how much wattage do you *need*?

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

All in all it is the control that you have over your amp that in the end matters the most, most big amps are not playable for alot of guitarists, for alot of reasons.
I have played in a small club with my bloody huge Hiwatt DR201, I used a 2x12 G12H equipped cab, did not play loud and still had plenty of sound to work with, my mate used a Blues Jr and we did not overpower anything, control is the keyword.
It is not about using that specific setting that I can get me that special sound, or that certain kind of saturation..etc etc
I eq differently, I use speakers that I know sounds good at low volumes, I use pedals, use a guitar that I know in and out, make sure that I fit in.
Forget about personal preferences and all that, fit in, most amps can sound quite good at low volumes, most sounds like crap at loud

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

I love these 'how much is needed' threads ... really bring out the love!

 

[Zerberus]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

A lot of the detractors here seem to assume that any larger venue has a DECENT to GOOD PA. If you go out touring, you´ll find that many venues have NO pa or a sh!tty one.

And at the very latest right now is where that halfstack pays off

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

As a long time player who is now in the process of going deaf (and I'm not kidding about that...) I have to say that as much as I used to enjoy playing really loudly it is self destructive. You will lose your hearing if you abuse your ears by playing loud rock guitar. You'll lose your hearing as surely as you'll lose your teeth if you refuse to brush and floss regularly. Most rock guitarists play to loud. Our bodies cannot take that kind of abuse. Jeff Beck, Pete Townshend, and many, many others are now suffering from tinnitus and other hearing problems and you will too if you insist on playing to loud. 20 to 30 watts is enough to get your music across. Louder than that is just not needed and really, even that will destroy your hearing if you're standing to close to the speakers. Lew

 

[Davey]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

umm.. use ear plugs

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

umm.. use ear plugs

+1 ... I use em everywhere, even on the subway, and have been doing so since the late 80's.

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

umm.. use ear plugs

We may go head-to-head on alot of things but this one I thinkw e cna all agree on.

Even with a 20 watt amp when it's cranked ears will be ringing after a very short amount of time.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

umm.. use ear plugs

Ofg course, but not just when playing guitar

 

[aleclee]

One word: cabinets

One word: cabinets

In the vein of "everything affects everything", I'm suprised that folks have hardly touched on the issue of speakers and cabs. A 6dB difference in speaker sensitivity can make a 25W amp as loud as a 100W amp. Factor in psychoacoustics or EQ and things really start getting subjective.

In addition to the speaker factor, some cabs project better than others. 1x12s, especially in combos, are kind of beamy. Some cabs have better bass response than others which can make a big difference in clean response, impacting the need for headroom since low frequencies often need more power to push 'em right.

That said, I've had no trouble being heard with my 10W Peters in a two guitar band with a hard-hitting drummer. I had jack for clean headroom but it wasn't such a big deal in that band. With the softer hitting drummer in my current band, I can even get acceptable cleans by rolling off the guitar volume.

I tend to gravitate toward 50W as being "enough". 100W is a bit much and I prefer only having to deal with a pair of power tubes. IME, by the time a 100W amp gets to the sweet spot, it's oftentimes too loud for my taste.

My $0.02, IMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

To all you full stack 100w toting arena rockers, get a load of this :fing25: :

 

[Neeradj]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

30W of full tube power into a 2x12 cab, if I need more I'll mic the cab. My 100W Powerball isn't overkill for home practice though, but it's an exception compared to let's say most full tube Marshalls.

 

[Davey]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

well.... if you dont need more than 30W, why on earth do they make 100and more W amps?????? tell me that??

if we're talking loudness, no, you dont *need* more than 30W, if we're talking dynamics, response, headroom, and a certain sound at a proper volume, then you're stuck dead with the 30W. no PA can give you that, anywhere, EVER. Period, end of discussion

 

[aleclee]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

anywhere, EVER. Period, end of discussion

One of the things I love about this forum is the quality of discussion and interchange.

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

well.... if you dont need more than 30W, why on earth do they make 100and more W amps?????? tell me that??

What players need and what they get are sometimes two wholly different things.

 

[Davey]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

What players need and what they get are sometimes two wholly different things.

ok.. let me rephraise.. why are there 100W amps, if nobody, ever, anywhere, doesnt need more than 30W ???

explain that to me.
but you want to know why? because a 30Watter cant take you where a 100W can. if you're talking pure volume, 1W is enough to produce enough dB to burst your ear drums and you know how many people play through 1W amps 'just for the volume' .. it's NEVER just COS of the volume!!!! that is just a side factor

 

[nuntius]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

Depends what you're talking...

30 watt modelling amp will do boll0cks all for you in a metal environment... Even if you miked the thing up you'd probably get more drum sound through the mic than guitar tone :laugh2:






Ok over exadurated...

Zerb's point about PA makes a lot of sense

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

Haha and there is a god...no there is no god, money is evil...nono money is good.....politics are nessesary...nuhnuh they need to be strunged up, gays are an abomination...nah they can do what they want....etc etc we are getting nowhere here

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

ok.. let me rephraise.. why are there 100W amps, if nobody, ever, anywhere, doesnt need more than 30W ???

The same reason there are sports cars that'll go 190 mph.

This is a serious question to everybody who says 100 watts is the minimum: Do you run your amp wide open all the time, or a majority of the time?

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

well.... if you dont need more than 30W, why on earth do they make 100and more W amps?????? tell me that??

if we're talking loudness, no, you dont *need* more than 30W, if we're talking dynamics, response, headroom, and a certain sound at a proper volume, then you're stuck dead with the 30W. no PA can give you that, anywhere, EVER. Period, end of discussion

Because dudes, especially younger dudes, have always been under the impression that "bigger is better". They picture themselves up onstage (posing like they do at home before the mirror) with a stack of Marshalls behind them blowing thier bell bottems in the sonic breeze.

There's so much fantasy and posturing that's part of this whole rock n roll thing. Of course any woman who's been around will tell you that "it's not the meat, it's the (e)motion!" :laugh2:

Lew

 

[nuntius]

Re: how much wattage do you *need*?

Haha and there is a god...no there is no god, money is evil...nono money is good.....politics are nessesary...nuhnuh they need to be strunged up, gays are an abomination...nah they can do what they want....etc etc we are getting nowhere here

:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2: