guitargreg1993 Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 A variac lowers or raises the voltage A attenuator is basically a volume knob between your amps power section and your speaker. It allows you to crank your amp on 10 to get all the harmonics and distortion without blowing your speaker or scaring the hell out of you neighbors. I need an attenuator between the speaker cab and the head so that I can set the variac above 40%. That is where the tube sweet spot begins. And with the variac set at 40%, the amp volume rattles the whole house ... oooo sorry, my bad... i thought that the variac was basically an attenuator. So you're saying that if I bought an amp that had "power scaling" (such as Egnater) and I had the control down to low output power, i wouldn't be getting the full harmonics and distortion of the t00bs?? that's pretty much B.S. - the amp companies market that stuff to make it seem like it's an attenuator and will allow you to harness all the t00bey goodness at reasonable volume, when i guess that ain't the case... false advertising, i say!! seriously though, thanks for telling me that duane. ill remember to watch out the next time someone tries to sell me a power-scaling amp telling me it will allow me to get a cranked 100w Marshall stack tone at bedroom levels... seriously, i wouldn't put it past 99% of salesmen to knowingly and willingly lie to customers to make some extra $$$.... <_< Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duane v Posted March 15, 2011 Author Share Posted March 15, 2011 oooo sorry, my bad... i thought that the variac was basically an attenuator. So you're saying that if I bought an amp that had "power scaling" (such as Egnater) and I had the control down to low output power, i wouldn't be getting the full harmonics and distortion of the t00bs?? that's pretty much B.S. - the amp companies market that stuff to make it seem like it's an attenuator and will allow you to harness all the t00bey goodness at reasonable volume, when i guess that ain't the case... false advertising, i say!! seriously though, thanks for telling me that duane. ill remember to watch out the next time someone tries to sell me a power-scaling amp telling me it will allow me to get a cranked 100w Marshall stack tone at bedroom levels... seriously, i wouldn't put it past 99% of salesmen to knowingly and willingly lie to customers to make some extra $$$.... <_< Don't see where Mojave Ampworks suggest thier variac doubles as an attenuator ..... And really nothing sounds like a Marshall or any amp cranked unless it's really cranked. So never compare bedroom levels to live full bore levels, even when using the most transparent attenuators... However one should always try an amp in person before purchasing..... In other words let the gear do the talking for you. My Dirty Boy is an entirley different beast from anything out there. You can also use the bias control for either a cold or hot bias at low volumes. The Egnater is a fantastic amp, and is as advertized. I was fortunate to spend time with one at the FretHouse in Covina..... Remeber that every amp has some form of power scaling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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