amp: electric? acoustic? modeling?

[dcr]

I'm inquiring on behalf of a friend who's in the following situation:

(1) He has no amp;

(2) He plays both electric & acoustic;

(3) He's got money for only 1 amp (about $500).

He's trying to decide whether to get an electic amp or an acoustic amp, & is having a devil of a time deciding. One obvious solution is to get a modeling amp--in particular, a Roland--that will deliver the goods on the acoustic as well as the electric. The trouble is, he can mail order one, but he can't get his hands on one to try it out. The worry is that one amp might not really be able to do both jobs equally well--maybe great on electric but so-so on acoustic, or whatever. Can anyone shed light on this? Will a Roland modeling amp really work for both applications? Thanks!!

[DC]

There's really nothing that sounds right for both electric and acoustic. I play electric through an amp or a modeling pedalboard and acoustic through the PA and monitors. Acoustic needs full range, especially highs where electric sounds better with a limited freq. range like a 12" speaker.

 

I'd say if you gotta play both through one amp, a Roland would come closer to what he wants than anything else I can think of. The electric models are useable and the acoustic models sound fine when mixed with a piezo pu output in a PA.

 

I really need to hear more about existing gear, musical styles and is it for gigs (what kind, size, available PA system) or just home practice to give a good answer.