So, I'm in a new project, somewhere close to a Doors tribute band without costumes, wigs etc. I had not planned to stick with it but the band, especially the drummer, is really good.
I pay for a wicked good practice studio with sharp PA, drum kit etc in Portland but the others live out in the burbs so we practice in a sonic hell-hole closer to where they all live.
I was using one of those new 100 watt Fender Rumble combos but everyone was whining that they couldn't hear me. So I brought out a pair of those new Orange 1x12" lite cabs with a 200 watt Taurus class D hybrid that I used to carry as a backup to one of my Orange heads. And for practice at home.
Well, yesterday at practice, Gremlins had taken control of the PA and the work-around limited things a little. Then my amp started cutting out, with the amp protection light happily illuminating. I wasn't driving the amp all that hard, or so I thought, and it kicked right back in after maybe 10 seconds or less.
I figured it was another Gremlin at work drawing down the power to levels where solid state amps complain so I moved it to another plug which, I was told, was on another circuit. For a couple of minutes I looked like a genius but soon enough, it started dropping out again.
It took a while, like 90 minutes, before old blockhead here finally figured out the circuit protection feature on the little amp only kicked in when I played A on the fifth fret of the E string. Open A on the A string? Not a problem. But hit the fifth fret on the E string and you could hear an audible pop and then the amp shut itself off for a few seconds.
Mind you, I was playing a really hot active bass with Darkstar pickups so, in retrospect, I'm not surprised. I'll have to check the pole piece heights etc. In the meanwhile, I'll haul over a nastier amp.
But I just found it interesting that even after so many years of playing, there is always something new that'll come along and challenge you.
Also a good reminder of why I ALWAYS bring a backup amp to shows.
I pay for a wicked good practice studio with sharp PA, drum kit etc in Portland but the others live out in the burbs so we practice in a sonic hell-hole closer to where they all live.
I was using one of those new 100 watt Fender Rumble combos but everyone was whining that they couldn't hear me. So I brought out a pair of those new Orange 1x12" lite cabs with a 200 watt Taurus class D hybrid that I used to carry as a backup to one of my Orange heads. And for practice at home.
Well, yesterday at practice, Gremlins had taken control of the PA and the work-around limited things a little. Then my amp started cutting out, with the amp protection light happily illuminating. I wasn't driving the amp all that hard, or so I thought, and it kicked right back in after maybe 10 seconds or less.
I figured it was another Gremlin at work drawing down the power to levels where solid state amps complain so I moved it to another plug which, I was told, was on another circuit. For a couple of minutes I looked like a genius but soon enough, it started dropping out again.
It took a while, like 90 minutes, before old blockhead here finally figured out the circuit protection feature on the little amp only kicked in when I played A on the fifth fret of the E string. Open A on the A string? Not a problem. But hit the fifth fret on the E string and you could hear an audible pop and then the amp shut itself off for a few seconds.
Mind you, I was playing a really hot active bass with Darkstar pickups so, in retrospect, I'm not surprised. I'll have to check the pole piece heights etc. In the meanwhile, I'll haul over a nastier amp.
But I just found it interesting that even after so many years of playing, there is always something new that'll come along and challenge you.
Also a good reminder of why I ALWAYS bring a backup amp to shows.
