The Five Best Mini Guitar Amps for Your Budget
The best mini guitar amps are incredibly versatile, portable, and useful. These amps can be almost as powerful as a full-size model if you find the right one!
They are a must-have for any practicing guitarist, particularly if you travel to lessons or are heading to small gigs. However, we know (all too well) the struggle you can face when finding a practical mini amp. Without testing them out first, you won’t know what is small and good (or just miniature).
To help you with your purchase struggles, we have narrowed down our top five choices that you can currently find on the music market. Read on to find (in our opinion) the best mini guitar amps!
Best Mini Guitar Amps (Quick Summary)
Fender Frontman 10G Electric Guitar Amplifier
- The Fender Frontman 10G Guitar Amplifier features 10 watts, 7.5Hx11.5Wx13.7D inches, 11.7 pounds
- The 6 inch Fender Special Design speaker delivers quality tones and variety of sounds from blues to metal
- Enjoy a breadth of controls, including gain, over-drive select switch, volume, treble, and bass
- The closed-back design packs a heavier bass response
- 2 Year Limited Warranty: Fender amplifiers are designed for players and built with unmatched quality, down to the last screw—Fender warrants this amplifier to be free from defects in materials and workmanship for two (2) years from original purchase
Fender amps are known for their rich sounds and classically beautiful design. This mini guitar amp certainly carries on in the Fender footsteps!
This amp is straightforward to use. It has all the controls you would expect to find in a full-size amp. These controls include gain, volume, treble and bass, and even an overdrive select switch. On top of this, you will also find a headphone jack and an audio input.
A headphone jack is great for amps (mainly practicing guitarists) because you can get your practice in without worrying about people listening in. The audio input is also great for guitar newbies. You can practice with your favorite songs as they blend out of the amp. It is a surefire way to increase your confidence!
The 10 watts of power is enough to produce a clear, powerful sound from such a small amp. You will be able to achieve rock tones with the gain control, blues music with the clean tones, and even a heavy bass sound because of the amp’s closed-back design.
Some users found the amp may produce quite a bit of feedback. It is especially noticeable when you switch it to overdrive. While this may put some guitarists off, we would say that the pros of this mini amp are more than enough to please every budding musician out there!
Pros
- Simple to use—The controls on this mini amp are easy to navigate, and they are also the types of controls you would find on a full-size amp. This makes it easier to transition between the two amps.
- Looks lovely—It has the classic ‘Fender’ look, which will look great in any room.
- Audio in—This allows you to practice along with other songs, which will improve a beginner’s confidence in their guitar playing.
- Ten watts—This mini amp has a huge amount of power, which helps create a full sound with so many techniques and controls!
- Headphone jack—This allows for silent practice, which is especially useful for beginners.
Cons
- Can produce quite a bit of feedback—Some users have found that you may get a bit of feedback, which can be frustrating if you try to perfect techniques.
Orange Amps Crush Mini
- Simple Controls: The simple controls give you access to all kinds of classic sounds. Crank up the Gain for heavy distortion or dial in clean and crunch tones by backing off the Gain and turning the Volume up. A quick tweak of the Shape control (anticlockwise for more mids, clockwise for more scooped) and you�re ready to rock
- Small and Lightweight: The Orange Crush Mini is designed to give you classic Orange tone in a small, lightweight package. Whether you�re jamming in your bedroom or warning up backstage, the Crush Mini is the perfect companion
- Speaker Output: Another exciting feature of the Crush Mini is the Speaker Output (8 Ohms minimum). Hook this up to pretty much any speaker cabinet and get ready for a surprisingly big sound
- Built-In Tuner and Headphone Output: The Crush Mini features a built-in tuner, as well as a headphone output that mutes the speaker for silent practice. You can also play along to your favourite tracks using the Aux In
- Power Source: Powered by a 9V battery (included) or an external 9V DC adapter (centre negative), the Crush Mini switches on automatically when you plug in your guitar
Orange amps are always great for producing iconic, weighty tones. This mini amp manages to achieve that too! Its small size makes it very portable, so you will be able to travel with it. It also works with either battery power or AC power, meaning that you can essentially use it in any location you like.
The easy-to-use amp is wonderful for beginners who want to get some practice. It has both an aux input, speaker output, and headphone jack. This feature is great for silent practicing and jamming to other songs to improve your playing.
One of the best things about this mini amp is its built-in tuner. You won’t get this on many other models, and this will save you from having to buy and carry a guitar tuner separately.
The amp has a range of tone-shaping knobs, which can pull the tone from pretty clean to distorted, with high gains! It only has one channel, so you will have to use the knobs to switch between clean and overdrive, preventing mixing instruments.
We also wouldn’t recommend using this as a replacement for a speaker because of the aux input. While it is a fantastic feature and handy for practicing the guitar, the sound quality isn’t the best you can find as a music speaker. Still, This Orange Crush Mini3W Analog Combo Amp is a sweet deal.
Pros
- Easy to use—Since there are just three knobs to control, this will be great for practicing beginners.
- Input and output—The amp has an aux input and speaker output connection, and a headphone output. All of these make for a much more rounded playing and practicing experience.
- Battery-powered—You can carry the amp around if you need to travel to a practice area or small gig.
- Has a built-in tuner—This saves money as you won’t need to buy a tuner separately, and it is also less time-consuming in the long run.
Cons
- Only one channel—This can limit the sound effects you can create with the amp.
Blackstar Electric Guitar Mini Amplifier
- Refer the user manual below for troubleshooting
- Digital ‘tape’ delay effect; Patented ISF (Infinite Shape Feature)
- MP3/Line In for jamming along or listening to music
Blackstar amps are well-known for their advanced effect settings and switches, and this mini amp is no exception. With its MP3/Line in feature, you can listen to songs while playing along to make your practice twice as effective. It also has an emulated output jack to listen to your skills through headphones.
You can switch your playing with the Blackstar’s two channels—clean and overdrive. So, if you want to get some great distortion into your practice, this feature is handy.
You will also find a built-in digital tape delay effect, which adds to the resonance of your guitar playing.
Although the amp is only 3 watts, its sound is imposing for its size, largely helped by the patented Infinite Shape Feature (IFS). The feature allows you to change the tone of your amp easily.
This makes the amp extremely portable, but it helps to build sound and create fantastic tones. Since this amp is battery-powered, you will need 6xAA batteries to get it going, although you can also use an AC power supply.
This is great for traveling as you won’t need to rely on cables or power to play guitar when you’re on the go. For its size, sound, and extra features (that are rare to find on mini amps), we would say that this is a brilliant piece of equipment, and there aren’t many amps of this size on the market that can compare to it!
Pros
- Great quality—The casing is incredibly durable, so you won’t need to worry about traveling with it.
- Two channels—You can quickly switch between clean and overdrive tones, allowing you to have lots of variety in your sound.
- Battery-powered—You can use the amp when you are on the move.
- MP3/Line in feature—This allows you to listen to music while you are practicing, which will help you to pick up techniques faster.
Cons
- Extra steps for warranty coverage—The extended warranty is not very well advertised (go to Blackstar’s website)
Marshall MS2 Battery-Powered Micro Guitar Amplifier
- Battery Operated (Best with Polaroid 9V Batteries)
- 1 Watt
- Volume & tone control
- Headphone jack
- 0.34 lbs.
This Marshall amp is tiny and lightweight—its dimensions are only 14×11×6 cm! So, if you are searching for one of the smallest amps on the market that still holds a lot of power, we recommend you give this one a go.
The amp is battery-powered, making it easy to set up your guitar practice anywhere. You can also get your practice in silently by using the headphone jack.
While this mini amp does work, we will point out that this is only a 1-watt amp. This will affect the sound quality of the amp, and it also has an impact on the volume.
Some users have found that it is pretty quiet compared to other mini amp models, and you will be unlikely to use it effectively outside. The aesthetically pleasing mini amp is excellent if you are looking for a mobile practice amp.
It may not be a great replacement for a practice amp at home, but its portability and overdrive switch are great features worth investing in.
Pros
- Battery-operated—You will be able to use it anywhere you like, even if you don’t have access to a power supply.
- Headphone jack—This means that you can get some silent practice in!
- Handle on top—This adds to the portability of the amp.
- Lightweight—Because it is so tiny, you will be able to carry it anywhere and everywhere. You also won’t need to worry about where to store it.
- Classic Marshall aesthetic—It retains the iconic Marshall design (in its tiny version), making it a lovely addition to a music collection.
Cons
- Only one input jack—This means that you can’t use another instrument (like a microphone) on the amp simultaneously.
- Relatively quiet compared to other amps—Its tiny speaker size will struggle to have a bold sound outside.
BOSS Katana Compact 7-Watt Guitar Amplifier
- 1×4″ Guitar Combo Amplifier with 3 Amp Voicings
- Line/Headphone Output
- Delay Effect
- 7-watt
- 3-b EQ
The BOSS Katana portable mini amp is a well-developed and great-sounding model that will be incredibly easy to travel with. It is one of the best mini amps on the market, and its predecessor—the BOSS Katana (full-size) amp, is multi-award-winning.
The compact version does the BOSS name justice, and its extra features make it all the more worthwhile. The mini amp gives you three different types of sound options: brown, clean, and crunch. You would typically only find these settings on a full-size amp, making this amp stand out.
As well as this, it has a delay effect, equalizer, and a tremendous amount of power behind its sound. Interestingly, this amp is suitable for both electric and electro-acoustic guitars. It has a multi-stage analog gain circuit that helps to elevate both of these instruments with a brilliantly big and expressive sound.
One thing to bear in mind is that this mini amp, while small and portable (with a helpful carry handle), is quite heavy.
It is double the weight of some other mini amps, so if you are planning on regularly traveling with your amp, note how you will navigate a slightly heavier mini amp!
The weight is due to the advanced settings and adjustments you can tweak, so considering the fantastic sound you can achieve with this mini amp, a heavier weight doesn’t seem to be too much of a negative!
Pros
- Full sound—The amp’s impressive power and great speaker makes for an incredible sound, which will do your guitar justice.
- Three amp types—With its brown, crunch, and clear tones options, you have great sound variety.
- Has aux input—This means that you can listen to music through it, whether for fun or to play along with it!
- Recording output with cabinet voicing—This feature, along with the delay feature, means that you have as much control over your sound as a full-size amp.
Cons
- Heavier than other amps—This might make it slightly less portable, especially if you are carrying it across long distances.
Buyer’s Guide
Here are some things to look out for when
Size and Portability
I know this is relatively self-explanatory; if you are looking for a mini amp, consider the size. Some mini amps will say they are mini because they are slightly smaller than large ones. Others will be so small that they are almost toy-like.
The size measurements will always be in the mini amp’s product description if you need a specific size to fit into a small space. You should also look for handles to ensure you can carry the thing.
How Is It Powered?
The two options when it comes to power are AC or battery. One isn’t necessarily better than the other; it depends on what you need it for!
If you are going to be using your mini amp for practicing at home, you will be completely fine with AC power.
However, if you want to travel with your amp or have a practice space outside your home, you might want to keep an eye out for a battery-powered model.
The only issue with battery-powered models is that you will have a slightly higher money investment since you will need to keep stocking up on batteries in the future to keep it running. The output of these amps can sometimes be weaker.
Overall, this is something that only you can know what you need from your mini amp, but you will find that many models accommodate both AC and battery-powered playing, so you won’t necessarily have to choose!
Effects
It is always great to find an amp with built-in effects, but this can be rare in mini amps. The ones to look out for in a mini amp are reverb and delays, as this creates some diversity in your playing skills.
This is especially important for those just starting out playing guitar, as you will undoubtedly be inclined to practice more when creating some incredible sounds!
Inputs And Outputs
You will find that some amps will come with audio input options. These are brilliant for practicing and getting to grips with new chords and songs, as you will be able to play along to popular/your favorite tunes.
While this is an essential element of a mini guitar amp, it is certainly a great selling point to watch! In terms of output, varieties of this are tricky to find in smaller amps since they are mainly used for practicing rather than more ‘professional’ situations.
You will find a couple of the mini amps with one speaker output, which allows you to get some major volume by connecting it to a larger, external speaker!
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Mini Guitar Amps Loud?
While this will depend on the manufacturer and model of your mini guitar amp, the basic answer is yes!
They are not overwhelmingly loud, which is what bigger amps are helpful for (particularly in terms of concerts), but mini amps can certainly pack a punch for your everyday home practice.
