Re: [Harp-L] Amp overkill

[Rick Davis <bluesharpamps@xxxxxxxxx>]

Yes, I agree with Wolf.  When I first started doing club gigs in the late
70s none of the places we played had a sound system or a sound guy.  Each
band brought in its own PA, and sometimes a guy to run it.  Amplified
instruments such as guitar, bass, and harp were seldom sent through the PA
FOH speakers.  Big amps were the hot ticket for all of us.  My gig rig back
then was an Ampeg B15N fliptop stack!

Things have changed.  Back then we had to have the big amps to be heard.
Now we have more choices.  As someone else pointed out, it is not true that
big amps can't sound good at low volume, and it is also not true that small
amps always sound overdriven.  The widespread use of house PA systems and
sound techs has given us a broader range from which to choose.  I do not
believe that one solution is better than the other.

It is my choice to use a smaller amp, because of weight, ease of handling,
lower cost, and I just like the tone of my amp.  But I admire big amps and
love to sit in and play them from time to time.  I'm just glad I don't have
to be there at the load out.

I've heard some players say they prefer big amps because they do not trust
sound guys to get their tone right.  I think that is the wrong attitude.
The house hires you and pays you, and they have their own house rules about
volume.  The only way for them to accomodate that is to take control of the
sound.  I've been almost always pleased with them.  Besides, it is their
club and their dime.  I ain't no rockstar who can make demands about perks
or sound.  Mostly I'm just happy to bring my little amp, get a quick sound
check, and play.

-Rick Davis
The Blues Harp Amps Blog
http://www.bluesharpamps.blogspot.com/




2009 at 3:16 PM, Wolf Kristiansen <wolfkristiansen@xxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Can you stand one more comment on this topic?  It's not directly about amp
> overkill, but it's definitely related.
>
> I'm the first to acknowledge that there are gig venues where everyone must
> be miked or plugged into a public address system (P.A.) to get the sound out
> to the audience.  I.e., arenas, outdoor gigs, etc.
>
> But I'm from a certain generation that remembers this:  P.A.s were for
> vocals; the instruments were amplified through stand alone amps, one for
> each instrument.  I first got acquainted with the novel idea that everything
> comes through towers of speakers, one on each side of the stage, when I
> started going to rock concerts.
>
> Here's the advantage of individual instrument amps being the main sound
> source for those instruments:  Each musician's sound is coming from a
> different location on the stage.  I like that.  It's sort of like being at
> an all acoustic, unamplified concert-- the guitar comes from one side of the
> stage, the stand up bass from the other, maybe a harmonica from left center,
> the singer in the middle, etc.
>
> What do I like about it?  It's hard to say exactly, but when it's done
> right, there's both a blending and differentiation of the instrument sounds.
>  The resultant overall sound is richer and more sonically complex than the
> mush that comes out of P.A. speakers, where every single performance sound
> originates from the same speaker(s).
>
> So up to a point, volume wise, I much prefer amplified performances to come
> out of on stage instrument amplifiers, not a P.A.
>
> Cheers,
>
> wolf kristiansen
>
>
>
>
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