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Amps in College Dorms
- Thread starter Sterling_Bass
- Start date
I don't live in a dorm, but I have a wife and daughter. My Ampeg BA115 has headphone and stereo input jacks. I can plug in my ipod, practice and not disturb anyone. I can also use the amp at practice with 2 guitars and a drummer. The price of these has come down too. They can be had for $200-250 used from what I've seen.
I lived in a dorm. I happened to be fortunate enough to have my roomate living elsewhere. He got the room to make his parents happy, but moved in with his girlfriend off-campus! The room was all mine. I was able to store my full stack there, but always got in trouble.
One day, I was bored and bunked the beds. I put one cab on the top bunk, played at a medium volume, and then I went to ask the people below me if they heard anything, and they said no.
So, I suggest that you make your decision based on how much space you have. You can put whatever amp you have on your bed and the mattress should absorb the vibrations that normally rattle the floor (Be careful... some dorm beds are... ehh... not that good!)
Just my two cents
One day, I was bored and bunked the beds. I put one cab on the top bunk, played at a medium volume, and then I went to ask the people below me if they heard anything, and they said no.
So, I suggest that you make your decision based on how much space you have. You can put whatever amp you have on your bed and the mattress should absorb the vibrations that normally rattle the floor (Be careful... some dorm beds are... ehh... not that good!)
Just my two cents
What you need is one of those floor pedal bass processors from Zoom, Boss, Digitech, Line6, etc.. They're really cheap ($50-$500 with about $100 being typical) and they all have a line in and aux in and also a line out and headphones out.
I use my Digitech BP200 (discontinued) for practicing all the time and I use it either with the line out to my bookshelf stereo (which you'll probably have in your dorm room), or through headphones when it's late and my daughter is sleeping in the other room. I can jam along to CD's or other music sources either way.
These processors all have multiple simultaneous effects and most of them have amp and cab modeling, built in tuners, sample drum beats, expression pedals and a boatload of factory presets.
I use my Digitech BP200 (discontinued) for practicing all the time and I use it either with the line out to my bookshelf stereo (which you'll probably have in your dorm room), or through headphones when it's late and my daughter is sleeping in the other room. I can jam along to CD's or other music sources either way.
These processors all have multiple simultaneous effects and most of them have amp and cab modeling, built in tuners, sample drum beats, expression pedals and a boatload of factory presets.
A good small amp with headphone jacks would be an option. The dorm rooms at the Univerisity of Hawaii Manoa were generally small. Not enough room for a large amp or stack.
The idea of using music practice rooms as mentioned by the previous poster, is a good one. I sometimes bring my amp and bass to one of my labs on the weekend to practice or for jam sessions.
The idea of using music practice rooms as mentioned by the previous poster, is a good one. I sometimes bring my amp and bass to one of my labs on the weekend to practice or for jam sessions.
I had my Sunn 1200S and Bag End S-15D rig in my dorm room last year, and with the door shut, I could play it at moderate volumes and not disturb anyone. Of course, it didn't hurt that the whole floor were musicians, but hey. 
This year, I'm in an "honors" dorm with 24-hour quiet hours. I have my GK and Bag End 4X10 in the room with me, and I use it for practice. I play it at moderate volumes with the door shut. No one's complained yet, and I've been here for 2 months.
So I guess the solution is, wait until you hit the ground at school before making a decision, but as long as you're considerate and keep the volume reasonable, you'll be OK.
This year, I'm in an "honors" dorm with 24-hour quiet hours. I have my GK and Bag End 4X10 in the room with me, and I use it for practice. I play it at moderate volumes with the door shut. No one's complained yet, and I've been here for 2 months.
So I guess the solution is, wait until you hit the ground at school before making a decision, but as long as you're considerate and keep the volume reasonable, you'll be OK.
Tech 21 amps with the sansamp preamp... kicks butt for -$400 at low volume and has decent output.
I've found that if you have the headphone covering one ear and then playing at a volume with your amp where you can hear the music clearly while still being able to hear the bass, you've got a very modest volume and no one can really complain.
When I play that way the bass also seems like it's playing much louder than it actually is when I take out the headphone from my iPod or such.
When I play that way the bass also seems like it's playing much louder than it actually is when I take out the headphone from my iPod or such.
Chris V, I actually do the same thing at home sometimes. In fact yesterday I came to the same conclusion.
A Super Twin with JBLs...that makes my ears hurt just thinking about it! Must have been the late '70s for a Super Twin.
Similar situation here, except it was my Sophomore year and I had a Marshall Major head (200 watts) and a EV SRO loaded 2x15 cabinet...and I also had an EVM loaded Fender Twin for playing guitar through. I was actually relatively respectful and used the dorm's music room for loud playing. Ah...the '70s!!!
i probably will be playing on my PoS behringer combo in the dorm while weeping at the dustcover on my 8x10 and avatar 2x10
If you have the cash, the GK 150 combos would imo be the best. Small enough to store under the bed and keep out of the way in small dorm room, they pack enough power to jam with 2 guitars and drums, and they are so clean sounding that even with the gain down to one, you still can hear every note and be quiet enough to avoid having your neighbours want to kill you. Or, on the other hand, you can crank it and pay them back for playing awful music in the room next door. Until you can afford the space to rehearse properly, I would avoid anything bigger, and the GK will be with you for life as a great/ideal practice amp.
The other thing that happens upon arrival at college is the Transportation Situation. Your $500 parking sticker gives you a space in a lot typically referred to on every campus as "Siberia." Plus you are of course generously granted the right to drive around and hunt for a metered spot with a 15-minute limit. And at any given time, all of the streets will be torn up for simultaneous construction projects.
I live close to a campus, and have to deal with the same situation. The GK 150 combo is really the best thing for this environment. It goes into a little rolling cart called a "pack n roll" that you can get at an office supply store for under 20 bucks on sale.
And while we are on the subject of college: Never Loan Anybody Your Gear, Period.
I live close to a campus, and have to deal with the same situation. The GK 150 combo is really the best thing for this environment. It goes into a little rolling cart called a "pack n roll" that you can get at an office supply store for under 20 bucks on sale.
And while we are on the subject of college: Never Loan Anybody Your Gear, Period.
My room mate loaned out his guitar...came back with some nasty scratches.
And on a related note, some folks came by to borrow my EMG equipped bass...
it goes without saying, that I was insulted that they would ask me for my bass, and not for me.
you can always turn a loud amp down.
just how long do you plan on living in a dorm? depending on how much money you're looking to spend, all of the small, lightweight heads would suit you fine. until my trade goes through, my bedroom practice amp is an eden wtx-260 and a schroeder mini 12. i can play it plenty quiet and when i run with a drummer i can hook up my ampeg 115 with the schroeder and get pretty damn loud. i have yet to see a headphone amp that can do that. now, if you plan on spending all of college in the dorms, then yes, something small you might use for the next 4-5 years wouldn't be a bad idea if you don't ever plan on doing anything but playing by yourself. but, that's IMHO and i subscribe to the "i'd rather have 1200 watts and not need it than need 1200 watts and not have it" school of thought.
just how long do you plan on living in a dorm? depending on how much money you're looking to spend, all of the small, lightweight heads would suit you fine. until my trade goes through, my bedroom practice amp is an eden wtx-260 and a schroeder mini 12. i can play it plenty quiet and when i run with a drummer i can hook up my ampeg 115 with the schroeder and get pretty damn loud. i have yet to see a headphone amp that can do that. now, if you plan on spending all of college in the dorms, then yes, something small you might use for the next 4-5 years wouldn't be a bad idea if you don't ever plan on doing anything but playing by yourself. but, that's IMHO and i subscribe to the "i'd rather have 1200 watts and not need it than need 1200 watts and not have it" school of thought.
I have a Nemesis 210 combo (200W) in my dorm room and I usually don't get any complaints unless it's finals week, but maybe the people in my hall are just extra-understanding. I guess the key is just to be considerate with the volume (I keep the gain at 11 o clock, master at 9 o clock) and don't be a jerk if people ask you to stop.
I dont live in a dorm, im a college student and my room is probably smaller than a dorm room. Ive got a Bag End S15-B, and an eden WT-300 as my bedroom amp. When my cabs arent where i practice, i need to sometimes keep a 2x10, and a 2x12 in here to. Makes for an impressive looking stack. But ive got no room.
