Mini Guitar Headphone Amp Pocket Amplifier Super Lead Sound Joyo JA-03

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List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $13.99
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• Sound Effect : Super Lead Sound
• Mp3 input jack:3.5mm
• Power: AAA battery, 2 pieces(included)
• Earphone input jack:3.5mm

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Joyo, for those unfamiliar, is a Chinese company (or perhaps "manufacturer", more accurately) that has gained some popularity in the past few years by "cloning" the circuitry of popular boutique guitar effects pedals, encasing them in a new form factor, and selling them at a price ($35 to $55) far more affordable than their boutique equivalents. The Joyo JA-03 series of Mini Headphone Amps appears to be a clone of the Vox Amplug series, which is quickly gaining popularity as a plug-in headphone amplifier with analog circuitry and surprisingly good tones. However, whereas the Vox Amplug costs either $40 or $50, these Joyo models can be had for as little as $10-$15, shipping included.

While I was a fan of some of the Joyo pedals, I was understandably skeptical that the Joyo could match the quality of the Vox Amplug. Also, since the two Amplugs I own (AC30 and Satriani) do not match up one-to-one with the "Super Lead", it is not a true comparison. However, I can say that the Joyo JA-03 is a very useful device, and given the affordability of these headphone amps, there really is no reason for any guitarist not to own at least one of the Vox or Joyo plug amps.

On the Joyo "Super Lead", you get three dials (Volume, Tone, Gain), but they are not numbered in anyway. This seems like a big deal, but actually it isn't, because the controls get bumped a lot anyway, and you can't see the settings on the bottom of the guitar as you play. Most of the time, you will be reaching down to the three dials and adjusting as you play. I opted for Super Lead because I thought it would be different than the two Vox plugs I already had, and it is. It probably has the highest gain of the three, but the sound quality is also not quite up to par with the Vox plugs. That's not to say that it's "bad" by any means I actually was quite happy with it. But the tone doesn't punch through quite as clearly, and there's also some feedback that happened if I put the gain up to 90% to 100%. Fortunately, there's no need to do that, as you get plenty of gain (and no feedback) at a slightly lower setting.

As for durability, it is a concern with both the Vox and the Joyo models, but there are some additional corners cut on the Joyo. The power switch could fail over time, and the 2 AAA batteries rest loosely against a circuit board inside the device. However, given the low cost and limited real estate, this is not particularly surprising. My model worked fine out of the packaging, and I would not lose sleep if a $15 item such as this failed.

If you're new to headphone amps altogether, I recommend the Vox Amplug AC30 ($39.99) over this one. If you're specifically looking for a heavy distorted tone to play riffs, I think the Vox Metal Amplug is the best option (from what I've read). For sustained solos, however, I think the JA-03 Super Lead is a nice alternative to the Vox "Lead" and "Joe Satriani" signature. Both of those are better devices (and feature a delay effect), but they are $49.99. I think the Vox plugs are more than fairly priced, but at only $15, I could see owning one or more of these Joyos as well, and leaving them all over the house. If I was rating the Joyo strictly from a cost vs. value standpoint, I'd give it a 5-star rating without a doubt, but given the affordabilitytt and better quality of the Vox, I think 4 stars is more appropriate.