Members schismpunk Posted November 13, 2010 Members Share Posted November 13, 2010 See, this doesn't really make sense. Ordinarily, if you are sidefilling your amp, you are going to be the closest person to it by a fair amount. So if it is tearing the other members' ears off across the stage it must be totally knocking you over. So why would you want it that loud for yourself? Not if it's side-filling your knees from a foot away. That's a situation when it won't be loud enough for you, but for the guy on the other side of the stage it'll be hell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DBR Posted November 13, 2010 Members Share Posted November 13, 2010 From an engineers point of view and rule of thumb. Not mine..but from what I have recently been advised and it really works. If the engineer goes to the edge of the stage and you can be heard...you are too loud. This may sound wimpy to all of you guitar players and metal heads, but for an engineer's POV, this is ideal if you would like to be in the mix and sound well-blended from FOH besides, you could always be turned up in the monitors you know. You don't have to be on 11 to get your tone you know..r. There are better sounding, low wattage amps out there these days. I'm certainly pleased to know that there are guitar players out there who are finally realizing they don't have to be the loudest one in the room. That is quite refreshing. :blah: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted November 13, 2010 Members Share Posted November 13, 2010 . That's a situation when it won't be loud enough for you, but for the guy on the other side of the stage it'll be hell. Well, that would also be pretty empty-headed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted November 13, 2010 Members Share Posted November 13, 2010 From an engineers point of view and rule of thumb. Not mine..but from what I have recently been advised and it really works. If the engineer goes to the edge of the stage and you can be heard...you are too loud. This may sound wimpy to all of you guitar players and metal heads, but for an engineer's POV, this is ideal if you would like to be in the mix and sound well-blended from FOH besides, you could always be turned up in the monitors you know. You don't have to be on 11 to get your tone you know..r. There are better sounding, low wattage amps out there these days. I'm certainly pleased to know that there are guitar players out there who are finally realizing they don't have to be the loudest one in the room. That is quite refreshing. :blah: Agreed, except..... It is kinda silly to go to all sorts of measures to choke your amp's volume down and THEN put your guitar in your own monitor. Why not situate your amp so that it IS your guitar onstage monitor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members schismpunk Posted November 13, 2010 Members Share Posted November 13, 2010 Well, that would also be pretty empty-headed. Aren't we still talking about guitar players? /cue flames Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members badhabit Posted November 15, 2010 Members Share Posted November 15, 2010 Well, this doesn't apply to a majority of us that play guitar. However, Joe Bonamassa is an excellent player who uses a plexi glass panel in front of his two 4 x 12 loaded cabs. His rig changes but usually consists of four various 100 watt heads, which he can independently switch off and on. Of course, Joe is playing in auditoriums and concert halls, not night clubs. But his reasoning is similar. To get the "tone and response" he is looking for, he wants this much power. He knows it's more volume than he needs, therefore, the plexi panel. Well, if I were Joe, I suppose I'd consider this as well. But since I'm not, it's overkill for most of us. I don't want to carry around that much gear and keep it in top operational form either. Many other players in Joe's league have done similar. But we're talking large venues, and they still use the plexi panels. I don't care what a player uses, as long as he is able to keep the stage volume appropriate for the venue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 Well, this doesn't apply to a majority of us that play guitar. However, Joe Bonamassa is an excellent player who uses a plexi glass panel in front of his two 4 x 12 loaded cabs. His rig changes but usually consists of four various 100 watt heads, which he can independently switch off and on. Of course, Joe is playing in auditoriums and concert halls, not night clubs. But his reasoning is similar. To get the "tone and response" he is looking for, he wants this much power. He knows it's more volume than he needs, therefore, the plexi panel. Well, if I were Joe, I suppose I'd consider this as well. But since I'm not, it's overkill for most of us. I don't want to carry around that much gear and keep it in top operational form either. Many other players in Joe's league have done similar. But we're talking large venues, and they still use the plexi panels. I don't care what a player uses, as long as he is able to keep the stage volume appropriate for the venue.opened for Walter Trout once a while back, and he shoulda had a wall in front of his amp. LOUD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members McPBrain Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 My preferred approach is to have the amp directly behind me, angled up(typically on a stand) where it's pointing about at my shoulder blades. Reasons for doing this: I don't have to have my amp as loud to hear it through the stage mix nor do I have to EQ it as bright to achieve the clarity I seek... In addition, you are much less likely to shear someone's head off in the audience if the amp is not pointed directly out from the stage. This is in comparison to the common approach of sitting the amp on the floor behind you and pointing at your knees. I also prefer it to angling it back from in front of me for a couple reasons.... There will be much less reflected sound reaching the audience. This is probably a minor concern, but depending on the stage dimensions and the absorption(or lack thereof) it could be a factor.... Also, if I have a monitor wedge in front of me, it's easier for my brain and ears to differentiate the two sound sources(the wedge and the amp) if they are not next to each other. I've used the sidefill approach in the past but I'm not a big fan. Depending on the size of the stage, it can create issues for other band members. You get better isolation from each other if the cabs aren't filling the stage crossways....Also, I have a "trick" right ear because of this very setup - I played in a band where we swapped off on guitar and bass. The bass cab was just off to my right, and the frontman had a really hard right-hand attack(with occasional nails to boot). It messed up my right ear to where it's very sensitive to sharp transients - not high SPL per se, just really quick, sharp sounds. If my right ear is exposed to a hot snare pop, it will immediately shut down for a period of time. I have to play to the right of the drummer because of this. That means I would set up my amp to my right in a cross-fill situation, and I can't seem to do this without piercing my ear..... As always YMMV.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rezrover Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 What size & how do you angle? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TheDoctorMo Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 What size & how do you angle? Now, that is a double entendre if I ever heard one. mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rezrover Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 Okay... now I'm laughing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jhana Posted November 16, 2010 Members Share Posted November 16, 2010 I think anyone who does NOT beleive this works is deluding themselves and secretly doesn't trust the soundman so they are going to aim the amp at the crowd 'just in case'. This is basically what it always comes down to. There are plenty of "sound guys" out there who really don't have a clue what they're doing, so some of the initial distrust might be warranted. But at the same time, I've been doing sound for about 8 years and have been playing for about 12, so if I get a minute or two to talk to any of the band members, I'm pretty good at convincing them that I know what I'm doing and how to make them happy on stage. Ideally I like to have the amps completely off-stage. Most of the time this isn't going to happen, so I generally have them play with the band and have it just loud enough so that they hear what they need. Aiming it in from the side or even backwards facing them is usually a decent solution for louder shows where the stage is going to be loud and/or we're using big side fills. I've used ISO cabs before, and in the few cases where the entire band is using in ears and that one time the drummer was on an electric kit, the stage was near-silent. It was great. (Also this is my first post, so hello HC ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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