Managing Practice Volume

Do like the rest of us: if the guitarist does not want to scale down the volume, say you're going to leave, then pack up mid practice and really leave. When they call you say you're not coming back until he lowers his volume.

I personally wear plugs all the time because guitarists usually never want to lower their volume to something manageable, unless they are really mature and miraculously did not trash their hearing by then.

I carry a 700W head and currently get up to 500W through an 8 ohm cab, but if I need I can add a second cab to really get to the maximum.

If there is an amp war, I always win it, and I don't care, because I am wearing plugs.

Volume management is one of the smartest things a band can do, at rehearsal and performance. everybody can hear themselves better, so they can play better, everybody can hear the song better, so they can adjust what they do in response to the needs of the music. even more usefully, In a live setting, It makes you easier for the sound man to make you sound good.

This is one of the reasons it is useful to record your practices: if you stick a simple mono or stereo recorder in the middle of your rehearsal, and it sounds good, balanced, and dynamic...then you know band sounds good. I am an string proponent of "mixing" yourselves as a band to sound good on the crappiest recording possible.

I would like to enter my band into "The Loudest Band On The Planet" contest. I believe we would be the winners. That's what happens when a drummer wants to use a powered sub for his triggers in a 12x10 room.

I remember being 20 and our band practiced in a room so small we were elbow to elbow around the drum kit and it was just waay too LOUD (ah to be young, dumb and deaf) we had the typical garage band mentality.

Over the last several years in a previous iteration of my current band we practiced in a warehouse at stage volume to get used to getting a good stage ear, it taught us to keep correct levels.

Now we practice in my living room at really low volume (vocals through one 12 “ monitor) it's just about getting the syntax of the tune down.

IMO playing at rehearsal really loud, “just to be loud” is counterproductive, school me if I’m wrong, but what does it teach a band? If you play a club with minimal PA you need to play at a volume conducive to what the venue deems appropriate (and that is usually lower than what most bands think). If you’re playing a big venue the FOH controls the volume the audience hears, and real stage volume can be the same or even less than playing a small club as in the previous scenario.

The garage band mentality we had at 20 was hearing bands live from an FOH perspective and thinking we needed to duplicate that kind of sound pressure level in a small practice room!



...

One band i'm in has recently had some major breakthroughs with this process, and it's been awesome. I'll admit some of it was on me, I love my 6x10 even though it's absurd for our practice space, but in the end the lower guitar volume has proven even more substantial. Yes, I have lowered my former practice volume by about 20% too...

I am learning to feel the music as deeply without needing to 'feel' it as loudly. That is a process, but it can be done for sure. The magic of this band is we have a drummer with fantastic dynamics, and he can do most any style at any volume level. Learning to play lower has made so much more room for the songs, especially those with vocals.

Another band i'm in has an incredibly talented young drummer, but I have to turn up a lot more to even begin to compete with his sound. He's not even a rock drummer, but he has a ways to go to bring it all through with stage-volume dynamics. We've been playing together a year and I love it, but I do get annoyed getting drowned out and trying to compete with the busy drums sometimes. I gently remind him and try to be patient. It has improved a lot, especially at gigs where he has been bringing it down really low for some movements. Now for the overall...

I still struggle with wanting to be louder sometimes. I have a set threshold on my amp that i'm unwilling to go above in my practice space now and it's helping me curb that impulse.

This shouldn't be an issue.
I can't imagine that I've been blessed to have played with mature people all my playing life given some of the antics they've gotten up to over the years, but having out of control volume during rehearsals has never been a problem.
Stage volume is another matter entirely!

Practice or rehearsal volume needs to be balanced every bit as much as stage volume, otherwise what good is it doing anyone?
If you can't hear yourself or someone else, you would be better off playing sports or going to work, since you're not accomplishing anything as a band unless you goal is to a loud out of sync noise group.
Yes, playing quieter sounds thin at times, even lame sometimes. So your sound isn't exactly what you want when playing out, you are practicing or rehearsing to get the songs down and tight, not to blow away an audience (or their eardrums).

Of course, newer players will need time to get a feel for dynamics, but experienced people should not have this problem. Ever!
You don't drive your car at full throttle all of the time, that would be stupid.

father of fires said:

Then, once we all played together it sounded full and everything worked well. No one was too loud. I actually got my guitarist to turn down which is a miracle. Everyone agreed we sounded better then usual.

Just thought I'd share.

Click to expand...

Wow, I congratulate you for sticking to your guns and actually getting them to see the light. Excellent, they should all thank you for that.

One of my bands has a long history of acoustic rehearsals. It gets addicting when you can hear everything and people start ducking their levels to hear an instrument that is having trouble keeping up.

KO

I wish my bandmates were mature (or smart) enough to handle something like this. Our rehearsals are so loud that it's unbelievable. The guitar'd plays through our full PA system in addition to monitors and the two loudest and bassiest 1x12" Mesa Boogie cabinets that have ever been built, just so can get "his" sound (during practice?!) Some people have no regard for anything but themselves and music brings the worst out of those people. And everything's detuned because he can't sing, so everything sounds heavier right away anyway. I have the feeling that "everything louder so we can hide our flaws" is the prevailing mentality with some (most?) guitar players.

We're college roommates right now but I am quitting the band after we graduate because I already know older, smarter and definitely more talented musicians back home that already want to play with me. One of them owns his own really nice bar so there's a guaranteed gig anytime we'd want it.