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Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2001 22:31:33 +1200
From: "G"
Subject: re: amp question


From: Grant Kester
Date: Sun, 29 Jul 2001 11:10:11 -0700

Dear Harp-L List,

- ---8<---
We play a range of things and in some cases I really want an over-driven
blues sound. For these songs I play a Green Bullet through an old Premier
Twin-8 amp. In other cases (some of the more folky stuff) I need a clean
sound. For these tunes I've been playing through a Shure SM 57 on a stand,
directly into the PA.
- ---8<---
I'm trying to figure out if there is a set-up I can use that would allow me
to
get a decent straight and over-driven sound via a single, somewhat larger
amp (that would give me the volume flexibility to hear myself on stage) and
avoid changing mics.
- ---8<---
Thanks,
Grant Kester


Hi Grant,

Regarding mics & amps setup for your situation, I have a few ideas that you
could mull over:

* For harp the amp that seems to be most popular and certainly has plenty of
scope & dimension is the Fender Bassman RI. With a tube rectifier & proper
setup its a pearl of a harp amp.
Check out this site for the info you need on that - gotta a harper here
who's struggled with his Bassman, after visiting this site he took his amp
to a tech and had it the next week just the way he'd been searching for all
that time.
http://www.bluestime.it/harmonica_house/index.html
(look for the section on amps)

With a JT30/BluesBlaster and enough gain you can get a crisp blues tone with
a nice dusty breakup ... and lean into the mic for more grit. Then back
off for a cleaner sound.

OR ... use a nice vocal mic like the SM58 and let the amp do the over
driving (use more gain, etc) - and for clean playing back off the mic, put
it on a stand turn down the gain and up the volume.

A good compressor set to a low level can help gain the blues tone that you
desire and also enables one to play more gently and still get it out there,
and a clean tone is just a foot pedal away.

I find the compressor built into my rig can be very good for getting the
right response and tone from a clean mic.

It also depends just how much mud you want and the type of tone you enjoy.

I have a 4 way input preamp with independant volumes and a master volume
that can feed into an amp - it works well for using various microphones.
If the mics have on/off switches or V/C - then it would be a good tool for
swapping between mics on the same amp... say your Green Bullet with CR
element and SM58 ... then you wouldn't need to fiddle with the amp's setup
throughout a gig, whilst getting a good taste of chicago blues tone or a
reasonably clean but warm tone.

If the Bassman is overbearing volumewise for any of your venue do think
about getting an attenuator ... its a black box with a couple of sockets and
a dial that plugs between the amp head and the speaker(s) - it turns volume
into heat without effecting the amps tone, with this you can have full
volume right down to a whisper which is safe to feed into a PA or any gear
you might want to put it to. If you have two speaker outputs on your head,
you can use the amp as a monitor and feed the head's signal to the PA
safely... you lose the cab's qualities, but it gets it out there without
mic'ing.

I think the attenuator its absolutely awesome tool to have on board for tube
amp users... get one with selectable impedance and you can use it with most
amps. I've kept mine dispite not having any tube amps ... I know it'll come
in handy later on.

* For myself I am still exploring any number of sounds and wanted to keep my
options open without purchasing 10 tube amplifiers while I explore what can
be done and what I want. For me the POD 2.0 and a 100 Watt (clean & loud)
keyboard amp have really done the trick. When set up right, its a very
good setup.
An SM58 vocal mic works well with it, and you can get a foot switch for the
unit to select between different amplifiers and setups ... any type of tone
or sound you want can be put right at your feet. WARNING! It does need
work to get it right, it needs time and a bit of learning. I've had it at
one venue where 5 different harp players used it through out the night, and
once we tweaked it a little, it was playing very nicely and got good
comments from both the audience and the players. It was a Loud and Full on
night! :)

I have read less than positive comments about the POD's sound, I have
reproduced less than desirable results whilst learning how to set it up ...
I can understand the critism.
But things like "it sounds like he's playing in the next room" critism for
instance is avoidable... there are ways and means to get it playing "in your
face". A good 100watt keyboard amp with a 15"/3" cab is a good start.

I have spent quite a bit of time trying to work it into a practical solution
and think I've got close enough to be happy to get on with my chops and know
I can use it at a gig or jam... if you want more I've got ample suggestions,
setups and so on at:
http://www.angelfire.com/music/HarpOn

The RP200 & RP300 units, whilst perhaps not matching the POD for tone
emulation ... do offer various amp tone simulations and a nice range of
effects, some of which are harp friendly. This is a much cheaper unit than
the POD, but again work is required to get the results you're after from it.

Try before you buy!
Let us know what you finally settle on!

Best regards
G
http://www.angelfire.com/music/HarpOn

PS. To qualify - the above is all my opinion and experience, it ranges
about 2 years of doing the "search for the rig" thing and about 3 months of
amature weekend gigging plus a few one off invites to private functions.
YMMV. :)