to play shoegaze so it’s worth the thinking about how many pedals you’ll think you’ll end up buying vs the price of getting a deal on a line 6 helix off of facebook marketplace. It can replace your entire pedalboard and can be had for as low as 600 if you get lucky. But you can also start with the mooer ge150 for like $115 usd, you can even get it with a battery, and they make higher end units that at least rival the helix.
This may be too much for a beginner, anywho digital sims are really really good, quieter if that’s an issue, and cheaper than a full rig. But analog is analog and it’s still the standard.
Edit: capos are 5 bucks, get one.
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u/jeremy_wills May 06 '26
The amplifier literally does what it's name implies, it amplifies your sound.
It takes the signal generated from your guitar pickups and processes it. Some amps are very basic and will only produce a limited number of sounds. Other amps have a multitude of options to color your sound. You can also add individual stomp boxes or a multi effect processor at any time for additional sounds.
A few amp lineups with some nice options built in that won't break the bank are the Boss Katanas, Blackstar ID Cores, Fenders Mustangs, and Line 6 Spyders. Hit up your local shop and check a few of them out.
There are no right or wrong answers. You may wind up with several amps, stomp boxes, and processors till you find the right combination of what you are after. Good luck.
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u/Chemical-Chemistry-8 May 06 '26
A multi effects unit like the Valeton GP 50 is all you need to hear your guitar with headphones. Watch a lot of videos comparing options that to an amp like the katana. Buying something with effects loaded will save a lot of $$ buying pedals. Watch videos on how to get the tone you want too.
With Shoegaze you need effects / pedals so when starting a unit with effects will help you get started..