Best clean amps

[wildeman]

Those amps you listed are not bad but why not go with a tube amp like a Fender Deluxe Reverb or Blues Jr? A Vox AC-15 is another.. You can alway get a box or a pedal that will do all the other stuff.

I don't think the OP wants a tube amp, headphone use was mentioned. If it was a tube amp then I'd have definitely stated a Twin Reverb, its the benchmark "clean amp" and sounds awesome at any volume, i think if i could only keep one of my amps that would be the one.

 

[wildeman]

Thanks all. I have a great Fisher acoustic amp. Are you suggesting I could use that for my Gretch dspellman ?? That’d save some $ and let me keep my Colling D1A ampd and keep a voice mic outlet. Because I was figuring I’d have to sell the fishman to afford an amp for the gretsch.
Would love to get a JC 22 or JC 40, but can’t seem to find a used one in my budget. I may have to go for a katana 50 mark two.
Any comments on katana 50 versus JC 22 or 40? Great cleans at good price is my goal.
I do have a line on a katana artist incl gafc switch, more amp than I need but price is so good and gets me an acoustic outlet and looper effects capability… Should I wait for a jc to come available??

Everyone i know that gets a Katana likes it, i haven't heard any badmouthing though I'm sure if you dig around on the web you can, i trust the people i have heard from. I have a tiny Katana mini that i love, even though my first one crapped out just out of warranty, and i was mad, i still bought another one because i missed it.

 

[AllenK]

Another vote for the Blues Cube series. I have the Blues Cube Hot. Small and compact for use in homes with limited space but still delivers plenty of good tone and volume for gigging. I've played an Artist model and that too is a nice amp.

 

[Slap_Back]

I second the DV Mark amp. Corey Wong uses 2 Eric Gales signature DV Mark amps in his rig to get loud and stay crystal clean. Plus they are lightweight. Premier guitar recently did a Rig Rundown with Corey on their Youtube channel. I would highly recommend watching that to get an idea of what they are capable of.

Good luck with your search!

 

[MotorCentaur]

Everything proceeding is IMO only. YMMV.

There's clean and there's sterile. Fenders are clean, Rolands tend toward sterile. In my experience all digital and SS amps sound more sterile than genuine tube amps (def not including "hybrid" tube limiter/ diode style preamp amps.

Nothing beats a Fender Blackface or early Silverface combo of any size for pleasing cleans one can listen to all day long without ear fatigue (excessive volumes excepting of course).

 

[Scotydog826]

I love my Katana 50. There are a few features (looper and more storage banks) on the 100 that the 50 does not have but it is a phenomenal amp. I sold my Blues Jr not long after i got my Katana.

 

[schwarzerHund]

I currently use a Bugera V22 combo amp- and it's fine- no troubles with it. I'm seriously considering moving to a Quilter Aviator Cub 50w 1x12- smaller, lighter, more convenient (SS) for me...does anyone have any experience with this amp? I play clean a lot- but also dig my pedals and some mild to medium distortion from time to time. I haven't seen a lot written about this model but I'm definitely considering it...any Cub veterans out there with thoughts?

 

[dspellman]

Thanks all. I have a great Fisher acoustic amp. Are you suggesting I could use that for my Gretch dspellman ??

I'd certainly give it a shot.

My favorite clean TOOB amp is the old Carvin Belair (2x12, EL84s). Gorgeous cleans that easily rival a Fender. 37 pounds, 50W. Older version has a spring reverb box, newer version has a digital reverb that may actually sound better. Two channels. Clean channel and a SOAK (gain) channel that was designed with Allan Holdsworth, so it's more legato than AC/DC. You can find these gems on the various auction and offer-up sites in the $300-350 range.

 

[Pine Apple Slim]

My old SF Bassman head and 1-15" Weber Cali has the best clean tone ever up to halfway on the vol knob, and by then its ear splitting loud, but the breakup is killer. The clean sound is huge and fat even on 2 or 3, an awesome pedal platform.
But it weighs a ton and theres no modern features like line outs or effects, not even reverb.

My Carr Rambler has beautiful cleans and great reverb and tremelo, and if you want breakup it has it before you blow out your ears. But hell it costs almost as much as a real 67 or 68 Princeton or Deluxe.

My take is if all you want is plug in and play clean just get a Fender of some kind.
On a budget Champions or Frontmans sound fine. I played in an oldies DooWop band with a guy who had a Frontman 60, a Strat, and a delay pedal. Got the job done just fine.

But if you need all the modern play at home features plus a gig now and then, Id probably save my money and just get a Katana and call it a day.
I have a friend with a Kat50 and he loves it.
Sure theres better options, most have been listed in this thread, but if your on a budget...do you really need it?

 

[Mandojoe]

Thanks all, going to play fender Gtx100 and kat 100 head to head but fender includes footswitch/looper so much cheaper in total and concensus is it sounds better and as/more? versatile. Thanks for all advice. Great to have narrowed things down. And I can buy the fender in my new country of residence which is not possible with all.

 

[SLICKFASTER]

Peavey Classic 30……

 

[SLICKFASTER]

My old SF Bassman head and 1-15" Weber Cali has the best clean tone ever up to halfway on the vol knob, and by then its ear splitting loud, but the breakup is killer. The clean sound is huge and fat even on 2 or 3, an awesome pedal platform.
But it weighs a ton and theres no modern features like line outs or effects, not even reverb.

My Carr Rambler has beautiful cleans and great reverb and tremelo, and if you want breakup it has it before you blow out your ears. But hell it costs almost as much as a real 67 or 68 Princeton or Deluxe.

My take is if all you want is plug in and play clean just get a Fender of some kind.
On a budget Champions or Frontmans sound fine. I played in an oldies DooWop band with a guy who had a Frontman 60, a Strat, and a delay pedal. Got the job done just fine.

But if you need all the modern play at home features plus a gig now and then, Id probably save my money and just get a Katana and call it a day.
I have a friend with a Kat50 and he loves it.
Sure theres better options, most have been listed in this thread, but if your on a budget...do you really need it?

You got that Cali 15 in a separate cab?
Closed or open back?
I got a 74 Bassman 50 I want to do something with..

 

[NJDevil]

I got my Roland Blues Cube Artist last June and love it. Great clean tone, great for gigs and there are 2 choices: 1 speaker 80W and dual speaker 85W. Great for gigs and the built in attenuator perfectly captures the tones you loved really loud with the dial at .5W that is just for you........ options are .5W, 15W, 45W, 80W.

The Clean Tone Capsule really makes what is great sound even better. This showcases it really well:

 

[Pine Apple Slim]

You got that Cali 15 in a separate cab?
Closed or open back?
I got a 74 Bassman 50 I want to do something with..

Its in a homemade open back cab.

 

[Mandojoe]

Thx guys, settled on mustang gtx100 cause sounds good at low vol, has amazing options, effects capable, looping via 7button footswitch (included), takes backing tracks, light weight but has 12” Celestion speaker, Bluetooth connectivity and unlimited online patches by people like Steve guitar. I love tubes, having had a fender blues Deville reissue Twin 12 inch, but at 70 I just can’t lug them around anymore, And I don’t have an acreage anymore that I can play it at enough volume to get what I want. So there’s really nothing not to like about the GTX 100. I’ll let you know how it turns out when I get the amp and the guitar on my Canada trip in May. Thanks for all your help everyone!

 

[Dice]

Fender Princeton Reverb, great recording amp, loud enough for small gigs, quality reverb and a brilliant clean sound. There not cheap, but you get a quality amp

This is what I have. Beautiful sound! Quite heavy to lug around, but worth it.

 

[MonteSS]

If you're on a budget look for a used Fender Mustang 3 V2. There are many amp and effect model as well as clean amp and speaker emulations.

 

[BCRatRod73]

If you get a Katana definitely seek out the Sneaky amps and Dumble amps patches. They have plenty of clean amps in them.

 

[Guipucci]

I

Looking for a nice clean sound amp to go with my new 5422 GT classic. Thinking of either a katana 50 or 100, a Roland blues cube, or a Roland JC 40 or JC 22. Any comments would be much appreciated. Sound is prob most important, but I would like the app to have the capability of inputting backing tracks, attaching headphones, and sounding reasonable at low volumes for household practice. Not one for fooling around with computers for sounds. Yes Also small gig worthy. Your input valuable, thanks much

I wouldn't mind for modern features such as bluetooth or stuff... I work at a repair shop and the more of that flashy things the crappier the things tend to be.

Also bear in mind that a guitar speaker has limited working frequencies like 85-5000hz... Whereas a regular speaker to hear music has a range from 30-22000 (or more) and tend also to have a speaker límited to a range and a tweeter for upper frequencies and bass reflex.

So IMO I would focus solely in the amp.

You can use a bluetooth speaker to launch your music from your phone if you don't want a regular HiFi system (which is the best for listening to music). We sold a 30 euros Creative portable BT speaker and that thing delivered nice pristine tone. If you want something more go for Sony, JBL or Bose if you have the money. Those things fit in your hand and can deliver powerful clear tones from your phone.

For the guitar amp, Solid States can deliver best clean tones and even at lower volumes whereas valves need some volume and heating to work... And are also more fragile and expensive to repair and if you need to change a valve the tone will change. They tend to build amps with atenuators or hybrids but if you want to go to gigs then results seem to be not the same. So either you are able to crank your valve amp to work at home or you need two amps one for gigs other for home whereas a SS amp can suit both more easily. Valve tone is considered far superior but it has its cons aside the higher price.

You certainly won't go wrong with a Jazz Chorus which is a legend made in Japan with minor changes for 40 years. Plus it is widely considered the best amp for pedals for its clean tone and headroom, if you want to explore tone with some foot candy. The Princeton is in those lists too always.

 

[Gretschzilla]

My Fender Tone Master Twin Reverb (Blonde) is pristine clean. If it fits your budget, you can’t do much better for clean sound.