How often do you see full stacks

[Chistopher]

I was thinking, most of the time I perform or rehearse, it's direct on a silent stage and when I'm practicing it's through a 212 Bluesbreaker. The exception is performances where the only mics are on singers.

In a large venue, silent stage works the best because it gives the sound guy more flexibility and there aren't multiple other amps sneaking into your microphone, anything smaller than that and even a half stack is generally overkill.

This raises the question, who is still buying full stacks and why do you prefer them?

[ICTGoober]

I know 2 guys here in Wichita who still play with 4 double stacks on stage. It's stupid, I've told them so and they don't care. They think it's their sound. Sound guys hate 'em, and frankly - they deserve it.

Also, anyone who plays in stereo on stage is stupid. Stereo is okay through the PA or in headphones - that's it.

If you can't get the job done onstage with a single cab you're doing it wrong.

[El Dunco]

I know 2 guys here in Wichita who still play with 4 double stacks on stage. It's stupid, I've told them so and they don't care. They think it's their sound. Sound guys hate 'em, and frankly - they deserve it.

Reminds me of this guy with a 300watt Ampeg tube amp at a small-medium club. It was so ungodly loud, patrons were straight up leaving because they couldn’t stand it. The SE and band begged him to turn it down and be was having none of it because it’s “where it sounded best.” Some guitarists really need to stop acting like their instrument “tone” is more important than the sum of the parts of the band or in this case, the audience being able to stand it!

[idsnowdog]

Stacks were designed to overcome deficiencies in early PA systems so musicians could provide their own amplification directly to the audience. By the early 70s PA systems had become powerful enough that musicians really didn't need 100+ watt stacks and the stage monitors power output dwarfed stacks.

However, stacks had become part of the rock esthetic so musicians continued to use them whether they were mic'ed or not. Nowadays a lot of musicians have fake stacks on stage. Even Van Halen admitted that only his bottom cabs had speakers in them because he thought slanted cabs at ear level were too loud for comfort. Many of the venues around me have a 50 watt limit and they won't let you through the door with anything more because they don't want bands blasting their audiences. If you can't get a decent tone at 30 watts you have a crappy amp and a microphone that has enough sensitivity to amplify acoustic instruments doesn't need to be fed by a 100 watt stack.

[NegativeEase]

Everyday, I have several at the house

How many out in the world? see them often at shows for visual effect onstage but not often used for volume.

[Cynical]

Many of the venues around me have a 50 watt limit and they won't let you through the door with anything more because they don't want bands blasting their audiences.

That's an incredibly silly policy. The volume difference between 100 watts and 50 watts is miniscule; the real difference is that 100 watt amps typically have a tighter low end response. A venue telling bands not to use amps that have a good low end response is really dumb, and I'm glad that none of the venues I regularly see shows at have any problems with guitarists bringing their Dual Recs or 5150s.

[idsnowdog]

That's an incredibly silly policy. The volume difference between 100 watts and 50 watts is miniscule; the real difference is that 100 watt amps typically have a tighter low end response. A venue telling bands not to use amps that have a good low end response is really dumb, and I'm glad that none of the venues I regularly see shows at have any problems with guitarists bringing their Dual Recs or 5150s.

These are bars with small stages. It's not a question of merely wattage. Instead it's a question of room on stage.

[some_dude]

Most of what I see is 50-100w half stacks or 30-50w combos.

[Mincer]

I don't generally see them anymore, as monitoring on stage got better, and so did PA systems.

[Cynical]

These are bars with small stages. It's not a question of merely wattage. Instead it's a question of room on stage.

A 100 watt head doesn't take up much (if any) more room than a 50 watt head, so I don't know how that helps anything. In both cases, it's needing a cab as wide as a 2x12 that limits room on stage (and also you said it was because "they don't want bands blasting their audiences," but OK)

[Frater106]

I don't generally see them anymore, as monitoring on stage got better, and so did PA systems.

I’ve definitely noticed people in local bands using smaller 112 combos lately.

[Securb]

I haven't played a stack since the late 80's. If I could get a good deal on a Marshall B cab I would get it for the practice room for poops and giggles. I do not see myself dragging it to a show ever.

[DankStar]

At big shows you hardly see amps at all now, they hide em. At small clubs I see mainly half stacks, with the obligatory EVH head

[idsnowdog]

A 100 watt head doesn't take up much (if any) more room than a 50 watt head, so I don't know how that helps anything. In both cases, it's needing a cab as wide as a 2x12 that limits room on stage (and also you said it was because "they don't want bands blasting their audiences," but OK)

A 1x12 or 2x12 combo is more the size for the stages I'm talking about and not 4x12 cabs with heads.

[GuitarStv]

Many of the venues around me have a 50 watt limit and they won't let you through the door with anything more because they don't want bands blasting their audiences.

I bet a cranked AC30 is louder than a 100 watt plexi. :P