Old Man's Lament

[Pilgrim]

Our band setup is more basic, with no IEMs...I personally had a hearing aid company fit me with custom-molded (Crimson & Grey) earplugs with 9dB filters.  We don't play at very loud levels, and the 9bD cuts the volume but helps me hear the mix better.  I found that 25 or even 15dB filters made it hard for me to hear how I sounded.  But that's certainly dependent on the volume level.

[Happy Face]

When I played in a much louder band with no monitors I used one of those Rolls Personal Monitors. Ran my mike though it so I could hear myself sing. A huge help. (One one model you can also run your guitar though it as well but I didn't.) I usually used only one earbud, leaving the other open to hear the rest of the band, with or without an earplug. Not perfect, but it's a lot cheaper than an in-ear system. 

Current band has a nice PA. In theory I shd be getting bass along with vox through a monitor feed, but often as not there's just no time to get everyone's mix set up well. I guess if you had one of those fancy Presonus boards you could preset it all?

Anyway, back to my OP, more and more often your amp is nothing more than a barely audible stage monitor. Even though it all makes sense, I do miss the volume behnd me sometimes. Thankfully, we get a few outdoor gigs. 

PS - I have to admire PBG's caution in the bedroom. Learning from experience...   

[Pilgrim]

PS - I have to admire PBG's caution in the bedroom. Learning from experience...  

You guys are my heroes!    

[drbassman]

Ha, good one Al!  PBG is right, most lead guitarists have genitalia minimus complexes!   

[rahock]

Thanks for the tips on the ear thing guys . Very much appreciated.
Rick

[drbassman]

Thanks for the tips on the ear thing guys . Very much appreciated.
Rick

Good luck with it.  Tinnitus can be a bugger to manage.