I FINALLY Play the Positive Grid Spark...But Should You Buy One?

So this amp is getting a ton of hype. Today I play the Spark unedited and in real-time to show you what the actual playing experience is like!
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Enjoy!

[DarrellBraunGuitar]

I know you guys have been waiting for this one! Tones start at 5:20
Enjoy :)

[timschneider]

Ordered one for my son's 18th Birthday. He will be Born in feburary this year

[Jdsuusushdhjwhehbebd]

Glad you pointed out how it looks good in any room. My Marshall full stack clashes with my shower curtain.

[JacaboBlanco]

13:20

Bud, the software didn't mess up. You picked the "funky drummer" and played rock and roll.

[jameswilbanks]

Thanks Darrell for going over the Spark. I have ordered one but it has not come in yet and this video is a great help. I am 73 and trying to learn all I can. Again Thanks for all your videos.

[s.trottier]

Whether you love or hate this thing..all I can say is I wish I had this growing up in my teens.

[schaddalton]

Bought one after seeing your video and having the confidence that it was worth every penny. Turns out...it was worth every penny. Thanks for such a thorough review, dude. And for establishing yourself as a trustworthy voice for such things.

[I-Libertine]

The best practice amp I have ever owned. Full stop. It is fun to play on for hours, the sounds are seemingly infinite, loud and solid without any compromises and loads of useful, innovative, intuitive learning tools... To be honest, if a company like Positive Grid can do this, the only real question I have is for the far more established competition: "why didn't **you** do this?"

[ryanzea]

Darrell walking into his studio: *Looks at wall of guitars & the shelf of pedals* Y'know... I don't feel like practicing today... *See's practice amp* you son of a gun, I'm in.

[alexsosa]

For sure gonna get this as my first proper practice amp...the fact it does everything including being a recording interface is just perfect....

[innervshun]

I finally got the Spark based on this review, supported by other good reports. All I will say is that I finally for the first time found the exact tones I wanted for my guitar on specific songs through the app that I haven't been able to emulate through my other amps, pedals, and software in real time! Thanks, Darrell, for giving the nod to Positive Grid.

[jim.mcintosh]

Good review, Darell. I'd mention that tools like this are also great for learning how tones are created vs just finding the right tone to play or practice with. It could take years for a beginner to learn the signal chain and the possibilities of combining different effects and styles of Amp/Cabs. You called this out in passing while demonstrating some of the tones - like when adding the Tube Screamer (16:25) in front of the high gain amp. It's a nuance but it can really help to learn tone and circuits.

[cliftongardner]

I’m always impressed with just how musical your improvs are, Darrell. So many youtubers shred endlessly and while that can be cool in its own right, I like how you play much more slowly but with much more melody and soul. Very cool demo of a very cool amp.

Side note: almost every cheap amp’s dual rectifier model is absolutely terrible. They nailed it in this.

[onesappleone]

I finally got my Spark amp after ordering it in mid April. After playing with it for two days these are my initial impressions. I wasn't really bothered by the three month wait since I knew up front that was what to expect.

I first tried it as a blue tooth speaker for songs on YouTube on my phone. It connected and worked as expected. Then I plugged in my Strat and PRS Custom 22 and tried the preset tones, and EQ and effects adjustments. I was actually surprised at how good it sounded. Maybe I wasn't expecting much based on my past experience with digital amps but I was really impressed. It almost sounded as good as some of my Fender tube amps.

I tried the create-a-jam with a simple chord progression and it worked as expected based on YouTube videos. I was not expecting a lot from the smart jam function. But I was really surprised at how many song backings in different genres were available and how good they sounded. Playing along with them required some tweaking of volumes, EQs, etc. to balance the guitar with the overall mix.

Up to now, my experience with digital amp tones created by users have been mostly not so good. I tried about a dozen different tones and liked every one of them, although, for different styles of music. Some of them were tones I would not have tried myself. But they actually inspired me to explore different things with my guitar that I would have not normally thought of.

Now for the negatives: The blue tooth connections seem to be very finicky. I had to repeatedly delete and re-install my I-pad to get it to connect. One time, the backing track played through the amp but the tones and adjustments didn't. It seemed like the blue tooth music playing and tone access and adjustments are on two different circuits making it tricky to get them to both work at the same time. When all the blue tooth connections worked, in my opinion, the amp was amazing and a joy to play with. Adjusting the guitar volume was odd since there were three different controls, "gain", "master", and "output". Volume control was not necessarily linear with the amount of adjustment inputs. Also, sometimes an adjustment in volume had an unexpectedly large impact that some effects, such as modulation, had on the tone of the guitar in the mix. The extent of this phenomenon depended on which tone was being used at the time.


Saving tones to my I-pad and to the four presets in the amp worked as expected. It would be much better if the amp had more than just four presets. It would also be nice if the volume control for the music from external devices was not so small.

Overall, considering this amp costs only $225.00, is digital and has 4 inch speakers, it sounds great. And, when combined with the I-pad app, the overall experience is amazing. Another plus is the app graphics making it easy and fun to use. I would have loved to have this amp when I was a young teenager learning how to play guitar. But back then, there wasn't even the internet or digital amps.

[claudiajay]

This makes learning all the pedals and the amps much faster.

[littmusify]

Just got it for Christmas! So far, I’m extremely impressed by the sound quality! And that’s just using the amp (without) the app! The crunch and hi-gain settings roar, and they are extremely sensitive to your guitar’s volume knob, which is very cool. Using a 90s USA Strat with Dimarzio Chopper in the bridge and heavy blues in the neck.

[Rashai]

Finally got my preorder a few weeks ago and haven't been able to put it down since. Being stuck inside has made this amp my go to and keeps the neighbors on friendly terms.

[colebuckmaster]

i’ve been watching this channel since i was a beginner guitarist, Darrell’s warm and helpful presence keeps me coming back again and again.

[smokingtarheel]

I've been enjoying my Spark for several months now after waiting for months. Timing is everything. I got in early and feel badly for those who have been waiting. I knew going in that it was like a "crowdfunding" thing. Covid-19 hit hard for those who bought after I did. Positive Grid's supply chain and logistics were affected by the virus. It's not a scam in my opinion. The product is everything and then some for the price. Darrell, your review couldn't have been any better. This is a great practice option.

[AlexVonCrank]

Darrell picks Funky drummer vs rock drummer to jam with, proceeds to play rock riff and then says the software didn’t quite get it right😂😂 Good review though👍🏽😂😂