Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

[Pushpin&Poetry]

So:
I found a guy who seems very nice and lives 1 hour away he has a
THD Hotplate, he says it works fine, it's green and says 2.7 on the back he'll sell it to me for $100(Pretty sure this is a deal)

I think it's the same one here
http://cgi.ebay.com/THD-Hot-Plate-2-7-ohms-Hotplate-Attenuator_W0QQitemZ270169022708QQihZ017QQcategoryZ43375QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I have a Marshall JCM 800 2204, 50watt Canadian Version head, going to an 8ohm cab, with a master volume.

My Questions
1. He said, he thinks if I have a master volume I don't need an attenuator?
True or false

2. I don't think this attenuator is ideal, but will it work well?

3. Pay the extra $125 for a new Weber attenuator?
Thanks!

 

[Ayrton]

Re: Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

You have a MV head, why do you think you need an attenuator?

 

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Re: Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

1. If you have a master volume, you can crank the gain on your head while keeping the master low, but it'll sound like a swarm of bees, rather than the full saturation you get from running the power tubes hot. Therefore, an attenuator may still be a worthy investment.

2. I have two THD Hot Plates. If I didn't like the Hot Plate, I wouldn't have bought a second one. However, you need to have an attenuator that's going the match the load your JCM expects to see, which is 8Ω. You can use a larger load (e.g., a 16Ω Hot Plate), but do not use a smaller load, or you'll fry your amp. (The 2.7Ω Hot Plate isn't suitable for your JCM.) Ideally, you should use a Hot Plate with a load rating that matches your amp exactly: 8Ω.

3. Ask Christian (The Guy Who Invented Fire) about Weber attenuators. He loves 'em.

- Keith

 

[Pushpin&Poetry]

Re: Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

1. If you have a master volume, you can crank the gain on your head while keeping the master low, but it'll sound like a swarm of bees, rather than the full saturation you get from running the power tubes hot. Therefore, an attenuator may still be a worthy investment.

2. I have two THD Hot Plates. If I didn't like the Hot Plate, I wouldn't have bought a second one. However, you need to have an attenuator that's going the match the load your JCM expects to see, which is 8Ω. You can use a larger load (e.g., a 16Ω Hot Plate), but do not use a smaller load, or you'll fry your amp. (The 2.7Ω Hot Plate isn't suitable for your JCM.) Ideally, you should use a Hot Plate with a load rating that matches your amp exactly: 8Ω.

3. Ask Christian (The Guy Who Invented Fire) about Weber attenuators. He loves 'em.

- Keith

Dude-
Thank you sooo much again!!! Perfect answer helped me so much, I am in your debt.

I m sure the hot plate works great, but i have also heard great things about the weber, which I think I may go with as they are cheaper.

 

[Pink Unicorn Horsey]

Re: Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

My pleasure. Good luck!

 

[J Moose]

Re: Please Help: One Last Attenuator Question

1. If you have a master volume, you can crank the gain on your head while keeping the master low, but it'll sound like a swarm of bees, rather than the full saturation you get from running the power tubes hot. Therefore, an attenuator may still be a worthy investment.

2. I have two THD Hot Plates. If I didn't like the Hot Plate, I wouldn't have bought a second one. However, you need to have an attenuator that's going the match the load your JCM expects to see, which is 8Ω. You can use a larger load (e.g., a 16Ω Hot Plate), but do not use a smaller load, or you'll fry your amp. (The 2.7Ω Hot Plate isn't suitable for your JCM.) Ideally, you should use a Hot Plate with a load rating that matches your amp exactly: 8Ω.

Ditto.

There's a sizeable difference between the master volume and running the attenuator on my JCM800... HUGE. The amp doesn't really open up until both volumes are around 4 and at that point it's way too loud for 'home' use and sometimes too loud for band situations...

Volumes below 4 and it's ok but starts to 'shrink' and sound rather solid-statey.

And yes... using anything other then the correct ohmage hotplate will fry your amp. The 2.7 ohm is for the 4x10 Fender amps, Bassmans, Concert, Super Reverb etc. I bought a Marshall powerbreak when I found a good deal on a used one and because it can run at 8 or 16ohms so I can use it with the 8ohm Fenders, the Marshall, my AC30 is 16ohms...