Top 5 Most Popular Modeling Guitar Amps

Modelers come in many shapes and sizes, but modeling combo guitar amps are one of the best ways to get acclimated with the digital tech dominating today’s soundscape. The inherent convenience and flexibility of modelers put dozens (often hundreds, even thousands) of tonal possibilities at your fingertips—and modeling combo amps, specifically, tend to minimize menu diving and flatten the learning curve associated with many floorboard or rackmount units.

In this article, we’ll cover five of the most popular modeling guitar amps here at Guitar Center.

Top Modeling Guitar Amps

Fender Mustang GTX100

What to Know:

• 40 amp models, 70+ effects and 200 genre-specific presets

• 12" Celestion G12FSD-100 speaker

• Includes a seven-button footswitch

The Fender Mustang GTX100 combo crams a whole lot of amplifier into what’s ultimately an affordable, portable package. In addition to the huge selection of amp and effect models, the signal path is completely modular, allowing you to build out elaborate chains to chase your weirdest and wildest tonal whims.

From there, you can keep tabs on what’s happening through a very convenient LCD screen offering an overview of your settings. The GTX100 also features Bluetooth, letting you sync the Fender TONE mobile app to the amplifier for deep, remote editing capabilities. And even if you just want to keep things simple, intuitive “regular” amp knobs and 200 built-in presets help you pull up quality sounds in a pinch.

Fender Mustang LT25

What to Know:

• 20 amp models, 25 effects and 30 preloaded presets

• 8" Fender Special Design speaker

• Headphone and USB outs

Another member of the Mustang family, the best-selling Fender LT25 sits in what might be considered the sweet spot for practice modeling amps. It’s got just enough amps and effects to be incredibly versatile and inspiring, without triggering options paralysis. All function, no fluff—that’s something to appreciate when it comes to modelers.

You’ll have no problem sitting down and dialing in a cool custom sound or recalling one of the onboard presets covering the “greatest hits” of guitar tones throughout eras. This is a solid “futz-around” amp, but when it’s time to lock in and commit some ideas to 1s and 0s, the LT25’s USB output makes direct recording a breeze.

Tons of players gravitate toward this Mustang as a great sounding, feature-rich, budget-friendly modeling guitar amp. It might be the right place for you to start, too.

Line 6 Spider V 60 MkII

What to Know:

• 78 amps, 23 cabinets and 101 effects

• 10" Line 6 speaker

• Headphone and USB outs

Line 6 has been at the forefront of the modeling game since 1996, and the Spider V 60 MkII is the latest evolution in a long line of “eight-legged” combo amps. From American and British classics to contemporary high-gain monsters, there’s pretty much a model of anything anyone would want to play. You can chain up to eight effects together for each patch, which is more than enough to establish some really polished core tones or some really out-there experimental ones—some you might call … “insane.”

Other nifty inclusions are a tuner, metronome, looper and drum beat library, optimizing your practice sessions and letting you jam with accompaniment in real time.

BOSS Katana-50 Gen 3

What to Know:

• Five amp types and up to 65 effects

• 12" BOSS speaker

• AUX in, headphone out, USB

The BOSS Katana-50 Gen 3 contains five Tube Logic-modeled amps (Clean, Crunch, Lead, Brown, Acoustic) designed to emulate the sound and feel of real valve amplifiers. Three simultaneous effects categories include Booster/Mod, Delay/FX and Reverb, each with five settings for up to 15 built-in sounds. You can also unlock up to 65 total effects through the companion BOSS Tone Studio software, which lets you further refine your settings for total creative control. The Katana-50 has enough juice for rehearsal and smaller gigs, but the handy power scaling feature—from .5W, to 25W, to full output—makes it fantastic for practicing at home, too.

Positive Grid Spark 2

What to Know:

• 33 amp models and 43 effects

• Two 4" full-range speakers

• Bluetooth, AUX in, headphone out, stereo line outputs

On the cutting edge of compact modeling amplifiers is the Positive Grid Spark 2. It’s lightweight, battery powered and produces true stereo sound for massive tone. You can store up to eight presets from the top-panel controls, each with up to three preamp and three post-amp effects, plus one amplifier model. But when you tap into the ToneCloud via the Spark App, things start to really open up. There, you can explore more than 100,000 presets from players all over the world, for virtually unlimited sonic possibilities. Currently in beta, the Spark AI feature even generates tones based on custom prompts.

Spark 2 is the amp that keeps on giving.

How We Picked These Modeling Amps

Nothing beats first-hand experience, and we try to get hands-on with as many of these amplifiers as possible. Barring that, we listen to the community’s experience. We take note of what’s generating buzz through rave reviews on our site, and then we package them up for presentation. These modeling guitar amps are best-sellers here at Guitar Center.

Get Amped

After all that, we hope you’re hyped on modeling combo amps. This list barely scratches the surface of modelers and multi-effects units, but it’s a great representation of what players consistently choose, whether they’re setting up a rig for the first time or adding to an extensive collection.

If you’re tempted by any of these amps, swing by your local Guitar Center and see what’s in store. Don’t be shy to also get in touch with a Gear Adviser—either online or by phone—for further assistance in narrowing your choices.

Ready for more guitar rig essentials? We got you:

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• “Top 5 Most Popular Overdrive Pedals”

• “Top 5 Most Popular Reverb Pedals”

• “Top 5 Most Popular Delay Pedals”

• “Top 5 Most Popular Practice Guitar Amps”