Music News

Amplifiers Tips

Music Gears can be very confusing particularly if it your first time to use it and even if you are professional musician or music engineer sometimes it is still confusing to use them. Here are some tips on how to use amplifiers for those music gear enthusiasts and to everyone who may want to know about amolifiers.

1. Always make sure the speaker is plugged in properly before turning on the amplifier. Failure to do so may cause expensive catastrophic results.

2. Turn on the main power switch and wait at least 30 seconds before turning on the standby switch to extend your tubes` lives. If your amp uses 6550 type output tubes, wait about 60 seconds before switching on the stand by switch.

3. Use a grounded A.C. outlet and don`t defeat the ground pin on the three pronged A.C. plug on the end of your power cord. Better hardware stores sell a device for testing the integrity of the A.C. receptacles to see if the building`s ground wiring is connected properly. This is a wise investment in your safety and future. If the testing device indicates a faulty or missing ground path, you may be in danger of severe electrical shock.

4. Have your power output tubes changed (6V6, 6L6, 6BQ5, 6550, 6CA7, EL34, EL84 etc.) about once a year, or more often if you play every day for roughly six or eight hours, or if you notice a dullness in your sound. Always purchase matched pairs, or quads, of output tubes; they will sound and work much better than unmatched output tubes. Even if you only need a pair of matched output tubes, it is very wise to buy a matched quadruplet set so you will have a pair that is ready to use without a big change in tone . If you see glowing red plates in your output tubes, STOP! You either have failed tubes or circuitry trouble, and failure to shut the amp off usually results in major blown parts ($$$). The preamplifier tubes, the 12AX7`s and 12AT7 smaller type tubes might last for several changes of output tubes, but this is not a rule. If you hear jingles, rattles, pops, squeals or if the gain or attack decreases, it may be time to have these tubes changed out.

5. Transport your amp on a padded surface. Amps transported on the bare metal floor of a van or unpadded trunk of a car may have the elements in the tubes shaken loose and cause microphonic rattles or worse, short out when next powered up at a gig. Treat the amp gently and it will last longer. Consider the purchase of an professional shipping case if you plan to transport your amp frequently. If you are going to place your amp on an airplane, a professional shipping type case is a must.

6. Carry a spare fuse or two with you and tape them to the inside of the amp cabinet. Always unplug the amplifier from the power source before changing any fuses. Follow the amplifer manufacturers recommendations about fuse changing. Never, ever use a fuse of a higher rating than called for, or you may wind up with a ($$$) blown power or output transformer.

7, Do not plug your amp into an A.C. outlet where heavy appliances or industrial equipment are also plugged in, such as refrigerators, freezers, heaters. Their off and on transients may cause severe voltage spikes on the power line which could take out weak components. Your amp will not like the brownout condition a 15 amp heater will cause if plugged in together.

8. If your amp has an impedance selector, such as Marshall, HiWatt, some Ampegs, etc., place the amp in stand by before changing the impedance. Also, be sure to select the correct impedance for the type and number of speakers being used.

9. To determine the impedance of the speakers used, follow these general guidelines; two 16 ohm speakers in parallel equal 8 ohms; Two 8 ohm speakers in parallel equal 4 ohms and two 4 ohm speakers in parallel equal 2 ohms. And 2 ohms is about as low an impedance as any amp can withstand. Many solid state amps will fry with a 2 ohm load. If there is an impedance stated near the amplifier' speaker output jack, do not use a speaker combination lower than this stated value.

10. Use a thick wired zip cord for speaker hookup. Don`t use thin coaxial guitar cables as speaker wire if possible. This is specially true for bass, where damping factor, tone and watts could be easily lost. However, if your are experiencing radio or T. V. interference, a shielded guitar cable might help out with this problem, as the culprit interfering radio frequency energy could enter your amp through a speaker cable, as well as through the input cables. Additionally, shielded coaxial cables used in the speaker path might cause some amplifiers to break into uncontrollable and dangerous oscillations. Caution is advised here. If the amp doesn't sound right or if it behaves oddly after installation of a shielded coaxial speaker cable, go back to using the zip cord type.

11. If you hear the amp cutting in and out, reduce the amp volume then wiggle the speaker cord. If this influences the cutting in and out, STOP! An intermittently open or shorted speaker connection or cord might blow up your amplifier. This one is very important.

12. Keep all cable ends clean. Dirty input jacks cause intermittent crackles and hums sometimes attributed to more serious problems.

13. Don`t unplug your guitar from the guitar end of the input cable while the amp is powered up. The loud hum you will hear could be the death knell of some component or speaker if the sun is not shining well on you that day. Some otherwise well informed people think this is an old wives tale, but if you have several hundred watts available, the results could be catastrophic. If you believe in trial by fire, then this one`s for you.

14. After powering up your tube amp, look at the output tubes. If the tubes' plates are glowing red hot, STOP! You could be in big trouble if you continue to operate with tubes running away, as red hot plates are called. This symptom takes moments to show up and just a few more moments to destroy the output transformer or other parts. The problem could be as simple as worn out tubes, or you could have other trouble, such as bias supply failure. A new set of output tubes plugged into a seriously malfunctioning amplifier can be ruined in a very, very short time. When in doubt, have your amp tested by a competent technician.

15. NEVER PLAY ON A WET OR DAMP CONCRETE FLOOR OR WET WOODEN STAGE! If a shock potential exists, you will be bitten badly, especially if you wear leather bottomed shoes. Wet or damp leather is a fairly good conductor of electricity, and hand to foot shocks can be quite fatal. Don't play in the rain. Beyond the obvious shock potential, your amp and particularly your speakers may be ruined. If using an extension A.C. cord outdoors, be absolutely sure you are plugged into a grounded outlet and that all the ground pins on A.C. plugs are intact or else.....

16. Never touch the grounds (input jacks) of two amplifiers at the same time. One may be properly grounded and the other amplifier may have any number of dangerous volts present waiting to shock you. Hand to hand shocks are the most dangerous type. Avoid them like the plague.

17. Use moderate sound volume levels. Sustained high levels of amplified sound (above 80 D.B. S.P.L.) can cause permanent and irreversible hearing loss. You may want to purchase a sound pressure level meter (and learn how to use it properly by carefully reading its instruction manual), to protect your very precious hearing capabilities.

18. Give the amp plenty of ventilation. A fan blowing on the output section of the amp will keep things cooler and generally increase the service life of the electronic components in the amp greatly. An easy way of accomplishing the cooling process is to purchase a small table fan at a discount store (around $19) and place the fan behind the amp blowing into it. The cooler your amp runs, the longer it will run. Your capacitors will especially love you if you keep them cool. Never place the amp with its back against a wall. This will severely limit the natural ventilation the manufacturer has hopefully built in.

19. Do not move the amplifier immediately after shutting it off. Let the amp cool down for a few minutes before moving or transporting it. It is also a very good idea to shut off the standby switch first before turning off the mains A.C. power switch. This extends tube life.

20. Do not take your amplifier apart. Do Not remove the chassis (the metal box containing all the electronic components) from the cabinet. There are no user serviceable parts inside your amplifier. There are capacitors in amps which store 500 deadly volts long after you shut it off. Contact with these lethal voltages will lead to only one outcome. You could be playing harp with Jimi and Janis immediately upon contact with many parts in your amp. Some amps have bleeder resistors in them to automatically discharge the caps within a few minutes of shutting off the amp, but many amps do not have this feature (especially older amps like tweeds and most black tolex Deluxes). BEWARE! DON`T EVER GO INSIDE YOUR AMPLIFIER! Leave all amplifier work up to your trusted technician. He knows how not to get killed by the 500 or so volts in your amplifier. (Ampeg SVT's top out above 650 volts at about three amps capability). Your author has also been badly bitten by high voltage several times. I am lucky to still be here.

21. A little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. What may start out as a simple problem can turn into an expensive repair when you have a well meaning friend "who knows something about amplifiers" try to fix your amp for you inexpensively. I can attest to this situation personally, as I have repaired several amps which started out with a simple problem, and which turned into a catastrophe when some well meaning novice let his meter probe slip off the desired test point and caused a smoky short blowing several expensive tubes and other parts. Bring your troubled amp to a qualified technician only. If you are new to an area and do not know who`s good and who`s not, either ask fellow musicians or call a music store and ask for a referral.

22. Use common sense at all times. Follow your first mind. I have helped many musicians who said something like, " I thought that hookup might blow my amp up (speakers, tubes, transformer etc.). I wish I had done what I thought was right instead of blowing it up"

23. Never, ever, plug the speaker output of one amp into the guitar or line level input of another amp. There is a way to do this without harm, but you need a special interface. This can be a very expensive mistake if not avoided. If your amp has a line output jack, this is a safe signal level to plug into another amplifier's line input. The line output of some amps is fairly large (a volt or more) and may distort the guitar level input of your amplifier. Try using the second input jack on your input channel which is typically 6 db less sensitive, and therefore, less likely to distort the preamplifier stages when a large input signal is presented.

24. Never try to parallel the output of one amp with the output of another amp. Never try to connect two amps to the same speaker. (These two "nevers" are exactly the same). This is the best way of generating the most smoke and most expensive repairs I know of.

25. Amplifiers which have been sitting unused for many months may have their power supply electrolytics deformed to a lower voltage than required for proper operation. Bringing the amplifier slowly up to 120 volts with a variac is a good idea. (Your amp tech should have a variac.) Amplifiers which have been unused for years usually have dried out electrolytics. Powering up one of these amps frequently has one outcome: smoke. Electrolytic capacitors have a useful life of about ten years. (Although many last much longer, some have much shorter lives.) Any old tube amp with its original electrolytic capacitors should have those power supply caps changed out by your tech promptly if you intend to plug the amp in and use it. If you are a collector of amplifiers and are never going to plug the amp in and use it, then you may forego this vital maintenance. While collectors want to see all original components in an old amplifier, players should have the proper maintenance performed on an old amp before any appreciable use is given to it. This is because old electrolytics may seem to be performing sufficiently, but may be leaking current and imitating a resistor. The current may not be enough to blow the fuse, but could be enough to overheat and burn up the old, often very hard to find (=$$$) power transformer.

CAUTION is always advised when dealing with electric or electronic materials or valuable musical instruments. Any and all work should be performed by a qualified tube amplifier technician. This document reflects the opinions of the author. The author assumes no responsibility for the use of any information contained in this document.

Dubai Lime's Podcast Rates Number One in Middle East

Dubai, UAE 10th October 2007 - Following the announcement of Dubai Lime's podcast availability on both Apple iTunes and Nokia Podcast in June 2007, Dubai Lime has recorded over 10,000 ipod downloads making the website the first in the Middle East to achieve sky-rocketing figures of users and record successful free-music downloads in the region. After only 4months Dubai Lime, promoters of original music scene in Dubai, has achieved global audience through the podcast downloads taking the site to the number one spot for the most downloaded podcast in the Middle East.

Dubai Lime podcast is updated every two weeks by a full time Lime Jam presenter, Ram King, at their production studios where he produces 35 to 60 minutes of pure original music for the city's budding artists. The website is then updated with a new play list and featured musicians for users to download and listen to. The podcast also receives a weekly upload of Dubai Lime's, weekly radio show on Dubai 92FM, therefore if listeners have missed the Saturday night show, they can download it from the website. Once these podcasts are on line they are automatically available on every new N-Series Nokia phones and the global iTunes store. Every podcast can be downloaded and listened to at anytime from anywhere.

"For a young web portal to record thousands of downloads in a short span is significant as this is the reflection of the brand's purpose. Achieving the number one spot for downloads confirms the need for such a portal in the region; one that promotes original music scene. Dubai Lime continues to register members locally and internationally and this means Dubai musicians can now get exposure globally through these downloads" said Rosario Rafal-Olaes Marketing Manager of Lime Green Entertainment "based on Dubai Lime's ranking on iTunes and Nokia, it is easy to determine the popularity of the site and its downloads"

Dubai Lime's podcast is user friendly and easily downloadable. For users of iTunes, they simply type in Dubai Lime onto the store browser, that automatically transfers the users onto Dubai Lime download and because the PCAST is 100% free, users can download freely without any hassles. For the Nokia Nseries, users have to install Nokia's Podcasting device before they can download from Dubai Lime. To install the device, visit www.nokia.com/podcasting browser and download to install Nokia podcasting onto the application folder.

To listen to or download Dubai Lime's Original Music on Apple iTunes or Nokia podcast log on to http://www.dubailime.com/

END

ABOUT DUBAI LIME

Dubai Lime is a website created to provide the city's multi-national community, a forum for cultural development and exchange. Dubai Lime registrants and users can experience online and offline interaction with other members. Real life community events such as music, art and cultural events are held on regular basis for Dubai Lime's registrants. Offering more than just an entertainment portal, Dubai Lime is a comprehensive tool for residents and tourists alike. The website broadcasts video clips made in Dubai, an original music podcast and listing of Dubai's events, classified section, restaurants and food venues as well as Dubai's tourist attractions.

http://www.dubailime.com/

For Press Information

Contact: Rahma Himid

Strawberry PR & Events

Tel: 04 3315173 or 050 6254251

Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Jennifer Gove - Dubai Lime's Artist of the month for October

Original musicians in Dubai, used to be able to play their music only inside their bedrooms or with their friends; thats before Dubai Lime's open mic nights started.

Its used to be that there were no places to showcase Dubai's original music talents, as there was no organization that actively encouraged original music in the city.

That was until early this year and before Dubai Lime. When Dubai Lime announced the first open mic in Dubai, musicians from all walks of life and from all over UAE showed up to participate, and its grown from there.

Our artist of the month, Jennifer Gove from Alberta, Canada is one of those original musicians in Dubai, who is waiting for open mic to happen.

She almost forget that she plays guitar and writes her own songs. So, when her friends first heard about the open mic, they literally dragged her to her first gig at Central Perk Jumeirah, a few months ago. Here is Jennifer Gove's profile interview with Dubai Lime.

Where are you from?

I'm from the land of -30 C in winter, Northern Lights, Wayne Gretzky (in the good old days) and wide open skies. Sherwood Park - the largest Hamlet in the world. Just outside of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

How long have you been playing music?

When I was a kid my family went on a lot of road trips during the summer. In the back seat of our camper van my sister and I would sing at the top of our lungs to whatever was playing on the 8-track. I remember doing a lot of air-guitar and pretending to play the piano at an early age, and my parents soon caught on and got us enrolled in piano lessons. Music has always been a big part of my life.

Can you remember the first time you picked up a guitar or any musical instrument?

I started playing the piano when I was eight and did many years of lessons, recitals and Royal Conservatory. I loved performing when I knew a song really well, though it took me a lot of practice. I was sixteen when I started playing guitar and the piano was soon forgotten.

I dug out an old Fender from our attic and asked my mom to teach me to play. She got me started on my first few chords and after that I was hooked. I had a couple of friends who played as well and we soon formed an all-girl band. Our first "gigs" were playing at a local Teen Fest and at our Grade 12 graduation. After that it was glamorous nights of busking on streets, playing around campfires with friends and plenty of open-mic nights.

How about song writing; when did you learn to write songs?

I've always loved writing; even when I was a kid I was forever writing short stories. When I started playing the guitar I started putting words to music and it just took off from there. I've always preferred singing my own music to singing cover songs. I'll never profess to be a great musician or singer - I just simply know my range and sing what I want to say. Or more truthfully, I sing what I wish I could say.

Is there a particular genre in your music? Or bands and artists that influence your music?

I don't know what genre my music is, or at least I don't like to limit it to any one type. I'm a girl with an acoustic guitar singing her own songs. Folk-rock maybe? I'm down to earth with a sense of humour; I'm honest without taking myself too seriously. I am influenced by a multitude of artists - everybody from Stevie Wonder to Lucinda Williams, Stevie Ray Vaughn to The Tragically Hip. Tom Petty is one of my favourite song writers. I'm incredibly moved by lyrics, and I love artists who are raw and not afraid to let it all out.

When you write your songs or create your music, what are your inspirations?

Many things. Watching people or simply walking down the street can inspire a thought that turns into the first line of a song. I have no particular method of writing music. In fact, if I try to write something it almost never works. Most songs that I've written have been instantaneous. Watching other musicians play their own music is definitely inspiring and I love to jam and collaborate with other people.

Do you have any musical achievements that you would like to share?

Yes. One hot and sultry night in Florence I was with friends in a bar and they convinced the musician to let me play a song on stage. I did, and the crowd of 15 people went wild. That bar was one block away from an outdoor Radiohead concert. That's pretty much as famous as I get -:).

What are you up to these days? Any upcoming events, gigs or perhaps an album?

Right now I love playing the open-mic and Loft gigs with Dubai Lime as often as I can. I've played a couple of times on Open Mic with Zahra on Dubai 92 which was great fun. I would love to record an album and I've met a few people who have mentioned they can help me get started. That's my next goal.

How long you been in Dubai? What can you say about Dubai?

I moved to Dubai for a great career opportunity almost three years ago. Honestly, I came here thinking I would stay only two years but time just flew and I'm still enjoying it. It's been incredibly challenging and I've met the most amazing people here. I've been very lucky to have traveled a lot for work and Dubai is in the centre of all the action. The first couple of years I didn't play or write any music; Dubai simply didn't have a venue for it. Now thanks to Dubai Lime I've been able to get back into music which has allowed me to enjoy life outside of work too.

What do you do besides music? Any hidden talents?

I work full time for a Hotel company. I love my job and it takes up a lot of my time. Other than write and play music - I read, paint, travel and hang out with my husband and friends. Other talents? I make killer chocolate chip cookies. I also play a mean game of cribbage and scrabble.

Any word of wisdom and encouragement to those who will be reading your profile?

Words of wisdom: Always check to see if the wine bottle has a twist-off cap before you start using a corkscrew. And if it does have a twist-off cap, better to have beer instead.

Words of encouragement: Have fun and give ‘em hell. Don't care too much about what others think. In the words of Nike at it's commercialistic best, just do it.

Do you have anything to say about or to Dubai Lime?

A fantastic, amazing, talented group of people and I love them. They truly rock. Most of all, I would say thank you. J

Dubai Musician seeks risk takers

Dubai Musician seeks risk takers. Must be adventurous, patient, GSOH and have their own ear plugs.

We have Pop Idol, American Idol and just plain bone idol but what it all boils down to is the fact a star is born every day - and it’s big business.

Dubai, UAE is home over 1.5 million people and hidden within its golden walls is a number of very talented individuals bursting to showcase and develop their music. Yet, with this talent ripe for picking, the number of new musicians hitting the world wide or even local music scene is virtually non existent.

So what are Dubai entrepreneurs doing about it?

Dubai lime

Dubai Lime is the brain child of The Ascala Group (www.ascalagroup.com) and is an online social network for Dubai’s growing multi-national population. It is the UAE’s first online forum for original music and entertainment in Dubai.

As well as providing a forum for members for exchanging and sharing ideas, Dubai Lime also hosts numerous music, art and cultural events for its members (or “Limers”) across Dubai. Here, music and art lovers can gather to relax and enjoy home team original talent.

Music in Dubai

The original story...

Music in Dubai or music scene in Dubai rather, is still in an eggshell. This is definitely my answer today, if someone, for some reasons would asked me about the music scene in Dubai. Particularly, the original music. I think everyone would agree, unless they have other things to say, like rock and roll mania had originally emerged in Dubai during 60's and the evolution of R&B music begun in Sheikh Zayed road. Well, this is of course absurd.

Music in Dubai and the music business might have started, (I say, 'might' since the Arabic music perhaps had evolved in Dubai already) since tourism became eminent in Dubai few years ago and so were the hotels, chill out lounges, pubs, night clubs, restaurants, bars and the likes. To provide entertainment for these etablishments, many bands and musicians from different countries arrived in Dubai. Most of these bands and musicians have contracts to play for a certain period of time and for a certain establishment only. These are of course talented musicians who might have their own original music but for people who have been in Dubai for many years, I don't think you been to a night club and after a band performed the Beatles', Yesterday, goes on and said - and here's our very own composition called, Sand Storm in Dubai, hope you enjoy it. Of course, they cannot just do that. Not, until recently.

Dubailime created an open mic that they later called Lime Jam last February 2007 that overwhelmed Dubai. It was the first open mic in Dubai that gathered talented musicians to showcase their original music to the public. It did not matter where the musicians from, what kind of music they played, what language they speak, they were welcome and encouraged by dubailime to participate in the open mic and it did not cost them anything. After the success of the first open mic, bunch of unlikely musicians showed up everywhere, when I said unlikely, it does not mean they are not talented. It only means that they are in Dubai doing something else before the open mic mania, they are building infrastructures, recruiting people for jobs, collecting bills from clients, making advertisements, serving meals in some restaurants or attending to passenger's comfort during a flight and so on. Dubai had listened to these 'unlikely' musicians with their heartfelt original music and Dubai was inspired.

For the past few years, we imported international bands and artists to perform in our most awaited music events, like for example the annual Desert Rock Festival or the upcoming Dubai International Jazz Festival. However, ambitious as may seem but Dubai need to and must produced or organized their own music event that features local artists with their original music and compositions. Also, if you look around there are only handful recording studios and worst one or two music producers in Dubai, I might be wrong but the point is local music activities are rare. The only amazing thing about being in Dubai if we talked about music and musicians, we could proudly say, we do not have starving musicians in the street waiting for their gigs. Since they have their day jobs as full time musicians or something else.

It is a long way for the music industry in Dubai and there are many questions and speculations about where is it heading. Going back to the music scene in Dubai, it is still in an eggshell but it will definitely hatch sooner or later - we will just wait and see what comes out. But before we forget, with the passion and effort of the people in dubailime who keep incubating this music egg and the people who supported them, it is conceivable that when the egg will hatch, what comes out would be a healthy creature with wings ready to fly.

...and keep your eyes on this page and the Dubai Band newsletter for the development of this 'egg' at the dubailime incubator!

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