how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

[34029324079]

I am not quite in the market for one but want to shape my thinking; since I am largely an apartment guitarist at this point.

Do these work? Can you turn the amp way down and it still sounds good ('pushed')?

or is the vox valvetronix the best option for this type of thing?

here is a linky to this THD Hot Plate product: http://www.zzounds.com/item--THDHP


edit: note that these things cost $300 new and have some maintenance issues, whereas a vox valvetronix head vth costs $400 used on ebay etc.

 

[jeremy]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

the vox is fine for home use, i wouldnt be caught dead with one on stage but there is a lot more versitility and usable low volume.

tube amps for bedroom use are fine if they are low wattage but even a 15w amp cranked up can be too loud. a 15w amp with an attenuator would be a cool home rig but kinda expensive. a 3-5w champ is a good apt tube amp

 

[TheArchitect]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

Attenuators can't do an extreme reduction and maintain a good tone in my experience. -8 db reduction is the best you can realistically do and that does have a bit of sonic impact. I would look at the Vox unit in your case.

What maintenance issues are you referring too? I use a 16ohm model all the time. Never any problems.

 

[34029324079]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

awesome, this what I needed to know - thanks much!

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

Hot Plates are wonderful devices for helping Marshall type amplifiers give up the goods earlier. Like others have mentioned here, don't expect talking volumes with pure power tube tone, but with a little bit of volume, they can help really push the amp to the sweet spot. I've heard one really rock with a THD Flexi 50.

 

[B2D]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

Kind of a hijack but Happy Dude's seen my Dr. Z airbrake in action... i also noticed he doesnt have any questions about it. :laugh2:

 

[cvansickle]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

I use a HotPlate with my Mesa Nomad 100. I couldn't play at home without it.

Tonewise, yeah, you give up something when you reduce down to -16db. You have to adjust your EQ settings quite a bit to get close to what you want.

IMO, using an attenuator is a compromise.

 

[34029324079]

Re: how good are "hot plate" Attenuators for amps?

Kind of a hijack but Happy Dude's seen my Dr. Z airbrake in action... i also noticed he doesnt have any questions about it. :laugh2:

gotcha...I remember you talking about hot plate attenuators; I just didn't notice it though I DID notice good tone