small battery amp for busking-- pignose hog 20 ok?

Coz the Shroom · 08-21-2014, 09:41 AM

I wanna do street/park/protest performances and I asked my wife to get me a battery powered guitar amp for my birthday-- and not too expensive. Ideally, it would be cool if I could get one that would be loud enough for her to accompany me on a stripped down drum kit (snare, floor tom, hi hat).
I have a 10 watt danelecrtro honeytone and it is a pretty cool amp, but it uses a 9 volt battery that runs out way too fast, and is barely loud enough to get my guitar audible on the street.
I figure the pignose hog 20 has twice as much wattage, so it might be louder, and moreso for the pignose hog 30, both of which use a plug in rechargable battery pack which I like, like like!
There are youtube demos of the hog 20, but you can't judge volume from a video and the damned thing was miked on one video anyway!
Does anyone have any experience with these and can set me strait ? The pignose hog 30 is $40 more than the hog 20, but if the hog 20 is barely loud enough for what I want, should I spend the extra dough and get the hog 30? Or do they both suck?

Plankton · 08-21-2014, 10:00 AM

Roland Cube. It has what you want.

Roland Cube | Musician's Friend

Coz the Shroom · 08-21-2014, 12:34 PM

yes but the roland cube is like $300 isn't it?

Coz the Shroom · 08-21-2014, 12:41 PM

ok there's a $150 model but it has a 5 inch speaker and only 3 watts! how can that possably be loud enough?

Plankton · 08-21-2014, 12:43 PM

Depends on the model you're looking at. They have one for $179. I've never tried the Pignose, but I have used a Cube in a live performance, and it's a great little amp. There are others out there too like the VOX Valvtronix.

After doing some reading, I'd say the Pignose is a good choice, but of course if you go cheap, you'll likely wish you had saved a bit more and gotten the better one.

Plankton · 08-21-2014, 12:44 PM

Some good comparisons here:

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourcei...gnose&safe=off

Coz the Shroom · 08-21-2014, 12:58 PM

there's a 20 amp model but it doesn't say its battery powered. I really dig all the features though, so if wattage does not nessecarily translate into volume, I might just grab one of those 3 watt models up!

Plankton · 08-21-2014, 01:38 PM

You can have volume with low wattage, but bass response, and low frequencies will suffer. So, if you're just playing guitar through it, you should be alright. Just make sure you purchase from a place that you can bring it back for a full refund... just in case you get the buyers remorse.

Coz the Shroom · 08-21-2014, 02:33 PM

ok, I had to look long and hard to find any information on how loud it gets, but this review on Amazon sold it for me! "Living in downtown San Diego, there are always a bunch of street buskers around, particularly in the touristy areas. I've come to notice that the vast majority of guitar playing street buskers seem to rely on the Roland Micro Cube, and whenever I hear these guys, I'm always very impressed -- not by the guitar playing, which tends to be fairly pedestrian, but by the big sound they manage to get from such a tiny amp. Even from the opposite corner of a busy intersection, you can clearly hear them over the din of downtown, and they don't sound half-bad either. So when I had the opportunity to pick one up for 75 dollars, I eagerly snatched it up."
Thank you Plankton!

Plankton · 08-23-2014, 12:02 PM

Glad I could offer some help. Happy jammin!

08-21-2014, 09:41 AM	#1 (permalink)
Coz the Shroom Groupie Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: in the mountains 7,000 feet high Posts: 34	small battery amp for busking-- pignose hog 20 ok? I wanna do street/park/protest performances and I asked my wife to get me a battery powered guitar amp for my birthday-- and not too expensive. Ideally, it would be cool if I could get one that would be loud enough for her to accompany me on a stripped down drum kit (snare, floor tom, hi hat). I have a 10 watt danelecrtro honeytone and it is a pretty cool amp, but it uses a 9 volt battery that runs out way too fast, and is barely loud enough to get my guitar audible on the street. I figure the pignose hog 20 has twice as much wattage, so it might be louder, and moreso for the pignose hog 30, both of which use a plug in rechargable battery pack which I like, like like! There are youtube demos of the hog 20, but you can't judge volume from a video and the damned thing was miked on one video anyway! Does anyone have any experience with these and can set me strait ? The pignose hog 30 is $40 more than the hog 20, but if the hog 20 is barely loud enough for what I want, should I spend the extra dough and get the hog 30? Or do they both suck?

08-21-2014, 10:00 AM	#2 (permalink)
Plankton Just Keep Swimming... Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: See signature... Posts: 7,765	Roland Cube. It has what you want. Roland Cube \| Musician's Friend __________________ See location...

08-21-2014, 12:43 PM	#5 (permalink)
Plankton Just Keep Swimming... Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: See signature... Posts: 7,765	Depends on the model you're looking at. They have one for $179. I've never tried the Pignose, but I have used a Cube in a live performance, and it's a great little amp. There are others out there too like the VOX Valvtronix. After doing some reading, I'd say the Pignose is a good choice, but of course if you go cheap, you'll likely wish you had saved a bit more and gotten the better one. __________________ See location...

08-21-2014, 12:44 PM	#6 (permalink)
Plankton Just Keep Swimming... Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: See signature... Posts: 7,765	Some good comparisons here: https://www.google.com/webhp?sourcei...gnose&safe=off __________________ See location...

08-21-2014, 01:38 PM	#8 (permalink)
Plankton Just Keep Swimming... Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: See signature... Posts: 7,765	You can have volume with low wattage, but bass response, and low frequencies will suffer. So, if you're just playing guitar through it, you should be alright. Just make sure you purchase from a place that you can bring it back for a full refund... just in case you get the buyers remorse. __________________ See location...

08-21-2014, 12:34 PM	#3 (permalink)
Coz the Shroom Groupie Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: in the mountains 7,000 feet high Posts: 34	yes but the roland cube is like $300 isn't it?

08-21-2014, 12:41 PM	#4 (permalink)
Coz the Shroom Groupie Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: in the mountains 7,000 feet high Posts: 34	ok there's a $150 model but it has a 5 inch speaker and only 3 watts! how can that possably be loud enough?

08-21-2014, 12:58 PM	#7 (permalink)
Coz the Shroom Groupie Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: in the mountains 7,000 feet high Posts: 34	there's a 20 amp model but it doesn't say its battery powered. I really dig all the features though, so if wattage does not nessecarily translate into volume, I might just grab one of those 3 watt models up!

08-21-2014, 02:33 PM	#9 (permalink)
Coz the Shroom Groupie Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: in the mountains 7,000 feet high Posts: 34	ok, I had to look long and hard to find any information on how loud it gets, but this review on Amazon sold it for me! "Living in downtown San Diego, there are always a bunch of street buskers around, particularly in the touristy areas. I've come to notice that the vast majority of guitar playing street buskers seem to rely on the Roland Micro Cube, and whenever I hear these guys, I'm always very impressed -- not by the guitar playing, which tends to be fairly pedestrian, but by the big sound they manage to get from such a tiny amp. Even from the opposite corner of a busy intersection, you can clearly hear them over the din of downtown, and they don't sound half-bad either. So when I had the opportunity to pick one up for 75 dollars, I eagerly snatched it up." Thank you Plankton!

08-23-2014, 12:02 PM	#10 (permalink)
Plankton Just Keep Swimming... Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: See signature... Posts: 7,765	Glad I could offer some help. Happy jammin! __________________ See location...