I know it's a ways off until I can drive, I'm only 13, but still, I kinda wonder. I want to find a way to put an amp in my pickup. I've got a 1978 Chevy half ton single cab that my dad and I are going to customize. And I really want to put an amp in my truck so I can just play in the back of my truck, or a guitar jack to my radio, but then I don't think the sound quality will be the same. Have any of you ever done this? And is this even possible? And of course, how much money am I lookin' at?


An Idea I had was get an amp to fit in a truck tool box and put it in there, but I'm not sure...
and I may want a bass amp too...
Will this work at all?
Also, I don't want a cheep amp. this amp has to be a good amp that has good quallity..

Please and Thanks,
Tessa

_________________
"He who hates me hates my Father as well."
John 15:23

Talman Ibanez Inner City-Suizy Q
2002 American-Made Fender Telecaster-Vengence
Fender Hot Rod Deluxe III

Might have to put a lot of extra batteries. Amps are power suckers. Although, it all depends on how big of an amp you're talking about. A halfstack? A twin? A single?

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1984 Squier Contemporary Stratocaster
1986 Peavey Envoy 110
1967 Kingston Acoustic

I'm not really sure just yet, more than likely a twin or half-stack. And I rekon I'll have a battery I have just for the amp(s)(if I decided I want like an accoustic or a bass amp too..)

would I have to do some custom work on the amp to get it into the tool box? or would it be better to build a box to put around the amp? It's gotta be speaker side up, whichever way I go..

_________________
"He who hates me hates my Father as well."
John 15:23

Talman Ibanez Inner City-Suizy Q
2002 American-Made Fender Telecaster-Vengence
Fender Hot Rod Deluxe III

To run a good amp means having access to on-board AC power. You'll need to wire a converter to the vehicle's electrical system to transform 12VDC to 120VAC -- around 400-watt capacity should do it (assuming a decent-and-powerful tube amp). I've seen such devices available from a number of sources that specialize in motorhomes, campers, RV's, and the like.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

I must say, you're crazy. A halfstack in a truck? You should also build a box. You'll definitely need one with loop handles on the side so you can strap it down. But I'd highly recommend putting a single. That's really all you need for the back of a truck, because you'd also need a pretty big box and that might limit your space in the truck bed (If that's where you wanted to play on a nice day or something) Or, you could get a bed RV and just keep it in there. Theft is a likely thing with a valuable piece of equipment.

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1984 Squier Contemporary Stratocaster
1986 Peavey Envoy 110
1967 Kingston Acoustic

Grab yourself a Crate Limo. I have one of these myself. It should do fine. You can sing through it as well. If you want distortion, use a pedal.

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+1

There's also a 20W Pignose (I think it was called the G20?) that was battery powered.

That being said, Arjay's prognosis is the way to go if you're wanting to use a normal AC powered amp.

One last thing--unless this truck is going to be garage-kept for a good amount of the time, you'll need to make sure you have the toolbox waterproof.

Did you want the speakers exposed to the outside world, or did you plan on just opening the box with the speakers facing heavenward?
You might consider customizing a tool box that opens in the front (not on top, like a regular truck bed tool box.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

Def a Pig Nose

Saw this one and the price is very reasonable for a practice amp, one would need to try it out to see how it sounds.
http://danelectro.com/more_honey.html

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

Years ago whenever I went off camping I always took one of my Strats or my Mustang and my Peavey Decade.They made them in the late 70s and I don't know why they discontinued them-they were great little amps.The 8" speakers were no great shakes but if you ran it through a 12 or even a 4-12 it sounded great.All you had to do was plug it into the cigarette lighter and the battery drain wasn't that great at all.I still see them on E bay from time to time and with a 2-12 cab a Peavey Decade would really sound cool in your truck bed.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Thank you guys! (:
Y'all help alot. I may want a little more than just a practice amp, that's just kinda how I am.
and thanks for the forward facing idea, Armadillo. The "tool box" will be only for my amp(s), I'll have a box for my actual tools too, just not as awesome as this one. I will custom build the box, it won't be too hard, my dad is the best welder in Hereford, and he's taught me to build buckles. I'm will build it water proof and air tight.

_________________
"He who hates me hates my Father as well."
John 15:23

Talman Ibanez Inner City-Suizy Q
2002 American-Made Fender Telecaster-Vengence
Fender Hot Rod Deluxe III