Positive Grid Spark 2: the parlour rocker
The Positive Grid Spark 2 is a versatile guitar amplifier for the home. It offers numerous functions, but the associated app must always be to hand.
Guitar amplifiers operate in a strange field of tension between old and new technology. In terms of sound, the tube technology of the 1950s is still the measure of all things. However, as this sound can now be simulated digitally very well, most guitar amplifiers today are digital, computer-like devices - with endless possibilities.
The Spark 2 from Positive Grid goes further than most other amps in this area. Not only does it digitally simulate a variety of amplifiers and effects, it also connects to a smartphone or tablet and can be controlled via an app. It can also play music via Bluetooth or USB, such as backing tracks for your guitar solos. The app even has an AI function. If you're rolling your eyes now, the idea isn't so bad. But first things first.
Appearances: absolutely suitable for the living room
Most guitar amplifiers are built for the band room and the stage. They don't look like something you'd want to put in your living room. Incomprehensibly, this also applies to many practice amplifiers that never make it out of your own four walls.
Positive Grid does it better. Even its predecessor, the Spark 40 - or simply Spark - doesn't look like a foreign object in your own home. I like the slightly revised design of the Spark 2 even better. It only has two colours throughout, black and gold, which looks very classy. The older model is less consistent. The buttons have a different gold colour than the lettering, the socket and the toggle switch are silver.
The new model is a little longer and taller, but the dimensions are similar. The rotary controls remain largely the same. The tiny music control on the Spark 40 has been replaced by a normal control on the main bar. The amplifier type can no longer be selected directly via the knob. Instead, there are buttons at the top for the looper - a new, very cool function.
Unfortunately, the controls on the Spark 2 are very difficult to read. On the predecessor, they have a clearly recognisable white line. On the new model, the white you see in the picture is just the reflection of the window. The controller markings are all at zero in the picture. This is barely recognisable in poor light.
The Spark 2 has a battery compartment on the underside. It can therefore also be used portably. This does not apply to the Spark 40. However, the battery is not included in the scope of delivery. As a further improvement, the Spark 2 has USB-C instead of USB-B and a 6.3 mm line-out (mono or stereo).
Sounds better than its predecessor
In a direct comparison with the Spark 40, the Spark 2 is a clear improvement. These devices have to simultaneously produce a good guitar sound and the most neutral sound possible for background music. Not an easy balancing act. They should also deliver a fat bass, because the Spark can also simulate bass amplifiers.
In my opinion, the Spark 40 sounds too bass-heavy. For the guitar sound, I can adjust this quite well with the sound controls (bass, mids and treble). But with other music, such as backing tracks, these controls don't work. Then the Spark 40 doesn't produce a neutral sound. This is slightly better with the Spark 2, which also sounds generally more open. And it also sounds better with the guitar - I can push both the bass and the treble more and therefore have a broader spectrum to find the right sound for me. There's also enough juice in the bass. The new one also has more power in terms of specifications: 50 instead of 40 watts.
Both models should not be placed on the floor and certainly not in a corner. Otherwise the bass will boom too much and the treble won't reach your ears. Place the device as high as possible, for example on a table or a stand.
Selection of the amplifier etc.
You can select 39 amplifiers in the app, four of which are for bass guitar and four for acoustic guitars. Six belong to a Jimi Hendrix package, which you have to buy separately for 18 US dollars. All the classics from Fender, Marshall, Vox etc. are available, even if, as usual, the company names are not included. Positive Grid has published a list of all amplifiers, where you can also see which original amplifier they simulate. You can find all the effects in the same list. I hardly miss anything, at most an octaver.
In the video you can hear the preset «Ambient Guitar Style Tone 1», which is accessible ex works via the direct selector switch. It models a Matchless DC30, an echo delay and a plate reverb.
The app provides a fixed signal chain. If you absolutely want to have the delay before the amp instead of after, this is not possible.
I don't care about this restriction. What bothers me more is the selection of amps and effects. I have to tap the amp or an effect twice to do this. To hide the selection again, I don't tap on the amp, but on a small menu bar. I also can't swipe sideways through the various effects.
Dependent on the app
This is important because practically everything runs via the app. On the amplifier itself, I can only select one of the eight stored presets and adjust the sound. But I can't select a different amplifier model or effect.
The Spark 40 has a wheel for selecting the amplifier. An advantage at first glance. However, this model is also fully focussed on the app. For the most part, the amps cannot be selected using the rotary control, nor can the effects. Furthermore, it doesn't make much sense to change the amplifier if the pedals and their settings remain the same. They should be harmonised. I can therefore understand why Positive Grid has replaced the amp selection with a preset wheel (and twice as many presets that can be selected on the device).
Once all the sounds have been set up, I can leave the app out. But it usually doesn't take long before I need it again. The app is clearly at the centre. If that doesn't suit you, the Spark isn't the right device for you. In this case, the Katana Air EX could be an alternative.
Not even the footswitch for the Spark amps works without an app. This is because it does not connect to the amplifier, but to the smartphone or tablet. It affects the app, which in turn controls the device. Speaking of connecting: Unfortunately, the mobile device does not connect to the amplifier on its own, and the corresponding button is in a place in the app where you would otherwise never be.
Everything you need for practising
The app offers a comprehensive package of functions. There are jam tracks with bass and drums that can be freely adjusted in pitch and tempo. The chords are also visible in the numerous backing tracks; you can also slow down the tempo or loop a sequence. You can save individual ones as favourites. These are YouTube videos that are also available elsewhere.
Some pieces are not backing tracks, but you learn a solo - the tabs are shown. In this case, I miss the option of displaying the video in a larger size. This only works if I tap it twice to open it in the web browser.
The chords given are also not always exactly right. They are probably at least partially machine-generated. Still, a nice addition. We all know: the smaller the hurdle to activate something, the more often you practise and play. Therefore: a good thing.
In the video you can hear the preset «Dark Soul» with an accompanying track from the app. Even if you can't hear the sound as I hear it live, it conveys quite well how strong the bass is. I notice it even more in real life than on the video.
Looper: useful, but only with an app
With the integrated looper, I can record a short sequence and play something to it myself. For example, a chord sequence and then a solo over it. This can be repeated several times.
I have an external loop device. However, this is not much use to me in the case of the Spark. If I change the sound to switch from rhythm guitar to solo guitar, the sound of the already recorded loop also changes. This happens because the loop precedes the effects. That's why an internal looper in such a device is a great help.
The looper also only works to a limited extent without the Spark app. I can only change the tempo on the amplifier itself, but not how long the loop is. The volume mix can also be adjusted in the app. There is also the option to select drum loops as accompaniment.
Integrated AI: not bad, but not a must
The app has an integrated AI chatbot. I can ask it whether Elvis is alive and it will give me a correct answer - but that's not the idea. Instead, I can ask it what settings I need to sound like Mark Knopfler or Jimi Hendrix, for example. The AI then spits out a preset that I can try out first and save if necessary. All I have to do is enter the name of the guitarist or the song - the AI understands what I mean. That makes things a lot easier, because I don't want to write a novel while I've got the guitar on.
Of course, you also need the right guitar for a certain sound, you have to set it up appropriately and, ultimately, the playing technique is very important. That's why you shouldn't expect too much from such a function.
In the video above you can hear the presets that were created from the prompts «Purple Rain» and «Jimi Hendrix». I think «Purple Rain» has too much delay/reverb and too little chorus compared to the original. But it's not completely off. I made about ten samples. The suggested settings seem to be at least halfway right. The fact that it doesn't sound like the original is probably mainly down to me. In at least one case, however, the AI was clearly off the mark. For «Under The Bridge» by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, it chose a Roland JC 120 with chorus activated. John Frusciante never used this amplifier and it doesn't sound like the original. With John Scofield, it didn't sound anything like what I had in mind either - the app was probably just missing the sometimes quite weird effects he uses.
If you're really interested in how a certain guitar sound is created, you can find a lot of information on the web, for example on Equipboard. It takes longer to work it out this way, but it's more likely to be right and you'll learn something in the process. All in all, I think the AI is just a nice gimmick, but not an argument for buying the device.
More than just a practice amplifier?
The question remains as to whether the Spark 2 can also be used in the band room. In most cases, probably not. In my opinion, the way the foot switch works already disqualifies it for this. Apart from that, the foot switch is not included in the scope of delivery and is very expensive in relation to the amp.
The Spark 2 is easily loud enough for home use. But that doesn't mean it's loud enough for a solo in a rock band. I haven't tested that. But I know from experience that people underestimate how much louder an amplifier needs to be when playing with a band.
The Spark 2 has a line-out and also supports USB audio. So you could connect it directly to a PA. Or to the active cabinet from the same manufacturer. This is certainly loud enough.
In a nutshell
This amplifier rocks - but only with an app
With the Spark 2, you get a modern amplifier for your home for little money, which not only looks good, but is also acoustically impressive. Despite its low weight, it packs a powerful punch in the bass and also delivers at higher pitches. The modelled amplifiers and effects are versatile and sound good. The only problem with the sound is that canned backing music still sounds too bass-heavy - and, unlike the guitar sound, cannot be customised.
Important to know: This amplifier is completely focussed on the associated app for the smartphone or tablet. Although it also works without it, it doesn't realise its full potential.
The app offers a wide range of functions - in addition to practice and accompaniment tracks of all kinds, it also has a chatbot that creates sets for you based on a desired song or artist. I think the idea is cool, but the quality of the sets is only average. The new integrated looper completes the list - the Spark 2 really does have everything you need in a home amplifier.
Pro
- Design suitable for the living room
- powerful and open sound
- Versatile set of amplifier models and effects
- Integrated looper
- Numerous practice and accompanying pieces in the app
- Can also be used mobile with optional rechargeable battery
Contra
- Controller difficult to read
- Can only be used sensibly with an app
- Accompanying music sounds too bass-heavy
- App could be more user-friendly
David Lee
Senior Editor
David.Lee@digitecgalaxus.chMy interest in IT and writing landed me in tech journalism early on (2000). I want to know how we can use technology without being used. Outside of the office, I’m a keen musician who makes up for lacking talent with excessive enthusiasm.
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