Rebel 30 & Attenuator Question

[bonedish]

I've been toying with the idea of getting a Dr. Z Brake-Lite attenuator for my R30, and was wondering if anyone has had any experience with using an attenuator with a Rebel 20/30?

Would it be safe to use? Would I need to bias my R30 a little lower?

I'm looking to get more power tube saturation at the "allowable" gig venue levels. The direct out works great, but I would like to push the power tubes just a little more at smaller stage volumes.

Any advice and suggestions are welcome - relating to the topic, of course!

Thanks!

 

[bonedish]

21 views and no comments?!

C'mon, I'll even take some smart-assed remarks!!!

 

[jmgman69]

21 views and no comments?!

C'mon, I'll even take some smart-assed remarks!!!

Never needed an attenuator and all out of smart assed comments

 

[Roddy]

Good attenuators like the Bad Cat, THD, Alex, ect won't hurt your amp...they do wear out the power tubes more if you run the amp at high volumes...Just like if you were playing the amp at high volumes....I can't speak for the Z, but I've had great tones using a Bad Cat Leash with both my Egnater and Randall/Egnater modular amps...The THD Hotplate also had very good results....They all tend to make my amps sound fuller at lower volumes...even at gigs...I'm saving for an RM22...I'll use it on that as well

 

[billboogie]

Roddy is right on. I have a Weber Mini Mass 50w that works great with my R20. I leave it on the lowest setting and that small amount of attenuation I get is just enough to allow me to dime the R20. The Webers have a three way trebel boost (normal,3db,6db). That feature to my ears sounds more like an overall boost.(I hear the tone opening up as opposed to just a treble spike, Hope that make sense). The 50w Weber does'nt get very hot with the R20 so the unit should last a while. You should check out a few different models if you can and do your research. There are a lot
of ways attenuation can be achieved so the models do differ from each other and imo you need to find the one that sounds best to your ears. (much like any pedal you may purchase). I hope this helps, good luck in your search.

 

[bonedish]

Cool! Thanks to everyone for their replies. I'm thinking I'm just gonna go ahead and try one.

 

[3 Mile Stone]

You don't need to bias your amp differently.

 

[bonedish]

Thanks for all of the replies so far. Does anyone else have experience with attenuators?

Would it be redundant to do, since I can dial my wattage down to 1 watt? Would this accomplish the same thing as an attenuator, or is my train of thought off?

 

[UncleNazz]

A basic question from a non American - What do you mean by 'diming' ?
Does it mean turning up all the way ?

UN

 

[Roddy]

A basic question from a non American - What do you mean by 'diming' ?
Does it mean turning up all the way ?

UN

Yes....

 

[chickenoolie]

A basic question from a non American - What do you mean by 'diming' ?
Does it mean turning up all the way ?

UN

An American "dime" is a coin worth 10 cents. "Diming" refers to turning the amp all the way up to 10.
At least that's how I've understood it.

 

[Resonant Alien]

Thanks for all of the replies so far. Does anyone else have experience with attenuators?

Would it be redundant to do, since I can dial my wattage down to 1 watt? Would this accomplish the same thing as an attenuator, or is my train of thought off?

I use a THD Hot Plate with my Renegade with great results. No, it is not the same as changing the wattage selector on the amps.