But are low-wattage amps better? Why have they grown in popularity? Do guitar amps with a higher wattage sound better than low-wattage amps? We\u2019ll answer your questions.<\/p>\n
Let me caveat by saying there is nothing wrong with high-wattage amplifiers; they will ALWAYS have their place. I have 2×30-watt amps and multiple low-wattage amps including the Laney LA-Studio amplifier<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 and they all have their place and best use cases at home, in the studio and onstage. But you can\u2019t always crack out a 30-watt amp at home at full volume\u2026unless you hate your neighbours.<\/em><\/p>\n Let\u2019s get stuck in.<\/p>\n No. There\u2019s no \u201cbetter\u201d amp. Just better ways to use it. If you like tube amp distortion at lower volumes (without having to turn up the master volume) lower wattage amps are better for you as you can achieve harmonic distortion at lower volumes. If you want high-volume clean tones, then high-wattage amps are better. If you\u2019re playing smaller-sized venues, low-wattage amps may be best for you. If you are playing festivals and stadiums, you may want the power of a high-wattage amp so you can hear the sound behind you.<\/strong><\/p>\n Pic: The Laney LA-Studio<\/a><\/strong> being used to record guitars.<\/p>\n Low-wattage amps usually have a Master volume or Power Brake and then a Gain control. This means you can crank the preamp tubes to get your pleasing harmonic distortion without the volume. Higher-wattage amps, especially tube amps need to be turned up loud to send the tubes into saturation and then achieve that pleasing harmonic distortion.<\/p>\n Higher-wattage amps, especially vintage-styled amps usually only have Master Volume and Tone controls. So you have less control over the Gain stage. If you want louder volume without distortion, also known as \u201cheadroom\u201d, you generally need higher wattage.<\/p>\n In terms of playing live, some guitarists these days will find low-wattage amps better. They solve a lot of problems for bands when it comes to volume management on stage. When one instrument is too loud (the drummer), other band members have to turn up their amps, leading to excessive stage volume. The sound engineer tries to control this, but if they can’t, the band and audience both have a poor experience onstage \u2013 everything is too loud and feeding back. With a manageable stage volume, each member can hear themselves through the monitors, the sound guy can mix you properly and the audience enjoys the show more.<\/p>\n Turning up to a small gig with a 100-watt tube amp will inevitably be followed with \u201ccan you turn that down, please\u201d by the sound engineer. Trust me on this one\u2026we’ve also covered how loud your amp should be on stage<\/a><\/strong> here.<\/p>\n We also asked Simon Fraser-Clark \u2013 tone wizard and brand manager at Laney:<\/p>\n \u201cPresent-day health and safety prevents you from turning the volume on amps up loud.<\/p>\n If a sound engineer can have a low sound stage – he can mix you a lot better. If you have a 50-watt amp, you’re never going to get to turn it up and generate the power amp distortion – because you’re never going to turn your power amp up. Classic guitar tones are almost always smaller amps turned up loud in the studio, anyway \u2013 no one turns an amp up all the way.<\/p>\n Sometimes small is beautiful.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This is subjective. But at lower volumes, low-wattage amps achieve the pleasing harmonic distortion faster and at a safer volume. Higher-wattage amps achieve that harmonic distortion but you have to crank them. You may like this, but you\u2019re going to get to the pleasing tones faster with a low-watt amplifier.<\/p>\n Again, either amp may sound \u201cbetter\u201d to your ear than the other. You may enjoy the higher headroom of a turned-up higher-wattage amp, or prefer the sound of a heavily distorted smaller-watt amp. It\u2019s entirely subjective.<\/p>\n I personally love the feel and utter satisfaction of cranking a Laney Lionheart<\/a><\/strong> way up high for gigs, but absolutely love that the likes of the Laney LA-Studio amplifier can get those classic tube amp tones at a lower volume at home, in my headphones and through my DAW when I need to record.<\/p>\n I can\u2019t always record a dimed tube amp at home, but the straight DAW capabilities of the LA-Studio captures that incredible tube saturation perfectly and sounds awesome! You can read more about why it’s one of the best tube amps for home use and studio recording here.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n In short, low-wattage amps are lighter to carry, cheaper, drive harder, achieve better harmonic distortion at all volumes and can adapt to all playing scenarios. PA systems are so good these days so higher volume onstage isn’t a necessity. People are running silent stages, and in-ear monitoring, so smaller amps are slowly becoming the preferred choice for musicians as your sound engineer just needs to take a nice signal from your amp via a good microphone and push it out through the PA.<\/p>\n You\u2019re not the only one wondering why all the high-wattage amps disappeared.<\/p>\n In recent years, the trend has been towards lower-wattage amplifiers because low-wattage amps get the same tone as a high-wattage amp at lower volumes, they\u2019re easier to carry (tube amps are HEAVY) and they typically cost less than their higher-wattage counterparts. Additionally, many gigging players find that they can still achieve adequate volume in most live situations with a decent guitar or bass cabinet, or going direct into the PA system with an ampless guitar rig<\/a><\/strong>, streamlining their gear.<\/p>\n The use of lower-wattage amps also allows for more flexibility in terms of tone and sound. Players can experiment with different settings and effects to create the driven tube sounds and see how they react with pedals \u2013 something that may not be achievable with a higher wattage amp.<\/p>\n Furthermore, lower-wattage amps are often more portable, making them ideal for gigging musicians who need to transport their equipment.<\/p>\n We’ve also covered how many watts you need for a concert<\/a><\/strong> in another article.<\/p>\nAre low-wattage guitar amps better than high-wattage amps?<\/h3>\n
![\"Are](\"https:\/\/www.laney.co.uk\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/Are-low-wattage-guitar-amps-better-than-high-wattage-amps-1000x523-1.jpg\")
<\/p>\nThe sound differences<\/h4>\n
Playing live<\/h4>\n
Do guitar amps with higher wattage sound better than lower wattage amps?<\/h3>\n
Why have lower-wattage guitar amps grown in popularity over higher-watt amps during the past decade?<\/h3>\n