Subject: RE: [Harp-L] cheapo amp?

[EGS1217@xxxxxxx]

Bill Hines writes in response to J:
 
"J,
Here's your best option, a really fine piece by Richard  Hunter:
http://www.hunterharp.com/ampset1.html. You can get the Crate  he
recommends for $100 or so on ebay, or $200-something brand new. And  add
on to the rig as your budget allows.

Get the rig and just put a  mic in front of it to the large PA system if
you are playing larger venues or  a blues jam or whatever that has a PA.

Aside from this, the Pignose Hog20  is a cheap practice amp that sounds
good with harp and is small/portable,  it's still pretty loud for a
practice amp, and the best thing is that it has  two pretty big batteries
that last a long time so you can use it wherever you  go. You can get one
from our friends at Best Lil' Harp house at  http://www.harphouse.com

PS That's not a dumb question! Like someone  said, it's all a matter of
resources and priorities. I want a Lamborghini  too, but can't afford one
(yet). So ya make due with what you  can.

Bill Hines
Hershey, PA

-----Original Message-----
From:  harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:harp-l-bounces@xxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of  andrew collinson
Sent: Friday, August 05, 2005 3:11 PM
To:  harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [Harp-L] cheapo amp?

Help please for a real  beginner.

Is this a truly dumb question? I want the cheapest amp I can  get... is
there any reason why I can't buy, say, a 10W guitar practice amp  and plug a
mic in instead of the guitar?
Thanks guys.
J."
 
....Well Bill,  I'm sure glad HE asked it and you gave all this cool  
information and the link, since I've never owned an AMP, a Mic or any gear  related 
to my harmonica, and was beginning to think I wanted to get my feet wet  (so to 
speak) by starting out slowly but didn't know where to start, didn't know  
who to ask, and simply felt foolish asking at all.  My feeling is  that I'd 
rather practice with a relatively cheapo Amp and mic just in case I do  something 
to screw it up, and put what money I do have to spend into what I  think of as 
"quality" gear at this point  - the harmonicas  themselves. 
 
 I'm just getting re-started.  I can always give away the cheap  amp down the 
road to someone else getting started -- I'm a big believer in  "paying it 
forward", but what a sin it would be to invest a chunk of money  needed for 
something else (and when you have as many animals as I do around my  house there's 
always something else) into something I may never use properly (I  only play 
at home) and could easily damage by simply not having enough technical  
knowledge.   Hey -- I crashed my computer and lost all my poetry  and songs just last 
year by being technologically stupid.    Aaargh!  
 
 The mere thought of messing up something as sacred as one of Sonny's  Amps 
gives me shudders, even though in my secret heart of hearts there is of  course 
the desire to own one.  But why?  Because I want to be just  like the "big 
boys" who are at the top of their game? I know I'll never be  that good, nor am 
I that competitive. All my life I've wanted a Jaguar  too and  I still don't 
have that.   I've never been on  stage, never even played in front of an 
audience (unless you consider the 4  sweet guys who made me join them at 3 in the 
morning in the lounge at Buckeye  over my protestations and were as kind as 
could be).
 
 I understand when people suggest others "save their money" for the  best Amp 
-- but what if they need the Amp now and just don't have  the wherewithal to 
come up with the extra cash?  It's not always as  simple as doing without a 
particular luxury item or giving up something they  "frivolously" spend money 
on, in order to save for something so special.   Some folks really do live so 
close to the bone they squeak.  I'm  not one of them now, thankfully, but I've 
been there a few times.   Something some might want to keep in mind is that for 
most married musicians,  especially those with children - there is always 
another person involved  who may not be at all thrilled by the prospect of their 
spouse spending  what they might see as an inordinate amount of money on a 
high-end item  when to their point of view something much less expensive could 
suffice.   Compromise is the name of the game, and we all do the best we can 
within our own  lives and boundaries.  So try to cut the other guy just a little 
more slack  and imagine walking a mile in his moccasins before presuming and 
pre-judging  based on your own experiences and what you would or wouldn't do, 
or the  sacrifices you would be willing to make.  Other folks just  may not be 
in a position to make those same choices.    
 
And I'm going to try to be a little less judgmental myself --I'm as guilty  
of it as some others here so I'm certainly not letting myself off the  hook.  
After hearing someone say they have FIVE children still to put  through school 
and holding down a regular job while trying to make a living as a  part-time 
musician I know I have no clue what it's like in his house, or the  compromises 
he's had to make -- is all I'm saying.  :-)
 
Now I need to find a cheapo amp and mic  <g> AND figure out what  the heck 
key I speak in.
 
Elizabeth