Positive Grid has launched Spark Edge, an all-in-one guitar amp and PA speaker that is compact, portable, feature-packed and might just have everything that the busking musician needs. The only thing it can’t control is the weather; that one is on Mother Nature.
Looking very much like the smaller and more compact sibling to the Spark Live, Spark Edge has 65-watts under the hood, and can be hooked up to the mains or powered by a rechargeable battery pack. A heavy duty carry handle is built into the design.
Anyone familiar with the ground-breaking Spark range will not be surprised to learn that guitar players are especially well served here. But like the Spark Live, this is a PA and amplification solution, so there is something for everyone, offering a similar complement of four channels to accommodate electronic keyboards, bass guitar, drum machines, vocals and whatever else you wish to put through its dual XLR / 1/4” combo inputs.
Channel 1 presents you with an abundance of options for both acoustic and electric guitar tones, with 36 amp models and 50 effects. Channel 2 is served by a complement of amp models for vocals, bass, acoustic guitar. While Channels 3 and 4 have stereo inputs for hooking up your keyboards, drum machines and so forth.
All these sounds are processed by Positive Grid’s Sonic IQ Computational Audio acting as its brain, and rendered via atypically inventive speaker design comprising woofer, tweeter and reflex ports – it is a calling card of Spark amps that they sound bigger than what you might reasonably expect.
Spark Edge has a 120° sonic spread, dynamic range compression that adjusts for loudness and clarity automatically, and Virtual Bass Augmentation to add some physicality to that low-end. The 150-watt Spark LIVE impressed MusicRadar with a performance that belies its size.
Spark Edge also shares the AI-driven features of its forebears. With Spark AI on-hand to help dial in a tone, it is a little like having your own guitar tech with you.
Hook it up to the accompanying app and you can access the Smart Jam feature and design custom backing tracks to play to. And the ever-helpful Spark app also offers the Auto Chords feature, presenting real-time chord display on your smartphone, which could come in handy when taking requests from the general public.
Hey, that’s the risk buskers take. Auto Chords could save some embarrassment if the chords progression to Boulevard Of Broken Dreams momentarily escapes you.
Of course, buskers were early adopters of the looper pedal and shouldn’t be disappointed here by a looping function that allows you to layer loops and apply them to over 100 different drum patterns.
You can send external audio to Spark Edge via Bluetooth and mix backing tricks with the onboard volume control. The amp/speaker can be used upright or tilted, and if you are playing somewhere with a PA system you can send your signal (mono or stereo) to the PA an use Spark Edge as a monitor, and you can expand the system by connecting to another Spark Edge or hooking it up to the Spark CAB FRFR speaker. Other options include limited edition grille panels (sold separately).
There is no word on prices just yet, but there will be early bird pricing available, and you can learn more and sign up for updates at Positive Grid.
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