I have a little guitar rig that's great for recording and noodling.
Just a little frankenstein thing, but it's stereo, with tiny speakers
from an old boombox. The front end has been a Roland SE-50 as a
preamp and a revolving bunch of cast-off little power amps. So it's
kind of portable, but not really. What I'd like to find is a very
small, cheap power amp, just 1 - 5 watts, nothing else necessary
except for speaker outs, the size of a cigarette pack, so I can screw
it all together. I don't want instrument inputs, just lines from the
Roland, and if I have to get two to make it stereo, if it's small and
cheap enough, that's OK.
I've walked in and out of several Radio Shacks and Circuit Cities,
figuring there must be something out there, but nada. Funnily
enough, during my search I saw someone with an iPod using a homemade
booster housed in an Altoids can.
"V DuBreeze" <vdubreeze@earthlink.net> wrote in message
news:13f91695.0410022114.638feffb@posting.google.com...
> I've walked in and out of several Radio Shacks and Circuit Cities,
> figuring there must be something out there, but nada. Funnily
> enough, during my search I saw someone with an iPod using a homemade
> booster housed in an Altoids can.
V DuBreeze <vdubreeze@earthlink.net> wrote:
>I have a little guitar rig that's great for recording and noodling.
>Just a little frankenstein thing, but it's stereo, with tiny speakers
>from an old boombox. The front end has been a Roland SE-50 as a
>preamp and a revolving bunch of cast-off little power amps. So it's
>kind of portable, but not really. What I'd like to find is a very
>small, cheap power amp, just 1 - 5 watts, nothing else necessary
>except for speaker outs, the size of a cigarette pack, so I can screw
>it all together. I don't want instrument inputs, just lines from the
>Roland, and if I have to get two to make it stereo, if it's small and
>cheap enough, that's OK.
How about an older car stereo amplifier?
You might also look at the Vellemann line of kits, if you're willing to
build something from a kit.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."
vdubreeze@earthlink.net (V DuBreeze) wrote in message news:<13f91695.0410022114.638feffb@posting.google.com>...
> I have a little guitar rig that's great for recording and noodling.
> Just a little frankenstein thing, but it's stereo, with tiny speakers
> from an old boombox. The front end has been a Roland SE-50 as a
> preamp and a revolving bunch of cast-off little power amps. So it's
> kind of portable, but not really. What I'd like to find is a very
> small, cheap power amp, just 1 - 5 watts, nothing else necessary
> except for speaker outs, the size of a cigarette pack, so I can screw
> it all together. I don't want instrument inputs, just lines from the
> Roland, and if I have to get two to make it stereo, if it's small and
> cheap enough, that's OK.
>
>
> I've walked in and out of several Radio Shacks and Circuit Cities,
> figuring there must be something out there, but nada. Funnily
> enough, during my search I saw someone with an iPod using a homemade
> booster housed in an Altoids can.
>
>
> Any suggestions?
>
> Thanks!
>
> V
Zvex makes a one watt tube amp that sounds great. It's not cheap, ut
you'll be really happy with it.
There's a new amp the size of a cigarette pack that I see in all the music
stores now. It's 30 bucks.
elaterium@aol.com (Mark Steven Brooks/Elaterium Music)
elaterium@aol.com (Mark Steven Brooks) wrote in message news:<20041003164125.18603.00001877@mb-m07.aol.com>...
> There's a new amp the size of a cigarette pack that I see in all the music
> stores now. It's 30 bucks.
> elaterium@aol.com (Mark Steven Brooks/Elaterium Music)
Yeah, that's the Smokey. Thing is, I already have a Smokey-like mini
amp, maybe even two, though not with the speaker outs I'm looking for.
I tried a Smokey and was amused but didn't really feel I needed to
add it to my pile of stuff. Not saying it's not worth $30, but it
just didn't move me. Less fuzz, more, um, of a less fuzz. Plus, I'd
need two of them for stereo. Basically I have this pair of tiny
detached boombox speakers that actually sound pretty sweet using an
old $80 Alesis power amp that lost its gig powering a workstation,
pre-amping it with a guitar pedal. If I could find a 10 watt stereo
amp 1/4 of the size of that I'd be happy enough.
The car stereo amp is a good idea. I think that's what I'll scour
for
<< Subject: Re: Teeny tiny amp recommendation
From: vdubreeze@earthlink.net (V DuBreeze)
Date: Mon, Oct 4, 2004 9:22 PM
Message-id: <13f91695.0410041722.5f4900c6@posting.google.com>
elaterium@aol.com (Mark Steven Brooks) wrote in message
news:<20041003164125.18603.00001877@mb-m07.aol.com>...
> There's a new amp the size of a cigarette pack that I see in all the music
> stores now. It's 30 bucks.
> elaterium@aol.com (Mark Steven Brooks/Elaterium Music)
Yeah, that's the Smokey. Thing is, I already have a Smokey-like mini
amp, maybe even two, though not with the speaker outs I'm looking for.
I tried a Smokey and was amused but didn't really feel I needed to
add it to my pile of stuff. Not saying it's not worth $30, but it
just didn't move me. Less fuzz, more, um, of a less fuzz. Plus, I'd
need two of them for stereo. Basically I have this pair of tiny
detached boombox speakers that actually sound pretty sweet using an
old $80 Alesis power amp that lost its gig powering a workstation,
pre-amping it with a guitar pedal. If I could find a 10 watt stereo
amp 1/4 of the size of that I'd be happy enough.
The car stereo amp is a good idea. I think that's what I'll scour
for
Thanks all,
V
>>
General point about Smokey, YMMV: the Smokey's more worthwhile using its
speaker output (can drive 4 x 12 cab, but spkr. choice is yours to play with)
and turning your guitar's volume way down to the point where it's mostly clean
with some dirt when pushed.
I think the poster was looking for a funky $20 solution to a way to use
his/her speakers and pre, not looking to buy a small recording amp.
Actually, if the Alesis is the RA-100, that might be as small a profile
as you get. Plus you already have it. (Hmmm. Maybe you don't own
it...?) Why not use it as the base for the speakers and mount them to
it? I know what you're looking for, though. Something like an Alesis
RA-12.5 : )
I've noticed how Radio Shack is no longer a go-to place for things like
this. They definitely used to carry various no pre-amp amps the size
of a big Three Musketeers for $10. They were over by the bucket
brigade reverb kit that they kept selling for years after they stopped
selling the parts for.
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