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36 SVT's?!?!?! How?!!!!

RyRob813

RyRob813

Jun 7, 2007
414
1
36
St. Paul, MN
#1
I'm almost done reading "The Dirt"- Motley Crue's autobiography. (If you've read Aerosmith's Walk This Way, and thought no rock n' roll story could be crazier, guess again!)

Anyway, there was a section in which they talk about their Dr. Feelgood tour; the first tour after they "got sober." It was their first number one record, and they were huge.

They described the half dozen semi's following their four tour busses, and mentioned that they had "36 SVT stacks." WHAT?!?!

I realize a metal tour is about going over the top, but that's insane! Isn't that enough power to completely blow a stadium apart? And past that, how is it actually possible to play through that many amps? (I'm not an expert on amplification)

What's with this insanity?
 
#2
Most were invariably dummy cabs or not plugged in. Anyone could do stage volume in an arena with one or two SVT's. Cliff Williams only needs two SVT's.

BUT...it's possible to string 36 SVT's together. Just takes money and cables.
 
#3
Hair metal = insanity. Just kidding if this hurts your feelings...true if it doesn't.

I know he had the money...so that isn't an issue. Maybe SLM was giving them away like hotcakes so he could blow them up on stage? I'm with JimmyM, there were quite a few dummy cabs and heads if he put them all onstage and a few of them were real.

Gotta put on the show to make the dough.
 
#6
Randy Holden of Population 2 used to play with sixteen Sunn Orion full stacks (8x12 cabinets), stacked on top of each other. They were a duo. Had to practice in opera houses.

randyholden15d.jpg


So it *IS* possible.

Also, first post. Yeehaw.
 
#14
Think about how muddy the sound would be with that wide of a wave front of bass guitar. The vocal mics and cymbal overheads would be completely full of bass bleed.
You'd have to run the stage monitors up so high that they would bleed into the open mics as well. The best sounding touring acts typicaly have the most well controlled stage volume so the FoH engineer can really get down with the system; ya dig?
 
#15
Projectile said:
Dummy Props. That's how it's always been done. No professional sound guy is going to put up with that many amps and cabs on stage that are actually producing sound.
Click to expand...

Pretty sure that could blow even a stadium sized PA? After you add in guitars, (btw the Motley book also says they had the same number of Marshall stacks,) drums, and vox...death by sound.

Oh, and the 16 8x12's is sick. Granted, beyond unnecessary, but I've always had a fantasy of playing in front of a friggin wall of bass. It would definitely be fun for an afternoon. (Man would your crew hate you though!)
 
#18
Projectile said:
Dummy Props. That's how it's always been done. No professional sound guy is going to put up with that many amps and cabs on stage that are actually producing sound.
Click to expand...

There are plenty of venues, soundguys, etc... that will put up with high volume bands. Trust me.

Granted though, back in the 80's, a lot of it was for show, and most cabs where empty, there are quite a few bands out now, in doom, stoner rock, and drone genres that use walls of cabs that are all going full blast. Bands that have no problem getting shows, signed, tours, etc...
 
#19
its possible that they had 36 SVT's in their arsenal. probably a combination of some props, some backup amps. often large touring bands have multiples of their setups since usually they are setting up one area in one city and tearing down one simultaneously in another. that way the band can just arrive, play, and go to the next city.
 
#20
Tbirdbassist said:
Where's the dude from Stained?

He probably has some idea as to what all that would sound like, his rig is ginormous as well, but has no dummy cabs/amps.
Click to expand...
Ya, he hasn't been on here for a while that I've seen.
Johnny's rig is what I call "sensible," in a manner of speaking. It's definitely too big ;) , but it's pretty well put together and isn't all about being outrageous.
 

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