OK ... I just have to "own up" to this - please be gentle with me!!!

[Spudmurphy]

Last night had a gig at a Pub in Cardiff. Had 2 of my Al's with me and decided to use my Mesa F50 and AER. So I set up ... switch on the AER and Mesa. The piezo sounds just great and Blue light is on,on the Mesa, just waiting for the valves to warm up. I hit the standby switch and ... .... ....
nothing not a sausage!! The light was on, the valves were all glowing but no sound.
Checked the speaker connection all ok. Luckily a band member went home and got a spare amp which I used.
So I'm perusing the thought about taking my Mesa to my Amp repair mate, but even with "Mates Rates" my gig money would all disappear boo hoo
So, I've just had a "rummage" around and on the back of the amp hiding underneath is a rocker switch, that mutes the speakers for recording purposes...... and ...uh .... it was in the mute position.
So the Mesa is fine ... nothing to see ... move on (Spud hides embarrassment)

Hee hee one thing I also noticed for the first time on the back of the amp was a warning message that says ..

"Do not expose this unit to rain,moisture or ....thieves!!!"(sic)

Gotta love their sense of Humour

 

[Spudmurphy]

Just had another "session" with the amp. Pulled all the valves out, blew some compressed air through the valve bases and some switch cleaner - made a BIG difference. The valves were crackling a bit when they were tapped - now they are quiet.
Yeah - so all's well with the Mesa now !!

 

[Gio_Force_One]

hahahahahahaha, done the same thing at a gig don't feel too bad , although mine was worse cause i plugged the speaker out into the wrong jack and didnt have a backup and just about freaked out then the sound guy checked and said "you have the cord in the wrong jack , good job" and walked away. crisis avoided but still I felt so stupid at that moment. I guess most gigging musicians have done something like that one time or another.
this thread could called stupid things that happen at gigs. I'm sure I will do something else dumb again at gig , actually I think i can count on it.

 

[TNT]

Spud, you can never (and I mean never) go to any gig without a spare amp!!! It's the most important piece of equipment (as if you don't know this already, lol,lol,lol) that "requires" a spare.

You can get away without taking an extra guitar, speaker cab, pedals, etc..... (may be risky though), but not an amp.

 

[Spudmurphy]

Hi guys - still feeling relieved that it's not an expensive fix , and yeah Gforce I'm sure that there are quite a few embarrasing moments we have experienced whilst out on gigs.

Spare amp - that would be nice. Although I could possibly also take my Marshall combo the truth is we all make our own separate ways to the gig so my little Fiat punto has :-
2 x guitars
Tube amp
AER amp
mike stand
PA speaker stand
PA speaker - 1 x 15" JBL (wooden cab)
Pedal board
bag of leads
- leaving a bit of room for me.

I guess we were lucky insofar as my band mate literally lived around the corner from the venue and was able to get his spare amp. But taking on board your suggestion what I will carry is my Line 6 Pod xt and floorboard so at a push that will get any of us out of the mire.

 

[Norrin Radd]

Oh man, that's actually a happy ending!

Time for me to get one of those EHX Magnum pedals, I think.

 

[TNT]

what!!! PA gear!!! No way, let the lead singer carry that stuff - they think they can just show up with a mic bag???!!

 

[Spudmurphy]

what!!! PA gear!!! No way, let the lead singer carry that stuff - they think they can just show up with a mic bag???!!

Hee hee yeah I agree with you - 8loody lead singers!!

Trouble is we share the vocals so can't use that ploy lol

 

[trolley]

I managed to pull the DIN lead partly out of my Roadster footswitch, so when I stood on the Solo button, it all died! Kept cutting in & out until I fiddled with every lead. Took it to the dealer, who of course couldn't find anything wrong!

 

[Spudmurphy]

ahhh now we're opening up - come on lads we've all had blunders

 

[trolley]

Also with the Mesa - my singer stood on the mute button - how did he manage to pick that one & that one only out?

 

[TNT]

and, don't forget - be sure to take the amp off of standby "BEFORE" you give the drummer the "go ahead" nod!

 

[Ray Salamon]

I've had a few times where I've "setup" and plugged in to play at soundcheck only to hear nothing.
One thing to keep in mind... my band plays in theaters, and my amp is way off stage, generally behind a lot of other gear, including guitar rigs, actors/chorus etc. I also go wireless, so there's always thoughts like "hm, are my batteries dead?" running through my head.
Get around to climbing back to my amp, and it was usually either I didn't flip out of standby, or on a couple of occasions, didn't have a cable from the amp to my cab. That 2nd issue gets resolved easily enough now, since I don't even use my cab anymore. No matter what though, always embarrassing, and I'm glad it only happens during sound check.

 

[davidespinosa]

That's what sound check is for, sure enough. I had an amp once that was muted UNLESS you put the damn footswitch in. Of course, I forgot it one time, but there was enough time to rush back home before the gig. Great...