Do I need an amp

[Cancer12]

Ok, I'm starting bass guitar. Do I need an amp right away or can I hook it up to my stereo or something?

 

[wolfsblood]

yup, you need an amp.

Check out Musician's Friend for some good deals

 

[silverpig]

I hooked my electric guitar into my line in on my SB Live, and then out to my stereo. It works okay, but the lack of really good sounding effects (EAX can only do so much), is what made me finally buy an amp.

You'll be fine, but you'll grow bored. Use your stereo only while you're saving for an amp.

 

[jaynonymous]

Yeah, I would suggest an amp. You can probably find an amp for pretty cheap if cost is an issue.

 

[KEV1N]

Get a Bass or Keyboard Amp. I once blew up a tiny practice guitar amp with my bass. Be careful when hooking up to your stereo, you may blow that up too.

 

[thomsbrain]

Try to get a little practice amp or something. It will be worth the money when you want to jam with your buddies. If you stick with bass, you can save up to get a real amp later. You'll probably still find the little one handy because it will be so small and light you can take it anywhere.

 

[RSI]

Spend $100-250 and you'll be set for a long time unless you really wanna jam

Good luck, and have fun, the bass is awesome.

-RSI

 

[yakko]

No you do not need one.

 

[irrigating]

Get one of the amp/effect/speaker simulator boxes. They have headphone outputs as well as line outs you can send to a power amp, a stereo or your computer.

I bought the Johnson J-Station for $150.00 bucks. Its totally amazing. You will be inspired by the sound! Its like having thousands of dollars of amps ,speakers and effects rolled into one.

Another really cool device is the Korg Pandora. A friend of mine brought two of them over the other day. It has built in drum and bass grooves you can jam with. We plugged two guitars thru them and into a baby grand digital piano for amplification. Awesome! Theres a bunch of other brands, POD and some others.

I've been playing for 30 years, these little boxes come close to the real thing. Have fun, the bass guitar is great.(I always wish I'd played it as my main instrument instead of guitar).

Tommy P.