The Amp Mods your neighbors will love

There is something awesome about modding your amp.
Finding new tones, changing the aesthetics to match your band style, or just fooling around to see what works and what not. (Remember, smoke is bad)
When it comes to modding a guitar amp, you have a ton of options nowadays. Just search the internet and you will be presented with mods that vary from easy to insane, and everything in between.
Are you good at modding your own amp? Did you invent some cool mods or find some cheap and easy ways to give your practice amp a new look? There is a good opportunity for you on YouTube. People are actually looking for those tips.
Here are 8 levels of amp mods that you could create videos about.
(Note: These mods can differ depending on your amp. Double check to see if it actually works on your amp before you buy parts you won’t need. A solid state amp does not use tubes, for example.)

1. Change the look of your amp

With some simple knobs, speaker cloth or wrapping, you can change the look of your amp in various ways. Although this will not change the tone of your amp in any way, it can be a fun project to work on.
As for YouTube content, you can share how you changed the speaker cloth or what type of knobs look good on your amp.
Show all the details and what parts you have used, and don’t forget to include the start and end result.
This is a fun way of creating content, and makes for some cool shareable images online.

2. Change the speakers

This is a simple mod, but a highly effective one. Probably one of the first things to try out if you don’t like the sound of your amp. Amp speakers are not super expensive and easy to switch out. They will drastically change the sound of your amp, so it makes for a valuable mod for many guitar players.
In your video, you could test out various speakers or just switch between stock and custom. Many guitar players search for videos where they can check out the pros and cons of certain speakers, so make sure you create an unbiased video to give a realistic comparison between speakers.

3. Turn a practice amp into a small stack

A small combo amp can sound great by itself. But how about using the amp part and transform it into a cab?
That way, you can use it on various cabs to see how it performs.
There are a ton of videos where people use small practice amps and use it with a large 4×12 to get some amazing results.
This is again a nice comparison style video. A before and after will work great. Show the process and the end result to create some amazing and fun videos.  

4. Switch the tubes in your tube amp

This might sound like a simple mod on your TubeAmp, but people are actually looking for different tubes in their amp. They love to hear the difference in various tubes. Some go even as far as changing them with tubes that are made for radios or TVs. They all have a different dynamic, so they could give some unexpected results in the end.
Comparison videos are key here. Show the before and after and record your audio in the highest quality possible to please your audience.

5. Change the pots

Not to be confused with the Knobs on an amp, the potentiometers (pots) on an amp can be changed with different values. This can change the way your amp is controlled, as it can increase or decrease volume and tone. Unless you don’t know what you are doing, this is an interesting mod that is not expensive and can create some great results.

6. Change more internal electronics

Changing some internal components, like the diodes and capacitors, can drastically change your amp’s sound.
You can change the gain-stage, the EQ, the effects loop, etc.  Although this is usually for the tech-savvy musicians, there are a ton of musicians that just want to see how stuff works and hear the end results.
This type of mod requires you to really know what you are doing. Changing the wrong parts or replacing parts with the wrong electronics can result in huge failure of your amp.

Be careful when trying this, as you are still working with an electric device. If something goes wrong, things can literally blow up and catch fire. You can also get some electric shocks if you are not careful.
Only perform these mods if you know what you are doing.

7. Build a custom amp

If you are a real engineer, you can build your own amp.
After you have done some small mods, you might come to the conclusion that you can do a good job at building your own amp.
So, start from scratch! Get all the components and film the whole process of building an amp from the ground up.
This could be a great video series that can span multiple weeks or months, but can guarantee that your subscribers will follow to see the end result.
Keep them updated on your social pages and try to stay on a schedule. Your fans will love you for it.

8. Mod for your viewers.

This might be a bit different from all the rest, but if you are really good at what you do regarding amp mods, you can also customize amps for your viewers/fans.
There are many cab mod companies that started from home, so if you find that this is something you really like, why not go for it?
It can work the same as a guitar pedal builder. They start small, and once they find their audience that wants their product, they switch to a more professional setup. It is your journey, so feel free to choose!

Start modding!

Now that you have some ideas to work with, start modding your first amp! Start with something simple and fun. See how your audience likes it, and, of course, how you like it.
Keep your fans updated on social to maximize results, but also to take them with you on your modding journey.
This can be a valuable addition to your YouTube Promotion strategy and get more people to find you, the artist!

Keep making awesome music and share it with the world!
Maurice from Music-Mindset.com