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Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 6:46 pm
by Pens
My health is fine. The drummer is doing what he's supposed to do, beat the shit out of the drums. Different genre's of music. We are also a 3 piece so there aren't a bunch of guitars making noise, it's one guitar amp that needs to be loud.

The loudest band I played with was a art noise soundtrack band I sat in a few times, we played background to a short film. With 4 guitarists and 3 keyboards, and drums, it was so loud it hurt my ears. I actually stopped for the last 10 minutes and got off stage because it was destroying my ears.

A single Twin turned up isn't that loud when it's the only guitar on stage.

You want loud, go to a Dino Jr show. Or a Dick Dale show.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:53 pm
by honeyiscool
I've been to a Dinosaur Jr. show. I mean, it wasn't as loud as an MBV show but the difference is MBV actually sounded good. I like some Dinosaur Jr. but I think their sound has always been subpar. But that's just opinion.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:59 pm
by Concretebadger
Pens wrote:My health is fine. The drummer is doing what he's supposed to do, beat the shit out of the drums. Different genre's of music. We are also a 3 piece so there aren't a bunch of guitars making noise, it's one guitar amp that needs to be loud.

...

A single Twin turned up isn't that loud when it's the only guitar on stage.
Ah, I see. I thought as much. Sounds like you have the perfect excuse to get another amp then. :D

I'd love to hear MBV again. They were painfully good back in '08, and painfully loud too. I usually wear earplugs at live gigs these days, and that's the show that got me started on doing it. Kevin had three full Marshall stacks and an AC-30 on stage that time, but most of the sound was coming out of the PA.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 9:14 pm
by paul_
I saw Dino Jr at Slim's. They're not actually that loud, just hashy. It's like a fly is trapped in your ear canal and wants out real bad.

MBV are a bit self-indulgent about it. It's like there are flies in both your ear canals and they're buzzing "fuck you it's warm in here". Guy in front of me without plugs collapsed to floor with hands over ears during last rumbly low feedback note which they held for a full minute, this was after a slightly different and slightly quieter monotonous rumble that had gone on 10 minutes. There are few things I've experienced bands do live that I'd describe as "unlistenable" but that would be one of them. Part of the point, perhaps, but it's not about music or even SOUND really for the last uncomfortably long portion of their set. You could literally be deaf and find it a bit jarring. My eyes felt funny.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 10:07 pm
by Ankhanu
honeyiscool wrote:
Concretebadger wrote:Besides, if you can't hear a Twin cranked to 7 or 8 over the drums, the drummer's propably playing louder than what's appropriate for the venue anyway. ...
For real. If you're really cranking a Twin to 7 or 8, I really worry about your health. I just quit a band for many reasons but one of the reasons was that I just got sick of a guitarist who regularly played a Twin at 4 or 5.
...
I'm sure most bands that play with a Twin could sub for a Deluxe Reverb and absolutely nobody in the audience would complain.
My Twin is generally at 7 or 8... but then, I'm pretty sure it needs a retube. I haven't retubed since I got it in '05, and who knows how old they were when I got it. Even at 7-8 in a small-medium venue, I can't always hear what I'm playing, even when the other guitar was going through a Tiny Terror on a 212. I should really buy some tubes :P

You're likely right that a Deluxe Reverb would be good enough too... especially with an extension cab.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 10:21 pm
by Pens
Ankhanu wrote:
honeyiscool wrote:
Concretebadger wrote:Besides, if you can't hear a Twin cranked to 7 or 8 over the drums, the drummer's propably playing louder than what's appropriate for the venue anyway. ...
For real. If you're really cranking a Twin to 7 or 8, I really worry about your health. I just quit a band for many reasons but one of the reasons was that I just got sick of a guitarist who regularly played a Twin at 4 or 5.
...
I'm sure most bands that play with a Twin could sub for a Deluxe Reverb and absolutely nobody in the audience would complain.
My Twin is generally at 7 or 8... but then, I'm pretty sure it needs a retube. I haven't retubed since I got it in '05, and who knows how old they were when I got it. Even at 7-8 in a small-medium venue, I can't always hear what I'm playing, even when the other guitar was going through a Tiny Terror on a 212. I should really buy some tubes :P

You're likely right that a Deluxe Reverb would be good enough too... especially with an extension cab.
You have it up that loud during practice or shows? It's plenty loud enough for practice or recording at around 3 or 4, it's only live that I have to get it up that high. You probably do wanna retube. I have replaced power tubes in my Twin about every 2 years now, getting quieter is always when I can tell it needs it. Once practice requires me to turn to 5 the tubes gotta go.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 10:49 pm
by honeyiscool
Do you have tilt back legs on there? I think Twins are really directional things... the guitarist is often in the worst position to actually hear the thing. You wanna be careful with amp stands though. They're fine on smaller amps but on Twins, I heard that they can topple, as in my friend actually had that happen to him and the legs of the amp stand actually punctured the cones of his speakers.

And then he got even louder speakers in there. Ha.

Posted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 10:53 pm
by Pens
Tilt back doesn't do shit. I put it up on a chair at most shows. I do not trust those amp stands, they do topple far too often.

It depends on the stage, too. If it's a raised stage having the amp on the floor just couples it to the stage and all of the highs are gone. If I'm going to hear it I have to have it pointed at me on a chair

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 12:34 am
by Ankhanu
I generally use my tilt legs at shows. In practice I have the amp near 5-6 and on stage it's 7-8 generally. I'm certain I need new tubes and the settings will be more reasonable, but, ya know, cash and all that jazz. It doesn't help that I'm planning to do all 10 tubes, given the age of them all, which is gonna cost about $140.

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 4:28 pm
by honeyiscool
AmplifiedParts has a kit of JJs for just over 120.

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 6:17 pm
by Ankhanu
honeyiscool wrote:AmplifiedParts has a kit of JJs for just over 120.
Shipping to Canada is ~$30... comes to the same (basic) price as the kit I have on watch on eBay - http://www.ebay.ca/itm/130729600963?_tr ... 3106wt_908

Posted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 6:53 pm
by honeyiscool
I see. I like JJ power tubes a lot but I find that JJ preamp tubes often thicken things up, maybe you should just buy a quartet of power tubes first, see if that's really the problem, because there's a good chance your power tubes don't suck yet.

Posted: Thu Feb 14, 2013 2:52 am
by Josh
honeyiscool wrote:Do you have tilt back legs on there? I think Twins are really directional things... the guitarist is often in the worst position to actually hear the thing. You wanna be careful with amp stands though. They're fine on smaller amps but on Twins, I heard that they can topple, as in my friend actually had that happen to him and the legs of the amp stand actually punctured the cones of his speakers.

And then he got even louder speakers in there. Ha.
this is so true. usually at shows I can't hear my guitar, and then when I hear a video of us playing the thing's blaring.