'Smoking' DB750

[Keeaumoku]

I'm posting this thread here, as it really isn't about amplifiers...

Last Monday we played an audition, a.k.a.: free gig. This venue is a classic bar gig... not very big, a lot of folks smoking cigarettes, and the room probably has a 'legal' capacity of 60 - 80 people. However, the pay is pretty good, and they only charge the band a buck for beers. We played for an hour, and we passed the audition, as we are now booked for a weekend in both March and April, and we will most likely be placed on their 'regular band to call' list.

This bar does not have a stage. Bands set-up in the back room on the floor where the pool table is usually located. There is a 4-wheel jack placed underneath the pool table, and when bands play, they jack-up the pool table, wheel it out the back door, and park it next to the building... oh, well... at least they have a cover for it...

I have my Aguilar DB750 in a 6-space rack along with a power conditioner and tuner, and when I'm not gigging, it's here in my office at my company's warehouse. There is an empty single space between the amp and the conditioner... the tuner is at the top of the rack. This past Wednesday I took the covers off of the rack, wired-up the amp to my NV425, and then plugged the power conditioner into the wall socket. I was going to do some practicing. I then hit the power switch on the conditioner, and everything came to life as it usually does. A few seconds later, I began to smell something awful... and at first I wasn't quite sure what it was... but I then realized that this odor smelled exactly like my clothes and hair will after playing one of these bar gigs. I was smelling rancid, stale cigarette smoke, and it was coming out of my Big Daddy Aggie! I don't smoke cigarettes, and neither does anyone who works for me, so there's no chance for my office to have a trace of this odor. The foul smell was very prominent, and it took several minutes for it to finally dissipate.

This was the first time I've ever experienced, or noticed something like this, and I thought it strange that my rack apparently collected and stored this nasty smoke. When I powered everything up, the Big Daddy Aggie's twin fans then began to expel all the accumulated smoke from inside its housing... weird...

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Keeaumoku

I have my Aguilar DB750....wired-up to my NV425...

AHHH!!!! GAS GAS GAS!!!

[Alex]

Originally Posted by Keeaumoku

the Big Daddy Aggie

Lol, This has become like the second name for DB750s.

[Aj*]

Thank the lord that Britain passed the smoking in enclosed public areas ban last week, when that comes into effect, smokey bar gigs are a thing of the past for good .

[Lazylion]

When I played full time, my equipment smelled so bad I had to keep it out in the truck! Like I'd ground up cigarette butts, boiled them down and sprayed the extract on my rig. And that's when it wasn't even turned on! Gave my sweetie an instant headache just being near it!
Wait til you've had yours in and out of a few dozen bars. You think it reeks now?

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by Aj*

Thank the lord that Britain passed the smoking in enclosed public areas ban last week, when that comes into effect, smokey bar gigs are a thing of the past for good .

Yeah... I know what you mean. I must admit, however, that I remain torn between the 'right' of a businessman to conduct his business they way he wants... within the law, etc... and what is generally good for the public at large. You know where I'm going with this: if a bar owner, restaurant... whatever... wants to allow smoking, and you don't like smoking, then don't go into his bar, restaurant, etc... go to one where smoking isn't allowed. Then there is the point about the health of the workers, etc... I've had these discussions and debates over, and over with many people over the years...

...and I don't smoke! However, here in paradise, they've passed the no smoking in most public places... restaurants in particular... bars have thus far been exempt. I gotta admit that it is indeed very nice to go out and have a nice dinner with my beloved wife, and not have to breathe someone else's nasty habit!

...but now I realize my Big Daddy Aggie will be exposed to second-hand smoke... much less myself!

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by Lazylion

...Wait til you've had yours in and out of a few dozen bars. You think it reeks now?...

As we say out here in the islands: "Thanks, yeah!..."

[MJ5150]

Good thing it was in a huge warehouse, and not your living room.

-Mike

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by MJ5150

Good thing it was in a huge warehouse, and not your living room.

-Mike

You think?

...and my wife would've banned me to the couch for at least a week...

[Lazylion]

Originally Posted by Keeaumoku

As we say out here in the islands: "Thanks, yeah!..."

I remember more than one bar in HI that didn't even have walls!

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by SMASH

...There's nothing to debate...

Contraire mon ami... there is always room for debate. However, seeing as how it's been almost twenty years since I finally quit that nasty cigarette habit, I'm sure I would find myself leaning toward your side on this issue...

...but consider this: You and I want to open a rather high-brow, exclusive restaurant... one that would pretty much be out of reach for the 'average Joe', as the usual, full-on dinner tab for a couple would run somewhere between $250 - $300. We want to serve the finest steaks money can buy, and we want our patrons to wash them down with the best wines both California and France can possibly produce. However, what's going to make our steakhouse different from the Morton's and Ruth's Chris' of the world is our wish to offer our customers the opportunity to top-off their exquisite meal with an excellent cigar of their choice, which of course, we would offer for sale from our fully stocked, walk-in humidor... at $25 - $40 a pop! Naturally, our customers would be able to light-up right there at their table, while enjoying a glass of Louis XIII..., and this ritual would be widely accepted by them...

...during the hiring process, we would make it crystal-clear to our staff that they would be exposed to second-hand cigar smoke. Of course, any new, or potential customers would be made aware of this, too...

...there are many cities, and Honolulu is now one, where laws have been decreed that will not allow you and I to operate our restaurant in this manner... even though we've spelled-out the guidelines as clearly as possible. Unless we called our restaurant a 'private club', and followed the parameters required to operate it as one... we can forget about the cigar angle...

...being more the libertarian than consevative, I fear more and more that government is slowly, but surely chipping away at our freedom... and this is something that concerns me more for our children, and their children...

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by Lazylion

I remember more than one bar in HI that didn't even have walls!

Yup! I played one last night... a bar called 'The Hideaway'. It's located at the USCG Air Station way out on Barbers Point. They open-up these roll-up doors, and just a few steps out is a 'beach' volleyball court. There are several tables with the big umbrellas, and a BBQ area with grills. Also on the premisis is a big, wooded pavillion with a stage. This is used primarily for private parties when the entire bar, volleyball court, and BBQ area is booked. The band can make all the noise it can get away with, as the only 'neighbors' to be disturbed are the C130 Hercules rescue planes, and the helicopters. The Hideaway is situated very close to the hangers, and not too far from the runway area... a great, good paying gig!

[Munjibunga]

Originally Posted by Keeaumoku

Contraire mon ami... there is always room for debate. However, seeing as how it's been almost twenty years since I finally quit that nasty cigarette habit, I'm sure I would find myself leaning toward your side on this issue...

...but consider this: You and I want to open a rather high-brow, exclusive restaurant... one that would pretty much be out of reach for the 'average Joe', as the usual, full-on dinner tab for a couple would run somewhere between $250 - $300. We want to serve the finest steaks money can buy, and we want our patrons to wash them down with the best wines both California and France can possibly produce. However, what's going to make our steakhouse different from the Morton's and Ruth's Chris' of the world is our wish to offer our customers the opportunity to top-off their exquisite meal with an excellent cigar of their choice, which of course, we would offer for sale from our fully stocked, walk-in humidor... at $25 - $40 a pop! Naturally, our customers would be able to light-up right there at their table, while enjoying a glass of Louis XIII..., and this ritual would be widely accepted by them...

...during the hiring process, we would make it crystal-clear to our staff that they would be exposed to second-hand cigar smoke. Of course, any new, or potential customers would be made aware of this, too...

...there are many cities, and Honolulu is now one, where laws have been decreed that will not allow you and I to operate our restaurant in this manner... even though we've spelled-out the guidelines as clearly as possible. Unless we called our restaurant a 'private club', and followed the parameters required to operate it as one... we can forget about the cigar angle...

...being more the libertarian than consevative, I fear more and more that government is slowly, but surely chipping away at our freedom... and this is something that concerns me more for our children, and their children...

Well, as one who can afford to patronize such establishments, I have to tell you that I sure as hell wouldn't patronize yours. I consider cigar smokers to be people who never got enough attention as kids, and want to impose their presence on others in the most obnoxious way possible.

[Keeaumoku]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Well, as one who can afford to patronize such establishments, I have to tell you that I sure as hell wouldn't patronize yours. I consider cigar smokers to be people who never got enough attention as kids, and want to impose their presence on others in the most obnoxious way possible.

Precisely my point... you don't have to patronize my hypothetical establishment, but why shouldn't I have the right to open and operate a restaurant in this way. I'm not going to care about your personal opinion as far as cigar smokers are concerned... as much as you would care less about entering my smoke-filled eatery. All I want to do is make a buck catering to those who would choose to frequent my place, because I hypothetically determined there to be a market for such a place.

...I also have similar questions regarding mandatory seatbelt laws; although I've been buckling-up long before the feds strong-armed the states into creating and passing such laws. Also, while I don't own or drive a motorcycle, I question those states with helmet laws... Hawaii doesn't have helmet laws.

I can't help but wonder if we are beginning to rely too much on government to dictate, or decide what is, or isn't good for us as a society in whole...

...however, I do indeed appreciate the discourse!

[Pacman]

Originally Posted by Lazylion

When I played full time, my equipment smelled so bad I had to keep it out in the truck! Like I'd ground up cigarette butts, boiled them down and sprayed the extract on my rig. And that's when it wasn't even turned on! Gave my sweetie an instant headache just being near it!
Wait til you've had yours in and out of a few dozen bars. You think it reeks now?

I used to leave my gear in my truck after late gigs, and once returned the next morning to my whole truck smelling like this. I started parking in the garage with the windows down (even in the dead of winter) to get rid of the smell.

[rayzak]

People whine too much

Smoking stops in my workplace the first of March.
They'll probably put the "No Smoking" signs under the old, crumbling asbestos pipes

[bucephylus]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Well, as one who can afford to patronize such establishments, I have to tell you that I sure as hell wouldn't patronize yours. I consider cigar smokers to be people who never got enough attention as kids, and want to impose their presence on others in the most obnoxious way possible.

The smoking thing is truly regional. Western NA tends to be very smoking averse. But, if you go into a good midwestern club, you'd be stunned by the continued popularity of the cigarettes.

Personally, I detest cigarette smoke far more than cigar smoke. At least cigars smell like tobacco (which isn't necessarily everyone's cup of tea). Cigarettes smell like trash burning. When we were living in the upper Midwest, I used to routinely take a stogie to the gigs just to cope with the heavy cloud of cigarette smoke. Doesn't every good blues club have a haze of blue smoke in it?

Well, now I'm out West again. I hope I live for a few more years.

So, Smash, I am also due for a DB750 delivery Monday or Tuesday. I'll be interested to compare notes. I plan to pair this with an NV610 I recently got from Dan Knowlton. Unfortunately, my A/Bing thus far with my rack driving the 610 vs my Tech CT's hasn't been totally overwhelming, to say the least. So, I don't have huge expectations. We'll see. I bought the 750 on approval; so, I'm not 100% committed yet.

[Bassic83]

GENDARME! GENDARME! Arrest that fat man!

[Lazylion]

Originally Posted by SMASH

To say you'd make it clear to hirees about 2nd hand smoke is the same as saying to girls they'll be violated from time to time.

You made me laugh out loud with that one!

If you can't stand smoke, don't go where the smokers are. If you knowingly go where the smokers are, don't complain about the smoke. I don't see why there is an argument about this. It's like going to the beach, and then complaining about the sand.

[Bassic83]

Yeah, I think that smoking is just abut done for in the US. The government is going to outlaw cigarettes. They should also outlaw consuming alcohol in bars. And, while we're at it, let's outlaw eating more than 1200 calories per day, per person...and mandate 2 children, one male, one female, per married couple...

Seriously, though, it's about freedom of choice- if people don't want to go to a smoky bar, then don't. Cigs and alcohol have long been a pair of vices that go together- like Abbot and Costello (not Elvis Costello, the other one! ). Now there's legislation that criminalizes it. That's fine by me. I don't care either way. Just keep the government out of my house! My house, my rules! I play in bars that you need radar to see through the haze- I also play in bars where nobody smokes. At least we're temporarily free to make our own choices.

I find that a good dose of Febreze on all my cabs and cases gets rid of the cigarette smell pretty well. Once you hose your stuff down, exposure to fresh air will hasten the process. I know the smell you're talking about, and yes, it does get pretty well magnified by hot transistors, tubes, etc. Nothing you can do about it except let it burn off.

I'm a smoker, and it sometimes offends my sense of smell as well. I tend to smoke outside, and being close to the Puddle of Mexico, we almost always have a stiff breeze. Most of my stuff still has faint traces of cigarette smoke smell to it from gigging, but I try to minimize it.