NAD and you will never guess

[Chad]

Hey John. As far as sound guys telling you to turn down.....

I run sound as well. One of the most important tools to own is a quality SPL meter. I KNOW when I'm too loud and when I'm not. I had a guy telling me I was too loud recently. I went to the booth with my guitar (wireless) and my SPL meter and it was peaking around 79db at the mixing board. Another guy I mix at the same venue is typically peaking 85db or more at the mixing board and there aren't any problems. What was happening is this: it was a morning gig and the sound guy's ears weren't awake yet. He was running the P.A. so low that it wasn't exceeding our measly stage volume. I loaned him my SPL meter, told him he just needed to turn things up and work on the mix then it would be fine. And it was.

Short version: it's nice to have scientific data (from an SPL meter) when working with sound peeps.

[jgcable]

Hey John. As far as sound guys telling you to turn down.....

I run sound as well. One of the most important tools to own is a quality SPL meter. I KNOW when I'm too loud and when I'm not. I had a guy telling me I was too loud recently. I went to the booth with my guitar (wireless) and my SPL meter and it was peaking around 79db at the mixing board. Another guy I mix at the same venue is typically peaking 85db or more at the mixing board and there aren't any problems. What was happening is this: it was a morning gig and the sound guy's ears weren't awake yet. He was running the P.A. so low that it wasn't exceeding our measly stage volume. I loaned him my SPL meter, told him he just needed to turn things up and work on the mix then it would be fine. And it was.

Short version: it's nice to have scientific data (from an SPL meter) when working with sound peeps.

Sounds like something I need to get. BTW.. we don't have a soundman and the only club around here that has one is Toads Place. We play there once ever 2-3 years. I am our soundman. Its the bartenders or the club owners who complain and its always early in the night when there is nobody there and we are soundchecking. Everything sounds louder at that time.

[jgcable]

Here's a nice recent example of the Engl Savage model in the latest firmware. Pretty decent metal tone IMO.

Because I typically play pop covers in my band I don't use much of the high gain stuff, mostly clean and light breakup type tones. I also don't use as much delay as a lot of the youtube players.

Yea, thats good tone for sure.

[Chad]

Sounds like something I need to get. BTW.. we don't have a soundman and the only club around here that has one is Toads Place. We play there once ever 2-3 years. I am our soundman. Its the bartenders or the club owners who complain and its always early in the night when there is nobody there and we are soundchecking. Everything sounds louder at that time.

Yeah, that can happen a lot. It's mostly psychological. In the example I gave, things seemed louder to the soundguy because it was early morning and he had just got out of bed and hadn't been subjected to much noise yet in his day. So it seemed loud....even though it wasn't. Same goes for a band playing music at quieter times (low noise floor) vs louder times (higher noise floor). Actual SPL peaks and volume levels could be exactly the same, but with the lower noise floor it's going to seem louder in a relative sense. Also, as I'm sure you know, bodies absorb sound.

I'd start measuring and recording levels that you can use as references, then assure bar owners and the like that the levels are in line with the last time the room was full of people. And if it seems loud, it's mostly because the room is so quiet.

[PowerTube]

I'm still getting a JVM, but I'm keeping my Vetta rig for the versatility. Have you ran a Vetta direct before? I tried mine that way once and I wasn't impressed. Miked is MUCH better.

[jgcable]

I'm still getting a JVM, but I'm keeping my Vetta rig for the versatility. Have you ran a Vetta direct before? I tried mine that way once and I wasn't impressed. Miked is MUCH better.

I ran mine direct. The key is the AIR and mic selections. I thought it sounded great direct.

[PowerTube]

Well, now that other things such as the Axe Fx and the Bogner/L6 have been brought up I think the Bogner name on there is a marketing thing. Its like L6 is using it to claim some kind of legitimacy or something.

Agreed. Personally, I've never been impressed with the Spider valve and I think my Vetta sounds much better. In all fairness, if I were comparing these amps at high volume, the Spider Valve might possibly win because it's throwing real power tube overdrive into the mix.

The thing still sounds more L6 than Bogner to me. A couple local bands use the L6 stuff and its a misconception that they don't sound loud. They do, just not in a good way. Their tone is always awash in a ton of delay and lost in the mix and yes, it sounds thin.

Yep. It sounds like they're using their bedroom settings live and at higher volume, which generally sounds like crap. A couple of years ago, I took a serious look at my higher volume settings on my Vetta, and I wound up creating several new presets that were geared for stage volume; no more 1x8 speaker cab emulation, cutting the reverb a bit, and cutting the delay by at least 50% if not more.

I don't use these new presets a lot at home because they don't sound that great at low volume, but they're a big improvement on the occasions when I let the amp "breathe."

[PowerTube]

I ran mine direct. The key is the AIR and mic selections. I thought it sounded great direct.

The AIR didn't seem to help much on mine for some reason, but I don't think I messed with the mic settings. That probably would have made a big difference.

[Shawn Lutz]

Kemper is King for me in modellers.

[PowerTube]

Most of the factory presets are over processed with WAY too many effects and schmutz.

I've always believed that the Vetta factory presets cost them quite a few sales. Among the dozens of user presets I've created on mine, maybe two are even based on the factory ones.

I have serious doubts about whether those were even made by a guitarist.

[Electric]

I've always believed that the Vetta factory presets cost them quite a few sales. Among the dozens of user presets I've created on mine, maybe two are even based on the factory ones.

I have serious doubts about whether those were even made by a guitarist.

This seems to be the case with a lot of modelers. I have an Eleven Rack and the presets are horrendous. If you just start dialing in from scratch it's pretty easy to get a good tone.

[jgcable]

Had 4 musicians come over. We were A/B'ing between all of my amps. I built a preset using the 5150 model and the VHT Powerball. One using a 4 x 12 with V75's, the other using a 4 x 12 using V30's. Perrsonally.. I like the way my tube amps feel better but I have to admit the Vetta sounds better. Especially with the band.

[jgcable]

I agree... I would NEVER buy a Vetta if I based it on the factory presets. Some of the clean ones are good but anything high gain is for crap.

[PowerTube]

I agree... I would NEVER buy a Vetta if I based it on the factory presets. Some of the clean ones are good but anything high gain is for crap.

Yep. A few in particular are horrendous, in my opinion. "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Back in Black," "Cliffs of Dover" come to mind. They sound nothing like what they're supposedly emulating.

I've actually used "Streets," the U2 one, and "Run Like Hell" sounds fairly close to Pink Floyd.

[jgcable]

Yep. A few in particular are horrendous, in my opinion. "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Back in Black," "Cliffs of Dover" come to mind. They sound nothing like what they're supposedly emulating.

I've actually used "Streets," the U2 one, and "Run Like Hell" sounds fairly close to Pink Floyd.

Most of the ones that have any type of distortion or gain are muffled and have way too many effects. Also.. the factory didn't even make sure the level on each factory patch is consistent. Some are normal volume and some are so loud you could break glass.