So far, Reverb has revealed the best-selling guitars of 2022 and the best-selling effects pedals of 2022, with both lists highlighting just some of the trends that have made their way into the gear markets over the past 12 months.
These include the continued dominance of the PRS Silver Sky, the rise of the baritone guitar and the fall of many once-popular effects pedals, such as the Ibanez Tube Screamer.
Now, Reverb has turned its attention to the guitar amp market, ranking and revealing its top 20 best-selling guitar amps of the year.
For those who remember last year’s list, the 2022 edition will make for familiar reading, with the overall rundown confirming what many guitar fans have known for quite some time: the age of digital innovation is upon us, and digital amps are once again proving to be far more popular than their tube-equipped counterparts.
While this year the results may have been slightly altered be the falling supply of tubes – which prompted Western Electric to float into guitar tube manufacturing – the trend that can be seen here merely extrapolates what has been happening over the past two years, stretching back to when the Boss Katana-50 topped the 2020 list.
The Boss Katana-50 crops in second place on the 2022 list, though, with the Positive Grid Spark 40 taking the mantle as the best-selling guitar amp of the year. The two amps are joined by a wealth of other digital units, with the Yamaha THR10II, Yamaha THR30II and Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb all following suit.
Shoutout must go to the fourth-placed Orange Micro Dark, which technically speaking is the only tube-loaded amp in the top seven. It’s joined by the Orange MT20 Micro Terror and Marshall DSL40CR – in ninth and 10th spots, respectively – to cap off a digital-dominated top 10.
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A similar trend can be deciphered from spots 11 to 20. Though the list features cameos from a handful of tube amps, modeling and digital amps seem to reign supreme. Notably, PRS’s Mark Tremonti MT15 signature amp makes the cut in 11th representing the tube amp camp, and is followed by the Vox AC15C1 and Fender ‘65 Reissue Deluxe Reverb.
The tube amps are once again followed by a block of digital amps, with the Fender Rumble 100, Fender Mustang LT25, Boss Katana-100 MKII and Orange Super Crush 100 occupying places 13 to 16.
The last four spots are split evenly between the ranks of tube and digital: the Marshall Studio Vintage SV20H MKII and ever-popular Blues Junior III are followed by the Kemper Profiler Head and Boss KTN-Mini.
As we postulated this time last year, the lure of modeling amps offering players numerous tones all in one place seems to have been the difference-maker between classic and contemporary amps.
Check out the full list below.
- Positive Grid Spark 40
- Boss Katana-50
- Yamaha THR10II
- Orange Micro Dark
- Yamaha THR30II
- Fender Tone Master Deluxe Reverb
- Fender Rumble 40 V3
- Orange MT20 Micro Terror
- Marshall DSL40CR
- PRS Mark Tremonti MT15
- Vox AC15C1
- Fender '65 Reissue Deluxe Reverb
- Fender Rumble 100
- Fender Mustang LT25
- Boss Katana-100 MKII
- Orange Super Crush 100
- Marshall Studio Vintage SV20H MKII
- Fender Blues Junior III
- Kemper Profiler Head
- Boss KTN-Mini
Reverb has also dropped a top 10 list for new-for-2022 amp releases, which is topped by the Soldano SLO Mini 30-watt head. An impressive achievement given the head only arrived in June, and evidence that although tube amps proper are falling out of fashion, their sought-after tones certainly are not.
More tube-less amps can be found elsewhere in the list, with the Magnatone Starlite the only valve amp to be found in a top five that otherwise comprises the Line 6 Catalyst 60, Positive Grid Spark Mini and Line 6 Catalyst 100.
Despite their relative drop-off, tube amps still have loyal fans, with the rest of the list containing the likes of the Blackstar St James EL34 combo, Fender Pro Junior IV SE and the PRS HDRX 20.
That leaves room for the Line 6 Catalyst 200 and Darkglass Electronics Exponent e500 to cap off the top 10.
The full list can be found below.
- Soldano SLO Mini
- Line 6 Catalyst 60
- Positive Grid Spark Mini
- Line 6 Catalyst 100
- Magnatone Starlite
- PRS HDRX 20
- Line 6 Catalyst 200
- Darkglass Electronics Exponent e500
- Fender Pro Junior IV SE
- Blackstar St James EL34 Combo
A third list dedicated to “non-traditional amps” – ie, floor modelers – has also been revealed, which highlights the dominance of Line 6’s Helix family. Indeed, six of the top 10 are Line 6 Helix products, including the top-spot HX Stomp, third-placed Helix Floor and fourth-placed Pod Go.
Other unsurprising high achievers include the Strymon Iridium – which takes the runner-up position – as well as the eighth-placed Fractal Audio FM3 and 12th-placed Neural DSP Quad Cortex.
The Fender Mustang Micro can also be found here, with the plug-and-play amp making its way to an impressive 10th placed finish.
The top 20 can be found below.
- Line 6 HX Stomp
- Strymon Iridium
- Line 6 Helix Floor
- Line 6 Pod Go
- Universal Audio '65 Dream Reverb Amplifier
- Line 6 HX Effects
- Line 6 Helix LT
- Fractal Audio FM3
- Line 6 HX Stomp XL
- Fender Mustang Micro
- Headrush MX5
- Neural DSP Quad Cortex
- Universal Audio Ruby '63 Top Boost Amplifier
- Kemper Amps Profiler Stage
- DSM & Humboldt Electronics Simplifier Deluxe
- Boss Waza Air
- Headrush Multi-Effects Pedalboard / Orange Terror Stamp 20
- Line 6 Pod HD500X
- Fractal Audio AX8
- Boss IR-200 / Tech 21 SansAmp GT2
For more information, head over to Reverb.