Metro not enough for gigs by itself

[HolmeBass]

Hello, more a vent then a real thread, but this is a continuation of the saga that has ensued since my Mesa M2000 dies two weekends ago.

Had to play a festival this weekend, Bristol Rhythm and Roots, had two bar gigs on Saturday (the festival is downtown so they have big stages outdoors on the street and small stages are in the bars/clubs along the street).

Long story short- the Eden Metro, running just by itself, was not loud enough to carry either gig. The sound in the first place was terrible, it was actually pretty good in the 2nd bar, but the Metro was too quiet on both stages. I had it maxed out, blinking green and red lights all over like a christmas tree.

Something very unusual happened at the second bar- my BL turned to me onstage and asked me to turn up. I can't remember the last time this happened. Of course there was no where to go, the Metro was already maxed, compressor light engaging on every note, and the output stage limiter light engaging on every low note. So I need something that is louder "in the box".

The Metro has always shined best when run with another cabinet, and it really excels when combined with my GB 212 UB, but for this festival we took the van and no trailer so there was no room for the GB. If I had had my Mesa I would have used it with the GB 212 and there would have been no shortage of volume and headroom. Sometimes that last 3 db is all you really need...

[peabody]

Of course when you add the 2nd cab on the Metro, it does increase the power, so I guess taht explain a little. I had a Metro for awhile and I did find the best way to run it for bigger venues was to add a 2nd cab. I just got tired of having to haul it around. It was one heavy combo amp.