Re: And just like that...
Originally Posted by
BadExampleMan
... what grownup amps go well with the instrument?
That would depend on how much space you need to fill, and how "electric-vs-acoustic" you want to sound. Guessing that the 5-string is a solid-body, therefore going for a more "electric" sound?
I'm no expert on electric mandolin, except to note that both mandolin and guitar generally cover a range of about 3 1/2 octaves, of which only one octave or so does NOT overlap, so mandolin (in the grander scheme of things) is not so radically different from guitar as many tend to think. Some will disagree, but I'd start looking at reviews of guitar amps just to get a feel of what's out there and what some folks think is important.
(Edit: Flymolo0's recommendations, above, are way more current than my experience!)
As far as guitar amps go, I've had a bunch, from a tube Fender "piggy-back" BandMaster down to the AA-cell Roland MicroCube that I currently use to back up a mandolin group at library-friendly levels. FWIW, the MicroCube, for all its diminutive size, is still a step up from the Honeytone, plus it models an array of other well-known amps and effects, even if the audiophiles among us might disagree. IMHO, lots of fun for (these days) about $160.
- Ed
"Then one day we weren't as young as before
Our mistakes weren't quite so easy to undo
But by all those roads, my friend, we've travelled down
I'm a better man for just the knowin' of you."
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