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It is difficult to explain to bands why they need to play at a reasonable volume. The majority of the local bands stage volume is between 10-15 Db too high. The result cascades throughout the venue and ultimately everybody fan, venue, and band are all done a tremendous disservice.
“Dude my Marshall stack is only at 2 ½!!!” That may be true, but you are playing a night club not Madison Square Garden. When you play at a club that has an in house sound and light system and a decent engineer you are better off playing at a volume where you let your engineer decide the levels the crowd is going to hear. If you push your on stage volume level now YOU are acting as the sound engineer because any good engineer simply removes dude that is too loud from the mix. Contrary to popular belief your volume level has nothing to do with your dial setting and everything to do with the Db level your amp is emanating throughout the venue.
Guitar players aren’t the only guilty parties. Bass players oftentimes bring 2 stacks of 4 x 10s and then want to turn them up. I hate to break it to you, but the guy down at Guitar Center sold you too much equipment. You just don’t need it unless you play consistently to thousands of people at arenas and outdoor festivals. The last time I saw George Thorogood at a club people might be surprised that the amplifier he chose was literally the size of a basketball. It was set properly, mixed properly, and it created a big sound that rocked a sold out nightclub. No one accused Mr. Thorogood of having small balls because he wasn’t playing out of dual Marshall Stacks at 130 db.
Another thing I have found is that bands that have terrible songs think that turning up to 120 db is going to make them sound better. Umm… No. If you play a crappy song at 120 Db you still sound like stench of cow bottom.
One final thing… and I don’t want to sound like your mother, but hearing damage happens. And yes, sorry to say, it will happen to you. If you practice and play live consistently at high volumes you will have significant hearing damage. It won’t hit you right away, but it will happen. I know, I am 33 and I already have hearing damage from my youthful dedication to the concert attendance. No I am not deaf, but I have trouble hearing at times. Every time you put yourself in a situation with amplified music you will lose a small amount of hearing. The bottom line is, if you play just a little softer you will save a significant amount of hearing. The hearing loss from 105 Db is significantly less than 110 Db. Also consider wearing earplugs. You can still hear everything just fine trust me.
One more thought. In the music business the most important thing you need are your ears. You don’t need to see the music to enjoy it. If you can’t hear it there isn’t much point…
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