Generally speaking you can play any musical genre with most guitar rigs. No matter what sound you are hoping to achieve most setups will have a basic clean sound for pop and roots based music and some form of overdrive or distortion for punchier, “rockier” styles. Many entry level “bedroom” amplifiers offer so much more these days than just two basic channels with onboard effects and even connectivity to handy apps helping you to produce your desired sound.

As you develop your playing and move into more specific sounds and styles you may find you will want to personalise your rig to suit a particular genre of music. The good news is putting together a genre specific rig to suit a certain style does not have to mean spending major dollars and the advantage being not only will you get the sound you want, you will also start to feel you have invested in and connected to your chosen musical style. We assembled a panel of dedicated Musos Corner product demonstrators who are very serious about their respective musical styles and asked them to put together two rigs, one for under $1000 dollars to suit someone who is upgrading from their first basic all round set up the second is most or less a dream rig where money is no object just to see what is possible. The caveat here is we are not just spending money for the sake of it rather putting together a pro rig that will deliver the right sound, feel and aesthetics and stand up to the rigours of playing night after night.

All the pricing we are working from are the approximate street prices at time of publication. (July - 2022)

Budget Rig

For the “budget” set up we have tried to make this as close to your first upgrade to your rig as possible, with this in mind we are not really specifying a professional rig meant for stage use. We are concentrating on getting you a rig with the sound, playability and vibe of your chosen style. As upgrading all of your rig in one go is a rare thing due to budget we suggest you swap out your equipment as necessary to your requirements. You will find depending upon the style that amp wattage (volume) will vary considerably as required by each style.  

Dream Rig

For the “dream” set up we have specified no budget, however, as specified earlier we are not just looking to burn money here like a rockstar but just meet our favourite requirements based on sound, playability, reliability, durability and vibe, this can be often achieved without just going out and buying the most expensive equipment available. As we are “the people’s music store”, you won’t find any boutique or overly exotic gear on these lists, just easily readily available classics that have stood the test of time. 

What's in a rig?

Hypothetically included in each rig:

  • We have hypothetically included all the leads and patch cables you will need for each rig
  • We have hypothetically included a clip-on tuner for the budget rigs and a pedal tuner in the dream rig. We have also included a power supply or power brick for all pedal setups.
  • The other proviso we have is we are hypothetically supplying a road crew for the Dream Rigs so space and weight is not a factor in these decisions as you don’t have to lug it so you can knock yourself out.
  • All the pricing we are working from are the approximate street prices at time of publication.

Budget Busking Rig

for under $1000 (spec’d by ID)

Guitar - Ashton D20CEQNTM Acoustic Electric Guitar with Hard Case ($299.00)

When you are laying it all bare on the street in a busking environment the equipment you use needs to back you up like a band. Staunch, reliable and portable are three things that come immediately to mind. You need to make your presence felt confidently and quickly to make the most of the passing crowd and get the coins to hit the hat or an open guitar case.

This rig is designed for either a guitarist / vocalist or a keyboard / vocalist and features the reasonably newly released Boss Cube Street 2 which is a stereo amplifier with a separate vocal channel, effects, amp sims and a looper. I have gone with a Boss FS7 which can control the looper, which, for a lot of buskers may be unnecessary, however, looping is becoming more and more prevalent in live performance especially for soloists so away we go. Both Ashton and Yamaha produce outstanding entry level instruments.

The D20CEQNTM features a spruce top and a built in piezo style pickup and preamp as well as a spruce top. It will take all the rigours of day to day street performance, stay in tune and via the onboard EQ or the amplifier / EQ options from the amp I will be able to dial in the sound I want regardless of the situation.

Keyboard - Yamaha PRSE273 Keyboard ($245.00) & X-Treme Keyboard Stand - ($59.00)

The PRSE273 features an array of sounds other than just a piano and possibly most importantly it has drums and percussion which could be used in making a big impact on the street. The keyboard has its own inbuilt speakers if you would like to use the instrument channel for something else, and boasts battery operation for anywhere, anytime pop up shows with a bang.

Amplification - Boss Cube Street 2 ($489.00) & Boss FS7 Footswitch ($115.00)

Discover our range of Boss Foot Switches hereThe Street Cube has been around for quite some time produced under the Roland brand. It has become a bit of a go to for lightweight street amplification and the current Boss model is a definite upgrade on previous models in terms of features and most importantly sound. This model is considerably lighter and can be speaker stand mounted for more projection if you do not want to use the handy wedge shape as a floor monitor. The in-built effects are super handy to bring some pizzazz to the street and the range of amp effects means electric guitarists are covered for overdriven or beyond tones.

The looper also means solos or layering can be achieved with ease with 45 seconds loop time available. There is also a 3.5mm input jack available with a separate volume for tethering to a device for backing tracks and you can also use the optional Boss BT Dual Bluetooth adapter ($79.00) for bluetooth connection to any enabled device for wireless or MIDI connection.

Microphone - Shure PGA 48 Microphone and Lead ($55.00) & Boom Microphone Stand ($39.00)

Even though this is a very affordable Shure microphone it is still a very good choice particularly for this application due to its relatively high gain for outside areas. It also comes with a clip and lead which makes it an all in one package. Paired with boom stand vocalists playing guitar or keyboard can do so comfortably with the ability to adjust for a sitting or standing performance.

The Dream Busking Rig

+$1000 (spec’d by GS)

Guitar - Yamaha A3M Acoustic / Electric ($965.00)

Even though this is a dream rig with no specific budget, common sense says don’t take a vintage Martin D28 out in the street busking, the risk of theft or damage is way too high. With this selection we capped the instrument at around $1000 and made sure to choose honest durability, reliability and replaceability over super expensive instruments that may not go the distance on the rough and tumble of the busking circuit.

Yamaha instruments are famous for their reliability and no nonsense approach to building quality instruments. Yamaha A series of acoustic / electric guitars are hard to beat in the around $1000 price bracket. The A3M boasts all solid timbers that will mature and gain resonance and sustain as the guitar ages. The guitar also has the onboard state of the art SRT2 pickup system for natural and dynamic sound reinforcement and a high comfort neck profile for hours of easy playing. The A3M also comes with a sturdy padded gig bag making transporting a breeze.

Keyboard - Roland Juno 61 ($1095.00)

Like Yamaha, Roland make quality products known for their reliability. The Juno series of keyboard synthesisers have been around since the early 1980’s and have stood the test of time over decades of innovation. The current model Juno 61 contains pro level acoustic and electric piano, organ and synth sounds as well as touch sensitivity for dynamic expression. The eight phrase pads allow for triggering of samples or backing tracks, there is also a microphone input on board with reverb, auto pitch correct and even has a vocoder if needed. The unit is lightweight and has the option of battery power. Let's go.

Amplification - AER Compact Mobile ($2415.00) & Konig and Meyer 18993 ($219.00)

Personally I think AER acoustic amps are some of the nicest I have ever heard. They have an almost magical ability to get a usable sound out of any guitar and when something special is plugged in the integrity of the instrument will stay intact.

The Compact Mobile is as the name suggests can be battery operated, it has two independent channels, one dedicated for vocals and another one for an instrument. Granted if you are a keyboard player using low frequencies at volume there are definitely better options out there such as the Roland KC220, however, the AER will definitely do the job if you are prioritising guitar. There are onboard effects and the amp comes with a handy carry bag for quick and easy transportation.

For over 70 years Konig and Meyer have been manufacturing some of the finest stands and accessories in the world with German engineering and ingenuity. Their range of keyboard stands are no exception and this model has double bracing, a simple to use ergonomic clamp for easy and consistent operation and it is suitable for all common stage pianos. This one will easily keep the Juno 61 safe and secure as well as being able to accommodate any alternative keyboard choice at a later date.

Microphone - Sennheiser E945 ($210.00) & Tama MS205BK

Speaking of unsurpassed German quality, Sennheiser was founded in 1945 and is still a family run business. The E945 is made in Germany and will sound great plugged into the AER whilst withstanding the rigours of life on the street. The hypercardioid pickup pattern will help eliminate unwanted noise and produce the natural colours of the voice accurately.

Tama was originally purely a drum manufacturer and their drum hardware was legendary for its toughness and durability. When the company began to produce microphone stands they quickly became an industry standard on stage worldwide. The MS205 will do this job perfectly for years to come.