Studio monitors or guitar cab ?

[hillerheilman]

Hey forum, I need advice again.

So thus far I’ve been playing guitar mostly through headphones using my iPad with bias amp. I’m to the point now where I’m not as embarrassed with my playing and I want to get some speakers to use instead of headphones. I’m wondering if I should get some studio monitors or if it would sound better using an actual guitar cab(meaning the speaker cabinet, effectively letting the iPad with bias amp act as the amp head . Bias amp has cab simulation, and the celestion ones sound alright to my ears but I’m not sure if it would be detrimental to use studio monitors regardless of that or not. Anybody have advice?

[marqueemoon]

By "guitar cab" do you mean a a dedicated guitar amp (whether a combo or head/cabinet)?

If so I say yes. It doesn't need to be big or loud or expensive.

[hillerheilman]

By "guitar cab" do you mean a a dedicated guitar amp (whether a combo or head/cabinet)?

If so I say yes. It doesn't need to be big or loud or expensive.

Well, no. I probably should have been more clear. I meant specifically the speaker cabinet, letting the iPad act as the “head” in this scenario. Edited the original post to clarify.

[Embenny]

You still need a power amp to drive a guitar cabinet in this scenario. When you say "studio monitors", you're probably referring to active (powered) studio monitors, which comprise a power amp and speaker in an enclosure.

The analogous "guitar" cabinet would be a powered guitar cabinet...which is as rare as hen's teeth. There are some powered FRFR (full range, flat response) cabinets, but they're expensive. There's also the Crate Power Engine series, if I'm recalling the name correctly. Otherwise, you still need a power amp. Or, a guitar amp with an effects loop, which let's you send the output of your amp modeler straight into the amp's power amp, effectively using it as a powered cabinet. This is assuming that you have a means of outputting from your iPad into a 1/4" input (this is usually handled by an audio interface).

Edit because I finally remembered the name of those Crate amps.

[marqueemoon]

Yeah, there are a few powered guitar cabinets out there that were designed to be used with modelers.

I’d just use home stereo speakers and a little integrated amp on that scenario.

[soggy mittens]

Depends on what you will end up using it for. If you intend to jam with other people or play live then a proper guitar amp would be a must. Studio monitors are designed to be the only speaker in the room, they're designed for detail and clarity without second reflections etc. You try to use a studio monitor in a band mix and it will get drowned out. If you only intent to jam at home alone and record then studio monitors are a good option. Digital amp sims tho... my opinion on those are bias towards the negative so I won't go there, if you're happy with them then that is all that matters.

[hillerheilman]

You still need a power amp to drive a guitar cabinet in this scenario. When you say "studio monitors", you're probably referring to active (powered) studio monitors, which comprise a power amp and speaker in an enclosure.

The analogous "guitar" cabinet would be a powered guitar cabinet...which is as rare as hen's teeth. There are some powered FRFR (full range, flat response) cabinets, but they're expensive. There's also the Crate Power Engine series, if I'm recalling the name correctly. Otherwise, you still need a power amp. Or, a guitar amp with an effects loop, which let's you send the output of your amp modeler straight into the amp's power amp, effectively using it as a powered cabinet. This is assuming that you have a means of outputting from your iPad into a 1/4" input (this is usually handled by an audio interface).

Edit because I finally remembered the name of those Crate amps.

I thought this might be the case, but I wasn’t sure. Thanks for clarifying.

Depends on what you will end up using it for. If you intend to jam with other people or play live then a proper guitar amp would be a must. Studio monitors are designed to be the only speaker in the room, they're designed for detail and clarity without second reflections etc. You try to use a studio monitor in a band mix and it will get drowned out. If you only intent to jam at home alone and record then studio monitors are a good option. Digital amp sims tho... my opinion on those are bias towards the negative so I won't go there, if you're happy with them then that is all that matters.

That’s a fair point. I do my mixing and such through my headphones, so it’d really just be for jamming at home, maybe with other people.

I get your opinion on amp sims. I really use them out of convenience. Due to my disability I have a lot of difficulty carrying around and transporting amps. So it’s a lot more convenient for me to be able to throw my interface, headphones and iPad into my gig bag and be able to record or practice wherever I want to.