There are few feelings in a guitarist’s world better than setting up for a gig, plugging in, and hitting that first note or chord and hearing exactly the sound you dream of. In live spaces like halls, auditoriums, and even large clubs, you naturally need a big, powerful amplifier to accomplish this, which usually means a high wattage amp head and a separate speaker cabinet (preferably with four 12-inch speakers as a half-stack or two 4×12 cabinets for a full stack). If you’ve worked hard (and spent a lot) to achieve tonal nirvana with a “big rig” for gigs in big spaces, what happens when you have to play in a smaller venue? Of course your amp sounds best cranked up, since that’s what it was designed to do. But in a small venue, that big amp might simply be too loud, and there’s nothing worse than having people complain that you’re simply too loud (particularly if those people are in your band).
If you don’t want to go to a smaller amp, the best solution in these situations is an attenuator that sits between your amp and the speaker cabinet. It will allow you to leave your amp set up for the best possible tone, but simply lowers the volume to levels that are acceptable in smaller spaces – or even when in the recording studio. If you’re using a Marshall stack, you’ll probably want to stick with Marshall attenuation. The PB 100 Power Brake lets you set the volume as low as necessary without affecting your overall tone and feel. Gibson also has a similar product, which it calls the Power Stealth. It comes in both 4- and 8-ohm versions. The Gibson is more economical and works with any gear, regardless of the name on the front panel. It even has a XLR balanced out that’s perfect for recording direct, which is another benefit of using an attenuator.