Post by gotmojo on Jan 22, 2011 19:57:54 GMT -7
Just got out the old dB meter. A couple hours ago I had started a new thread here in the Wreck room (see "New Reflections"), in which I had made a comment about how, when playing live, you can twiddle the Wreck's volume knob to go from clean to dirty to full on fuzzination without much change in volume. It occurred to me that I was guessing at such a claim, as I oft do. So after a bit of ruminating on that subject, I thought I'd go all scientific and actually see the difference in sound pressure levels with the volumes changes I had mentioned. I am, after all, a scientist. Or so I fancy myself. I got a biology degree like ... 35 years ago for crying out loud! Anyway ....
Wreck is rigged up through it's silver 2-12 cab with a brake lite maxed out (I'm at home in the living room for chrissake!). I usually like the amp volume set at 12:30-1:00 for kinda clean stuff, and up around 3:00 for more nazz. For crazy amounts of distortion I jack it all the way up. Guitar is an old Tele, back pickup, volume nutted, tone half mast (still purty trebly!)
Playing licks up in the A area of the neck (5-7th fret), dB meter is about 5'4" from the cabinet right in the middle of it. Results are average dB, with swings of + or - about 4 dB:
volume --- dB
1:00 --- 104
3:00 --- 106
Nutted --- 106
PRETTY GOOD GUESSER, I'D SAY! Eh?
So, then I turned the Brake up two clicks. This is about the loudest I use it at a gig where I stand like 6-10 feet away. If it's right behind me then it's one click up from the bottom (quietest). I mean, it gets up to one click from the bottom somewhere around the middle of the first set, maybe the first quarter of the second set on a lucky night.
Volume --- dB
1:00 --- 112
3:00 --- 114
Nutted --- 114
So, pretty similar results. Get about 2 dB louder from clean to dirty, and from dirty to thermonuclear, not much change.
OK, now my ears are ringing. But we have numbers! We've generated data, and that's what it's all about, right! God, I love being a scientist.
jj
for what it's worth
Wreck is rigged up through it's silver 2-12 cab with a brake lite maxed out (I'm at home in the living room for chrissake!). I usually like the amp volume set at 12:30-1:00 for kinda clean stuff, and up around 3:00 for more nazz. For crazy amounts of distortion I jack it all the way up. Guitar is an old Tele, back pickup, volume nutted, tone half mast (still purty trebly!)
Playing licks up in the A area of the neck (5-7th fret), dB meter is about 5'4" from the cabinet right in the middle of it. Results are average dB, with swings of + or - about 4 dB:
volume --- dB
1:00 --- 104
3:00 --- 106
Nutted --- 106
PRETTY GOOD GUESSER, I'D SAY! Eh?
So, then I turned the Brake up two clicks. This is about the loudest I use it at a gig where I stand like 6-10 feet away. If it's right behind me then it's one click up from the bottom (quietest). I mean, it gets up to one click from the bottom somewhere around the middle of the first set, maybe the first quarter of the second set on a lucky night.
Volume --- dB
1:00 --- 112
3:00 --- 114
Nutted --- 114
So, pretty similar results. Get about 2 dB louder from clean to dirty, and from dirty to thermonuclear, not much change.
OK, now my ears are ringing. But we have numbers! We've generated data, and that's what it's all about, right! God, I love being a scientist.
jj
for what it's worth