Amp wattage/power attenuators

[Huggy Love]

Well, so far I've looked at a few of the suggestions and couple others I've found. They all still seem really overpriced for what they do, but........
Has anybody had any experience with the Weber mini mass or the Dr Z air brake?
The reviews on those varied, but some thought they functioned well. Any of you had to return one over sketchy performance?

 

[László]

I've tried the Air Brake; it is a good attenuator, meaning, yes you will hear it in the signal path, and no, it isn't a total tone destroyer.

You will hear any attenuator, though. You may find the compromises acceptable or not. Keep in mind, the more attenuation, the more it affects the tone and feel of your amp. So less is more. OTOH, less attenuation is also louder. There are trade offs.

The biggest change with traditional attenuators like the Air Brake is the loss of dynamic range and amp responsiveness to your playing, more so even than changes in the basic tone of the amp.

I find that I can't use them because the point at which they make the signal usefully quiet is the point at which they start to have a very negative effect on playing dynamics. YMMV, but I'd rather hear fizz than have no playing dynamics.

The Fryette and Unleash kinds of devices operate on a different principle, but at higher cost. Nonetheless they sound better (to me).

Palmer has a good explanation of the trade offs inherent in attenuators like these, and they make a very good one, that is a reactive load too.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

You will hear any attenuator, though.

I think this is the problem in a nutshell. Even if the tone were exactly the same, only attenuated, we would still hear the quieter one as less enjoyable in, for example, an A/B test.

 

[Huggy Love]

I've tried the Air Brake; it is a good attenuator, meaning, yes you will hear it in the signal path, and no, it isn't a total tone destroyer.

You will hear any attenuator, though. You may find the compromises acceptable or not. Keep in mind, the more attenuation, the more it affects the tone and feel of your amp. So less is more. OTOH, less attenuation is also louder. There are trade offs.

The biggest change with traditional attenuators like the Air Brake is the loss of dynamic range and amp responsiveness to your playing, more so even than changes in the basic tone of the amp.

I find that I can't use them because the point at which they make the signal usefully quiet is the point at which they start to have a very negative effect on playing dynamics. YMMV, but I'd rather hear fizz than have no playing dynamics.

The Fryette and Unleash kinds of devices operate on a different principle, but at higher cost. Nonetheless they sound better (to me).

Palmer has a good explanation of the trade offs inherent in attenuators like these, and they make a very good one, that is a reactive load too.

I agree on the Badcat unit, the only 2 I've tried first hand was that and the rivera, and the unleash sounded better, especially at lower volume. I've got a pretty good price on a weber mini mass but the reviews were either hate it or love it and nobody around here stocks one so until I get my hands on one I'll hold off on that.

The unleash is pricier and harder to obtain, I have seen a couple used online for a decent price, would you buy that type of unit used? I usually don't but I think they're sold out at the factory on new stock.

 

[dmatthews]

I agree on the Badcat unit, the only 2 I've tried first hand was that and the rivera, and the unleash sounded better, especially at lower volume. I've got a pretty good price on a weber mini mass but the reviews were either hate it or love it and nobody around here stocks one so until I get my hands on one I'll hold off on that.

The unleash is pricier and harder to obtain, I have seen a couple used online for a decent price, would you buy that type of unit used? I usually don't but I think they're sold out at the factory on new stock.

The Badcat Unleash V2 is shipping end of this month. You will see V1 units for sale soon I bet.

 

[Huggy Love]

The Badcat Unleash V2 is shipping end of this month. You will see V1 units for sale soon I bet.

Yep, I've found some used V1's at decent prices now, but that still raises the question: Is this the kind of item to buy used?
When it comes to PRSi I can do that, but I tend to buy electronics new cause there's so many that can be wrong with it and buying new gives you a clean slate, plus a warranty.

After going over the options I do feel an attenuator is the way to go, I understand them a little now, just gotta find the right item & the right deal.

 

[dmatthews]

My use case is live/silent recording. After the hours I've spent reviewing and speculating I think the Palmer PDI-03 is it. I'm not worried about buying it used from Reverb.