Spark vs the real thing amps

Dinosaur David B

LerxstFan

I love mine. I've had it now for about 4 months (?). For practicing, it is easy to use and has tons of useful tones. I wouldn't say it is a great amp, but I do like it better for what it does. Way easier to use than my old floor Pod and my Tascam trainer. 

Dinosaur David B

It was a lot closer than I expected in the recording realm. To my ears, the main difference was the bass/treble balance more than the sonic character. As such, I don't think I'd hesitate to use the Spark to record amp sounds where I don't have the associated tube amp. Those would likely be secondary parts in my music anyway.

MAdX

So if I need something at home (or on the road) for silent practicing, would you go with this one or the Boss Katana headphones? 

Dinosaur David B

MAdX said:

So if I need something at home (or on the road) for silent practicing, would you go with this one or the Boss Katana headphones? 

For SILENT (and portable) - the Boss Waza Headphones, hands down.  I've taken them on trips. it's perfect.

Dr Nick

I'd never heard of this. Fascinating. How is it for cleans? Shame there isn't some sort of foot switch, otherwise sounds like you could easily gig using a monitor system. 

Dinosaur David B

I think the BlugX which is coming next year will do a lot of the same things, but as a gigging rig. The Spark is strictly for practice or recording.

LerxstFan

It can be a bit boomy, so setting levels is really important. It is brilliant through headphones. The clean sounds are fantastic. I think for a bedroom practice solution, it is hard to beat. The associated app is good and although it has a couple of bugs, continues to improve. 

Seven Moons

Honestly, in that video, I thought it didn't sound close to the real ones (in particular the top end is nowhere near as clear), although it does mimic some of their tonal characteristics. BUT, keeping in mind that it's dirt cheap (200 euros here), it certainly looks like an excellent solution for a practice amp.  

I have a Yamaha THR10X, and I've been able to dial really nice Marshall tones with the companion app, but the major issue I have with the Yamaha is that as soon as you push it beyond whisper levels, it sounds like utter crap... thin and tinny, I think it must be a design flaw with the power section/small speakers.  Can you get a bit louder with the Spark without ruining the sound quality? 

Also, is there a desktop version of the accompanying app?   (for the really prehistoric dinosaurs who have antique phones) 

Dinosaur David B

Seven Moons said:

Honestly, in that video, I thought it didn't sound close to the real ones (in particular the top end is nowhere near as clear), although it does mimic some of their tonal characteristics.

To me, getting it to match 100% (or closer to 100%) felt like a matter of maybe spending some more time EQing it. Don't forget, what we see in this video isn't a realistic real-world use case -- trying to match the real thing dead on. That's only for a comparison video.  Far more likely use case (if you don't have the real amp), you'd just dial up the sound you like on the Spark and adjust it till it sounds good to you.

BTW, I've heard some tracks Mario (M11) recorded with the Spark and they sound terrific.

If you have the real amp, you probably should use the real amp (if you can), but that comes with all the associated volume and micing issues.  The Spark is just direct in to your AI.

Seven Moons said:

the major issue I have with the Yamaha is that as soon as you push it beyond whisper levels, it sounds like utter crap... thin and tinny, I think it must be a design flaw with the power section/small speakers.  Can you get a bit louder with the Spark without ruining the sound quality? 

That is why I returned my Yamaha ad got this instead. The Spark does not have that problem at all. The cabinet is wood and well made. The speakers are bigger.

Seven Moons said:

Also, is there a desktop version of the accompanying app?   (for the really prehistoric dinosaurs who have antique phones) 

Sadly, no. I wish they did, too. There's a lot of things I'd rather run off my laptop, but this isn't the world anymore. 

M11

In my personal experience, I've found that for recording the Spark does a pretty damn good job of replacing the real thing. But every now and then I go and plug into the Tiny Terror to play with a real tube amp because the feel and response to what you're playing seems, how can you say, more "natural"? But I guess that's because our dino brains have probably been hardwired to respond better to a real tube amp. Either way, I really enjoy the Spark for what it is. The Positive Grid guys should probably consider working on a truly portable version with headphones à la Waza Air or a 21st century Rockman.

Seven Moons

Dinosaur David B said:

 The Spark does not have that problem at all. The cabinet is wood and well made. The speakers are bigger.

Ah, good to know. 

Dinosaur David B said:

Seven Moons said:

Also, is there a desktop version of the accompanying app?   (for the really prehistoric dinosaurs who have antique phones) 

Sadly, no. I wish they did, too. There's a lot of things I'd rather run off my laptop, but this isn't the world anymore. 

Indeed, that makes sense from a commercial standpoint. But this is a deal breaker for me, as long as I don't need a new phone for other purposes. 

Dinosaur David B

Well you can run these things from a tablet, too, but I'm guessing you don't have one of those either?

MAdX

Dinosaur David B said:

MAdX said:

So if I need something at home (or on the road) for silent practicing, would you go with this one or the Boss Katana headphones? 

For SILENT (and portable) - the Boss Waza Headphones, hands down.  I've taken them on trips. it's perfect.

Cheers! Sounds like they will be great for warming up backstage before a show (if there will ever be live music in the future). 

Seven Moons

Dinosaur David B said:

Well you can run these things from a tablet, too, but I'm guessing you don't have one of those either?

No. Just a pair of ageing MacBooks...