Members elsupermanny14 Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 I'm curious because if a combo is usually enough to recording and performing done then why amp companies make such high wattage amps? Peavey makes 120watt tube amps, Mesa makes the triple rec at 150watts, and Crate makes 200watt Blue Voodoo. What is the point of these high wattage amps if you can't crank them, and you only need a 30watt combo in a club or a PA system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Electric Blues Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 They're for whe you get your gig at the Superbowl! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Runn3r Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 cos ya just neva know when you might hafta play in stadiums in front of 120, 000 cos at tht point in yer career you surely can't rent any gear and ya better have yer own bag o brootalz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members musicmaker '55 Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 There's enough brand new stacks and half stacks being sold out there to justify amp manufacturers to still make them. If they didn't sell, then the amp mfrs. would stop making them and/or go out of business. While most gigging bands are playing small clubs and bars, I still occasionally see bands with guitarists sporting amps with wayyy more wattage than they could use in clubs 4x the size that they regularly gig in. Looks maybe?? I dunno... why do guys buy sports cars that can go 170 mph and use them only to commute to work??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rpeterson Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Someone's never heard of Dinosaur Jr. You need them for small club gigs of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dcindc Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 I have a 150 watt rms combo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dsquared Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Tradition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rush340 Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 a) More clean headroom.b) Looks.c) The feeling of the earth shaking beneath you when you do get those few chances to crank it.d) Compensating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members renier Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 i don't really see the link between wattage and number of speakers. i can definately see a use for a 30w top with a 4 x 12. why people would buy a 150w 2 x 12" combo is beyond me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GarysBlues Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 They're for whe you get your gig at the Superbowl! Stacks sound great but this is basically it? You need to be playing large venues for them to be practical. Late 60's and early 70's everyone used Stacks. Rock and Roll clubs were everywhere. Most of that is a thing of the past now.I always liked the idea of head and a seperate speaker cab though. It definatly reduces electronic problems associated with Speaker vibration in combo's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members csm Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Historically, stacks date from the 1960s, before the development of modern PA and monitoring systems, when pretty much all instrumental volume had to be generated by the backline, and all that was mic'ed up were vocals and drums (and brass instruments, where applicable.) During this era, the 'wall of srtacks' became part of rock iconography: a symbolic representation of power and a visual code for the monumentalism of what was then the 'new rock.' Nowadays, as noted above, stacks are unnecessary -- if not actually counter-productive -- on all but the very largest stages. In practical terms, there are comparatively few venues where a 50w head and a single mic'ed-up 4x12 won't provide pretty much all the sound-pressure-level a guitarist really needs. On the other hand, a wall of full stacks does make a male guitarist's penis larger. Think of it as the rock-guy equivalent of breast implants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sqrnookle Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 The real issue of blasting a full-on stack in a small-to-medium club is that it screws everyone over - the audience, who hear nothing but guitar, your bandmates, who hear nothing but guitar, and the sound guy, who's forced to push the PA to limit to try and compensate for the guitar, which often fails. It's really irritating. Take your humble Vox AC30 - loud as sin, yet portable. Why bother with anything more if you're not playing stadiums on a regular basis? And even then, a lot of guys playing arena shows aren't running full stacks - in fact, they tend to have a couple of smaller amps, or even just heads running out into speaker simulators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GibsonQC Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 a) More clean headroom.b) Looks.c) The feeling of the earth shaking beneath you when you do get those few chances to crank it.d) Compensating. Good answers all... I've been taking my 22w Mesa tube 1x12 combo to band practice for the past 4 months. Last week, I decided to dust off the 4x12 and my 60w tube head (carvin) and WOW. The difference was astronomical...I didn't crank it or anything, but I have true cleans now and a very full sound. Don't get me wrong, I like the combo and it has a great sound, but even at low/rehearsal volumes the 4x12 with the higher wattage head sounded much better. And, to dispute claims that lower wattage would be fine, I took the cabinet to the rehearsal space a few weeks prior and used it with the 22w Mesa head. True, sparkling cleans were just not there until I added the head. I always thought it was a "whose balls are bigger" fest... but, I think there truly is a lot of creedence in point A above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr_GoodBomb Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 With an amp that gets it's gain from saturating the power tubes, bigger wattage means more headroom, volume "space" before you get into saturation and gain. Ask Pete Towsend about that'n. With an amp that gets gain from the pre-amp, like a 5150, that higher wattage allows for the power tubes to stay a little clearer while the pre-amp does all the work, so you don't get buzzy, box-of-bees overkill. And because people expect it. Kids who started out with 20-to-50-watt solid state combos want a half stack with mega wattage because they assume it'll be "twice as loud." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mymindsok Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Gee, I dunno... I have a Peavy 125 watt tube amp in the living room and a Modded Pignose 60 watt tuber in my office. I guess that sometimes I just like to turn it on sit here and look at all that POWER!! Mymindsok Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GibsonQC Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 The real issue of blasting a full-on stack in a small-to-medium club is that it screws everyone over - the audience, who hear nothing but guitar, your bandmates, who hear nothing but guitar, and the sound guy, who's forced to push the PA to limit to try and compensate for the guitar, which often fails. This is the main issue with using 4x12s and high power heads. However, if you can get the sound you want and keep the volume to reasonable level (ie: use the amp as a stage monitor), you really do get a different sound from a 4x12 and head. The problem with *some* guitarists is the insatiable urge to blast everyone else out of the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RUExp? Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Nothing sounds quite like a 4x12 cabinet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stormin1155 Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Well, obviously if you're playing a large venue, the stacks will give you more volume, headroom, tone... whatever. My experience though is that most people, especially young guys with excess testosterone, buy way more amp than they really need. 95% of guitar players will never need more than a 30 watt combo. But then guys are guys, and there will always be monster trucks, crotch rockets that will go from 0 - 200 in 6 seconds, 50 caliber hand guns, 60" HDTV screens, and Marshall stacks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members csm Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Though they will indeed get the job done, I've never been fond of single-speaker combos, possibly because I was traumatised by a gig where I was using such an item, unmic'ed, on a small stage with a large-ish band. Every time somebody moved to stand in front of the amp, all the sound disappeared up their arse. As a result, I've always favoured combos of relatively modest wattage, but with more than one speaker for superior sound dispersal. The best stage amps I've ever used have been a 4x10 40w (or is it 45w?) Fender Super Reverb and the ever-popular 2x12 Vox AC30. During the late 1970s, I played everything from basement clubs to larger venues like London's (now-defunct) Rainbow and Lyceum theatres with an AC30 (unmic'ed in the clubs; PA'ed up in the theatres) and was never plagued by aching feelings of wattage-related inadequacy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kentuckyklira Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Sorry folks! If you can Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr_GoodBomb Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Sorry folks! If you can Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Nik Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Because peole wil pay money for them Same reason car manufacturers make cars that have 500 BHP and can do 200moh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kentuckyklira Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 "An" emo? For {censored}s sake, it's a music genre, NOT a type of person. (Short of punk, which was an insulting name for a person before it was a genre) You DON'T call the fans of rap raps, you don't call metal listeners metals, and you don't call someone who really enjoys SRV a blues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sqrnookle Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 This is the main issue with using 4x12s and high power heads. However, if you can get the sound you want and keep the volume to reasonable level (ie: use the amp as a stage monitor), you really do get a different sound from a 4x12 and head. The problem with *some* guitarists is the insatiable urge to blast everyone else out of the water. Very true. Using a higher-power head for the headroom is totally legit, not to mention clever. Personally speaking, I love a bit of grit; hence my preference for lower-wattage amps you can get cranking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ferdinandstrat Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 They make up for small gentiles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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