Tim McNamara
2/10/2014 2:07:00 AM
On Sun, 9 Feb 2014 10:23:41 -0800 (PST), jaz <jackzucker@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Sunday, February 9, 2014 12:16:21 PM UTC-5, Tim McNamara wrote:
>> On Sun, 9 Feb 2014 07:43:38 -0800 (PST), jaz <jackzucker@gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>> > On Saturday, February 8, 2014 10:15:19 PM UTC-5,
>> > cjenki...@gmail.com wrote:
>>
>> >> The Polytone Mega-Brute is loud enough for most applications....
>> >> The sound is nice once you learn how to dial it in.
>>
>> > Not nearly loud enough for a loud rhythm section.
>>
>> Wow. Seems like an overly loud rhythm section if a 100W amp doesn't
>> cut it. I find that fair number of drummers and (electric) bassists
>> are allergic to dialing it back three notches, confusing loudness
>> with their "sound" and demanding that others "keep up," but the great
>> ones are always attentive and never overpower. You never hear Steve
>> Swallow or Bill Stewart being too loud, for example.
>>
>> My ~15-20W Deluxe is more than loud enough on 3 to be heard with my
>> drummer, bassist, trumpeter and saxophonist. I usually have to dial
>> back the volume on the guitar to 7-8 during heads and comping. But
>> they are all listening musicians and attending to the mix
>> dynamically; I tend to be the leadfoot in that band...
>
> depends on the room. I have played really big rooms where we are not
> mic'd and a deluxe couldn't cut it. And if you're playing with a tenor
> sax player, the whole band gets really loud.
True, my band plays typically small rooms (like coffee houses or sall
bars) or, in the gigs we have had in larger rooms, we're playing
background. I use the AI if I have concerns about running out of
headroom on the Deluxe, which happens quickly as the volume knob goes
up. I've had a Pro Reverb silverface for over 25 years that is pretty
loud but weighs too darned much to take anywhere. I'm too old to be
lugging 80 lbs of amp around (I have thought about replacing the JBLs
with some neo speakers in that amp).
After I posted I also thought about style. If you're playing fusion or
rock or blues it's a different situation than straight ahead and the
demands on the amp would be different. Jack plays a wider range of
styles than I do so his equipment needs are different than mine.