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Dealing with a chronically loud guitar player

How to get a chronically loud guitar player to keep the volume down and blend better with the band.

  • Keep asking him to turn down.

    Votes: 6 4.7%

  • Ask another band member to ask him to turn down.

    Votes: 9 7.0%

  • Have a band meeting about stage volume

    Votes: 69 53.5%

  • Call him offline and get together outside a gig or practice and talk to him alone

    Votes: 20 15.5%

  • Give him an ultimatum

    Votes: 13 10.1%

  • Just kick him out and move on, you've wasted enough time and guitarists are a dime a dozen

    Votes: 35 27.1%
  • Total voters
    129
#61
We had a keyboard player like that. The guy was losing his hearing and would just NOT turn down. That, along with his narcissistic personality led me to quit the band. Best thing I ever did for my hearing.

Anyway, in this situation,remember -- Counsel, Warn, Suspend, Terminate

Don't go to firing him until you've warned him that if he doesn't play at a decent volume, you are going to have to find a replacement -- it's come to that. And keep on him about it.
 
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#63
I just walked away from one of the most promising musical projects ever, due, in large part, to rehearsal volume. 25 or 30 X 15 room. Guitarist that had some sort of hoarding issue with stuff. All loud tube amps. All through cabs with 12" drivers. Drives two separate amps and absolutely refuses to go line-in like the singer and I ran. Feeds cabs into live mics so he can run in-ears. But, the really loud drummer also has live mics on all his drums so he can use headphones like I do. His signal leaks through every mic in the room including singer's mic. Between a very bassy tone, loud room volume, and pervasive mic bleed his tone is a literal roar that I can't get away from. I have to crank all channels with acoustic guitar and vocals to painful levels in headphones to get through Hurricane Brown Note. And, when the drummer loses focus, he hits his drums harder. I started coming home with ringing ears and a stiff neck. Had to step away
 
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#64
Bill Whitehurst said:
Oh!
Deluxe Reverb.


An attenuator would help.
So would a Princton Reverb.
Click to expand...

OP didn't say Deluxe Reverb, He said Deluxe. Besides the Deluxe Reberb, 22 watts, class A, NO master volume, there's the Hot Rod Deluxe, 40 watts class AB but with a master volume. The blues jr, is 15 watts with a 10 inch speaker. Amp size isn't really the problem. The small amp option is there with the BJ (snicker).

A Princeton Reverb is not that great a sub for a Deluxe reverb since it's class AB. Nothing in the Fender line really sounds like a Deluxe reverb because of the class A power section. If the offending guitarist DOES have a Deluxe Reverb, I agree a power soak like a THD hotplate could help but they do change the sound and the "feel" of the amp because the power tube/OT/Speaker interaction has been changed.

Mugre
 
#65
mikecd1 said:
The good: Love the guy, he's technically got very good chops and either plays note for note solos or pretty close on most classic rock stuff. Shows up for rehearsals and is on-time for gigs.

The bad: Always too loud, doesn't blend well and I'm tired of asking him to turn down all the times. I think its already taken a toll on our friendship. We get told to turn down sometimes by club owners. Its affecting my hearing and probably has already affected his which may be the problem. Its annoying the other guitar player too and doesn't portray the band in a very good light.

Looking for suggestions to try and get him to listen more and try to fit in. Its like a virus and can drive the overall level of the band up. 4 piece band, 2 guitars, bass and drums. The drummer works hard at his volume and I try to keep it so he and I are balanced. Would like the same of the two guitarists only one controls his volume, the other drowns him out most of the time. Maybe its competitive for them.
Click to expand...


What's he running through for a rig?

I still play the "dreaded thing with six strings". Years back, it just made sense for the 2x12 cab to be tilted back and put in front of me, especially in clubs.

Seemed to make our sound guy happier.
 
#66
I worked with one of those guitar players for years. I finally got him to put his amp on a rack tilted back like a monitor. I then put in front of him facing the back of the stage. He turned his amp down when he could no longer hear his vocals coming from the floor wedges.
 
#67
At a weekly acoustic based jam I had a guitarist that would set his volume low when i was getting levels set and he would then proceed to turn up gradually as the night wore on, all the while complaining that he couldn't hear himself. I'd turn him down at each break to no avail.

When i got a Soundcraft Ui mixer i was able to have it right next to me and kept him at a good level. It also allowed us to record the jam to usb. The first time he complained about not being able to hear himself i simply played back the last song we'd done and pointed out that the guitar overriding everything else was him. He finally stopped complaining about his volume.
 
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#68
I was in a power trio and the guitarist wanted to add a second guitar (a guy he played in a band with years ago so no audition). The new guitarist came to the first rehearsal and pointed his amp straight at me and turned it up until he thought it was loud enough.

We started playing but didn't make it to the second verse before I stopped the song and told him to point it at his head not mine because my ears were bleeding (didn't tell him to turn down, he worked that bit out for himself). He stood it on a spare 412 then turned way down because it was far too loud for him. I never had to tell him again.
 
#70
I usually just turn down a little at a time and when he says that he can't hear me I tell him it's because he's too loud. Most of the time I just don't turn up. We usually start with a good mix and 3/4 through the first set I can't hear myself.
 
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#71
My guys are really good about all of this. We get a little loud sometimes, and honestly, if it wasn't really good - it would be a bigger problem than it is. Not being egotistical - just recognizing good musicianship. That said though - we know we are just on or over the edge and honestly try to police it as a unit. I think that usually counts for something.

Through the years I have lost a lot....no make that A LOT of work from being too loud. I never really got it, until I started working on the sound side of things though. that has helped me learn A LOT!
 
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#72
MYLOWFREQ said:
There's a cheap way to turn him down. They're called earplugs and sold in gc for $20. No need to mess up a good relationship.
Click to expand...

That will get you through rehearsal, but it does not address the fact that he's making the band sound like crap and pissing off employers. If he's ignoring the latter, he's an egotistical fool who doesn't belong in a gigging band.
 
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#74
Mugre said:
OP didn't say Deluxe Reverb, He said Deluxe. Besides the Deluxe Reberb, 22 watts, class A, NO master volume, there's the Hot Rod Deluxe, 40 watts class AB but with a master volume. The blues jr, is 15 watts with a 10 inch speaker. Amp size isn't really the problem. The small amp option is there with the BJ (snicker).

A Princeton Reverb is not that great a sub for a Deluxe reverb since it's class AB. Nothing in the Fender line really sounds like a Deluxe reverb because of the class A power section. If the offending guitarist DOES have a Deluxe Reverb, I agree a power soak like a THD hotplate could help but they do change the sound and the "feel" of the amp because the power tube/OT/Speaker interaction has been changed.

Mugre
Click to expand...
Yup, its a deluxe reverb, but he uses a Blues JR most of the time and if he loads up with treble and reverb then its on its way with whatever power is pushing it. Spoke to our other guitar player today and shared some of the posts here and he and I are going to get the offender to put his amp back on the tilt back amp stand again. He gave a lame excuse that he couldn't put his stuff on the top of the amp when he used it last time which is pretty lame and apparently told the other guitarist that my bass was too loud after saying the amp stand made him too loud. Last time he used it he eventually turned down to a great mix. The other guitarist says he can rarely hear me as loud as he'd like and thinks that was just a defense against my repeated requests to turn down. So at least that is the plan and since we just finished our last gig for a while everyone can chill out a bit, but we are definitely bringing that amp stand next time.
 
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#78
mikecd1 said:
...he's technically got very good chops...
Click to expand...
No he doesn't. In my view, equipping yourself to sound good at any volume, and knowing how to play at an appropriate volume for the band, music, venue, audience, etc., are vital aspects of "knowing how to play," especially if you play an electric instrument.

It's sad that musicians damage their hearing to the point where they can't manage this aspect of the performance. And I can't imagine how stressful it must be to find themselves in that situation, which may be one reason for the defensiveness.

...perhaps those amps are harder to dial back...
Click to expand...
Then he should leave them at home. Volume levels are one reason why the glory of tube amps is lost on me. I don't care how sweet they sound at the wrong volume. The guitarist in my band plays through a Kemper box followed by a regular solid state power amp, and he always sounds great.
 
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#79
It is possible to mask poor guitar technique with volume (I know because I have done it). The only difference is when I did it I had a boost pedal and only kicked it on when playing lead breaks. The rest of the time I was quieter than the rhythm guitar or didn't play at all. (It's known as arranging the song and because it is usually the last thing bands learn most never get that far.)

Any guitarist (make that musician) who thinks that the world is listening to only them, so they need to play at the same (insanely loud) volume all of the time, does not have good technique - they have a lot to learn.
 

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