Members bitmatt2 Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 so im kinda new and ive been researching topics and cannot find an answer to my question. i got a really good deal on a marshall jcm 2000 dsl 100. now i know the maon reason tube amps are so sought after is because they distort at high volumes giving you a very tasty sound. now in my bedroom there is no way im going to have this amp loud enough to get this effect. even with my previous amp which was a 40 watt fender hot rod deluxe i could not get it loud enough. i imagine i couldnt even get a 15 watt amp loud enough without my wife getting angry. so i use pedals for distortion and overdrive needs. i prefer my pedals go through the clean channel of my amp. now i know this 100 watt amp is way bigger than i need. but since i use pedals and dont really want my amp to break up as i run them through the clean channel anyway, is there any downfall to using my amp at low volumes (usually around 2 with my gain at 12 oclock). as i said im new and i may be missing something. if im shooting for a clean tone is there any reason to have the amp cranked? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 1001gear Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 If you know enough music you'll be able to adjust to a volume limit. If you're solely addicted to the rock star vibe, you'll have permanent hearing issues after a couple minutes. (this doesn't seem to bother rock stars in the least) Your choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mikeo Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 Many of us have different amps for different jobs, or as the say different tools for different jobs. You might look into a wife friendly amp like this. A 100% wife approved set up. Happy wife=happy life. Pet approved and baby and kids approved too. Trust me on this, everyone will love you even more than they do do. How can you not love or love. [video=youtube;A8q09xG1gxw] [video=youtube;6K12Mi0TmPY] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Les Paul Lover Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 An amp like the dsl relies on preamp drive, and not power valve overdrive. Sure it will sound nicer pushed a bit, but those amps are designed to sound nice at moderate volumes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Reuben Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 You could try an attenuator to drive your amp for that sweet cranked tone but be able to control the actual volume so it isn't ridiculously loud. Here's one I found online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Les Paul Lover Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 I've got one of those and love it. I got a really good deal on an amp, cab and that attenuator, planning to flip it all. I flipped the amp and cab only, the jettenuator stayed home. Brillant pièce of kit. It won't sound good at very high attenuation, but it works brilliantly at keeping volume very easily manageable. I can crank my 50w Rockerverb and not piss off my family or neighbours.... A Pretty neat trick. I like the fact that it'll work with anything with 4, 8 or 16ohms tap too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 Many of us have different amps for different jobs, or as the say different tools for different jobs. You might look into a wife friendly amp like this. A 100% wife approved set up. Happy wife=happy life. Pet approved and baby and kids approved too. Trust me on this, everyone will love you even more than they do do. How can you not love or love. . . . ^ This. They're doing amazing things with modeling amps these days. I just bought a Roland Cube. Vox does a credible job as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members badpenguin Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 Roland cubes, the Yamaha THR series, The Vox, all great amps for practice, bedroom and recording. The 100 watt Marshall, will have the wife pissed, neighbors pissed, and a bevy of visits from the local police. Add to that, the hearing loss, and loss of space, and of prestige when people look in your room and see this stack. You would look like a wanker for sure! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Les Paul Lover Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 They may do a credible job.... But they don't sound like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted February 9, 2017 Members Share Posted February 9, 2017 No, they don't sound like a 100 Watt tube amp but that's not why they exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hellion_213 Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 I used my 6505 half stack in the bedroom for a while. Not a big deal, just aim the cab away from the door, and as mentioned, you're mostly driving with the pre, not the post. You're not going to achieve optimal tone, but, it can be done. Another thing to consider is rolling it in the closet while you're playing, and cracking the door after getting your volume and knobs set for further dampening. Now I have my jam room, so, I'm good. I highly recommend investing in one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 The sound can be quite seductive. If you know that great tone is just a twist of the knob away you will want to hear it. You just will and everybody will complain that you don't know how loud you're playing. Several years ago I bought a small decibel meter at Radio Shack. It really does help keep the volume at a sane level . I think I was trying to limit the sound to 90db to save my ears and my marriage,There could even be a phone ap for this ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mbengs1 Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 there's no downfall to using a loud amp at low volumes. i use my 120 watt bugera amp in my bedroom and the volume doesn't even go passed 1. i think your amp will last longer too if you don't turn it up often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grant Harding Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 One of the selling features of my 80w amp is how good it sounds at low volume. It gets sublime as it goes up, but I can even jam with acoustic players and not sound thin and terrible. Prior to this I used a modeling amp to achieve this, but with the meh that comes with older modeling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Les Paul Lover Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 I sold my SS practice amp after buying my Orange RV50. I just wasn't using it. The orange had an excellent master volume and sounded better at any volume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GoldJim Posted February 10, 2017 Members Share Posted February 10, 2017 I just purchased a Katana 50. For $199 new, the amp has wattage settings for 50, 25, and 1/2! What? Isn't that a solid state? Yes, it's set up to emulate the way a real tube amp would react at those wattages, so I can crank it at 1/2 watt and get the reaction of a cranked amp at the levels of 1/2 a watt. I also have a Fender Mustang III and a Mesa Boogie Lonestar Special which works at 30/15/5 watt settings for each channel. For practice, the Katana has become my low volume amp for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted February 11, 2017 Members Share Posted February 11, 2017 I have a Marshall DSL40C and I use it at bedroom levels without a problem. I just added a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe last night and it did well at similar volume. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted February 13, 2017 Members Share Posted February 13, 2017 The downside of a big amp at very low volumes is that speakers are stiff and unresponsive, and the lack of compression from the preamp and power train can make the tone dry and unrewarding, though clearly from some comments in the thread that isn't everyone's experience. I have an AC30 from the 70s: cranked it's like warm thunder, but quiet it's dry & scratchy. The usual solution (apart from a small amp designed to be played quiet) is some compression and EQ to simulate the way an amp behaves at higher volume levels. You won't hurt the amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kayd_mon Posted February 16, 2017 Members Share Posted February 16, 2017 Read what Paul Gilbert has to say about big amps and small rooms. Attenuators or isolation boxes are the only way. Or, like was said before, the master doesn't need to be wide open for that amp to make its tones. Just push enough air to make the speakers breathe, and leave room for your hearing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gardo Posted February 17, 2017 Members Share Posted February 17, 2017 has anyone noticed that the op has not responded Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted February 17, 2017 Members Share Posted February 17, 2017 has anyone noticed that the op has not responded The OP? The OP?! The OP is only an excuse to have a rousing discussion. Once that gets going there's no need for an OP. Seriously, it's been over a week. Do you think we ran him off? Or is he lurking, absorbing our wisdom ''from a distance''? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted February 21, 2017 Members Share Posted February 21, 2017 I suspect the OP is someone else, not wishing to post under their own name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Minitruth Posted February 21, 2017 Members Share Posted February 21, 2017 I don't play in the bedroom, but a cheapo Kustom KG112fx in living room is loud enough to get me evicted, if I don't keep the volume low. Having a tube amp in this situation would be pointless, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hellion_213 Posted February 22, 2017 Members Share Posted February 22, 2017 Methinks a few of the recent posts may be along this line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.