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30 watts

A 30 watt solid state amp is a waste of money . I don’t understand why people buy it .

Let me share with you a dumb gapnap situation .

Back in my university days , my campus was located in Bandar Sungai Long (UTAR) .

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I live in Petaling Jaya , it is a 30 minute drive to Bandar Sungai Long . 45 minutes if bad traffic .
The problem was , Sungai Long is too far to drive (daily) and too near to stay (30 km from my house) .

For the first year , i thought i can try – driving everyday. OMG let me tell you , the traffic jam was TERRIBLE , i have to wake up at 6.30am in the morning to catch my 8am class , and my petrol bills were sky rocketing .I nearly went crazy .

(Okay , i know waking up at 6am is a small deal for some of you guys . But if you know me personally , you know that i am NOT a morning person . If i wake up at 9am by myself , it is a gift from God)

Imagine the exam period . I have to skip breakfast , go through a massive KL traffic jam , rush to the exam hall and sit for an exam for the next 3 hours . I studied accounting by the way so it is all numbers . Come to think about it , i don’t even know how i freakin’ survived that year .

On my second & third year , I decided to rent a room , i figured i would rather pay . The end result ? I drove there at night , overnight in Bandar Sungai Long  ,wake up at 7.50am to catch my 8am class and go home right away (i went home regularly mainly because i prefer the comfort of my home and i have a part time guitar teaching job in Subang , which is the other end of the world ) .

Life was good. Thank God my part time job allows me to afford it.

But that is not the point , the point is – end of the day , i paid for 2 things …the petrol to get there , and the rent . It is 2 in 1 , compared to my other classmates , i was spending twice the amount they were spending . What a dumbass i was .

Who would understand my situation ?
People who stay in Johor Bahru and work in Singapore.
People who stay in Seremban and work in Kuala Lumpur .

You feelin’ me?

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This situation , is screw up and you don’t wanna be in it.
In a relationship , you call it your left leg in your gf’s bedroom and your right leg in a club .

Back to the topic , a 30 watt solid state amp is kinda like that situation .

It is too BIG to be a practice amp , it is heavy , nothing like the microcube , takes up too much space in your bedroom . If you’re teaching house to house you will know what i am saying – it is a pain in the ass to carry your guitar AND a 30 watt amp at the same time .

It is too small to gig , you wanna crank up a solid sate amp with a 10 inch speaker ? Go ahead be my guest . Don’t give excuse after your gig –  “the sound system SUCKS!” . I’ve heard it all .

BUT You can JAM with it – maybe at low volumes , but the moment your drummer/second guitarist gets high and turn things up . You will be drown , believe me . My minimum requirement for Jamming is 50 watts .

 

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Most musicians i’ve met , went through the stage of getting their first 30 watt solid state amp & selling them within a year , and opt for a tube amp or a small practice amp . Will they get another 30 watt solid state as a serious amp ? Hell no , unless it is dirt cheap.

I am here to tell you things like this . No salesman is going to tell you this .

A 30 watt solid state amp has no definition . It has no identity, no meaning and no purpose . It is pointless .
It is just like SAMSUMG Galaxy Note , Too small to be a Tablet , Too big for a phone .

So yeah , i will stick to Roland Microcube for practicing and a HALF STACK for gigging . Okay , at least a 12 inch speaker .

P.S – a 30 watt tube amp is a different story and i love , 30 watts with tubes . 

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