Attenuator help

I just got a new F30 Combo and it is truly wonderful, however, at home to get the desired lead tone i have to turn up the master beyond 9 o'clock and to be honest its not realistic to do this (neighbours etc) so can anyone recommend a good power attenuator, I'm in the UK
Any advice would be very much appreciated
Cheers
Sean

My only experience is with a THD Hotplate, and I would highly recommend it. I found it didn't color or alter my tone any (well maybe slightly). It works like a charm in getting the desired tone out of the amp at lower volume.

http://www.thdelectronics.com/products/hotplate.htm

You'll probably need the 8ohm version for the F30 Combo. It also has a line out, so you can slave or run directly to PC interface and just add speaker simulation for direct recording.

I have a Weber attenuator that is quite good.

http://www.tedweber.com/atten.htm

I understand that Ted ships worldwide. And he replies to emails personally, so you cannot beat his customer service.

THD also makes good attenuators that might be more easily available in the UK.

I'm using the Koch LB-120 II. Excellent attenuator and very usefull for silent/direct sim recording too.

This is a list that I already posted on another forum about loadbox:

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-Alessandro's Muzzle Power Attenuator
http://www.alessandro-products.com/accessories.html

-BadCat's The Leash
http://badcatamps.com/badcat_pedals.html

-Dr. Z Amplification's Trainwreck Licensed "Z Air Brake"
http://www.drzamps.com/airbrake.html

-Groove Tubes's SEII Speaker Emulator
http://www.groovetubes.com/SEII_Speaker_Emulator_P1604.cfm

-Koch's LB120-II (LB120 discontinued I think)
http://www.koch-amps.com/

-Magus Innovations, LLC - Different "Ultimate" models
http://www.ultimateattenuator.com/

-Motherload
http://www.motherloadusa.com/motherload-load-box-directbox-home.asp

-Marshall's Power Brake
http://www.marshallamps.com/product.asp?productCode=PB100

-Palmer's PGA-04 Speaker Simulator
http://www.palmergear.com/pga04.shtml

-Peavey's MSDI
http://www.peavey.com/news/article.cfm/action/view/id/236/20071801.cfm

-SPL's Transducer Model 2601
http://www.soundperformancelab.com/transducer/2601_kurz_E.html

-THD's Hot Plate
http://www.thdelectronics.com/products/hotplate.htm

-Weber's Mass (various models)
https://taweber.powweb.com/weber/mass.htm

rw

I have owned the following and all were excellent unit. ALL of the will color your sound to some extent.

1. THD
2. Marshall Power Brake
3. DR. Z.
4. Weber Mass

I liked the Weber Mass the best. I found it to color sound the least, and it worked like a charm.

+1 on the Weber Mass. Very little colouration unless you are trying to get to bedroom level (which is a little silly.) Great if you are trying to go from "oh god loud" to "not audible outside the house."

Thanks for your help guys, ive seen a weber 50 watt on ebay, thing is, is it compatable with an F30 ?, ive read you should buy an attenuator which is rated at more output than the amp and im a little concerned that the 50 watt one is not compatable and think i should maybe get a 100 watt one ?

shush said:

Thanks for your help guys, ive seen a weber 50 watt on ebay, thing is, is it compatable with an F30 ?, ive read you should buy an attenuator which is rated at more output than the amp and im a little concerned that the 50 watt one is not compatable and think i should maybe get a 100 watt one ?

Click to expand...

attenuator rated = (amp power * 2) would be the min safe way to go.

I've been thinking of getting a THD Hotplate. It seems I have a good reason to get one.At this point in time it seems that the way I EQ my Recto,I have to turn it really loud to get the tone that I want to get at rehearsals and my bandmates complain.So if I get the Hotplate I can turn it down a couple of notches to get that same sound. Does Mesa say what volume settings are optimal in their testing when they test the tones in their amps. They must have some sort of protocol when they test their amps.

Thanks in advance

attenuator rated = (amp power * 2) would be the min safe way to go.[/quote]

Do you think the 50 watt is a no go then ? Sorry, I know it seems like a dumb thing to ask

shush said:

attenuator rated = (amp power * 2) would be the min safe way to go.

Click to expand...

Do you think the 50 watt is a no go then ? Sorry, I know it seems like a dumb thing to ask

Click to expand...

Well if Weber is suggesting that you should select an attenuator that can handle at least as much power as your amp puts out, still that he recommend to choose a 100w attenuator if you expect to dime a 50 amp.
Maybe it may worth to ask the question from weber?

Tks rwil for the comprehensive list of attenuators!

I'd like to know the general ratings of each of them if someone would please.

Don't forget the BadCat Leash:
http://badcatamps.com/badcat_pedals.html

Cool!

Just added to the list...

Thanks,

Do you think the 50 watt is a no go then ? Sorry, I know it seems like a dumb thing to ask

Click to expand...

Amps are rated based on Total Harmonic Distortion, or THD. Most amps will be rated like {100 watts @ .05% THD} Tube amps especially are underrated, because that rating is when a signal is no longer a clean signal, but distorts slightly...and some amps will get a great deal louder after they reach that distortion. We all know that tube power amp distortion is better, and when you get into power amp distortion, you're past the wattage rating of the amp. I've heard that the actual wattage produced by a Dual Rectifier is somewhere in the neighborhood of 170-180 watts.

Just food for thought.

when i record with my palmer pga 04 , there is a wattage indicator.
with the DR it is over 120 watts at 12h

I owned a THD hotplate for a 60 watt Marshall and it helps to get the saturated tube sounds at acceptable band volumes, but it doesn't get you the perfect tone at a volume comparable to your hi-fi set. If you attenuate over 8 dB, it does change your tone.

I now play a Mesa Blue angel for cleans and my current cranked amp is a JCM888, a JCM800 (model 4010) modded by CMW amps. Along with this mod a PPIMV (post phase inverter master volume) has been installed and this is a better way of keeping your sound and feel at really acceptable levels. I have an extra volume knob instead of my second speaker output.
Besides that it is a better solution, it's also a cheaper one (hey I'm dutch and I would like to keep up appearances )
Only con can be that your amp isn't original anymore, but it can be undone

Here's one more RWIL:

http://www.alessandro-products.com/accessories.html

DeFrag said:

Here's one more RWIL:

http://www.alessandro-products.com/accessories.html

Click to expand...

Updated!
Nice stuff out there. Nice pics from the Clapton's amps & Strats!
(WhoWhatWhere section)

THD is where I'm going BUT !!!! if I use my F30 with a Thiele do I need a 4ohm one or 8ohm, reason I ask is when I use my Thiele with the F30 I use the 2 x 4 ohm sockets on the back of the amp, sorry to sound stupid but I really dont wanna get the wrong one. Again Thanks Guys for your help 8)

shush said:

THD is where I'm going BUT !!!! if I use my F30 with a Thiele do I need a 4ohm one or 8ohm, reason I ask is when I use my Thiele with the F30 I use the 2 x 4 ohm sockets on the back of the amp, sorry to sound stupid but I really dont wanna get the wrong one. Again Thanks Guys for your help 8)

Click to expand...

Well it is not a stupid question here and the answer it is not really easy since maybe some options available and which depends on what you want to do using the THD. So, I can outilne some facts from which you may think...

The main match load for the F30 is 8ohm. The 2 x 4 ohm sockets on the back are matched when used with 2 * 8 ohm cabs like what you are doing using the 2 * Thiele cabs. So somewhere these 2 * 4 ohm outs from the F30 are series. The problem that I can see is that the THD has instead 2 parallel outs and which needs cabs having twice the load of the model (i.e.: THD = 8 ohm; needs 2 * cabs @ 16 ohm to feed both outs simultaneously).

So, at least 2 options:

1) THD @ 8 ohm. Perfect match between the F30's main out and THD's input. You have to use only 1 cab from the THD out, or find another hw device to hook both cabs and keeping the ohm match, or need to use 2 cabs @16 ohm each.

2) THD @ 4 ohm. A good match if one of the F30's 4 ohm out is connected to the THD's input. Both Thiele cabs must be used to get a perfect match since both are twice the load of the THD.

Maybe you can sen to the support a request giving your setup...Be back here with anything found...