“Dude you just don't understand, my amp has to be that loud.” This and many other comments often happen between sound guys and guitar players. Why? Because sound guys usually focus only on what they know, and guitar players focus on what they know. All too often they know little to nothing about each other's expertise, or what the other is trying to achieve. Since this website is written for production guys, we will focus on helping you sound guys understand a little bit about what is going on in the guitar player head.
Solid state vs tube amps.
Many guitar players use different types of amps or amp models. The two categories that are important for sound guys to differentiate between are solid-state amps and tube amps. Why? Because of volume. The truth is that a tube amp changes sound partially based on volume. So when a guitar player says he can't turn his amp down, what he is saying is that it will affect his tone. Tone can be everything to a guitar player. In his mind, the better the tone, the better he can play and that contributes to a better overall sound in the worship service. So what develops is a volume battle.
One problem a lot of sound guys make for themselves, is that they tune their guitar channels for one specific sound. However, most guitar players will use a variety of different sounds, depending on the song list.
Rather than arguing, here are some alternatives. If he/she is playing a solid-state amp, it shouldn't really matter how loud it is. However, if you do have a player with a tube amp then there are a few options: 1. Put the amp in another room so he can crank it up. Put a mic on it and run it out to the auditorium or the snake head. Radial Engineering actually makes a product called and SGI box for this situation. It allows you to run a guitar signal about 300 feet down an XLR cable without loosing signal. If you don't have a spare room, consider building or buying a sound-proof dog house to put the amp in. A dog house is a fancy word for a box your guitar sits in that has sound absorption built into it. This will help a lot. Heavy-duty, moving van-style blankets can work as well.
"But my tone changes!"
One problem a lot of sound guys make for themselves, is that they tune their guitar channels for one specific sound. However, most guitar players will use a variety of different sounds, depending on the song list. While the EQ and compression dialed in at the mixing console sound great on one tone, it sounds terrible when the guitarist changes to another setting. One way to fix this is to make sure you don't do any intense EQ'ing on that channel.
The second way you do this is to have your guitar player run through all of his tones during sound check.
If you want to be really fancy, you set up can different channels for your guitar player based on tone. This is a lot of work, but it is fun. The other value of taking the time to check all of his tones is that you can work with your guitar player to make sure all his tones are the same volume. Often a shredder volume is naturally louder than their clean channel. So have them equal it out for you. This will make them happy and it will make your job a lot easier when it comes service time.
Above all else, ask questions.
The truth is that if you are not a guitar player, you probably don't know how much time a player puts into creating tones. Just like they have no idea how long it took you to get all those wireless mics dialed in. If you come to the table with some understanding, then the relationship between you will be better, your team will be stronger, and the resulting overall mix will be better. Rock on.
