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GMC Forum _ GEAR & PRODUCTION _ help me with my new amp please :D

Posted by: DanielM Oct 17 2006, 04:22 PM

i just bought a 50watt amp off ebay for 100 pounds.

its bigger than i expected and i didnt think 50 watt was that much but its very loud :shock

i am ok at controlling the clean sound but as soon as i switch to the distortion channel its gets really loud even at the low volume like REALLY loud.

anyway i was wondering if you could help me get a good sound at a low volume, if i turn the equalisers up (like high middle and low etc) then it gets too loud but these need to be turned up in order for it to have good tone.

these are what it has:

INPUT - High and Low inputs
DRIVE - Volume and Gain dials
DRIVE - On/Off switch
CLEAN - Volume dial
EQUALIZATION - High, Mid, and Low dials
REVERB - Volume dial

There's a few more connectors after it but im guessing they wont affect it as they are just for external devices. I don't understand what the different input sockets are for. Also i figured out the clean dial doesn't affect it when the drive is on

please help

Posted by: kevin-riff-after-riff Oct 17 2006, 08:46 PM

buy a distort or overdrive pedle, and use that instead of using the thing built on the amp should work

Posted by: PickNGrin Oct 18 2006, 12:11 AM

Too loud? :shock That's ridiculous!!!
CRANK IT UP!!!!
This is guitar! There is no "too loud" in guitar!

Well, they do sound best when driven, and if you cant drive it in your situation, you need a pedal, or attenuator device, headphones is an option, otherwise -its too much amp for you.

Posted by: sanders4617 Oct 18 2006, 02:49 AM

For in the house stuff.. yeah, amps can be powerful.. But when you get out in the open, and turn that baby up. You will feel like your playing on cloud nine.

Posted by: DanielM Oct 19 2006, 03:52 PM

ok guys i think ill be ok i found that the volume dial is really really sensitive to the tiniest movements so im just really precise turning it up.

nice new forum i see

Posted by: Suthern Oct 28 2006, 05:28 AM

I've got a little Fender 15R. Its really little... but it screams. I'm sure the neighbors here me!! I run into the same problem but mine is small enough to not affect me personally.

Posted by: Josbourne Dec 8 2006, 11:27 PM

@DanielM: I don't know what brand your amp is, what I do know is that some amp manufacturers, like Fender f.i. put a linear master volume dial in. This is a cheap and convenient marketing trick to make an amplifier seem louder than it really is when you try it.

When you're into electronics you could try putting in a logarithmic pot. If you're not, get someone else to do this for you;-)

(N.B.: Your warranty will be void if you start experimenting on your amp. Nevertheless, I'd give it a try if I were you.)

Gr. Jos.

Posted by: FrankW May 18 2008, 02:04 AM

Get yourself an attenuator! You will get a full tone from your amp, and be able to keep the volume way down if you want, even with the power tubes screaming.

Posted by: Ivan Milenkovic May 18 2008, 01:30 PM

You must get the power attenuator. You can find it on eBay for sure.

Posted by: kaznie_NL May 18 2008, 02:01 PM

..I know what you mean. I have a 16 watt amp, and in the setting booklets it sais: Volume 3'o clock, drive:4' o clock. If I do that my neighbours would go crazy... so I now what you mean

**HACHOO....headphones...HACHIII** uch uch

Posted by: Marcus Siepen May 18 2008, 09:16 PM

First of all... I agree, guitars can never be too loud But besides this, I guess a 50 Watt amp is not really meant to be played at home, at a low volume, those amps only start to sound at a certain volume, but a power soak should do the trick.

Posted by: DeepRoots May 18 2008, 09:22 PM

lol @ bumping a thread this old

Posted by: Scott Gentzen May 19 2008, 07:12 PM

A good power attenuator will help....lets y ou crank the amp, but it bleeds off some of the power before it hits your cabinet so it's not so loud. You won't get any of that speaker breakup but you'll hear the amp and not kill your ears/house.

I play in my basement. If I'm playing/recording loud and there's nobody in the house, I'll just crank it and either put in ear plugs or run my cable out the back door and play outside with the amp inside. I don't do that often though, since my normal amp has a master volume on it.