Was at rehearsal yesterday for a show coming up in a few weeks. Playing in a venue that seats 600+ with a great pa system and sound crew that knows what they're doing. We're micing my micro cube through the board because we need the effects I can get from it. Anyhow, it got me to thinking about the first time I played amplified 2 1/2 years ago. The moment I heard the first note I played bark through the pa, I was bit by the bug. I knew right then and there that I just had to start amassing my own gear. I was bit by the bark.
First time playing harp through a vocal mic into a sound system? Wow, that was way back. 1974, in a honkytonk called the Pioneer Bar, at a country jam session.
Amps came a few years later, and I made lots of bad choices. In 1980 I finally bought a JT-30 at Elderly Instruments in Lansing MI and a used Ampeg B15N stack and started learning about amped tone. That is what I remember most. It was a turning point.
I got up at a few jams and played through the p.a., dry as a bone usually those first few years. My first harp rig was not much better, a Crate II ss amp and a lavalier mic, which I ended up putting a boss digital delay in the loop to wet it up. BUT since I had very little idea how to actually play, I didn't get much done for a while yet. My first REAL AMP AND MIC SET WAS A pRINCETON tREM FROM '63 AND A gREEN bULLET MIC AND i WAS......TOTALLY.......IN.......love. While it was underpowered for most live stuff it had tone for weeks. months. years. I took many missteps after that trying to find tone and volume in one package. I have had some great amps but sadly lost the Princeton along the way. NEVER pawn your stuff. I use a Silvertone 1482 these days and I just play with duos and bands where I can be heard or I don't pursue a steady thing with them. I have several mics and am very happy with that rig. I still step up to a p.a. from time to time but my voice and a harp's needs are opposite so it's either a compromise or I need 2 separate channels and mics. NEVER be afraid. Make a mistake or two, learn, and be better next time. ---------- http://www.reverbnation.com/jawboneandjolene
Thanks for the stories. I'm not really honing in on "playing through the pa" ancedotes. But first time playing amplified in general. Whether it be through an amp or house pa system. I play acoustic quite a bit, as do most of usI'm sure. But there's just something about playing amped. Tube or solid state is personal preferance and often dictated by finances, availability and needs. ---------- You Tube = goshinjk
Good choice Frank. I was at a jam one night and a guy had a Super Six out. Nearly as tall as me and the cab sported 6 10's or 12's. Made for accordion I think. It may have been terrible, I don't know, but I thought at the time it was hugely incredible for harp as long as I didn't turn up much. The feedback probably would have ripped my shirt off.
Some of my best times with amped playing were with the '59 bassman I had built a few years ago. No pedals, just a cm or crystal mic, and tone as long as you wanted. That amp stood up to some crazy loudass stage volumes. ---------- http://www.reverbnation.com/jawboneandjolene
