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Topic: Tube sound after 30 minutes of playing |
Tommy Boswell
From:
Virginia, USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2012 8:03 am |
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Is it just me, or do tubes sound better after about 30 minutes of play time? When they're good and warm? I've noticed this a couple of times while practicing at home.
Or, could be other factors, like the bar and strings warming up, my hands warming up, my ears going soft, etc. But my Fender Bassman 70 seems to really sing after a good warm up. Anyone else notice that with a tube amp? |
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Tim Marcus
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 31 Jan 2012 8:14 am
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It's more than just the tubes heating up - its the resistors and coupling capacitors as well. The values tend to drift around after about 20-30 minutes and that's when the magic starts to happen!
_________________
Milkmansound.com |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Posted 31 Jan 2012 11:22 am
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Agreed... after 20+ minutes is when the real magic begins.
But also we as players sound better too. The real test is to fire up the amp rig, play for a minute and give a listen, then leave and come back a half hour later. That way you can isolate the rig as the tone factor and know that it's not your warmed up hands, which indeed is a major tone changing factor in and of itself.
B |
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Paul Arntson
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2012 8:01 pm
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| I've experienced something similar. I finally concluded it is my ears fatiguing. |
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Eric Philippsen
From:
Central Florida USA
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Posted 7 Feb 2012 8:26 pm
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I just got back a few minutes ago from a rehearsal. And again I'm convinced that tube gear needs to warm up for it to sound it's best. Without exception, and no matter what tube preamp I use (I have four), they all start out sounding a bit on the harsh side at first. An hour of playing softens the tone up and then they really sound good.
I try and compensate or "hurry" that warmup time by turning the preamp on as soon as.I can before the job starts. But that's not always possible. It's especially frustrating when it's a studio date and I need to produce "that tone" pretty much right now....but can't. But I get by. |
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