Buying your first amplifier may seem a bit daunting, there are hundreds of different types on the market so we shall try and give you the help you need to make that first choice. We shall cover all the things you need to know and tell you all about them, read on.

Shown above here is a typical amplifier panel with its controls.                 We shall go from left to right and explain what each dial does.

1, Gain , turned up on a clean sound gives a crisp punchy sound, where as on distortion gives     a real dirty sound, the more gain the more beef or metal to the sound

2, Bass gives more of the low note so a thicker muddier sound.

3, Middle is between bass & treble and gives real edge to the amplifier

4, Treble like on a high-fi , it gives top and brilliance to the amplifier, and brings a very high pitch into the sound.

5, Chan Volume is how loud can it go on that channel , Master volume is the overall volume of the amplifier, so you could have a Chan Vol on low and a Master Vol up very high it all depends, you should really experiment with the controls.

6, Power damp lets you turn up the amp to get a really good sound and then the button damps the sound down, so you have that great sound at a lower volume

7, Master volume is the overall volume control for the amplifier it lets you turn everthing up or down in volume

8, Power switch , this turns the amp on and off, but remember to turn the master volume to zero when you turn on or off,....... if you dont the speaker will give a loud thud.

9,  All amplifiers vary and you must try and get the best sound possible, as if it sounds good to you its bound to sound good to other people, make sure your guitar is in tune though.

10, To get the best distortion sound you have to turn the drive up near full, and start with the master volume on low, then turn up your master volume slowly, experiment with the bass & treble to get your favourite sound,