Amp stand conundrum

CedarSound · Post by **CedarSound** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 6:39 am

Hey guys,

I have an amp that I purchased a few months ago from a local amp builder here in town that sounds amazing. There is just one problem I am having... The amp is 40 watts, and when I put it on my amp stand it just kills my ears at the volume that I need it to be at to really get the sweet spot out of it...

If I put it on the floor, it's perfect. The issue I am having, is that my room has vinyl flooring, and when I mic it with my 57 and 421, I am getting some phasing coming off of the floor. I have always miced my old amps from the amp stand in the past, but they were 15 watts... I know the logical answer is "turn it down", but it loses some of the tone I am after when I do that... I guess I could use earplugs or turn the amp around... Just wondering if anyone has run into this problem and has any tips.. Thanks!

wren · Post by **wren** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:08 am

An attenuator, like a Hotplate or something?

I'm a fan of Ted Weber's stuff; he makes some good ones and has a great primer on them on his website - if you scroll down you can see the different models.
As the little blurb on Weber's website says: they aren't a perfect solution, as you can't cut the volume and also have the same speaker distortion and air movement as before, but I find that they work for me, and they're certainly nice to have around.

Gregg Juke · Post by **Gregg Juke** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:58 am

Yeah, some type of power-soak seems to be in-order... Maybe a small moveable carpet square or rug to put on the vinyl floor in front of the amp? And/or a few $14 packing blankets to throw over your mike/amp set-up? Or a combination of turning the amp towards the wall and the packing blankets? Or build an amp box to the dimensions that you'd need/like?

Do you have to track in the same room? Are you using a computer DAW? How about some kind of remote and a long cable to get your ear from out in front of the speaker cone?

GJ

MoreSpaceEcho · Post by **MoreSpaceEcho** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:29 am

loud guitar=EARPLUGS. always. you will thank me in 10 years.

gotammo · Post by **gotammo** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:40 am

MoreSpaceEcho wrote:loud guitar=EARPLUGS. always. you will thank me in 10 years.

I highly suggest you do this. Get some of those etymotic research plugs that attenuate evenly. They work great!

Rufer · Post by **Rufer** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 9:39 am

Put the amp on a rug?

farview · Post by **farview** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 12:18 pm

Earplugs are a must, no matter what you are doing. But you could either put a rug under the cabinet, or put it up on a chair. A chair won't be pointing up at your head (unless you are quite short) like an amp stand does.

CedarSound · Post by **CedarSound** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 12:54 pm

Good suggestions.. I think I will try the carpet idea, and you're right, put it on a chair instead of a stand, as the stand does tilt directly toward my head... Oh, I definitely use earplugs..anytime I play drums, jam with a full band, or see bands live. I already have some tinnitus from my younger, more ignorant days of playing drums with no plugs, so I am with you guys on that one.

I have never worn plugs while trying to get guitar sounds, just because I thought that it would color the sound, and therefore my judgement, when it comes to getting the tones together. I may try that..

I have everything in a one room studio in the basement. I do have a bathroom that I could try using to isolate the amp, I just usually like to use a room mic to get more air in the guitar sound, but who knows, it might sound cool in there. Like I said, when the amp is on the floor, it's all good, so maybe I'll try the carpet idea first. I'd love to get an attenuator, but don't have the scratch at the moment..maybe someday. Looks like I just need to experiment some more.

vvv · Post by **vvv** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 3:26 pm

Nice small studio at your link BTW.

Would ya be mad if I told ya ya mis-spelled, "Univeral " under, Compressors?

roscoenyc · Post by **roscoenyc** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:55 pm

Carpet is the worst thing.

Put your amp on the floor and teach yourself to hear
your amp when it is on the floor.

You will get more low end, you will be able
to hear where the amp is coming from. Your amp will
also not be blowing into the vocal mics
and fouling the monitors and the house sound.

Learn to hear your amp on the floor.
It will take some time and some adjustment but it will be worth it.

farview · Post by **farview** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 8:29 am

roscoenyc wrote:Carpet is the worst thing.

Put your amp on the floor and teach yourself to hear
your amp when it is on the floor.

You will get more low end, you will be able
to hear where the amp is coming from. Your amp will
also not be blowing into the vocal mics
and fouling the monitors and the house sound.

Learn to hear your amp on the floor.
It will take some time and some adjustment but it will be worth it.

This is all true, but in his basement, he is getting terrible reflections in the mics from the tile floor. That was the problem.

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 1:00 pm

I keep a couple small pieces of carpet around to put under mic stands when micing guitar amps. The reflections off the hard floor can really make things sound screwy.

Darlington Pair · Post by **Darlington Pair** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 8:54 am

drumsound wrote:I keep a couple small pieces of carpet around to put under mic stands when micing guitar amps. The reflections off the hard floor can really make things sound screwy.

Same here, small pieces for mic'd guitars and basses.

bluesman · Post by **bluesman** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 12:05 pm

I use a small wooden shipping pallet which I put a piece of carpet on top of. It elevated the amp between 4" & 6" & keeps it from coupling with the floor while making it marginally easier to hear.

CedarSound · Post by **CedarSound** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 6:00 pm

That's a good idea

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