Guitar amp question.

[The Trash God]

Hello, so I just had a question about a specific guitar amp. I have been thinking about getting a new amp, but I couldnt upgrade to anything too exspensive as I don't have a whole lot of money. A local guitar shop where I am has this amp there for about 120 dollars or so and I have finally saved up the money to potentially buy it. It would be a significant upgrade from my current amp which is very cheap and has limited options, but I was just curious if it was worth the money.. As I don't want to blow the money I have saved up on it if it isn't any good. Thank you all in advance!

 

[Ed Seith]

This will probably serve you a LOT better, and it's cheaper:

Boss Katana Mini - 7-watt Combo Amp

7-watt, 1x4" Guitar Combo Amplifier with 3 Amp Voicings, 3-band EQ, Delay Effect, and Line/Headphone Output

www.sweetwater.com

The Fender will probably require a distortion pedal to do anything like most folks here want to do.

 

[Rad Synner]

I'm with Ed on this one. From actual in store experience, I think you will get more out of the Katana mini than the Frontman! Bonus with the katana is you get a Delay which can be really fun.

 

[Donovan Etue]

Hey man, I've got a couple of questions for you. First off, where are you from. Are you from out of the US where there are import fees which increase the price of gear? Because the amp pictured (the Frontman 10G) was my first amp and it cost $80 USD brand new when I ordered it online. Looking on Sweetwater.com also shows that they've got it listed at $80. If you happen to live in the US and a shop has the frontman listed at $120 I'd keep clear. I'm with Ed and Radu on this as well. If you're wanting to get a new amp sooner. Get the Katana mini. If you can hold off for a bit longer and save an additional $100 plus some money aside for taxes, see if you can get the Katana 50. If you are open to buying a used amp, check out Reverb. I see Katana 50's selling for $175 used on Reverb.com fairly frequently. In my experience, I was pretty ready to upgrade amps from the Frontman to the Katana. If you're on a limited income and have other money priorities and just want a smallish upgrade from your current amp, definitely pickup the Katana mini. I've heard quite a few people are pretty happy with theirs.

 

[The Trash God]

Hey man, I've got a couple of questions for you. First off, where are you from. Are you from out of the US where there are import fees which increase the price of gear? Because the amp pictured (the Frontman 10G) was my first amp and it cost $80 USD brand new when I ordered it online. Looking on Sweetwater.com also shows that they've got it listed at $80. If you happen to live in the US and a shop has the frontman listed at $120 I'd keep clear. I'm with Ed and Radu on this as well. If you're wanting to get a new amp sooner. Get the Katana mini. If you can hold off for a bit longer and save an additional $100 plus some money aside for taxes, see if you can get the Katana 50. If you are open to buying a used amp, check out Reverb. I see Katana 50's selling for $175 used on Reverb.com fairly frequently. In my experience, I was pretty ready to upgrade amps from the Frontman to the Katana. If you're on a limited income and have other money priorities and just want a smallish upgrade from your current amp, definitely pickup the Katana mini. I've heard quite a few people are pretty happy with theirs.

I am from the U.S. so I wouldnt have to worry about import fees. I am in a situation where buying from a store is really my only option. When I head out this weekend I'll definitely look and see if they have that model at the store. Thank you for the suggestion! It was very helpful

 

[Awex Came]

For the same price you can probably get a used Peavey Vypyr (which are excellent for the price point in my opinion) on craigslist or offerup or something like that. I don't think you'll be too happy with the Fender Frontman overall and you'll probably outgrow it not too long after you get it.

 

[Donovan Etue]

For the same price you can probably get a used Peavey Vypyr (which are excellent for the price point in my opinion) on craigslist or offerup or something like that. I don't think you'll be too happy with the Fender Frontman overall and you'll probably outgrow it not too long after you get it.

I totally spaced the vypyr. Ola Englund just did a video or two recently comparing it to the Katana in capability. Maybe a bit better for hi gain stuff. He also switched out the speaker to a high quality British speaker which made the amp sound noticeably better since the vypyr uses a reference speaker to be adequate enough for both bass and guitar frequencies.

 

[Awex Came]

I totally spaced the vypyr. Ola Englund just did a video or two recently comparing it to the Katana in capability. Maybe a bit better for hi gain stuff. He also switched out the speaker to a high quality British speaker which made the amp sound noticeably better since the vypyr uses a reference speaker to be adequate enough for both bass and guitar frequencies.

I saw some of his videos on them as well. You really can't go wrong with either one honestly

 

[Donovan Etue]

I am from the U.S. so I wouldnt have to worry about import fees. I am in a situation where buying from a store is really my only option. When I head out this weekend I'll definitely look and see if they have that model at the store. Thank you for the suggestion! It was very helpful

Ah alright. I'm just going to say it. If they've got a Fender Frontman 10G for sale at $120, I'd go as far as saying that it's a ripoff. However, Fender has a few models of entry level amps that look fairly similar from a distance. Browsing through Sweetwater I found this Fender Champion 20 20w amp for $129. Is that by chance the amp they're selling? It's right around the price point you mentioned and it looks pretty similar to the Frontman. I even glanced over it twice thinking it was the same amp on the website haha.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Champ20--fender-champion-20-20-watt-1x8-inch-combo-amp

 

[Calvin Phillips]

This will probably serve you a LOT better, and it's cheaper:

Boss Katana Mini - 7-watt Combo Amp

7-watt, 1x4" Guitar Combo Amplifier with 3 Amp Voicings, 3-band EQ, Delay Effect, and Line/Headphone Output

www.sweetwater.com

The Fender will probably require a distortion pedal to do anything like most folks here want to do.

Yeah this and the line 6 spider 5 will do wonders for you on a budget.

 

[The Trash God]

Ah alright. I'm just going to say it. If they've got a Fender Frontman 10G for sale at $120, I'd go as far as saying that it's a ripoff. However, Fender has a few models of entry level amps that look fairly similar from a distance. Browsing through Sweetwater I found this Fender Champion 20 20w amp for $129. Is that by chance the amp they're selling? It's right around the price point you mentioned and it looks pretty similar to the Frontman. I even glanced over it twice thinking it was the same amp on the website haha.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Champ20--fender-champion-20-20-watt-1x8-inch-combo-amp

Yeah now that I'm looking at it, that does look a lot like the one they are selling. The two models do look awfully similar. I didnt question it cause the store tends to sell stuff for a lesser price then most places, so hence why I didn't question it haha

 

[Forgetabull]

The Katana Mini is great, I've been using it for 3yrs. I've recently got a Katana MK2 50 which i can also recommend. The Mini is great just because it forces you to think more of the relatinoship between your guitar and amp.

 

[Dominik Gräber]

#whatEdsaid
The Katana Mini is incredible

Only Thing to maybe watch out for is that it is hard to use Pedals with it, as it can get very noisy.
But then again, you have an amazing Clean, great distortion, eq and a delay that can be used as a reverb when dialing the delay time down. That can get you very far