My first band has officially booked a room for our first gig. It's one that we setup ourselves for our collective 30th birthdays.

The room holds 120 people and we plan to fill it with friends and family. (some older people but mostly younger) But, as a rock band, i'm worried about being too loud.

We've got our own PA. I've got an Ampeg BA115. The guitarists have a couple of 50 watt amps. And the drummer is loud.

To cut into our practice mix I am setting my amp on about 75% in a room that is 10x15.

We are so loud I am wearing earplugs or I wince when the guitars hit the high notes.

I have tried to convince everyone that we can be intense without physically damaging our parents ears. At the same time, i really don't know if we are too loud for the room we have. I need some way to determine the appropriate volume level.

Is there some way to measure volume level and then a chart that shows guidelines based on room size?

Am i just going to have to wing it? If we are too loud we (pa, amps) can turn down everything but I'm honestly worried about the drummer being able to play softer and keep time since we have been practicing at his full volume.

Sounds like it's time for the band to buck up and learn how to play at an appropriate volume. Creeping volume onstage is usually due to musicians trying to hear themselves. Talk as a band about it and make it clear that the way to hear yourself better on stage is usually not to turn up, but for others to turn down. If your drummer hits hard, that will be the one that can't turn down, and he will dictate your minimum volume.

Regarding a guideline chart, there is no guideline for room size and volume. Too many factors other than the room's size...sound reinforcement is very dynamic.

That said, I honestly don't think two 50W guitar amps and a 100W bass amp is too much for a 120 capacity room. I'd personally be worried about a bass amp that small competing against two guitarists with volume issues and be sure to bring a DI to get some more bass out front via the PA if needed.

If you don't have a soundman, make sure you have an ear you can trust out front to signal what's too much and too little in the mix and overall volume. Good luck.

Happens a lot with inexperienced bands playing high energy music.

Discipline is a must here or you will be playing to an empty room or hurting people!

+1 to the having a talk with the band

Guitar players are loud for 3 basic reasons:

They don't realize how loud they are and when provided with proof attempt to turn down.

They don't really care how loud they are. (This is often a bigger problem.)

They are worried about what the audience hears if there is no PA support

Prove to them they are too loud and they may agree to turn down.

If they don't care, Godspeed.

If they are worried about getting out into a big room, have them agree to turn down if you mic them. This may seem counter-intuitive, but if they hold up their end it can work well.

I agree the drummer is often the one who sets the volume bar.
Consider a drum screen. Our last drummer had mad chops but was louder than 14 dogs. I recently saw him on another gig on TV. He was behind a drum screen.

Also consider this- if the band cops a lower,reasonable stage volume that had no hope of filling the room, then family and friends may very well crowd the stage in response to wanting to hear the band.

Playing dynamically is a lost art and rarely done well. Achieve it and you will not only get very few complaints, people will actually want to get closer to you and will often actively listen more.

JKT

Wow. For me, this is Deja Vu. My first gig...I used an Ampeg BA-115, with a heavy handed drummer, and two guitarists with two 50-watt amps, and...a room that holds about 100 people.

We used house PA. We sounded just fine. Just ask yourself: Are you the main attraction? Or are you providing background music? Depends on the event. If you want to entertain a crowd, you can't just play whatever you want. You have to play what they want to hear. Since its friends and family, that's a feather in your cap; since they'll enjoy whatever you play. You don't have to be rock concert screaming loud to sound good. Just need to sound balanced. Get there early, soundcheck well, play through a song or two, and during the gig, make minor adjustments if necessary. It's a learning experience.

I just wanted to update (i intended to do so earlier) and say that I appreciate all the advice.

I ended up convincing everyone to rent some studio practice time so we could line up as a live setting.

They learned quite a bit as the 4 people that we invited to listen were almost flinching at the loudness. This was a decent sized room. (20x35 and 2 story ceilings) And, in our gig room we will have people right up on us.

The guitarists had their amps on 10. So, we met up with a guy who runs sound for his band (a bassist) and had him tweak out our sound and add some legitimacy to what I was saying about volume. Also, we got the singer a monitor so he isn't screaming to hear himself.

Our first gig is Saturday night, i'm nervous but I think we are on our way to figuring it out.

Quite honestly, I completely underestimated how important the mix, volume, eq.. etc, and those sound related things are to the process. I thought we could just write some originals and could figure it out at the show.

Thanks for the help!

I suppose it can depend on the genre of music but my rule of thumb tends to be that the band has to be loud enough that people can feel the groove but quiet enough that the audience can still have a conversation without shouting at each other as they try and pick each other up.