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THD Hot Plate

HailHailVitalogyHailHailVitalogy Posts: 5,213
edited June 2006 in Musicians and Gearheads
I've been seriously considering getting one although they are expensive.

But I have one question for anyone who knows...

On musiciansfriend a lot of the info about the Hot Plate, it says it absorbs the power from the amp and turns it into heat and only gives out a small portion of it. My question is that would the Hot Plate overheat? I'm worried about this because that is a lot of power to get to the low volume I want while the amp is cranked.

Thanks

PS: can you help me with the difference between options when purchasing it
2003: Uniondale, MSG x2 | 2004: Reading | 2005: Gorge, Vancouver, Philly | 2006: East Rutherford x2, Gorge x2, Camden 1, Hartford | 2008: MSG x2, VA Beach | 2009: Philly x3 | 2010: MSG x2, Bristow | 2011: Alpine Valley x2 | 2012: MIA Philly | 2013: Wrigley, Charlottesville, Brooklyn 2 | 2014: Milan, Amsterdam 1 | 2016: MSG x2, Fenway x2, Wrigley 2 | 2018: Rome, Krakow, Berlin, Wrigley 2 | 2021: Sea Hear Now | 2022: San Diego, LA x2, MSG, Camden, Nashville, St. Louis, Denver | 2023: St. Paul 1, Chicago x2, Fort Worth x2, Austin 2 | 2024: Las Vegas 1, Seattle x2, Indy, MSG x2, Philly x2, Baltimore, Ohana 2
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Comments

  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    i'm not sure exactly what it is,.. someone explain?
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • HailHailVitalogyHailHailVitalogy Posts: 5,213
    Pearl Jam and toast wrote:
    i'm not sure exactly what it is,.. someone explain?

    What it basically does is hook up to your amp. You can crank your amp to get the "real" sound of the amp. You use the Hot Plate to take all the energy given out by the amp and then the Hot Plate only produces a fraction of that power through the speaker. So it's basically having your amp set at a low volume but sounding like its cranked. It doesn't alter your tone at all
    2003: Uniondale, MSG x2 | 2004: Reading | 2005: Gorge, Vancouver, Philly | 2006: East Rutherford x2, Gorge x2, Camden 1, Hartford | 2008: MSG x2, VA Beach | 2009: Philly x3 | 2010: MSG x2, Bristow | 2011: Alpine Valley x2 | 2012: MIA Philly | 2013: Wrigley, Charlottesville, Brooklyn 2 | 2014: Milan, Amsterdam 1 | 2016: MSG x2, Fenway x2, Wrigley 2 | 2018: Rome, Krakow, Berlin, Wrigley 2 | 2021: Sea Hear Now | 2022: San Diego, LA x2, MSG, Camden, Nashville, St. Louis, Denver | 2023: St. Paul 1, Chicago x2, Fort Worth x2, Austin 2 | 2024: Las Vegas 1, Seattle x2, Indy, MSG x2, Philly x2, Baltimore, Ohana 2
  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    HailHailVitalogy wrote:
    What it basically does is hook up to your amp. You can crank your amp to get the "real" sound of the amp. You use the Hot Plate to take all the energy given out by the amp and then the Hot Plate only produces a fraction of that power through the speaker. So it's basically having your amp set at a low volume but sounding like its cranked. It doesn't alter your tone at all
    ah i was thinking the opposite way.

    so...

    amp vol. low and real..

    output with hotplate high and tone-filled?
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • HailHailVitalogyHailHailVitalogy Posts: 5,213
    Pearl Jam and toast wrote:
    ah i was thinking the opposite way.

    so...

    amp vol. low and real..

    output with hotplate high and tone-filled?


    nonono amp volume hi...hot plate output low
    2003: Uniondale, MSG x2 | 2004: Reading | 2005: Gorge, Vancouver, Philly | 2006: East Rutherford x2, Gorge x2, Camden 1, Hartford | 2008: MSG x2, VA Beach | 2009: Philly x3 | 2010: MSG x2, Bristow | 2011: Alpine Valley x2 | 2012: MIA Philly | 2013: Wrigley, Charlottesville, Brooklyn 2 | 2014: Milan, Amsterdam 1 | 2016: MSG x2, Fenway x2, Wrigley 2 | 2018: Rome, Krakow, Berlin, Wrigley 2 | 2021: Sea Hear Now | 2022: San Diego, LA x2, MSG, Camden, Nashville, St. Louis, Denver | 2023: St. Paul 1, Chicago x2, Fort Worth x2, Austin 2 | 2024: Las Vegas 1, Seattle x2, Indy, MSG x2, Philly x2, Baltimore, Ohana 2
  • exhaustedexhausted Posts: 6,638
    it won't overheat. has a fan. though i never saw mine come on.

    weber minimass / mass is a more affordable alternative and sounds just as good to my ears.

    http://www.tedweber.com/atten.htm
  • Pearl Jam and toastPearl Jam and toast Posts: 4,475
    HailHailVitalogy wrote:
    nonono amp volume hi...hot plate output low
    ohhhhh okay i had it right :p
    Come on pilgrim you know he loves you..

    http://www.wishlistfoundation.org

    Oh my, they dropped the leash.



    Morgan Freeman/Clint Eastwood 08' for President!

    "Make our day"
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    It's body is a big aluminum heat sink. (ever seen a car audio amp or the inside of a home theatre receiver? Look for the heat sink and fan components. Same principle heat rises....dissapates.

    It takes the energy, and converts it into heat, (thus hot plate) sticking it on top of the amp allows air to pass freely over it and the fan helps, keeping it working happily.


    I have a minimass, I would like to have the tone components and that would help I think I lose a lot of the sparkle with it on. I also like the light bulb limiter in the THD.

    They are the same idea, but the work a bit different. The Minimass is a dummy load, (a voice coil with a potentiometer) The HP is....

    A THD Hot Plate® is a tuned network of capacitors, resistors and inductors which adjusts the overall EQ as the volume is turned down to compensate for the human ear's frequency response. Your ear perceives sounds differently at different volumes: the louder the sound, the more sensitive your ears are to highs and lows. As the volume drops, your ear becomes more sensitive to the mid-range, and less so for highs and lows. The Hot Plate® compensates for this, working like the "Loudness" switch on a hi-fi. The THD Hot Plate® is the first, and for now, the only attenuator that is frequency compensated.

    http://www.tedweber.com/atten.htm

    Weber also has models built with resistors, but the mini mass is a linear motor tomato tomahto.

    I will say having tone options is prefered. Mine was one of the first 15 watt models he built I think they are a lot fancier now and he's made them easier to dial in and compensate for the frequencies that are tougher to hear at low volume.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • moemoe6434moemoe6434 Posts: 467
    Hot Plates are great, but you'll be replacing your tubes much more frequently depending how hard you run it.
    "If she don't love me no more, i know her sister will" Jimi Hendrix
  • who's_pearljam?who's_pearljam? Posts: 2,104
    I have the Weber 25 watt mass for my Deluxe Reverb, and the 100 watt Mass which I use for my 50 Mesa Boogie DC-5, old Marshall 50 watt combo, and an old Selmer 50 watt Treble-n-Bass.

    I love them, and you can adjust the EQ on them to compensate. They bring those amps to life!

    Remember that a 50 watt tube amp will put way more than 50 watts when you crank it that sucker, so you get double the size wattage attenuator for the amp you're using. Use a 100 watt Mass for a 50 watt amp.
    Be kind, man
    Don't be mankind. ~Captain Beefheart
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  • HailHailVitalogyHailHailVitalogy Posts: 5,213
    so what do you guys recommend i do?
    2003: Uniondale, MSG x2 | 2004: Reading | 2005: Gorge, Vancouver, Philly | 2006: East Rutherford x2, Gorge x2, Camden 1, Hartford | 2008: MSG x2, VA Beach | 2009: Philly x3 | 2010: MSG x2, Bristow | 2011: Alpine Valley x2 | 2012: MIA Philly | 2013: Wrigley, Charlottesville, Brooklyn 2 | 2014: Milan, Amsterdam 1 | 2016: MSG x2, Fenway x2, Wrigley 2 | 2018: Rome, Krakow, Berlin, Wrigley 2 | 2021: Sea Hear Now | 2022: San Diego, LA x2, MSG, Camden, Nashville, St. Louis, Denver | 2023: St. Paul 1, Chicago x2, Fort Worth x2, Austin 2 | 2024: Las Vegas 1, Seattle x2, Indy, MSG x2, Philly x2, Baltimore, Ohana 2
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    HailHailVitalogy wrote:
    so what do you guys recommend i do?


    I recommend you don't get married before 35.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • Guitarhero27Guitarhero27 Posts: 2,146
    Pacomc79 wrote:
    I recommend you don't get married before 35.


    best advice. ever.
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  • HailHailVitalogyHailHailVitalogy Posts: 5,213
    Pacomc79 wrote:
    I recommend you don't get married before 35.

    is that symbolic for something? lol
    2003: Uniondale, MSG x2 | 2004: Reading | 2005: Gorge, Vancouver, Philly | 2006: East Rutherford x2, Gorge x2, Camden 1, Hartford | 2008: MSG x2, VA Beach | 2009: Philly x3 | 2010: MSG x2, Bristow | 2011: Alpine Valley x2 | 2012: MIA Philly | 2013: Wrigley, Charlottesville, Brooklyn 2 | 2014: Milan, Amsterdam 1 | 2016: MSG x2, Fenway x2, Wrigley 2 | 2018: Rome, Krakow, Berlin, Wrigley 2 | 2021: Sea Hear Now | 2022: San Diego, LA x2, MSG, Camden, Nashville, St. Louis, Denver | 2023: St. Paul 1, Chicago x2, Fort Worth x2, Austin 2 | 2024: Las Vegas 1, Seattle x2, Indy, MSG x2, Philly x2, Baltimore, Ohana 2
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