So I get to be a rock star for about two minutes...

[quadperson]

I haven't played in front of an audience in about 25 yrs. and the local roller derby girls have asked me to play the National Anthem at their next thing (whatever you call it, mash-up?). I will be playing my Fusion Deluxe but I can't figure out which amp to take. I love the way my little Spider III 75 watt sounds but I may need the extra horsepower of my RG100 212...I still haven't gotten around to buying a "real" amp since I won't have time to do anything "real" until I retire. They have a PA so I guess I can do the line-in thing. Ideas?

[veemagic]

My suggestion, is if you have time to go down there and play through their PA before the show, you will know what you'll need. Bring someone with you that you trust has good ears. The National Anthem is less than 2 minutes, and thats if you stretch, so I wouldn't worry too much. Play what you feel most comfortable, and you'll do fine!

[MetalDaze]

+1 on trying to get a sound check ahead of the day of the show, if possible. It will also give you a feel for what the sound guy can do for you. A good one can do wonders and might even have something on hand that you can use.

[MikeStrat]

You should have someone take video so you have something to look back on.

[Larz]

Red white and blue spandex pants are a must

[xenophobe]

Bring someone with you that you trust has good ears.

That's my advice anytime you play out. Some sound guys don't give a fuck.

[AdRock]

That's my advice anytime you play out. Some sound guys don't give a fuck.

That's no lie. As a soundman myself it's a double edged sword. I can get lumped into the stupid asshole category without that person even hearing me mix, ALSO, I can follow a guy like that and look like a fucking genius to the people that had to suffer through the guy before me. LOL.

My suggestion, call the guy that will be handling the sound. Tell him what you're bringing, make sure that he has a mic and a stand for it, that type of stuff. Ask him if you can come down and check the place out. There's a good chance he'll be there a few days before, or early that day to set things up and you could easily come in then and maybe even play some to see how it's going to be. I be the guy would be happy to let you in while he's doing something else in the place. Bottom line, some kind of advanced communication will make everyone more relaxed because neither of you will be walking in blind to the other.

[Rsmacker]

He he, I wonder if "the PA" is a load of 100v 42" Grampian Horns?

[quadperson]

Great advice guys. About 300 people showed up and it was fun. I didn't play as smoothly as I'm capable of (I was freakin' nervous), but the crowd went wild, so it was pretty cool. The "sound guy" didn't know much about anything so I just ran through my 75 watt Line 6 which turned out to be plenty loud. All of the girls were already there warming up when I did my sound check and they loved "Crazy Train". If anything, this has got me back into playing and I'm enjoying guitar again. I'm probably going to upgrade to a Blackstar HT 40 club, though.

[PowerTube]

Great advice guys. About 300 people showed up and it was fun. I didn't play as smoothly as I'm capable of (I was freakin' nervous), but the crowd went wild, so it was pretty cool. The "sound guy" didn't know much about anything so I just ran through my 75 watt Line 6 which turned out to be plenty loud. All of the girls were already there warming up when I did my sound check and they loved "Crazy Train". If anything, this has got me back into playing and I'm enjoying guitar again. I'm probably going to upgrade to a Blackstar HT 40 club, though.

Your situation sounds like mine a few years ago. I played the Anthem two years in a row to open a public event (I volunteered the first time, then got invited back). I played it on my Vetta rig, and the second year I decided to "spice up" one of my SL2H's for it: