Amplifying Your Ukulele
- Acoustic Amplifiers - These are amplifiers specifically optimize for acoustic instruments
- Portable PA Systems - There are a lot amazing PA Systems available. And although I own a music store with my wife Bern and daughter Kelly. I still use Sweetwater Sound for personal gear and recommendations with brands we don't and can't carry. Here is Sweetwaters's 10 Best Portable Sound Systems
- Pre Amps & Pickups
- Direct Boxes
- Instrument Cables - a good instrument cable really does make a difference.
The Recording Ukulele page has a lot of great information on microphones and recording the ukulele.
This is My Go to Acoustic Amp – Curt
I won't leave home for a gig without these:
AER Compact 60
The AER Compact 60 rev.4. Small size but powerful twin-channel acoustic guitar amplifier designed to reproduce the sound quality of your instrument in a natural manner. The electronics are carefully designed to deal with piezoceramic pick-up's, microphones and any sort of line signal and with the dynamic controlled 60 watts power amplifier provide a brilliant clear sustaining sound performance throughout all the dynamic range. Used by Robin Nolan, Angelo Debarre, Bireli Lagrene, Romane, Neil Anderson, Dorado Schmitt, The Rosenberg Trio, among many others. Includes padded gigbag w/shoulderstrap. The new 4th generation editions of all models now feature a Pre FX / Post FX swtich for the DI Out signal, allowing user to choose if their Direct Out signal incorporates the amp's on-board digital effects An 3.5mm Aux input with Level control has also been added. These ultra-portable amps still offer the same outstanding reproduction of acoustic instruments and vocals that have made them an industry standard and a favorite of performing guitarists and singer-songwriters everywhere.
Fire-Eye Red-Eye Instrument DI w/Boost
The Red-Eye is an all analog, handmade, high input impedance DI and clean boost. Designed and improved over the course of several years to meet the needs of performing musicians, the Red-Eye is crafted from the highest quality components available. Engineered by an electronics engineer with over 50 years of professional experience, the Red-Eye design focuses on high fidelity, low noise and simple plug and play performance. This no frills precision approach to amplification offers a truly satisfying experience for musicians and their audience.
ALL Fire-Eye pedals are 100% Handcrafted in Texas, 100% Analog and Made in the USA
Curt — The Fire-Eye Red-Eye is my go to DI for ANY performance. And, flat-out the best DI I've ever had.
Other Great Fire-Eye Pedals
Fire-Eye Red-Eye Twin DI w/Boost
The Red-Eye Twin Instrument Preamp offers a simple, one-box, direct-connect solution for musicians that play two instruments at the same gig or have an instrument with dual pickups. The Red-Eye Twin works well with instruments having passive or active piezo pickups, electret microphones or magnetic pickups such as electric guitars and basses. Performers that find the Red-Eye Twin useful are, for example, those playing fiddle and mandolin, guitar and mandolin, string bass and electric bass or dual pickup instruments.
The Red-Eye Twin’s impedance-matching field-effect transistor input circuit is designed especially to match and track the impedance of passive piezoelectric pickups. That results in a smooth, natural, acoustic instrument tone. Low distortion, low noise, and generous headroom mean that clear tone comes through even when an instrument is played percussively and loudly.
Fire-Eye Dee-Eye
The Dee-Eye Instrument Preamp offers a simple solution for connecting instruments with high-impedance piezoelectric pickups to a venue’s sound system. Any passive or active instrument pickup is supported. Designed and improved over the course of several years to meet the needs of performing musicians, Fire-Eye products are crafted from the highest quality components available. Engineered by an electronics engineer with over 50 years of professional experience, the Red-Eye design focuses on high fidelity, low noise and simple plug and play performance. This no frills precision approach to amplification offers a truly satisfying experience for musicians and their audience.
Fire-Eye Bright-Eye
The Bright-Eye is a clean boost and buffer pedal that uses a 9V or 18V center-negative power supply, bringing the hi-fidelity signal-conditioning circuitry of the Red-Eye Preamp to a pedal-train format.
Other Notable Acoustic Amp Manufactures
Sweatwater has a great article on the 10 Best Acoustic Guitar Amps (2202-07-10)
- Blackstar
- Boss (Roland)
- Bugera
- Crate Amplifiers
- Fishman*
- Genz Benz
- Henriksen, Inc.
- Hughes & Kettner
- L.R.Baggs
- Mesa Boogie
- Orange Crush
- Peavey
- Positive Grid
- Rivera
- Roland*
- TC-Helicon Harmony
- Trace Elliot
- Vox
- Yamaha*
* I've (Curt) have Fishmans in the past, pre-AER and they are great and very affordable. Especially like the Loudbox Mini Charge. Funky Frets Music Store is a dealer for Fishman and Peavey.
