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Post by kjv02 on Jan 12, 2009 8:52:46 GMT -7
Hey ya'll! I'll have my PXES in a couple weeks and i'm leaning towards getting an AirBrake. As soon as I find another job, i'll be moving and might have to get an apartment . Will the AB keep the volume down enough so my neighbors won't be complaining. Also, i can't afford an AB and the AB lite, how well does the AB work with combos ('65 Twin Reverb RI).
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Post by kruzty on Jan 12, 2009 9:22:04 GMT -7
I think your best bet is to get a small modeling amp (like a Line6, Peavey, Vox etc.). You would have to attenuate the RXES so much that it just wouldn't sound right and you would just be burning through tubes for nothing. Now, if you want to keep you live volume down a bit, you may still want an AB.
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Post by smolder on Jan 12, 2009 9:29:13 GMT -7
I live in a condo and play through a Carmen Ghia and a Route 66. The airbrake hasn't made me quieter, but I am much happier with my tone. I typically run either amp between 9 and noon - and the airbrake on either the 4 setting or bedroom. Its not perfect... but it is way better than switching to a different amp for quiet. The airbrake works just fine for combos.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Jan 12, 2009 9:48:28 GMT -7
+1 - if you want to explore everything your RXES has to offer, you need an attenuator, because you'll never get the volume up to where the greasy stuff lives without an Airbrake.
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Post by kjv02 on Jan 12, 2009 9:50:47 GMT -7
Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping I won't have to be in an apartment. Just thought i'd ask in case i do.
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Post by jb on Jan 12, 2009 13:24:58 GMT -7
I use the Air Brake with my Ghia, and it gets down to acceptable apartment volume, especially with the Bedroom Setting. Still sounds better than my smaller amps.
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Post by mtlrecords on Aug 14, 2009 6:05:33 GMT -7
Get the Rx, you won't regret it, but skip out on the airbrake and also get a mini-Z or a MAZ 18. Smaller amps or even amps with good sounding master volumes are going to sound better than a giant beast of an amp (like the Dr. Z Rx) which you would choke with an airbrake.
I owned an airbrake, which I used with my 100 watt Marshall and it just killed my clean sound. It was unuseable. It did a great lower volume dirty sound though.
Contrary to what most people seem to be saying on the forum, I disagree that the Airbrake sounds good for high wattage amps, except if you are looking for crunch. But I found that it made my amps sound crunchy even when the amp might have been set to a clean (or cleanish) sound with the Airbrake out of the circuit. Just some thoughts...
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Aug 14, 2009 7:40:37 GMT -7
Do yourself a favor and go read this thread: Airbrake Demonstration - for the record, before I revealed which attenuators and at what levels, not one person, here or over on the Gear Page, could tell me even one correct setting. Not one person out of hundreds of views. If your Airbrake was killing your clean tone, you had something else wrong because the Airbrake is the most transparent attenuator I've ever encountered.
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Post by foxx on Aug 14, 2009 8:58:10 GMT -7
I love my AB, using on my Mazerati. I can play at home with volume at 9:00, with AB on 4. Sounds better than my cheap Blackheart amp. Although, I can use the Blackheart (3-5 watts) with the Brake-Lite at 3 am, mic it and listen through headphones. It's not the best tone, but it's very quiet, like someone watching TV in the next room. There are two AB's in the buy sell trade section for about $200 or so.
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Post by mtlrecords on Aug 14, 2009 16:46:04 GMT -7
I spent quite a bit of time listening, adjusting and recording with the Airbrake. It just didn't work with my setup.
It altered my tone in a noticeable way. My signal path-
guitar-> Evidence Melody cable -> Marshall 1959 SLP (set for fairly clean) - > 16ohm out via 2ft. Monster speaker cable -> input- Dr. Z Airbrake- output via 2ft Monster speaker cable -. Orange 4x12 cab (16 ohm).
With any of the first 4 settings, the Airbrake had no sound at all- transparent. But it hardly knocked my volume down at all. This particular Marshall is one of the loudest (and most amazing) amps I have ever used and with the Airbrake on the bedroom setting (nearly fully attenuated) it did not give me an accurate representation of the Marshall. Much of the original tone was there, but there was significantly more gain than without the Airbrake. It sure was quiter though.
There are other possible factors- maybe my Airbrake had an issue or something else was wrong. I don't know. But there was the sound of the clean Marshall with the AB and without it. Two different things.
And since it didn't do what I was hoping I sold it for $50 less than I paid for it. At least it mostly held its value!
I am not trying to knock the Airbrake. It seems that for many players and many amps, it works great. It just did not work for me and the setup I was using at the time. I moved on, and still love Dr. Z, but thought I would mention my experience with it on the forum.
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Post by foxx on Aug 14, 2009 17:33:46 GMT -7
It does seem like it works better with some amps, and not as well with others. I had a SRZ-65 for a while, and did not like the way it sounded with the airbrake. I didn't have the space to turn that amp up with or without the airbrake. But again, with the Mazerati, the AB is perfect, for me.
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ztonematt
Full Member
Bottom end tighter than your girlfriends...
Posts: 222
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Post by ztonematt on Aug 14, 2009 18:08:38 GMT -7
+1 - if you want to explore everything your RXES has to offer, you need an attenuator, because you'll never get the volume up to where the greasy stuff lives without an Airbrake. listen to benttop.....he is like "the oracle" of the forum :-)
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Aug 14, 2009 23:10:59 GMT -7
Hey, you spelled "orifice" wrong.
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Post by mtlrecords on Aug 15, 2009 9:27:55 GMT -7
Wow. That website with your audio clips has a huge amount of useful info, "the" Steve. Nice work.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Aug 15, 2009 10:16:16 GMT -7
Wow. That website with your audio clips has a huge amount of useful info, "the" Steve. Nice work. Thanks. Been building that as I go here - won't be done until I collect the whole set.
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