The Spark Amp | What's it really like?

Summary

In this video, the reviewer shares their experience with the B stock Spark 40 modeling app, which they purchased for over $230. They discuss its solid build, impressive bass response, and the ability to save four custom presets. Despite the amp's loudness and high-quality sound, they find the bass to be excessive and lacking tightness. The Spark's app offers a vast library of tones, including famous song presets, which can be easily accessed and customized. The reviewer appreciates the app's simplicity and its potential for beginners, but they remain unsure if it suits their personal preferences. They plan to test it further, acknowledging its potential for firmware updates and improvements.

Takeaways

• 🎸 The user purchased a B stock Spark 40 modeling amp for over $230 to explore its features and answer questions they had.
• 🔍 First impressions were positive, with the amp feeling solid and having quality knobs.
• 🎶 The amp's sound was unexpectedly bass-heavy, which was the user's first complaint, as the bass control didn't seem to help much.
• 📢 It's loud enough for practice but might not be suitable for gigs without additional amplification.
• 🎚 The amp has a good high-end response and a mid-range that can be mastered with volume control.
• 💾 Users can save four favorite presets for easy recall, a feature appreciated by the user.
• 🎵 The user recorded examples using a microphone in front of the amp to capture the amp's sound directly.
• 📱 The Spark 40 app allows for easy sound customization and access to over 10,000 tones uploaded by other users, which the user found useful.
• 🌐 The app connects to a cloud where users can share tones, including those from famous songs, making it easy to replicate desired sounds.
• 🎵 The amp's clean tones are very clean and chimey, but the user wished for more breakup with added gain.
• 🔧 The user prefers dialing in sounds manually but found the app simple and well-organized, despite not being a big fan of apps for sound design.

Q & A

What is the speaker's initial opinion on the B stock Spark 40 modeling app?

The speaker initially had a positive first impression, noting that it looks good, has the right weight, and the knobs are of good quality.

How much did the speaker spend on the B stock Spark 40 modeling app?

The speaker spent just over 230 dollars on the B stock Spark 40 modeling app.

What was the speaker's concern regarding the bass response of the amp?

The speaker was concerned that due to its small size, the amp might lack bass response, but found that it actually has plenty of deep and low bass.

What issue did the speaker have with the bass control on the amp?

The speaker found the bass to be a little too bassy and not tight enough on the low end, and the bass control did not help to resolve this issue.

How does the speaker describe the volume of the amp?

The speaker mentions that the amp is plenty loud enough for practicing but may not be loud enough for gigging.

What features of the amp does the speaker appreciate for its high-end sound?

The speaker appreciates the high-end sound when the treble and mid-range are cranked, and the ability to master volume, which acts like a digital attenuator.

What is the speaker's opinion on the clean tones produced by the amp?

The speaker likes the clean tones, describing them as really good, chimey, and not sounding digital.

How does the speaker feel about the app's ability to instantly provide song tones?

The speaker finds the app's ability to provide instant song tones useful, especially for those who require quick results and are learning famous songs.

What additional features does the speaker mention about the app?

The speaker mentions that the app allows users to save tones, connect to a cloud for user-uploaded tones, and includes a backing track feature.

What is the speaker's overall verdict on the B stock Spark 40 modeling app?

The speaker is undecided about whether the amp is for them, but acknowledges that it made them play the guitar more, especially with high-gain tones.

What potential improvements does the speaker suggest for the amp?

The speaker suggests that firmware updates in the future might help improve the bass control and overall sound quality.