SOUND ADVICE: Stuff you may or may not know.

EARPLUG-EARPHONE INSTALLATION

MATCHING your LowBlown to an Amp

AVOID THE SHOCK OF YOUR LIFE

Here's a little thing that will, at the very least, save you from an uncomfortable interruption in your song. (Maybe even a permanent one.) It's a neon bulb in a package that puts it between YOU and the equipment. Hit the following link for instructions. A glow tells you something's not grounded, a bright glow tips you off to REAL danger. If you like this idea but it presents a challenge, send me a stamped envelope with your address on it and I'll give you one.

Pad the Open Back of your Amp

A little padding goes a long way to deepen the tone of a combo amp. If you put a pillow in the opening behind the speakers it will boost the low frequencies. Be SURE NOT to block the opening behind the tubes and don't let the padding touch 'em or you will shorten the life of your amp.

Use Effects Sparingly

Avoid overdoing reverb and echo. Adjust so that you can barely tell they are present. -Because YOU know what to listen for. Everyone else will just hear how good you sound and won't be distracted by the effect.

Set your echo to produce a single repeat at about a tenth of a second or less, as if your sound was reflecting off a nearby wall. Reverb should not last more than a few tenths of a second. After that, it begins to muddy up your sound and instead of filling it in, starts to cloud it over.

Extension Speaker Cabinets

An extension cabinet costs less than another amp (weighs less, too) and will boost your output by moving more air per watt of power. Just make sure it's in phase with the main amp; All the cones must move in and out together.

We cringe at having to use a guitar to check this, but it's a good source of ultralow frequencies. Just bump the strings, right over the pickup, with the heel of your hand and release slowly. A flashlight helps to see the cone action if you can't see the back. The speaker cones of both the amp and extension should jump in the same direction. You need to consider matching the impedance, however.

Speaker Impedance

Most transistor/solid state amps handle 16, 8, and 4 ohms. Many (but not all) handle 2 ohms. Most have something on the back of the amp concerning "minimum impedance". A listing of "4 ohms" means that 4, 8, 16, etc., is OK, but anything under 4 ohms MUST be avoided. (Consider a manual with such info as a gift from the Supreme Being.) If there is a jack and no info, consult an amp repair technician. You'll probably be OK with a single 8-Ohm speaker but you should find out before trying any experiments.

Tube amps are more tolerant of low impedance mismatches, but are intolerant of opens and higher impedance mismatches. Using too high an impedance for a tube amp can turn the tubes or output transformer to smoke. If any of this sounds confusing, there's a good reason -- it is. Those of us who don't know what they're doing in this area should consult a lot of books or someone who does know.
PLACES TO GET MORE ADVICE

Microphone Impedance

Microphone impedance mismatch won't damage your amp, (or mic) but it could mean that you aren't getting the best sound from your system. To use the "water-in-the-pipe" analogy, LOW IMPEDANCE (LO-Z) is like a big pipe, and water flows very slowly. HIGH IMPEDANCE is like a small pipe with the same amount of water flowing faster. The High Impedance is more susceptible to noise (like shaking the pipe).

A mismatch is like hooking a big pipe to a small one (or small to big). Either way, not enough water flows and, in your amp, not enough current flows to get the most sound out of your microphone. OK, so an impedance matching transformer changes one to the other (at this point, the analogy doesn't hold water).

The Honker output is high impedance. If you need to plug in to a "direct-inject box" on a stage where the mixer board / P.A. system is some distance away, the lines from this "D.I. box" to the rest of the system will invariably be low-impedance. This will require an impedance-matching transformer. There are other ways of doing this, but a simple transformer is the most widely used. Avoid cheap ones, you should pay $30 - $50 for a decent one. If you need other signal processing, like a preamp, then get something that also has a low-impedance output. You'll save a few bucks and it'll be more convenient.
PLACES TO GET MORE ADVICE

Setting Honker Levels

Set your amp/PA volume level with the Honker mic volume at maximum and the Honk control at "Full Honk". Then, when you're playing at cleaner settings, you can use the volume control on the ring mic to lower your volume as necessary.

The (Full) Honk sound is based on clipping and will sound quietest because it is limiting the peaks of your signal. This is where you get the most compression, that is, your volume won't drop out when you open your cup up for wah effects. At cleaner settings, you will get greater dynamic range and whether your'e blasting or pianissimo, that's what will come out of your amp.

You may find a "sweet" spot on the Honk control at about "12-o'clock" where it's loudest and you get a fair balance between Clean and Honk sound.

Feedback

Feedback happens when a sound (from your speakers) gets to your input (microphone) loud enough for it to happen again.

A starting point for harp amp settings is with the BASS all the way up, the TREBLE and MIDDLE (if any) all the way down. Listen to that, and add a little MID or TREB a little at a time if you need more bite.

Standing to the side of your amp, a little to the front (or back) and as far away as you can get (and still hear yourself) will also help. Mic'ing your amp into the PA can also allow more loudness because the PA speakers will be farther away from you than your amp. You will also want to keep your signal out of the monitor mix, since this can cause its own feedback loop. Use your own amp for a monitor, it's easier to hear yourself when it's coming from a source that's separate from the rest and it can even be pointed right at you if it's mic'd. Now, the HEARAMP will give you a Personal Monitor built into the Honker.

Room acoustics will have a great effect on feedback as well as your overall sound. When you're playing a new place and you get a chance while everything is reasonably quiet, clap your hands (once every few seconds) and listen to the resulting echo. This will tell you how "live" the room is.

A "live" room will have a definite echo, maybe off a back wall, or maybe just a "reverb"-type echo. If you don't hear much of anything back, the room is "dead", acoustically, (normally a good thing) and will tolerate more volume out of your amp before feedback happens - at least from room echoes. (There are several more ways feedback can happen.) Remember that when the room is (hopefully) full of people, it will be "deader" than when it's empty.

A "dead" room will also require a little brighter tone because the highs disperse (get absorbed) more quickly than the lows. This is all for rooms that aren't designed for sound. If you listen to the sound of one hand-clap in a concert hall, it will sound like a symphony.
PLACES TO GET MORE ADVICE

BACK