[travlnmn41]

I would recommend a Peavey Classic 30. It's a tube amp and has a great warm sound, and it's only about $350 (at least it was when I bought mine in 1998).

[ezo4]

fender twin reverb, ebay 500-1000, new 1200 or so

[rawcatslyentist]

I have a 75 watt line 6 spider. It has a bunch of models, SS, efffects, sounds great clean and dirty, & is readily available. 300$ more or less. Big enough to gig, small enough to transport.

Here is a page with a few tunes I have done on this amp.

Kill A Commie For Mommie
Seven Dead Monkeys Page O Tunes

[cripplecreek]

STIHL

[real saxophonist]

I'd say Peavey, maybe Fender. If you're talking small to medium, you shouldn't have to spend more than $400, maybe $700 at the most. That'll be plenty, and it'll hurt your ears if needed.

[thoughtomator]

I've got a Fender Princeton 112 Plus for pretty much the same purpose, and I'm very happy with it. IIRC it's about $200-300. Give it a go and save yourself some cash.

[rockrr]

Although I own and use a Fender Cyber twin, I recently got an opportunity to jam with some guys that were running a Crate 1X12 and a Marshall 1X12. Don't know the exact models. Both were in the 50w range. Both were SS. For smaller venues either would be plenty loud.

The Marshall sounded vaguely tinny at all volumes. The Crate sounded solid and like a Fender Blues Deluxe (but at probably 2/3 he price).

I guess you have to guage what you plan to use it for - if everyone else is playing through Marshall stacks, you're fooling yourself if you don't have a Fender Twin at the very least.

The Cyber Twin is rated at 100w and I run it through a 4X12 cab. I like it because it is predictable at any volume, hugely versatile, and, being a head unit, doesn't break my back every time i move it ;'}

Best bet (and half the fun) is to test drive the crap outta them!

[Yossarian]

I'm new to amplified guitars, but you might be interested in what I do: I use my computer as a customizable amp.

I do this with "Garage Band" - a program that comes bundled with all new Macs. It is essentially a mult-track recorder and sequencer, but done with that great Apple ease-of-use and style. (Ah, as easy to use as a mult-track recorder and sequencer gets....)

First I plug my guitar into my Mac. If your guitar puts out a strong enough (but not overpowering) signal, you can plug into the mic-jack, or even line-in. I use a Presonus Firebox audio interface, which has a good pre-amp built into it.

You then specify in Garage Band that this instrument is the input device for a track, and then specify the effects to be applied to this track. These effects include simulations of different guitar amps, as well as all the tweaking controls for each model.

The effects are applied in real-time, with the end result piped out the computer speaker (or headphones). It's a blast to jam away on an acoustic with a pick-up, and have a big-metal sound come pouring out with every strum!

Don't like the amp simulation on that perfect lick you just laid down? Simply change the effect preferences for your track - the old effects get erased, and the new effects get applied. At least 4 amps are included in Garage Band, and more are available as 3rd party add-ons.

So, with this setup, I can jam away, trying all different (virtual) kinds of amplifiers & settings, and even just listen to it through headphones when I don't want to bother the neighbors.