Positive Grid has rolled out Spark 2, the long-awaited sequel to its groundbreaking smart guitar amp, and it does not disappoint when it comes to digital features, with upgrades to be find right across the board.
For starters, Spark 2 is loud. Twenty-five per cent louder than the original Spark. It debuts an all-new digital brain, with this new DSP driver equipped with double the power of its predecessor.
Spark 2’s speakers have been redesigned too, with these FRFR drivers and reflex ports designed to create a more immersive stereo field for your electric guitar (or bass guitar or acoustic guitar) tone to inhabit – or for music. Once more, the Spark 2 blurs the line between home audio and traditional guitar amp.
Aesthetically, it is not a million miles away from the original. The apple has not fallen far from the tree, with Positive Grid offering this in black vinyl or Pearl white editions. But there are some things here that could be positively game-changing.
Take the AI-assisted tone feature. Simply open up the Spark app, describe a tone, and it will put it together. This being AI, the more often it is pressed into action by the Spark user community, the better its results. Which all sounds a little, “Siri, give me reference quality shoegaze tone…” Et voila, your wish is its command.
But that, really, is pretty much how it is works. You describe the sound you are looking for and Spark will suggest some to try out. Nuno Bettencourt, who was involved with the product launch, is a convert. Consider the Extreme guitarist sold on the Spark 2.
“I’ve used a ton of practice amps while touring the world for over 38 years and it was always just a technical, bland exercise,” he says guitar virtuoso. “Spark 2 is like taking Madison Square Garden wherever you go – epic and versatile.”
Smart features such as the Smart Jam and Auto Chord return. As before, this is an amp that will join in with your practice and writing sessions; the creative looper will be lots of fun. There are hundreds of drum rhythms to explore. This is a looper that can do looping 101, all the essentials, and some of the more complex looping tasks for those building a more complex sound.
Positive Grid says the new amp models have been “enhanced by multi-band dynamic range compression and virtual bass augmentation” – and you can store up to eight player-customisable presets directly onto the amp for quick recall.
That intuitive approach was what made the original so successful; it was groundbreaking, digitally audacious, and so on and so forth, but at the same time it had controls that felt like a traditional amplifier.
That tactile user experience is still at play here, too. A lot of your sounds can be adjusted manually. Though you will definitely want buy the footswitch if you want to use the looper to its full potential.
You can run firmware updates on the Spark 2 via wifi. You can run it wirelessly on rechargeable battery power, with up to 12 hours of playing time from a full charge. There are all kinds of connections, too, including stereo line outs, a headphones output for silent practice, and a USB-C port that allows you to use it as a guitar audio interface.
There is more, and you can read all about it in MusicRadar’s Spark 2 review. Not to spoil it but the verdict went a little something like this: “The tone is simply spectacular, and now at 50 watts, the amp feels more powerful and assertive than ever before.”
All these updates, but the price stays the same as its predecessor. It’s available now at the introductory price of £249/$259, regular price £289/$299. See Positive Grid for more.
"It's the best-sounding album I think I've ever recorded": Why Mark Tremonti believes his 20th studio album recording raises the bar for his guitar tone
“Endless creative possibilities with just a flick of a switch”: Harley Benton’s DNAfx GiT Core packs 55 amp models, 151 effects and an 80-second looper into a compact format – all for under $99
