How many Steel Guitar amps do you bring to the gig?

About Steel Guitarists and their Music

Moderator: Shoshanah Marohn

How many amps to you bring?

1 amp
87
82%
2 amps
15
14%
3 or more amps
0
No votes
0 amps
4
4%
 
Total votes: 106

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Lee Baucum
Posts: 10326
Joined: 11 Apr 1999 12:01 am
Location: McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier

Post by Lee Baucum »

A little off-topic...but, I usually take an extra shirt to each gig
...ever since the white shirt and bbq sauce incident.

:\
Lee, from South Texas - Down On The Rio Grande

There are only two options as I see it.
Either I'm right, or there is a sinister conspiracy to conceal the fact that I'm right.


Williams Keyless S-10, BMI S-10, Evans FET-500LV, Fender Steel King, 2 Roland Cube 80XL's,
Sarno FreeLoader, Goodrich Passive Volume Pedals, Vintage ACE Pack-A-Seat
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Jim Sliff
Posts: 7059
Joined: 22 Jun 2005 12:01 am
Location: Lawndale California, USA

Post by Jim Sliff »

I've taken a backup amp to every electric gig since the mid-70's. Learned that lesson VERY early.

I've preached it to every student...and every bandmate that has asked to borrow MY spare (which has happened at least a couple dozen times).
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional
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Dan Robinson
Posts: 1462
Joined: 17 Jun 2014 10:26 pm
Location: Colorado, USA

Post by Dan Robinson »

Spare volume pedal, and an extra pair of Skeletor underpants, but just one amp.

My LTD-400 failed in 1981, power transistors blew, and took EVM/15L voice-coil to the bad place. The extra pair of briefs came in handy.

"Don't leave home without 'em."
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Jerry Overstreet
Posts: 12622
Joined: 11 Jul 2000 12:01 am
Location: Louisville Ky

Post by Jerry Overstreet »

Never hauled more than one amp except back in late 80's, early 90's using pseudo stereo clean amp, dirty amp rigs.

Old faithful NV400 never let me down nor have the Mosvalve rack amps since the 90's.

I have enough load with my gear without dragging around another amp just for insurance. If it quits, who cares? I can always go into the mains...or it might be a relief to all if I just have to lay out altogether.

Spare volume pedal, picks, bars, cables etc. sometimes, yes but not amps.

Of course professional touring high profile bands need spare gear because they can't afford not to...but that's not me now nor likely in the near future.
get the sticker from Scott Murray

proud appalachian american
those of you who think you know everything annoy the he!! out of those of us that do. ;-)
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Jim Sliff
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Joined: 22 Jun 2005 12:01 am
Location: Lawndale California, USA

Post by Jim Sliff »

To add to my "backup amp" reasoning -

I can't stand the sound of pedal steel, 6 string or electric whatever - except keyboards designed for the purpose - plugged into the mains, even with a "Sansamp" type unit.

An amp is as much a musical instrument as a guitar and more prone to failure. Carrying a backup amp is insurance that you can still get close to "your sound".

I do find far fewer steel players carry backup amps than 6-string players; but I've also noticed less concern with amp tone, quality etc among steel players, who often play $4-5,000 guitars through relatively cheap amps, with most amp discussion centered on "clean replacement speakers" Tone of both guitar and amp seem to fall far below "mechanical precision" and "loud/clean" on the priority chart.

Just my observations.
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional
Bobby Bonds Sr.
Posts: 60
Joined: 2 May 2017 8:28 am
Location: Texas, USA

Amps

Post by Bobby Bonds Sr. »

Primary amp is a Evans SE300, then set a NV 112 on the other side of the stage. Works out nice. Spreads the sound.
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John Billings
Posts: 9344
Joined: 11 Jul 2002 12:01 am
Location: Ohio, USA

Post by John Billings »

I have never had an amp fail. Bill Kahle does my Fenders, and Mike Zaite, Dr, Z, does his amps, 40 years of no worries!
Dr. Z Surgical Steel amp, amazing!
"74 Bud S-10 3&6
'73 Bud S-10 3&5(under construction)
'63 Fingertip S-10, at James awaiting 6 knees
'57 Strat, LP Blue
'91 Tele with 60's Maple neck
Dozen more guitars!
Dozens of amps, but SF Quad reverb, Rick Johnson cabs. JBL 15, '64 Vibroverb for at home.
'52 and '56 Pro Amps
Pete Burak
Posts: 6530
Joined: 2 Oct 1998 12:01 am
Location: Portland, OR USA

Post by Pete Burak »

A few years ago I had a 15" JBL Speaker Recone fail on its first gig out.
The guy screwed up something with the speaker-wire grommets (that is what he told me when I took it back).
It worked for the first two songs of a one-set, multi-band gig, then went dead.
There was an RMS practice amp backstage that I went and found while the band played on.
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Garry Vanderlinde
Posts: 1500
Joined: 14 Nov 2002 1:01 am
Location: CA

Post by Garry Vanderlinde »

When my Steelaire quite on stage someone found me a powered monitor to play out of.
It was better than nothing except Quilters Amp Rescue Program, which is nothing...
:roll:
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Jim Sliff
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Joined: 22 Jun 2005 12:01 am
Location: Lawndale California, USA

Post by Jim Sliff »

I have never had an amp fail. Bill Kahle does my Fenders, and Mike Zaite, Dr, Z, does his amps, 40 years of no worries!
Keeping amps in good repair is the most important thing and significantly reduces the need for a spare. But most players simply don't have their tube amps serviced properly.

But when amps ARE kept in good shape luck becomes the big issue.

As a player/tech I had a tube caddy with me at all gigs, along with a field service kit (soldering gear, common parts, tools etc) and there were countless times I replaced one power tube in a player's amp that had been nuked by a mic stand, replaced fuses - and missing fuse holders, an item that - At least in the past - used to be a common "sabotage" item swiped by members of other bands.

I did field repairs on speaker cones, swapped reverb pans, replaced power cord plugs - ALL for players that didn't carry spares.


Every amp owner should (at bare minimum) carry spare fuses (tape them inside your cabinet) - and tube amp owners should have one spare each of every tube in his amp(s).


If you've never had anything happen all I can say is you're very lucky. I don't know of another player that's gigged regularly for 40 years and never had an amp failure. Most have some sort of "non-usable" issue at least once a year if they play a couple times a week.
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional
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Jim Newberry
Posts: 582
Joined: 3 Jan 2007 2:47 pm
Location: Seattle, Upper Left America

Post by Jim Newberry »

I build my own amps, so of course I always have a Quilter block in my gig bag!
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"

-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps
Lyle Clary
Posts: 853
Joined: 27 Dec 2004 1:01 am
Location: Decatur, Illinois, KC9VCB

Post by Lyle Clary »

I thought my NV 112 shot craps one time Borrowed an amp but no deal. Come to find out my Hilton Pedal power cord was broken at the edge of the case. As I am always early at a gig I repaired the cord and played the rest of the night.The moral of the story is always prove the trouble before you try to fix it.
2006 Zum D10 8x8,1969 ZB Custom D10,
10 3x4 Peavey Nashville 112 Peavey LTD 400 2014 Zum Encore Wood Grain 4x5 Stage One pot pedal
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Lee Baucum
Posts: 10326
Joined: 11 Apr 1999 12:01 am
Location: McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier

Post by Lee Baucum »

I have never had an amp fail.
I used to say that...then it happened...

Lucky for me we were just finishing a set at a big fundraising event and the live auction was about to begin. The venue was less than 10 miles from home, so I had time to go pick up another amp.

It doesn't take much effort to grab a little Cube 80XL and take it to the gig as a spare.

Lee, from South Texas
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