Acoustic Amps? (preferably battery powered for live work)

[Pygmy]

Woody Sound, hey I'd love to hear back once you get it. Tone--I'm really interested to know whether it's capable of a nice fat sound.

[Pygmy]

Woody Sound, forgot to ask--are you gonna be playing an electric acoustic thru that thing or a hollow body electric guitar?

[Rob Fletcher]

The AC-33 IS a battery powered amp. Perhaps you were just not aware of that? Look at the back of yours.

Roland - AC-33 | Acoustic Chorus Guitar Amplifier

Interesting - mine must be an older version - I got it used on ebay a year or two ago. No battery possibility on it, I just assumed they were all like that.

[Pygmy]

Good to know, Rob Fletcher, in case I look for a used AC-33. Right now I'm waiting to see if there are any President's Day sales on new ones. I'm aiming to do some busking, which is why I'm interested in a battery powered amp. The Roland AC-33 now also has a jack outlet for something like an iPad, if you want background tracks. If anyone else can provide more feedback on how electric jazz guitars sound thru Roland AC-33s, I would love to hear more. None are available to try out in nearby stores.

[Pygmy]

I own a little amp I really like, called the DV Mark Little Jazz. It's the lightest little amp I've ever owned (15.21 lbs) and has pretty good tone if what you're after is a classic jazz guitar sound. I use it in an ensemble that includes drums, bass, vibes, piano, trombone, trumpet and whatever horn plays straggle in. The amp is extremely stripped down--reverb, hi, lo, mid, master--that's it. Has a metal grill. No input for a device such as an iPad, unfortunately, so it can't be used to plug in background tracks. AC only. A fan cools the amp. Some people object to the sound of the fan, but it's never bothered me even when I play alone.

As I mentioned somewhere above, the Trace Elliott TA50R acoustic amp is somewhat lightweight (33 lbs) and has a wonderful tone for jazz guitar.

[sgosnell]

You need to look at your Little Jazz a little closer. There is a 3.5mm Aux input on top, beside the regular input jack.

[Jabberwocky]

I see these hell-raisers on e-scooters getting in my way every damn day. Why hasn't someone taken the same battery packs to power a good guitar amp?

How well do those DC-AC inverters work with guitar amps?

[Pygmy]

Awesome, sgosnell! How funny I didn't realize that about my own amp. At home I play over background tracks, but I plug an iPad into my stereo for that & it goes thru the speakers. When I take the amp out, I play w/ other people, so I don't need background tracks... The Little Jazz is truly great for a rehearsal or a session. I also use it at home when I play w/ a second guitarist. I would probably gig w/ it in a small venue if I didn't feel like lugging my extremely heavy Polytone MiniBrute, which is my favorite amp of all time. The DV Mark Little Jazz is pretty damn good, but the tone is not as rich.

Unfortunately, I still need a small, battery powered amp to busk in the subway. If I carry out this plan, I would input the iPad into the battery operated amp for background tracks.

[Pygmy]

Jabberwocky, I did something like this a long time ago w/ a 10W Fender practice amp and a dry cell motorcycle battery. I didn't do the wiring, I hired an electrician to do it. It was cumbersome, esp by today's standards. I would hesitate to do it to a nice amp, because for one thing you would lose any kind of warranty on the amp. But also, it does make the amp heavier and more awkward. As I recall, the battery fit into a little space in the back of the amp, but it was loose. Can't remember if I could use the AC once I'd modified it. I don't think so. I know zip about AC/DC inverters...