Forgot How Loud Tube Amps Are

I remember my middle son coming home from rehearsals and telling my that my 1984 2204 50W head and 1960 4x12 that he borrowed wasn't loud enough for his band. The next week I told him to take my Prosonic combo and 4x12....that did the trick, no more complaints.
They were a very loud band...
 
My Axe has 100% saved my hearing, and man, is it great to be able to practice silently at night. My four year old twins were starting to get the impression that I just collect guitars and step on pretty lights, so I picked up a little Swart stereo rig to help expose them to some music- they love to sing in the microphone I bought them on one side while I play guitar. Aaaaannnddd..
I've always loved the Tucana model, and I was able to get a real one here... and it's awesome. aaaaaaaannnnndddd...
I've always wanted a Swart SST-30, and I got a deal on one, so I've got that around as well.... sssooooooo....
I'm rediscovering what a fantastic pedalboard the AF3 makes!
Seriously, I'm in hog heaven.
 
I just got a studio space where I can put a bunch of amps I have and crank them with nobody else caring. I'm mostly a Fender/Vox 15-50 watt amp person, so not metal loud. I agree. I cannot believe how freaking loud some of these things are when they starting singing. Super Reverb...wow...awesome sound, deafening. AC30 with 2-12 Blues. OMG, so freaking loud. Vibro King. Carr Slant 6.

I think I'm going to need custom earplugs or I'm going to go deaf.

BTW Just got a Humboldt Blues Jr and it sounds awesome. I had an original tweed one, but over time, the circuitry seemed lose its' mojo. I read somewhere that the wiring was cheap and that they tended to do that over time. I don't know if that was what happened to mine, but it didn't sound remotely as good as the one I just go by the time I sold it. Speakers make a big different in Blues Jr. Some of them the used were horrible. The original Eminence was good and this current one is great.
 
There is something about a cranked tube amp for sure. Turning up my 2:90 or old 6505 through a Mesa 4x12 just brings something to the table. It is the rumble, the raw electronics, the heat, the smell..

Then again, I also get a similar vibe from my Axe FX III and Matrix GT1600 through the same 4x12. Minus 20lb in weight.

That being said, I ALWAYS have my custom made earplugs with me and will never play a show without them. I only have one set of ears.
 
FractalAudio said:
I almost exclusively use tube amps into a load box or a speaker in an isolation box or room. I finished updating the Blues Jr. today. Probably one of the quieter tube amps made. For yucks I decided to compare it with it's built-in speaker to the Axe-Fx through monitors. All knobs on noon except MV at 3ish.

Holy carp!!! I'd forgotten just how loud even a lowly Blues Jr. can get. And that's with the MV pretty low.

They're actually pretty decent little amps and sound great when cranked.
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I prefer the Pro Jr. A bit less bassy, but it cut even better than Blues JR. Loudest 10 inch amp ever heard! Cover 100+ venues with level on 2...
 
Yep that's the one. Pretty stupid. Leave the pyrotechnics to the experts boys and girls! They're lucky that drum hardware didn't end up in somebody's neck or head.
 
Interesting juxtaposition how Moon and Townsend are destroying everything, yet John Entwistle is over there cradling his bass like it's a baby bird. I've never understood the whole breaking your instruments thing. Waste of perfectly good gear.
 
mr_fender said:
Interesting juxtaposition how Moon and Townsend are destroying everything, yet John Entwistle is over there cradling his bass like it's a baby bird. I've never understood the whole breaking your instruments thing. Waste of perfectly good gear.
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It's an act. It's no different from theatrical candy glass stunts onstage in a play.
 
mr_fender said:
Yep that's the one. Pretty stupid. Leave the pyrotechnics to the experts boys and girls! They're lucky that drum hardware didn't end up in somebody's neck or head.
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It's crazy what you could get away with back in the day. The worst thing that probably happened after that was the producer yelled a lot at their manager and he just shrugged and said "rockstars eh? What can you do?"
 
I remember bringing my amp and cab to a session with no in ears...man I never felt so lost. Is that a bad thing? Or did these quite stages thing pushed us in that direction? Man I miss loud stages sometimes but no one wants it anymore. I even got a gig because I had the Helix and could fit in a group with no big adjustments...can't wait to try out the Axe Fx3 next week.
 
Eliju said:
It's crazy what you could get away with back in the day. The worst thing that probably happened after that was the producer yelled a lot at their manager and he just shrugged and said "rockstars eh? What can you do?"
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Oh yes.

Prior to the Great White incident, I think that far too many of us were fairly cavalier about using pyrotechnics in places where we really had no understanding of the risks or the prep level of the venue. Looking back on the 80s, I'm really somewhat surprised that a disastrous event didn't happen much sooner than it did.
 
FullThrottle64 said:
It's an act. It's no different from theatrical candy glass stunts onstage in a play.
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Oh I fully get the entertainment aspect of it. Rock Stars have to rock star and all. I just hate to see good gear get trashed, especially considering what some of that gear would be worth today. $$$
 
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