Re: Good guitarists getting bad advice...
I attended a rehearsal for tonight's NYE show. Everything and everyone on stage is too fucking loud. Most of it seems to stem from "artistic" choices about "tone", but also from the placement of amps relative to the players. Upstage 10' and offstage left or right by 15' means the player is mostly out of the coverage. "I need to turn up, I can't hear myself" when I'm measuring 105dBA at FOH (85' from the stage) seems stupid and contrary to the artistic desire to provide the audience with a reasonably uniform experience.
The lead player was accommodating, with a case lid in front of his amp... but it creates the multi-path problem that Jay brings up and contributes to the "I can't hear myself" (when they really mean "I can't make out what I'd doing"). The drummer bashes away because he's surrounded by the backwash of 3 guitars, a bass rig that is all mud, and keyboard player trying to hear himself over the din. Bah fucking humbug.
I like the guitar as an instrument, but too many of the players make me want to use them as firewood.
