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Acoustic sound in louder settings can often be tricky. Recreating the dynamics and nuances of an instrument designed to be played acoustically at higher volumes isn’t the same as just turning up the master volume on an amp with an electric guitar, or cranking the fader on a mixing desk. Most acoustic guitar players end up having to opt for a piezo pickup through a regular guitar amp or DI directly to the mixing console which doesn’t really represent the true tone of an acoustic guitar.
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Acus are very aware of this and have established their business on the premise of focusing purely on acoustic sound reproduction. Acus state their mission as sound design that ‘amplifies acoustic sound with clarity, purity and natural tone’ – sounds like a mighty fine idea to me. Acus’ One ForStrings range of amps are designed exactly for that – to amplify acoustic instruments with the 6T sitting somewhere in the middle of their product range.
The 6T is an 130 watt amplifier with a 6” woofer and high frequency tweeter. It has two mic/line inputs and one dedicated line input, all with their own EQ, gain, volume and effect level controls. Further features include a direct output if you need to send your signal to a PA or recording device. Coming in a combo amp styled cabinet, the controls are top mounted making for easy adjustment mid song and the plywood construction with rounded edges and dark control panel make for a classy looking unit.
As an acoustic amp the 6T does a great job of reproducing the sound of your instrument. Clear with plenty of volume on hand, it’s ideal for additional sound reinforcement for steel and nylon string guitars, although I’d imagine other stringed instruments would work equally well. The EQ is responsive and gradual and the onboard reverb is nice and airy at lower settings adding some slight extra body and size to your tone. This can also be handy for outdoor gigs, which are often super dry guitar wise, when you need to add some colour and sustain to your tone.
Three channels plus the stereo RCA in/out and 130 watts make the 6T a great standalone amplification solution for small gigs, especially those with limited room. With its high quality build and sound I would imagine a lot of players using it strictly as an amp rather than a PA that they can tweak and set as they please and then send to the front of house. The ability to run mic and line level is a solid inclusion and of course even at smaller functions this can then be sent to a bigger system if needed.
With a full frequency response from 50-20,000 Hz and 114dB SPL, the 6T can hold its own in a lot of ways. Just the fact that there’s two microphone inputs with 3-band EQ shows it’s more a portable PA than an amp, but with the wide frequency range and high SPL output, the use cases for this are endless. You could use it as your busking amp, as well as your live performance speaker. With the stereo line in, it’s simple to play background music between sets and could function for venues who run open mic nights as a one stop shop, no additional PA and mixer needed.
All of this is in line with their vision for making acoustic guitars amplify like they naturally sound as extra equipment would change the tonality of sound produced by your acoustic. They’re solving multiple problems for acoustic guitar players, who are usually on the back burner in place of electric guitar development. Not with Acus you’re not!
Can we also talk about how beautiful this unit looks. The varnished birch plywood looks absolutely stunning juxtaposed with the metal grill on the front to protect the loudspeakers from damage. Acus have really thought through all aspects of this speaker, even down to the aesthetic design.
All in all, the Acus One ForStrings 6T Simon acoustic guitar amplifier is a solid unit, capable of more than solely operating as an amp. The unit offers high fidelity sound paired with an inbuilt EQ and reverb for use with three channels of audio and is actually closer to a mono PA system as apposed to an acoustic guitar amp, perfect for everyone from venue owners, musicians looking for a practise amp or live performance, this does it all.
Head to Acus for more information on the One ForStrings 6T Simon and for local enquiries, get in touch with Electric Factory.
