NAD and you will never guess

[jgcable]

Yep... I am picking up another Vetta Combo with longboard tomorrow. This will be my 4th Vetta. I had the head and half stack and 2 combo's.
And... I am actually going to try to use it live!! Thats right.. the tube snob is going to try a total digital software driven modeling solid state amp live!
I am just tired of playing shows with my guitar amps on 2. Also.. since my band does high energy rock versions of songs ranging from Ted Nugent to Lady Gaga to Rihanna to 311 to EMF to The Black Crowes and Tommy Tutone and the Romantics.. I need a BOATLOAD of different tones.
The last gig i played on Saturday night I brought my Peavey Triple X 1 x 12 combo. I had the master volume on 2. The channel volume on 3 and it was mic'd through the PA and monitor system. I was told we needed to turn down. My guitar sounded pretty thin when I turned it down to 1.5.
I am also tired of complicated rigs. No matter what I bring (I have several amps), I am always running a ton of chords and fiddling with my amp at every show to get it just right and the problem is I have to set up the entire PA system, trouble shoot it when needed and soundcheck everything. My bandmates will forever be clueless. They set up their gear and they are good go. I spend the majority of the time setting up the PA and the digital lighting and by the time I get to my guitar rig I have about 15 minutes before the show starts. Its stressful. Hopefully the Vetta will aleviate some of that stress.
I figure with the Vetta.. if all goes well and it sounds good enough for me...all I need is the cord from the longboard to the amp, an XLR direct to the board and my wireless sitting on top of the amp. Thats my entire set up. HOPEFULLY it will sound good. If it doesn't.. it will stay home and I will have something else to noodle around with. I love tweaking and noodling. Just not at gigs!

[jgcable]

BTW... I am getting it STUPID cheap.

[jgcable]

This is how I am thinking.. I am probably wrong but... I play tube amps because of the warmth, the presence, the ability to push air. I love the way a tube amp feels when I am playing through it. The problem is I only experience those feelings a few times a year when we do a really large show or an outside gig and I can actually turn my amp up. 90% of the time I am playing my amp on 2 and relying on the PA system to amplify my signal. I can't feel any of the good stuff that a good tube amp gives me. Now that I am wireless I went all around the club to see what it sounds like through the PA. It sounds good but I don't hear any tube warmth. All I hear is my guitar tone amplified through a PA. I can do that with my Boss GT8 directly into the board. Heck.. I could do that with a POD XT sitting on a chair running direct to the PA.
I always had good results getting a nice tone out of the Vetta. The problem I always had with it live was competing with another guitar player who was playing a Rectifier half stack or a 5150 or another high gain tube amp. It just would get lost in the mix. We played with alot more stage volume back then and didn't rely on the PA for guitars that much. Its different for the last 3 years with my band. I am the only guitar player and I rely on the PA for 85% of my guitar volume. Maybe the Vetta will work out?

[markD]

if you are the only guitarist it should be fine. my friend plays in a cover band and he uses a line 6 spider IV combo. I was shocked at how good he sounds. he is the only guitarist in the band. he came and jammed with us once and his tone got buried against mine, but alone he kills. that vetta should work out good for you.

[veemagic]

I don't know if I should be happy or scared :think:. Either way, I can't wait for your review after the first show. John, I wish we lived closer. You would be a blast to hang with. Congrats on your new amp. Hopefully it will work out, and you will sing the praise of solid state modelers for weeks to come.

[jgcable]

I don't know if I should be happy or scared :think:. Either way, I can't wait for your review after the first show. John, I wish we lived closer. You would be a blast to hang with. Congrats on your new amp. Hopefully it will work out, and you will sing the praise of solid state modelers for weeks to come.

Thanks bro. I have always been one to take chances live. I usually can make anything sound pretty good live and the Vetta is no exception. I never had a problem with the Fletcher Munson thing or the digital aliasing or the fizz.
I am actually scared. I haven't played a modeling amp live with a band since 2006. Thats the last time I had a Vetta. At one time... back in the old days... Sambencuda and myself both had Vetta combo's in a 2 guitar band. We did Tesla, Ratt, Scorpions, and all kinds of metal. If I recall... we had really good guitar sound live. When that band fizzled out I joined a band that was all high gain tube amps and I sold the Vetta and bought a Soldano SLO. From there I went to Boogies and then Marshalls, then Randall MTS's, Laney's, Rivera, back to Mesa, Carvin Legacy (great amp btw...), The Mesa Stiletto, back to Marshall, then to Peavey 5150, 5150II and finally back to Mesa where I have been using Rectifiers for the last 3 years. I currently use a Mesa Single Recto and a Peavey Triple X. Both sound great when turned up. Both sound great at outdoor shows or on big stages. Thats about 2-3 gigs a year. The other 20 or so are on small tight stages where I can't turn up past 2. I love a loud full guitar sound. I miss it actually. Back in the 80's I ran a full stack. Hiwatt 120w head into 2 Marshall Red 4 x 12 cabs loaded with JBL speakers. Out in front I had an MXR distortion + and a phase 90. Thats it. The volume on the amp was generally so loud it felt like I was getting an MRI. It was mic'd too. Live music was MUCH MUCH louder back in the old days. Especially the stage volume. Twisted Sister, TT Quick, Anthrax were all bands I shared stages with. They were easily double the volume I was because the guitar player would play with 2 full stacks blazing + the PA system. It was awesome.

[Newc]

Isolation box. If it's too loud, let the soundguy worry about it.

[straycat]

Newc beat me to it.

[straycat]

GC in Akron Ohio has a Vetta head in the used amps.

[roodyrocker]

One reason you can't turn up loud a tube amp on stage is that it may sound good to you where you're standing but most often your 4x12 will be laser beaming the audience directly in front of you while not being so articulate on the other side of the stage. Going through the PA while playing at lower stage volume really is the better option. If you want true cranked tube amp tone your choices become Iso box like was mentioned above or Attenuator. Either way, let the PA/sound man work for you. I remember the days of turning up the amps and of course everything else had to be cranked up along with it such as drums, bass, and vocals and all that did was literally pin people to the back wall Everyone watched from the back of the room because their ears hurt. Not good! BTW, even national acts in large arenas use Iso boxes to get their tone out through the PA. Its a good option!

[chrisolson]

I have ALWAYS been able to get good tones out of L6 stuff. You just need to know what you're doing.

[jgcable]

One reason you can't turn up loud a tube amp on stage is that it may sound good to you where you're standing but most often your 4x12 will be laser beaming the audience directly in front of you while not being so articulate on the other side of the stage. Going through the PA while playing at lower stage volume really is the better option. If you want true cranked tube amp tone your choices become Iso box like was mentioned above or Attenuator. Either way, let the PA/sound man work for you. I remember the days of turning up the amps and of course everything else had to be cranked up along with it such as drums, bass, and vocals and all that did was literally pin people to the back wall Everyone watched from the back of the room because their ears hurt. Not good! BTW, even national acts in large arenas use Iso boxes to get their tone out through the PA. Its a good option!

Yea, I thought about the Iso box thing or an Attenuator but its just more work and more set up for me. We do have a sound man. Its me.
I set up the entire PA, get basic levels and then soundcheck everything. In regards to turning up loud.. I am not talking about really loud. At band rehearsal at my house my amp is easily twice as loud as it is when we play a show. Its still not really loud.
I agree that a lower stage volume and using the PA is the best choice and that's what I do. What I don't like about that is my high gain tube amps are barely on and I could achieve the same thing using just about anything live.
I saw a band at Toads Place which is a very large venue and the guitar player was playing out of a Fender Frontman15R. That's a 15w solid state amp with an 8" speaker in it. Its a $75.00 amp new. It was sitting on a chair with a mic on it. The sound was REALLY good live. It was actually as good as any of the other bands who were using Soldano's, Mesa, Engl and VHT. That made me wonder.. whats the point?
When I played at Toads with my Randall MTS half stack the amp level was so low I couldn't hear my amp at all. I could only hear it out of the monitors and the mains. I could have brought my Fender G-Dec 3 $99.00 combo for that show. One show I used a Tech 21 Trademark 300 head through a Marshall 1960B cab. That amp head has a Sansamp built into it. I ran a direct XLR to the PA. The soundman came up to me after the show and told me I had extremely good guitar tone that was very easy for him to manage. My stage level was so low I relied totally on the wedge and cross stage monitors. Again.. whats the point of having a high gain loud 1/2 stack at all if you can't turn it up?

[jgcable]

So... is the latest software version for Vetta to Vetta II still 2.03? I know they had a few after that but they addressed the Variax and digital outs. I won't be using those.

Also..can somebody recommend a cheap USB to Midi converter? If I need to do a software update or some deep editing I need to hook the Vetta up to my laptop which only has USB ports on it.

[toejam]

John, maybe it's time to go back to the Tech 21 Trademark 300 again!

[jgcable]

John, maybe it's time to go back to the Tech 21 Trademark 300 again!

One just sold on Ebay with the footswitch for $399. I was considering it!!!

Who knows.. maybe the Vetta won't work out live. I have a feeling it will though. Only my ears and my bandmates will be able to tell me.
I don't even remember what one sounds like anymore.
With that said.. I love my Boss GT-8 (it sounds amazing directly into the PA mixer) and I rehearse at home by myself using a Fender G-Dec 3 modeling amp.


The only time I have been using my tube amps is for band rehearsal and gigs.