Re: Blog: The 100 Watt Amp -- Too Much Firepower? Or Juuuuust Right?
You know hopefully at some point you get enough seat of the pants training that you don't need all the math.
True, and I'm not saying you need to whip out the slide rule to figure out where to set your master volume. If you ignore the reality of how sound works and how the human ear perceives it, you will not have great sound.
And if you understand sound, you will know why a 100W amp is not twice as loud as a 50W amp, and that two 50W amps do indeed have the same power output as a single 100W amp. (This is the basis of "bridged mono" mode.) You will also be armed with practical knowledge about the many other factors that determine how loud any setup will sound to a room full of people.
If you believe the only purpose of your amp is to make *you* think you sound awesome, or if you are playing to audiences of 25 people or less, then you probably don't need to worry so much about how sound levels drop off with distance. But if you care about what the guy in the back row is going to hear, you do need to give this some thought. If you want to use your 100W stack to "fill" a 500-seat club with music, you are going to be blasting some people while others will not even hear you over the bass player. If your drummer is set up between two stacks plus the bass amp, he'll be slamming the kit with everything he's got.
When you are standing near your amp on stage, you will hear a different mix than anyone else in the room. The further you get away from your cabinet, the more the other sound sources in the room will stand out. If you care that your audience hears the same awesomeness that is fueling your groove, your PA should be where the sound is coming from and your sound guy should be able to control the mix from out in front of the stage. If you insist that your point-source amp+cab is going to do the whole job, then the mix in the room is going to be hit-or-miss.
Choose your amp and adjust it according to the tone you wish to have, whether it's a 100W Marshall or a 15W Fender. This (your ideal tone) should not change whether you are practicing in your bedroom, rehearsing in an empty warehouse, or playing a gig at the local club. But you should not be choosing an amp based on whether it is "loud enough" to fill said club; that is best left to the PA system. If the houses you play don't have a PA, your band should invest in one. It is actually less expensive in the long run than playing the "who has the loudest rig" game with your bandmates.
I've got mild tinnitus from exposure to loud music over the years, and I feel the aftereffects any time I crank up one of my amps "for fun." Believe me, I do not want to ever experience full-on tinnitus, and you don't either. I also don't know too many people who can play a musical instrument worth a damn without being able to hear what they (and the rest of their band) are playing.
Don't let the "math" discourage you. Using common sense and taking the time to understand sound reinforcement is a good investment for anyone hoping to play music for the enjoyment of others.
