Re: [Harp-L] Avenger Awesomeness

["Steve Power" <stevepower@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Damn Ron. You own stock in Squeal Killer or what?

Before this gets turned into a Squeal Killer thread and all sorts of 
questions get sent Sonny's way, let me say catagorically in my experience, 
and I know personally of other SJ owners with the same experience, the SK or 
a Kinder AFB are totally redundant and will, despite any other claims, 
change the tone. It may be slight but it is always going to be something. 
You've added a circuit which was not part of the amp design. Of course it 
will.  I know of no internationally known SJ endorser who puts such a device 
in front.

On one occasion ,just for the hell of it, when I was trying to compete with 
our main man guitarist and our world class drummer who sometimes likes to 
kick the hell out if the kit - which I love -  I had the Super Cruncher 
bridged with the Normal channel flat out and the Bright channel around 7 and 
not a hint of feedback.  And to be honest I may have been plenty loud out 
front but on that occasion just wasn't filling the same sort of space as the 
guitars on stage. It may also have been I could have added even more 
projection with the Treble control. It may have evn been where I was 
standing on stage, pretty close to the amp which was on the floor.  It 
certainly was not something that could have been improved by a pedal and 
with other more restrained bands the SC has more than enough grunt. With the 
Avenger I fill all the space a man could want and I've got head room to 
spare.  Why the hell would anybody want to stick a pedal in front of it?

When I mentioned the hotter preamp tube causing a little feedback problem I 
do mean a little. It was nothing like the full on cat in heat feedback one 
usually gets, almost a perception more than a reality.  It was instantly 
cured by simply backing off the Treble about 1/4-1/2 a notch which also 
allowed me, if I wanted, to up the volume by about the same amount or even 
higher if I wanted to. Again, one tweak on a knob as opposed to $200 bucks 
for a pedal plus another thing to pack, unpack and generally mess with.

Now to be clear, I've got a Kinder AFB+ and I found it very useful with 
small amps or in situations where I have to use whatever is handed me, 
usually a guitar amp of some sort.  I understand the Squeal Killer is 
possibly an even better device for those situations and it is cheaper. A 
useful tool to have no doubt.  But neither one is necessary or even wanted 
when using a SJ amp.