If you've been shopping for a smart amp, you've probably looked at the usual suspects: Positive Grid Spark, Boss Katana, Fender Mustang, maybe even the new Lava Studio. They're all fine products. But they all share the same fundamental limitation.
They're closed systems.
You get what the manufacturer decided to include, and that's it. No new effects from indie developers. No community-made amp models. No way to truly make the platform your own. Nimbus was built to change that.
A Music Studio in a Box
At its core, Nimbus is a 70W stereo amp with dual 4" custom speakers and dedicated tweeters. But calling it "just an amp" is like calling a smartphone "just a phone."
Nimbus is also:
- A 2-in/2-out USB-C audio interface for recording straight into your DAW
- A 5-minute looper for practice and songwriting
- A Bluetooth speaker for streaming backing tracks
- A full plugin host running Chaos Audio, third-party, and user-made effects
- A MIDI controller hub with full USB-A MIDI support
All of that in a package you can carry with one hand.
The Open Platform Difference
This is where Nimbus leaves every other smart amp behind. While competitors lock you into their factory presets and proprietary effects, Nimbus runs on an open plugin platform.
That means:
- Chaos Audio's own effects — 20+ distortions, delays, reverbs, modulation, compressors, and EQs included out of the box
- 25+ amp models with matching cabinet sims, free at launch
- Third-party plugins from developers like ChowDSP, Shnobel Tone, and Manic FX
- User-created plugins you can build yourself with FAUST or C++
- AI amp modeling via AIDA-X — capture any real amp and play it through Nimbus
- Custom IR loading — bring your own impulse responses
Nimbus doesn't just keep up with the future — it lets the community shape it.
More I/O Than Any Competitor
Smart amps are notorious for skimping on connectivity. Nimbus went the other direction:
- 2 x XLR + 1/4" combo inputs — plug in a mic and guitar simultaneously
- Dual 1/4" line outs for connecting to a PA or studio monitors
- Headphone out + AUX in (both stereo)
- USB-C audio interface for Mac and PC
- USB-A for MIDI controllers
- Bluetooth 5.0 for wireless audio streaming and app control
- Wi-Fi (unlocked via OTA update post-launch)
For comparison, the Lava Studio charges nearly double the price and gives you a single quarter-inch input with limited power output. Nimbus gives you two combo XLR inputs, 70W of power, and full MIDI support — at a significantly lower price point.
A Real Computer Inside
Under the hood, Nimbus runs a 1GHz ARM Cortex processor with 64GB of onboard storage. That's 5x more processing power than the Spark's DSP chip, which means Nimbus can run multiple effects and amp models simultaneously without breaking a sweat.
Audio latency? Sub-3 milliseconds. You won't feel it.
Control It Your Way
Nimbus pairs with the Chaos Audio mobile app over Bluetooth, giving you a visual pedalboard where you can build signal chains, download new effects from Tone Shop, and manage presets — all from your phone.
Prefer hands-on control? Nimbus has a multiknob for fast scrolling and adjustments, 7 RGB LEDs for preset and signal status, and full MIDI controller support for live switching.
Built by a Proven Team
This isn't our first rodeo. In 2022, our first product Stratus raised over $130K on Kickstarter and shipped 1,500+ units worldwide. Nimbus is built on everything we learned from Stratus — and on direct feedback from our community of musicians.
Nimbus is live on Kickstarter. If you want to be among the first to get your hands on the smartest amp ever made, now's the time to back us.
Nimbus ships Q1–Q2 2026. The future of guitar amps is open, powerful, and fits on your desk.
