Electric guitar: How loud do you usually practice?

[100 dollar cars]

epiphone acoustic to get it right and when i'm not too embarrassed to play it loud, a '66 kalamazoo model 2/vox ac4 running stereo, playing a 98 gib. sg special (non faded).

[aussy]

Usually raised voices to can't hear my own voice, but not enough to hurt my ears without protection (at least noticeably )
Haven't graduated yet, so live with my parents, my guitar stuff is in the basement

[tommyld]

I don't like to practice crazy loud (unless I'm practicing with a drummer or something)...took me a few years to figure out I didn't need 50 or even 15 watts.

[CicadaSilence]

I do all my practicing on an acoustic these days; my pedals and amps stay in my singer's basement.

 

Apartment living FTL.

[Yarmo]

I usually practice unplugged with the headstock touching a wooden chair.

[lowbrow]

Cans. But it's fairly loud, still....

[Temple of Light]

My main practice/jam rig is a Toneworks AX1000G feeding a Hundred Watt Solid State Yamaha 4x12 half stack on the floor, and a pair of Electar Tube 30's way up high overhead, far left and far right. Clean tones and tremolo/reverb are best served up by the half stack, {it has an accutronics reverb tank in it...} the distortion and delays buzz more nicely through the tube amps. Typically, The S.S. amp is on about 3 or 4 on the main gain setting, and the tube amps ride at about 5, because they are 10" 's for speakers and need a little more juice to make them bark...when I track, I move over to my double full stacks,
or I just go direct with a Toneworks AX3000G
as the main proccessor with a Toneworks AX300G in the effects loop...

[Phil O'Keefe]

Great responses and lots of votes - I really do appreciate it folks. Please keep 'em coming - the broader the demographic and the more input and votes I can get the better.

I'm sure some of you do "several" of the things on the list - playing unplugged while watching the TV, and with headphones and at whisper to shout levels, depending on the conditions in and around your home at the time, the time of day night, etc. etc. I probably should have allowed "more than one answer" per voter in the poll, but since I didn't, please just pick the one you tend to do the most often.

[Kap'n]

It depends. I practice a lot unplugged, with an acoustic, or a guitar plugged in at conversation level most of the time.

Other times, when I'm more exploring new sounds than actually practicing, I'll crank it up to around gig volume - sometimes more, depending on what I'm trying to accomplish. Which is anywhere from a cranked 12W amp to a cranked 50W amp, all non-master volume.

[Jenesis]

Conversational level.

[Fender&EHX4ever]

Conversational - I worked for many years with a guitarist who blew out my ears over the years from ridiculous levels on a Marshall half-stack. Granted, he was a great guitarist, but I'd really like to have my hearing back.

I'm happy to rehearse at comfortable volumes and avoid tinnitus for as long as possible.

[Zappa74]

Ampeg J20 at about 4 on the volume... right before break up.

Every so often though, I put it to 10 and enjoy that sound.

[notjonahbutnoah]

Well you got five pages, but here's mine:

As loud as the situation allows.

Home alone? LOUD. Drown out drums loud. Maybe a touch softer if its late.

People home but not in the same room? Loud, but like loud radio loud, not nutty loud.

People in the same room? Slightly raised voice loud.

People watching tv in room? Barely audible or unplugged.

[IamBurnout]

Loud enough that the neighbors hear it...

100 yards away, through the walls.

[Mitchell?]

I almost always play at rehearsal w/ band volume.

 

[TomCray]

I just moved into a new apartment, so my 50 watt Palomino is gathering dust. I've been playing through my Cube 15 at whisper levels. My neighbors are cool, and I don't want to piss them off.

[Exdeath]

30 watt tube amp, volume at 1. Decently loud for a small room.

 

I could turn it up more if I wanted to, but I like my ears.

[DanJep]

When I'm at home alone I still play at about conversation level. I'm pretty concerned about my hearing and have sensitive ears. I do what I can to preserve my hearing and that means avoiding anything that could give me ear fatigue.

[Jules-RM]

I practice at full band practice volume, I don't touch the vol knob on my amp ever, unless I want to turn it up a little for short periods.

It's all about tone

[1DZReverendDavidLee]

I see I'm in the majority - Raised Voices here

[EL KABONG]

I play {censored}ing loud as {censored} at all times. 100 watt dual recto mesa Tremoverb.

I used to run a two amp setup but I blew up my 50 watt combo stacking a klon into an eternity.

I love playing extremely loud, my DLS has really put me over the top. I used to have trouble with stuff rattling in the room, but the latest re-org has cured that thank god.

I'm scared to dime this amp it's already loud as {censored} and I'm nowhere near being dimed.

Having such a killer rig has improved my playing immensely, I used to get screamed at when I played. I've done a lot of wood shedding since those days and my rig is totally killer. Now every time I play I get compliments "you really sound good". The neighbors love listening to me play.

Playing extremely LOUD thru a 4x12 really trips me out, it's hard to describe really. Definitely Psychadelic, I use a lot of vibe, fuzz, OD, medusa chorus (always on) , phaser either mu tron biphase or infinity phase into aquapuss or skrecho.

It's really great now that I'm not getting screamed at, and people love my playing. Need to find a band to play with.

[imbuedblue]

I do a lot of unplugged noodling, but when I am actually working on something, it's either on acoustic or plugged in at a conversational level.

[Alecto]

Mostly unplugged, or through my Orange Tiny Terror. Watching TV while practicing is optional.

[mysterymonger]

Usually, raised voices level with an RP500 thru PC 2.1 speaker setup. I do a bit of all except for whisper level (really, what's the point?) and obviously I'm not in jail.

[Clewsy]

I do a lot of unplugged noodling, just because the guitar is there and I wanna play now.

When I 'practise', I play through my Macbook, usually as loud as possibly but its never at such a level where I'd have to raise my voice significantly to be heard over it.