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now *this* is a rig (Noel Redding content)
- Thread starter chuck3
- Start date
this is identified as 1967 doing a TV show, not a live concert. Obviously Marshall stuff - so I guess Sunn came after that?
Yes, the 69 Stockholm video of Hendrix is really good. He has two Marshall stacks and uses them both. In 1968 he did a tour in North America and had stacks of Voice of the Theatre cabs for the PA. See below.
People had a wall of cabs and many used them all. In the later part of the 60's Crown systems were popular. Also McIntosh tube amps like the MI350 (which as used at Woodstock). As PA systems grew in the 70's, they were basically two walls, one at each side of the stage. I recall the high power transistorized Acoustic PA systems made a difference because they were affordable.
People had a wall of cabs and many used them all. In the later part of the 60's Crown systems were popular. Also McIntosh tube amps like the MI350 (which as used at Woodstock). As PA systems grew in the 70's, they were basically two walls, one at each side of the stage. I recall the high power transistorized Acoustic PA systems made a difference because they were affordable.
It's amazing that the BBC got the Experience to tone down the backline for this appearance on the Lulu show. It looks like Jimi's just got 2 Marshall stacks that are somewhat visible next to the stage. You have to look really closely to see Noel Redding's rig offstage, but in this show it actually looks like some Acoustic cabinets.
That's pretty much what my buddy said. Something to the effect of 'They do it (bass guitar/indistinguishable from bass drum) because they can and not because it makes sense or is musical.'
Some video taken at the Miami Pop Festival which is where I saw him.
I think you get a glimpse of the Sunn rig.
I think you get a glimpse of the Sunn rig.
In the mid-late 60's there were a lot of Dynaco Mk III's, McIntosh MC60's and the like for power. Mixing facilities were usually pretty basic with things like Grommes Precision tube microphone mixers.I would have loved to hear Jimi or any band in the late 60's live. I'm told most PA's back then were tube powered. That must have been awesome, except that nobody knew anything about placement
In 1967 Crown introduced the DC300, which was the first good, reliable, high-power (for the time) solid-state power amp. These were quickly adopted for touring sound and rapidly replaced vacuum-tube power amps.
This kind of stuff fascinates me. I'm not old enough to jave heard any of it first hand, I'm 40. Todays line array systems are pretty amazing in terms of output per packspace, clarity, coverage and I've heard a few sone really well....a couple shows, shockingly well. But, I've heard many more than that employed poorly....to the point where if one didn't know better, they'd think the world of pro sound was devolving.
this is identified as 1967 doing a TV show, not a live concert. Obviously Marshall stuff - so I guess Sunn came after that?
This is also from Beat Club, which is European, so Noel would be using Marshall, regardless of the year (though this is 67, so he hadn't made the switch to Sunn in the states yet).
Nope, no Acoustic here. It's a Marshall stack each for Jimi and Noel. You can see the lead from Noel's bass going into one of the Marshalls towards the end of the clip.
I have the boot of this whole show, and it's actually one of my favorites. Noel has a great performance, especially on Foxey Lady. I don't think I've ever heard a rig sound so much like it was literally about to erupt into flames and exploded as on that performance. Jimi even says at the end "it's very bad trying to play on ashes".
Here's some more photos for everyone:
Here's an interesting comment from Bill Hanley who set up the Woodstock PA system. They used McIntosh MI350 monoblock amps, LA-2A limiters, and Shure mixers. 12,000 Watts.
We built our Front of House (FOH) mixing station on a platform about 75 feet from the stage so we could see the stage and hear the mix (through the stage-left lower speaker cluster.) On the stage, we used custom microphones I had built from Shure factory parts. They closely resembled what Shure Brothers would soon sell as the popular Shure SM58, the most noticeable difference being that mine had a brushed chrome finish, like the older Shure 'bird cage' mics. Under the stage we had our McIntosh amplifiers, both transistorized and tube models. Transistors were new, and a bit risky, but we needed all the power we could get. In a nearby trailer, we had two eight track Scully recorders catching the show. Those are the tapes everyone knows through the album and for Martin Scorcese's Woodstock movie, which was nominated for an Academy Award."
Because most of the audience would be perched high on the hill, Bill decided to build two speaker towers, each with two levels of speaker clusters, one high, (about 70 feet, to reach the middle and top of the hill,) and one much lower for the near audience. This geometry sent the music directly to everyone's ears, without causing any backslap (echo,) because all the grass, and soil ...and the bodies of half a million fans, would absorb the sound, eliminating the unwanted resonances and reflections that we have to deal with indoors. Bill designed and built his own speaker cabinets of marine plywood. Two "bass bins" were placed under a pair of high frequency horns, totalling about a thousand pounds and standing roughly 6 feet tall, 4 feet deep, and 7 feet wide.Each of the four upper level bins was loaded with four 15-inch JBL D130 drivers with a loudness maximizer compressing the sound to improve reach. Each of the four lower bins was loaded with four 15-inch JBL D140 drivers for extended bass. The high frequencies were handled by model 1003B, 5x2 Altec multicell horns (300Hz. min freq) and Bill's own custom built 2x2 horns, all with Altec 290 compression drivers.
Here are the McIntosh MI350 amps and the mixing station.
We built our Front of House (FOH) mixing station on a platform about 75 feet from the stage so we could see the stage and hear the mix (through the stage-left lower speaker cluster.) On the stage, we used custom microphones I had built from Shure factory parts. They closely resembled what Shure Brothers would soon sell as the popular Shure SM58, the most noticeable difference being that mine had a brushed chrome finish, like the older Shure 'bird cage' mics. Under the stage we had our McIntosh amplifiers, both transistorized and tube models. Transistors were new, and a bit risky, but we needed all the power we could get. In a nearby trailer, we had two eight track Scully recorders catching the show. Those are the tapes everyone knows through the album and for Martin Scorcese's Woodstock movie, which was nominated for an Academy Award."
Because most of the audience would be perched high on the hill, Bill decided to build two speaker towers, each with two levels of speaker clusters, one high, (about 70 feet, to reach the middle and top of the hill,) and one much lower for the near audience. This geometry sent the music directly to everyone's ears, without causing any backslap (echo,) because all the grass, and soil ...and the bodies of half a million fans, would absorb the sound, eliminating the unwanted resonances and reflections that we have to deal with indoors. Bill designed and built his own speaker cabinets of marine plywood. Two "bass bins" were placed under a pair of high frequency horns, totalling about a thousand pounds and standing roughly 6 feet tall, 4 feet deep, and 7 feet wide.Each of the four upper level bins was loaded with four 15-inch JBL D130 drivers with a loudness maximizer compressing the sound to improve reach. Each of the four lower bins was loaded with four 15-inch JBL D140 drivers for extended bass. The high frequencies were handled by model 1003B, 5x2 Altec multicell horns (300Hz. min freq) and Bill's own custom built 2x2 horns, all with Altec 290 compression drivers.
Here are the McIntosh MI350 amps and the mixing station.
Imagine how much power you'd have if you had enough Genz Benz Shuttle 9's to match HALF the weight of those rigs. You could amass 9000 watts without even breaking a sweat. I'm amazed there aren't more people running multiple cabinets with high-powered class D heads actually.
Many folks don't like them. Just like when regular solid state came along after years of tubes, there are many folks who reject them. I've spoken to more than one bass player who hates them, and I've spoken to more than one sound tech who hates them as well.
Couldn't agree more, until you hear someone behind the board who reallyvknows how to work it. It goes from tin can to holy crap. I think ot's like people who are used to mixing for LP's or cassette tapes teying tjeor hand at CD's at first....didn't work all that well. Evrerbody knows LP's sound better, the trick is to get that kind of good sound in a different platform. What were we talmkmg about again? I'm juust tdying go make sre this can jas beer in it and not ashes.....
Modern soind systems can sound awesome...I've hears it done...unfoetunately not often enoifh. It seems like a really good or really bad deal...not much in between......
I think what he's trying to say is that bass rigs intended/designed to fill an entire 1000+ venue are pretty much obsolete these days.
