SPARK unboxing - Will I like it? - BUY BUY BUY or bye bye bye? - Viewer reviews at the end.
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 16 มิ.ย. 2021
- Positive Grid hit us up looking to sponsor the podcast, I told them I couldn't promote the Spark without trying one first and they agreed. This is the result, will I accept the sponsorship?
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Let me say this. I bought a Spark. Once you use it and get totally familiar with it and the app and the capabilities, it is hard to criticise. It's an amazing practice amp. Incredible value for money.
Thank you so much for your integrity - I recommend you and only a few other of these channels to friends of mine who are just starting to get into guitar gear, and I appreciate it every time something like this comes up because you *didn't* just trash it. You put real time and effort into trying to unlock great and fun sounds, and you didn't resort to any kind of hyperbole or anything in evaluating it. Appreciate you greatly!
The Spark is geared toward being a beginners tool that you use in your garage, or bedroom to discover pedals effects, and amp types. I've owned my for less than a year, and it hasn't moved from where I put it when I unboxed it, but I do use it almost daily and I'm still learning as I go. I think it was a good purchase.
That is why I bought it... to play around with "amp heads and pedals" without needing to buy thousands of dollars worth of gear to muck around with different stuff.
What? Incredibly ignorant things to say.
@@henrydiaz720what was ignorant about this
I bought one... and sold it again within the month.
It's basically a box of mud, why? because it has a built in cab sim WHICH YOU CANNOT TURN OFF and GUESS WHAT ? you're listening to it though a cab! you may as well chain cab sims. The only sounds possible from it are muddy indistinct sounds. I have no idea what they were thinking, but MY they're good at marketing.
Marketing company. Terrible sounding amp. Actually worse than a boss katana, which I didn’t think was possible.
Yeah, right... No one at Positive Grid noticed how horrible it sounded through the years of development. None of the people who tested it for months before it went to market noticed how horrible it sounded. None of the tens of thousands of satisfied customers noticed how horrible it sounds.
If you can't get good tone from the amp, try harder. Seriously, the amp sounds great... I dialed in my basic tones within minutes and fine-tuned them over the next couple of weeks as I noticed little things I could improve. I haven't changed my sounds since then. As for running it a cab, well, I've tried it into my Tech 21 Power Engine 60 and it sounds great!
@@MarcCoteMusic Why do I have to think something sounds good just because you do? Enjoy life be happy
@@autistichead8137 - You don't, of course. But since pretty much any tone you can imagine can be found in this amp, the idea that someone can't find one or two - or ten - that they like suggests they haven't done any digging into the features.
@@MarcCoteMusic ok spark marketing department 😂
Ryan's experience with the Spark is shockingly different from mine. I got mine last year and it's not muddy at all. Hearing his playback of the Joe Bonamassa cloud preset shocked me. For me, that preset soars. Yes, it's natively bassy, but roll that off to 9 o'clock and it's fine. I just wonder if there's something wrong with his unit. Maybe Ryan should collab with Phil McKnight and share some impressions on this amp. He's said he loves it for practice.
I was in a Spark forum for a while and I got a VERY clear impression that it is far from a consistent product, some people adore it citing it's clarity of sound for the price, and some people hate it citing nothing happens at all above 8kHz . My experience was the latter and this video captures the sound of the model I had very accurately. It really can't be possible that thousands of happy users haven't noticed it has no top end, it must be that the product varies greatly.
His experience describes mine EXACTLY. Maybe just bad manufacturing and inconsistency.
This seems off and way dark in comparison to the other vid reviews Ive seen on this amp
Weird!
Arturo Peter Blavis
Phil too pointed out that it was heavy on the bass. Seen plenty of reviews of this amp and to my recollection nobody else has mentioned it's bass heavy. Wonder if this is quality control issue as somebody else has mentioned.
@@redmed10 I understand that that are many public complaints, it's just not my experience. I play in a larger room with no boundary issues. I don't see how a digital amp could sound drastically different from one unit to the next, though.
I LOVE mine, best $239 I've ever spent on a piece of gear. I find it hard to put my guitar down when I start playing because it's so much fun.
If the bass knob had numbers they would read from 10 to 10
I agree regarding the low end, and I appreciate your candor on the product, Ryan. I think it's got way too much bass, which I suspect might be because it also functions as a bass amp. I think you're also right about them trying to fatten it up at low volumes for practice. I think it's in the speakers, because the huge booming bass disappears when I use headphones. That said, I really like the amp for my use purposes. I've got in my living room, and use it for practicing and I mostly wear headphones. I practice bass on it as well, and it works well for that. I think it's really flexible and delivers on what it promises, but it would be great if Positive Grid could dial back the bass when not using headphones (I usually turn it all the way down, or almost all the way down). Stylistically, I play a lot of blues and like a fatter sound, so with the bass dialed back, the tone is right in my wheelhouse. However, I wish it had more usable range when not using one of the bass amps, and I'm hoping they fix that with a firmware update.
I always appreciate your honesty transparency and willingness to make your thoughts known about the whole youtube gear review world, the responsibilities, and your place in it. I trust your opinions because of your years of honesty. Thanks Ryan.
Glad and impressed to see Ryan's honesty with this review. I was having the same reactions as he was throughout the video, especially with the low-end, muddled sound that apparently couldn't be tweaked out.
Respect your honesty Ryan. This is what it's like for me. Have had one almost a year now, and bought a second one for my daughter. I've had a break from frequent guitar playing for some 30 years, but with this little thing I'm back on track, practicing almost every day. I would be intimidated by a big regular amp, I was never that good, and the family would throw me out. But this one fits everywhere. Wife think it's beautiful in our livning room and appreciate the BT speaker function. Oh, and the bass issue I solved with putting it above the floor on a stand. It's OK by me, for the price and the ease of the app it's perfect. Think that's quite common when reading posts on FB, lots of old farts like me who got their enthusiasm back. And that's not a small thing. That said being well aware of the imperfections of the Spark, but there are also so many ridiculous expectations on it.
I feel like a global hi-pass filter could easily be added via a firmware update. If they see this, maybe they’ll implement it. Good review, Ryan.
Sounds like the amp should have a "Global Sound Settings" page that can be applied post-preset to tune the preset to the particular amp or room that it's in.
I have the Spark pearl version. Indeed a lot if low end. But with altering the patches and save them as preferred patch it works good for me. Very happy with it.
I find if I place the spark on a wooden surface, it's a lot more bass than if I place it on a carpet or better yet, place a small rug under it where you place it. It will muffle the bass just enough to really bring out better sound.
@@shreader327 Interesting to know. I've ordered a Spark a few weeks ago in the new year's sale and I'm curious to hear the difference in the sound depending on the surfaces I put the amp on. Maybe it has to be decoupled from the surface it's on to really sound good.
@Stoney3K a thing I did that helped tame the bass is to open it up through its grill use a bit of foam through the hole, then turn down the hardware bass setting myself. The specific app bass for various amps can be turned up and down and that paired with the hardware bass seems to be overpowering as all get out. So from my experience turning down the hardware setting really low seemed to help quite a bit.
I was stoked to get one until now, I’m glad you present the way you do, gives us all a clear picture of products that still need the bugs worked out… thanks
I've had one from day one. The noise gate kills everything. There are so many fantastic saved user cloud creations that you never need to use the amp the way Ryan used it. I purely use it with saved presets. So much easier. It sounds so much better than Ryan's vid. Great practice amp. That's all.
As he got further and further into the video I was thinking the same exact thing. I am no means a stan for the Spark but for the price point its beyond a solid practice amp. Perfect for a beginner/intermediate player IMO.
Everyone who reviews it fails to mention that the sound reproduction for music is incredible, as if thats not an important feature too! Ive got a blue tooth speaker, that cost well more than my spark, and the spark sounds twice as good! I know thats not the point of the amp, but value is value! The spark could cost twice as much as it does, and would still be worth every penny. In my humble opinion.
i have had it for a long time the new firmware brings some new stuff wish they would upgrade the noise gate
I had this feeling too that he was using it the way you would you an actually amp. But still a great in depth video for someone that would have this product hoping to do what Ryan did with it. That being said I just pre-order a pearl colored one. As I need something like this in the price point that I can take from the bedroom to band practice.
@@stevenpipes1555 NO, this amp would never be worth twice its price. It is a good little amp and doubles a as speaker... but that isn't an extra $300 of value for that capability.
For what it is advertised, that thing is off the charts. And the pricetag is more than fair. Also I'm watching this video with my spark as a BT speaker.
I was tempted to buy one as the pre owned prices are low. But as I already use the software on iOS which is very good and integrated to DAWs, I decided to buy a good Bluetooth speaker and it does the trick w/o the flaws you described. Thanks for your detailed review.
i’ve always appreciated your candid opinions on this channel. even when you love on the afford a board pedals! i think it’s important to take you in context, and know that even when you’re having a bit of fun, you’re really trying to give an honest take of the gear you play. thanks for holding the line on integrity. you’re the 4th video i’ve watched on the spark, and you’re the only one to remotely say anything negative. i won’t be buying this and for that i really thank you.
Ive had this fir a few days and love it. I've watched Vids of paid and unpaid reviews. Most everyone thinks it sounds great. Mine sounds better than his. I think his opinion was predetermined. He wanted to not like it so he didn't like it. It happens
@@Bcananzey can't you update firmware on it? If that is the case bugs will get worked out.
I really appreciate your honesty with this video. As you mentioned, this thing was kind of shoved in everyone's face for a long time. I'm still inundated with ads about it on social media. While intriguing to me, something was telling me not to buy it. This video confirmed my gut feeling.
It’s pretty easy to fix that perceived bass problem. Simply remove the front screen (it’s just held on with Velcro) and fill the bass port with a cloth. Problem solved.
Thank you so much for your honesty. I am old, and have zero desire to connect to an iPad or a phone or a computer to run a guitar amp. The kids are into it, but it is too late for me.
I considered buying this, and I even owned a Yamaha THR, but I got rid of it and avoided the Spark in favour of having two Boss Katana 50 running wet/dry on a Radial BigShot ABY pedal. I know they can be connected to computer as well, but I never do it. I am happy with the sounds on the control panel. Fair play to those who enjoy their Spark, have fun.
Thanks for your honest evaluation. I just (December 2022) bought a Spark and was anxiously awaiting delivery until I saw this video and the worry began. Fortunately, after research, I discovered Spark added an update (mid 2022) that includes 3 more amps plus guitar and bass EQ pedals that alleviate many of the heavy bass 🔊 issues. Thank goodness. You're doing great work Ryan! Keep that sh#t up!
I accidentally purchased one of these, gently used, BEFORE I watched this video. I was a little nervous to hear what it sounded like in person, but I guess I lucked out and got one that wasn't so murky. I am a little disappointed about the missing spring tank too, but I see they released a few more virtual pedals (at a $19.99 cost) a couple weeks ago for the JH Experience.....perhaps with some persistent nudging, they will add a few more of the basic pedals we all love. Thanks Ryan for all your reviews. I always enjoy your format, and value your input.
Just saw a review that described how new "pedals" in their app allowed users to tame the over-the-top bass. That goes to demonstrate the accuracy of Ryan's impressions. I think that will make it a lot more useful. It's a big trend - profiling amps with apps to make them into whatever the app allows
My wife got me a Spark amp for Christmas last year. My findings: When you're very close to it or it is on the floor, it is SOOOOO bassy that you have to rebuild each preset with the bass rolled off. The Twin Reverb amp sounds decent, largely because this sounds like an amp with much larger speakers. None of the stock presets are worth anything. But the Twin Reverb for clean, the Matchless and Vox amps for light to medium crunch, and the Ampeg bass amps are not bad. This amp actually sounds decent as a small bass amp. The Bluetooth speaker functionality is terrible, way too bassy. But I do play through my Spark every day in my home office, because it's small, and I can dial in a bunch of sounds using the app for messing around. It'll never replace a dedicated amp, though. It's okay as a practice tool.
I recommend the Spark to anyone who lives in an apartment or condo. I live in a townhouse and play Page, Hendrix, Mayer, and Frusciante songs at low volumes on a daily basis. I previously used the Yamaha THRii but wasn't thrilled with the app, although it's arguably the better sounding amp. The Yamaha is now my son's amp and our travel rig. The Spark app is great. But, you need to invest some time to dial in your tones. Find starter patches on ToneCloud and THEN refine those for your room and guitars. That said if you really want to cut the bass, I highly recommend a bright, Klon clone like the Electro-Harmonix Soul Food.
I have used one for about a year now. The software can be buggy, although it has gotten better. My biggest issues is not being able to adjust things on the fly easily.
I find it serviceable for silent practice and recording, the sound tends to be better when its run direct from the the usb on the back into a daw, as the speakers tend to sound really box-y in the room.
Everyday person/guitarist review, excellent job. I've been wanting someone to say it does not sound like an amp in a room. You also said a lot of other things I've been wanting reviewers to say it does or doesn't do. I use these reviews form the TH-cam guitar community to come up with a collective opinion on products. I keep you, Ryan, a part of my TH-cam subscriptions because of your reviews. You make the hard call and have a decided philosophy to what your channel is about, and what it will and will not be a part of. Thanks!
Doesn't mean I wouldn't buy it. These gear companies need to listen to reviews and make changes for users wants and needs. Thus, they should not be using TH-cam channels to promote and sell. They should use guitar TH-camrs only to improve a product leading them to be able to meet the consumers on common ground. This is where they will be able to make more sales. Happy consumers, return for better products.
My other thought is that gear companies should use TH-camrs as a part of product development. So, put the product out to gear reviewers, get feedback from reviewers and read the comments of consumers. Then next the TH-camr does a live and the viewers could ask questions. These Companies could get a lot of valuable info. Let Research and Development make important decisions not the "Bean Counters,"
In final comment, a year ago, when I was thinking about buying this amp, I checked to see if 60 Cycle Hum/Ryan reviewed it.......
I’ve had my Spark for a year. It’s my nightly noodle toy…that’s it…it’s not a live music or band practice amp imo. It was designed to get players to experiment and learn. For those reasons I love it! It is bassy though as mentioned. Simple solution is to get it off the floor.
For a bedroom guitarist who wants the guitar to sound good by itself, the bass level is appropriate IMO. Many amps don't have enough bass to sound good at low volumes.
This is the point. Too many guys acting as if this can replace all those Fenders, Marshalls, Boogies & Dumbles are missing the mark. This was made more for students who want at least an idea of how they could possibly sound out of much more expensive gear.
I’m not looking to have my purchase validated by a TH-camr’s review. The fact is it was a purchase I made based on reality. I don’t have the space or the money for a pedal board or to stock it with pedals. It’s in my desk space so I already have no more patience with cable management. I want to experiment with different sounds and I want to learn. That’s basically it. The sound is decent enough to serve its purpose, that being a practice modeler. I didn’t have the money for my dream Fender Deluxe Reverb and all the rest. I don’t really jam with many people. I’m just learning. That said, it’s far better than the Line 6 Spiders and the Marshall Code. It’s a neat, decent sounding and feature-packed practice amp. Perfect for all my needs. MY needs. Sure I’ll upgrade later. But only when I l’m good enough. Not before. This will help me get to where I want to go.
Don’t worry. There are other TH-camrs that will validate your purchase.
@@60CycleHumcast did you not read my comment? Lack of space. Not good enough yet. Don’t really jam with many people. Cable management. It’s just my situation. Your comment was uncalled for. What is your problem?
Ryan, your honesty is like a breath of fresh air. Also watched your Eart v Indio video today and you are right about TH-cam channels over hyping stuff. I think your assessment of the spark is probably the most realistic I've seen. This product is being over hyped by TH-cam influences for sponsorship, and users who are generally too inexperienced to know its not what it's built up to be.
All that low end… that would be a pain. Sounds like it’s nearly impossible to take it out as well.
Glad I watched this!
Curious if there is an updated review since the firmware update? They now have an eq pedal that IMO really cleans up the sound quite well!
Took 8 months to get mine last year, I’ve absolutely loved it so far.
Getting a loan of one for a week off a mate then ill decide whether to buy or not
@@dermot51 I still love mine. It’s everything it should be so far. No real complaints besides the power supply
I have one of these, plus I might well have watched all the reviews on TH-cam And the low on yours does seem excessive, Mine is nothing like it! I reckon you should contact positive grid and tell them you think its faulty.
I use the Spark as a practice amp and a bluetooth speaker for my deck. In that application, I find it to be a huge value. It performs well as a bluetooth speaker when I have guests. Then as a little outdoor practice amp, it's great because of its versatility and all-in-one amp rig nature. That said, I agree it sounds like digital recordings played through a reproduction speaker. I think in the right application with the right expectations, the Spark is fantastic. However, if you want something that functions as your primary guitar rig, you can probably do better. Also, the guitar EQ effect can really help tame the low end.
Thanks for this video. Since I bought this amp last year I have had issues with it. First, it has a hum on high gain settings which Positive Grid address with a new grounded power supply. The unbalanced eq, ie the crazy amount of low end, I try and balance out with an eq pedal. Now I feel like I have a decent practice amp and audio interface. However, I don’t think it was worth it in the end.
I think the issue with the EQ is they tried to make it a guitar, bass and music amp all at once instead of focus mainly on it being a guitar amp.
Could have left out the bass feature maybe I dont know but 99% of the reviews are (cough) positive
Nice video! I have the amp and I agree it's bass heavy. That seems to be a pretty common complaint. The community has figured out that plugging up the bass reverb hole behind the screen with a sock or some foam or something helps a lot, and other folks have swapped out the speakers to something that isn't so bass heavy. The bass hole is no big deal but having to swap out the speakers is kind of a big mod.
I think the consensus was that the amp was also marketed and designed as a bluetooth speaker for listening to music and that ultimately is what leads to the bass-heavy output. I think generally speaking most of the community finds that to be a mistake. I know I *never* use it as a bluetooth speaker.
I've also heard that BiasFX, which is honestly probably what is running inside the amp, uses the master for how hard you push your simulated tubes, not volume and that it's extremely touchy with gain vs master settings.
At any rate, if you couldn't figure it out the average schmoe just starting won't figure it out. I'm keeping mine for a bedroom impulse practice amp but I find I don't play it nearly as often as I did when I first got it.
iv had mine for 6 months and love it best thing iv bought myself in over 25 yrs. mine does not sound muddy unless I use my HB -hh guitar and then the software takes care of that. I may buy another in the white shell wonder if I can chain them together?
Best Vid Thumbnail! ....for reals thanks for the review. I've been curious about the Spark amp for a while.
you may've lost some money, but you just saved me a good couple hundred of bucks. Thank you so much for your honesty and transparency, you have a new fan here
That’s what I like about this channel: it’s soooo cutting edge...
When Ryan mentions the low end, the cover of my heater was rattling just from playing that video over my speaker.
It sounds like you never took it out of the box. So dark and muddy sounding.
I know, right? I can’t even watch all of this.
@@BillyE5150 equalizer??? It has one
Kudos for giving a frank opinion. Most people seem to agree about the bass. I had a similar reaction to yours about the four presets when I got mine. The online patches helped quite a bit however. I do like the bluetooth connectivity. I wouldn't recommend this without the app, but with it, you have a functional practice amp with tons of tonal options at an affordable price point. Roll off the bass on the tone controls and on the individual effects and you can shape the tone a lot to get what you're looking for. At this price point, it's a great place to start. You'll learn a lot about the kind of gear you may want to invest in down the road as you progress and have plenty of tonal options to explore.
I’m pleased I watched this after I bought it. I’m I beginner who has no idea what a good amp should sound like or what each pedal does. So I’m learning a lot from the amp. I love it! And I love using it as a powerful Bluetooth speaker.
I got myself a spark when they first came out, and I like it. It works fine for me but I don't play out or any of that stuff.
Is when you connect to the amp through Bluetooth there are 2 spark devices available and you have to connect to both of them in order for music to play through
Had one for 6 months, not very impressed until I di these thing-
Found the sound awful at first. Mids were all over the place, noise gate kills the sound when you want to play soft. Turn off the noise gate and you get a lot of noise. I also get a lot of earth hum. How an digital amp achieves this is illogical to me.
Anyway they were cheap not providing an earthed power supply. Read you can write an get one that is. Did that, Spark sent a new PS (free) . made a mountain of difference. Still really muddy lows and was going to get rid of it and go back to my THR Yamaha amp.
I then found a Spark Amp hack page. They suggested getting 4 inch 3-way car speakers 30 to 40 watt rated. I got a pair of Sony 3 ways for $60 au. I had to trim 3 mm from the 4 screw tabs on the speakers and they screw straight in, wiring connector the same so simple swap. The Pioneer equivalents just screw straight tin.
This has made the amp very useable and great sound across the frequencies. Why they put cheap one way speakers in was a silly mistake that holds the amp back.
Can you please post the hack web site.
Back in at 1 hour in, still not good to me, way to boxey and bass heavey to me. Sounds like plugins via a speaker system to me! You are right, appreciate your honesty!
I’m Terry Rand, the guy from the Facebook group that loves the thing. lol I can’t help but wonder if the low end gets more pronounced with volume? I’ll have to try that and see. I use it literally 2 feet in front of my face for practice at low volume and direct into Reaper to record. If I want to play at any volume at all, I plug into one of my real amps. Is it voiced the way it is to make it sound big at low volumes?
I'm kind of in agreement with the reviewer, here. I kept mine for about three months, and then sold it for what I paid for it. I found dialing in the desired tones to be very tedious, even frustrating, and many of the mid and bass tones sounded very "muddy." Yes, I do agree that it can be fun, and it's a terrific value. But it's fun from a novelty perspective, not from a tonal definition perspective. I'm back to the Yamaha THR-II... which is reliably simple to use and delivers a decent range of quite satisfying sounds.
Would love to know if the low grate issue has been resolved or improved. I was about to buy one of these practice amps until I saw this video. Thank you!!
I have one and it sits unused. I've been using my iphone lately playing through the Mustang GT100 and jamming with TH-cam tracks and having a ball. The Bluetooth works quite well. Also, the Mustang Micro is perfect for jamming along using Bluetooth. The bluetooth drops from the Spark too. Maybe I'll just use it as a BT speaker for listening. Turn the bass WAY down.
I ordered one in the first pre-order rush. It eventually came, and I'm satisfied with it. I use it mostly as a bluetooth speaker for my laptop, watching this video with the sound coming from across the room. It works well for that. As a guitar amp, it's fairly powerful for a practice amp. Half volume at most. The amp does tend toward bass-heavy. I have the presets set up for Fender-ish, Vox-ish, Marshall-ish, Orange-ish. Yes, the onboard knobs are digital, so they revert to saved when you switch. Use the app for best results. I haven't yet made any use of the jam along features, but that may be my failing. I also couldn't relate to a Trio, or a looper. It would be better with a pad than with a phone, which is what I have. I haven't used it to connect to my computer for recording, because the amp emulations I have in GarageBand are fine with me - even more options than the Spark. I usually go for Fender blackface or tweed, or Vox. They were pushing the new pearl-coloured one recently, but it was no different, and I like the brown.
Ryan, I’ve been watching the channel and listening to the podcast pretty consistently since last year and I really appreciate these honest reviews.
I still feel that the PodGO and a FRFR speaker is probably the most versatile set up for the money.
I have a few amps but my go to is my pod go to my headrush 112 and hook my laptop up for creating tones.I find it effortless and the sounds is magic even at ridiculous volumes.
Nice Ryan, it's cool that you say what you think even if its bad business for you . When it first came out I was a little curious but then something about de app and having to navigate menus plus the small speakers held me back. After watching your video in totally sure that I rather just keep playing on the 1989 peavy Backstage 110 I've been using
It's a great value for the money as a small footprint practice amp. I don't even use the speakers and take the USB out into a small Berenger mixer out to my studio monitors. It has some great tones and some meh tones, but you can find good ones. My criticisms are it could really use an EQ pedal or two of some sort and a better drum loops. You can get around the EQ problem by using pedals to make up for the lack of adjustability in some amps, however I just use an EQ pedal now. Still for $250 or whatever it is now, it's a good value for what I use it for which is strictly practice.
I watched loads of videos when looking for a modeling amp with interface capabilities. It's why I settled on a used Yamaha THR 10C. No low end problems and a ton of presets you can make on your computer or mac. On its own, it just plain sounds good. recording, it sounds good. Can't ask for more.
Thank you. After everyone's reviews I got one and I was quite disappointed. I kept it because I thought maybe I was doing something wrong but I still don't like it to this day. I've had it for about 6 months now but I always play on my Yamaha THR 30 II. I'm glad that now I have someone else who agrees with me on the spark. Yamaha is still the king of desktop amps for me.
The Yamaha costs twice as much, I would hope it would sound better.
@@try2bcool even the THR 10 non wireless sounds better for the same price as a spark.
I am always concerned about over-advertised products. I believe the best publicity is word of mouth. When companies feel the need to inundate all medias with advertisement, a red light turns on in my mind. Personally, I am quite happy with my Yamaha THR-10. It sounds great and I do not need all the software bells and whistles Spark has to offer. It's funny because I could not find that much publicity at all from Yamaha when this came out...
You are not wrong on any of the criticisms. It is dark and muddy, which works for me with my style. For the money it gives me a ton of options and fun for a small portable bedroom jam box. I wouldn’t suggest it for anything other then that at all.
Seemed a very balanced review to me. It came out just after I'd bought a Vox vt20 and the wall-to-wall raves left me wondering if I'd made the wrong choice. In the end, though, I realised that I didn't need the gimmicks it offered, just something that was reasonably -priced, decent build quality and good sound that could be dialled in easily.
The Vox has a digital app too, but after playing around with it for a while I concluded there was more than enough flexibility on its control panel and I can plug in direct, select a particular amp sound, tap a few effects and get a decent sound. I can still plug in a pedal board if I want something more tailored, but if I just want to learn a song or practice, without fuss, it's up to the job.
As it stands, I suspect that in a year or so time, there'll be a fair few of these second hand on Reverb. I think it's a great concept, but first and foremost, any amp needs to have a great sound that makes you want to pick up your guitar and play.
Great and honest review. I thought you were going to be in somebody’s pocket like some of the other TH-camrs. But you were honest and very insightful to the product. Thank you.
Thank you for giving a good critical analysis of this product. I think you said a lot of things that needed to be said and for me one of the new pandemic players I need to build up my gear and this could have just been a waste of money for me.
Thanks for the video. Which humbucker guitar do you use play on this video?
I’m glad you received a grounded power supply (3 prongs)… the amp I received came with a non grounded power supply and I had a HUGE hum issues… when I contacted customer support … they actually had me make a video to verify the hum issue before they would send a grounded power supply
It is bass heavy but this may be because the designers were trying to satisfy the needs of a guitar amp and a bass amp (and a streaming box!) which are usually different amps. There's a sound port under the speaker grill you can fill in and this fixes quite a bit of it. Other people change out the speakers ($40) for something more mid focused (which I'm going to do). The firmware update gives you an EQ pedal which you can shape your sound with, I've done this and it works. I really like the AC and Matchless amps and the effects pedals are great. Yes HX Stomp is probably better but its 4 x time the price. I got mine for $150, its brilliant. I've already requested a Fender 63 reverb tank pedal sim from Positive Grid, they need it! :)
I'm curious how you would like it hooked up to an extension cab. If that's possible.
I love my Spark use it everyday!
I'm just happy Ryan used the same facial expression in the thumbnail that he says everybody uses when demoing the SPARK.
lol, i kinda had to, there was no better screen grab to use
I hated how my spark sounded at first. Then I put it on a shelf next to me at ear level, what a difference. I really like it now.
very informative. if you slap headphones on, does it sound different? sounds like the top end keeps getting chopped off (reminds me of cheap speakers from the 80s in a waiting room 🤷♂️)
I’ve read popping off the grill (it’s velcro) and stuffing the bass port and back of the cab with poly fill helps smooth out that low end. I haven’t tried it myself, but I definitely feel your vibe on the bassiness.
I love mine! I I filled the bass port with foam. And put foam inside the cabinet.
Thank you for the most honest review of the Positive Grid Spark I have seen to date.
I'm an aged beginner (in my 50s) Learning to play guitar is a 'bucket list" thing for me. I have been considering buying one. I've watched quite a few videos on this product. The same points seem to come up over & over; The app is easy & fun to explore & play around with. Which I think would enhance the learning experience for beginners like myself. As just a plain guitar amp, they seem to be mediocre at best. Every video I have seen, points out the overwhelming bass. With a few tweaks, they could make these a really great product.
I really hope the engineers at Positive Grid are paying attention to all these reviews.
I like mine, but I definitely agree it was too muddy on all the defaults. Had to roll the bass all the way off and the treble up at 3 o'clock for most sounds. I bought it as a practice / travel amp and it's very good for that - not that I've done much travelling recently - and it does take my real pedals in the front pretty well. Even my "if it doesn't have tubes it doesn't count" friend was impressed with the sound. But I enjoyed the video and it's REALLY refreshing to hear someone giving a genuine and honest opinion, instead of the usual gushing praise!
What humbucker guitar is that? I was trying to read the headstock the whole time but I couldn’t see the logo.
I've got one, and yea, it's very bass heavy, which makes sense since it's an "all-in-one" amp. I really wish they'd release an electric guitar only version with speakers that are specialized for highs and mids, would be amazing.
That said, I like it for my bedroom guitarist needs, all the patches I use have all the bass rolled off. It works for me, and the soundcloud has a ridiculous amount of patches, which is always fun when learning a new song to see if somebody already uploaded a patch for it. I don't use the built in jam capabilities, it never sounds all that great, but the ability to pull chords out of videos is useful
edit - It's a bluetooth speaker, turn it on, go into bluetooth settings on your phone and connect to it just like any other bluetooth speaker
Take out the speakers and stuff the cab with sound insulating foam. Stops the booming quite a bit… but not entirely.
I'm new to guitar, amp and pedals. I got one of these knowing that I'd likely outgrow it. I wanted to get to know some popular amps and pedals at a reasonable cost. I also liked that it comes with a DAW and is an interface. My main complaint is that it lacks a looper. Honestly, it sounds much better with headphones.
I love my Spark 40 for home use. It sounds big for such a small amp. Better at a distance of 6 feet or so. I don't like the presets - way too much bass - I only use custom tones with the bass rolled off. It works well with bass guitars.
My issue with this is I’ve seen many reviews of the spark. I’ve seen it on its own, I’ve seen it put up against other amps and hold its own and surpass the other amps in functionality and tone. Assuming what you’re looking for is an intuitive practice amp. In all those reviews I’ve never heard the amp sound that bad. I don’t know how it’s being dialed in in this video but something isn’t right. I know that the spark has a low frequency focus to be well suited for acoustic, bass and electric guitars and also be a good Bluetooth speaker but maybe the ribbon mic was the wrong choice.. maybe it should be running direct because I think as a desktop amp that’s kind of how it’s meant to be played. If you look at bias software, it is designed to be put in through the daw and as a tool. I think this is the same idea. I think it would sound great direct and I think it would sound great with quality headphones.
Two 4” speakers are not going to sound good when you mic them, especially not with a ribbon mic. We’re not talking about a 4x12 cabinet here, we’re talking about a 4” voiced speaker. Of course it’s going to sound that way when being used in that way.
This video doesn’t represent this amp well at all. Now I by no means think the amp is perfect. But it’s a tool for creativity and I think that’s pretty awesome. Go check out other videos on this thing and see what it really sounds like 😂
We don’t all play surf guitar. I love the personality of this channel but this is the wrong product for it.
I think the spark is more towards rock and blues players. 🎉
I bought a Vox “Valvestate” emulating amp a few years back for $90 bucks less than this thing, and it sounds GREAT! Out of the box it does very faithful emulations of 11 different amps (including the Vox AC-30, with and without the treble boost circuit developed for The Beatles). And if you download any of the several packages of OTHER sounds, it can sound like MANY more. The power amp section is solid state, but the preamp is TUBE, so to the player it acts like a tube amp!
I have one and it seems that a firmware option to cut the boomyness and reduce the compression would be good thing. It's in stark contrast to a THR10 which is similarly priced.
Thank you for saving me money with this review. I've used Positive Grid BIAS and FX2, and it's fine sent to an acoustic guitar amp set flat. It's heavier than the Spark, but seems to do the job.
Thank you Ryan for your honest review. The thing I like most about the Spark amp is I didn't buy one!
I make songs with lots of different styles, kinda my gimmick. I got one of these on a whim because of all of the built in effects. It's not my go-to amp, BUT I found it has its uses. I used it solely for all of the electric guitar parts in my latest song. (Keep in mind I'm a moderately-less-than-average guitarist lol) I found that the sound out of the headphone jack is weak, but putting a mic directly on the amp, I got some impressive sound from it. I can't say I've gotten any wonderful dirty tones from it, but I enjoy the clean sounds.
I'd say I got my money out of it. I think it's quite versatile for the price. However, anyone looking for something to use more than a practice amp should look elsewhere.
I play a ton of different stuff and I can’t recommend the PodGO enough! It uses the Helix modeling framework and is pretty versatile, especially when using an FRFR speaker.
If you ever get a chance I would ditch the Spark for the PodGo or some other Helix family platform.
how do I find this latest song on which you used the Spark ? Thanks
you're supposed to use the USB interface with your DAW software for recording. its a direct interface to the output section before the amp so you get the same thing you get from the speakers into your recording setup. the headphone out is for headphone or silent use.
I feel like mine got much better after hooking up the app. I think it was able to update some of the internal software because it got rid of some noise and it really does sound better now.
Fast forward 2 years later; I recently purchased for “practice amp”; it sounds way better then your demo tones - maybe firmware improvements?
I got mine to be a PRACTICE modeling amp and teaching tool. It’s been more than great for that. A lot of fun to use. That said I would love to have a Fender Princeton Reverb.
Trying to add a looper.. is the airstep the only way to do it?
What I usually do if there’s no spring reverb is I put a slap back delay on and use a reverb pedal with it to boost it
I tried one out but it did not click for me but I did not think it was bad. I really liked the idea though of a super small but quality amp. I ended up with the Yamaha THR10II, a lot less features but I found really good sounds very easily. One regret is i wish I'd bought the THR30II then I would not need the app at all. I do think the future of bedroom play is either these small style advanced multi speaker amps or audio interfaces > DAW > monitor speakers. Respect for the honest take, you may of lost a sponsor but you gained at least one messily little sub!
Using the EQ pedal is the only real solution to correcting some of the Low End. I still like the 40 for practicing/jamming
Figured I had to chime in. Is it the God Box it was made out to be. No way in Hell. But is it cool. Probably. Depends on your mindset going into it. It’s a practice amp with some usable features. There are some mods that can be done to make it more bearable. Easiest is block the bass port. If you line the inside of the box with foam it helps out tremendously with the low end. Add an external battery and its full portable. Probably the most usable thing I’ve done. But shortly it’s a practice amp. And probably should be treated as one. Oh and it does recording pretty well.
A sock and a power bank lifts this product greatly.
What is the Power output watts - is it 110 AC current or 220 AC? As in my country its 220 AC power