Modelling amps seek to digitally replicate the sound of particular amps. As a result, you can get a wide range of tones, making them really versatile. The sound and response is rarely identical to the real thing, but you can get pretty close. You’ll also usually find effects built into modelling amps. Size & output Orange amplifiers are something of a connoisseur’s choice in the amp world. Beyond the garish colour scheme, the British brand’s most signature element is the unique gain sound they offer. Marshall makes a wide range of amps today. The classic Marshall crunch is still sought after by many players, though clean players and those that use heavier, more saturated sounds are also catered for. Whatever style of player you are, the best Marshall amps will help you sculpt your sound to your liking. All you really want is an amp that sounds good to your ears, and that you can plug in to and play without too much thought. Us guitarists all have an idea of what the perfect tone sounds like, and practice amps are getting much much closer to that benchmark. Long gone are the wasps in jar sounds of the past.

Think about how much power you need from your amp. Do you want to take it gigging? If so, how big are the venues you’re playing and will your amp be mic’d up? A 50W tube amp can be great when you’re playing in big clubs, but it might not be as practical if you’re only wanting something for home use. Integrating the already highly respected BIAS tone engine with some pretty incredible smart technology, the Positive Grid Spark has taken the world of the best practice amps by storm - and we can definitely see why. Take a look at the bands or artists you like for inspiration on this – most often, you'll be able to buy a more practice-friendly version of the amps they use – or at the very least, you'll get an idea for the characteristics of their amps and their sound. What features do I need? It’s a two-channel amp, but each channel has three different sounds within it giving you six different tones at your disposal. These are foot switchable too, making it the perfect live performance amp. Alongside these incredible amp tones, you’ve got a studio quality reverb and two master volume controls.

About Marshall Practice Amps

Early amplifiers included the iconic ’59 Super Lead (“Plexi”), a tube-powered head with incredible volume and headroom that could fill the biggest of venues. Legendary acts such as Led Zeppelin and The Jimi Hendrix Experience used this amp, cranking them to pioneer that famous Marshall grit. Jim Marshall started the company in the 60s and actually used a Fender Bassman as a guide amp. Due to the different materials available to him at the time, the amp he ended up making – the JTM45 – was a very different animal from the Fender it copied. The components he used meant the amp’s voicing sounded different and, arguably more importantly, broke up sooner than the Fender. It’s this breakup sound that eventually helped Marshall gain (pun intended) the reputation it’s so well known for today. Simply put, these humble home combos can enable you to practice your guitar without worrying about the noise levels – and better yet, many of them are fully loaded with effects and other handy features that make practicing way more enjoyable. Regardless of what you need, the Marshall DSL40C has to be considered one of the best Marshall amps available. It’s an all- tube amp, so you get the response, dynamics and tone that comes with that. It’s got two independent channels, but within each one, you’ve got two different sounds. The first channel covers clean and old-school crunch tones, and the second channel has two different overdriven sounds that cover heavier sounds.

If you're familiar with amp and effects manufacturers, you'll know all about Line 6. Famous for its Spider and POD amps, and more recently its Helix and HX floorboards, Line 6 has upped the ante in the amp-modeling game and in turn, created some of the most highly sought after products on the market.

Frequently Asked Questions about Marshall Practice Amps

The vast majority of practice amps that are available in today's market come with a huge array of effects, different amp voicings and even easy recording functionality. Some also feature remote control over parameters via a tablet, laptop or mobile device, as well as savable and shareable patch editing. Long story short, amps these days have become very smart – and very capable of recreating near enough any tone you can think of. Do I need to consider the styles I play? Within our list of the best Marshall amps there are solid state, modelling and tube amps, all of which have certain characteristics that players love. Tube amps are more traditional – this is how they were made when Marshall were just starting out and many guitarists claim they’re also the best. The Mighty Air is a wireless stereo guitar amp, and we have to say it lives up to its name, it really is capable of some pretty mighty tones. With 13 amp models (nine electric guitar, three bass and one acoustic) accessible via the companion app, this small desktop amp has a tone for every occasion. If you don’t think that’s true, then scroll through the 28 overdrive, distortion, reverb, chorus or delay options on the in-app effects menu and hear the Mighty Air deliver wholly on its stereo promise. Hearing their frustrations at not finding the sound they wanted, Jim took this as a request and with a small team started to build amplifiers. As they say, the rest is history…

Marshall amps need no introduction. You'll no doubt have seen their famous logo and inimitable look emblazoned across many stages around the world. Having been around since 1961, their long and illustrious history now stretches over more than 60 years! On the iconic gold-plated front panel of these beauties you'll find an array of satisfying, responsive controls. From three-band EQs for shaping the bass, midrange, and treble frequencies, to drive, reverb, channel switches and more, this innovative amp maker pays attention to the details. Some models, like the Marshall MG15GFX Gold 15W Combo, make use of more modern solid state technology too, meaning they're lighter and often have more built-in effects than their heavier valve counterparts. You’ll see JVM series guitar amps played by some professional players, and it’s no surprise why – they’re incredible. You get a fair bit of clean headroom, and you can forget all the dated preconceptions about Marshall amps not having a great clean sound, because the JVM205 has a beautiful clean channel. You’ve then got Plexi-style overdrive, as well as JCM-800 style crunch, and saturated high gain sounds, ideal for modern and classic metal.Known for their signature “crunch”, Marshall were game-changers in developing the saturated “distorted” sound that we are all familiar with. It’s also worth bearing in mind that tube wattage isn’t the same as non-tube wattage. That is to say that a 30W tube amp for example, will be perceivably louder than a 30W solid state or modelling amp. Channels Tube amps tend to be more dynamic, yield a nicer overdriven sound and respond better to a player’s touch. They're also usually more expensive and can often be heavy. Solid state amps on the other hand are mostly cheaper and lighter, but they don’t respond in the same way. The distortion may also not sound quite as organic but, unlike most tube amps, the clean channel will stay clean as you turn up the volume – it won’t gradually break up. If you want clean headroom then this can be useful. You can trust Guitar World Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing guitar products so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.