I SWEAR TO GOD I'M GOING TO KILL THE bar-steward

[badgermark]

Sorry to say this, but you shouldn't be playing your guitar anyway. You just said it's against the rules for amps, so y'know, maybe invest in something you can plug headphones into. Or get an acoustic. The guy is being unreasonable, but he is in the right I'm afraid. You signed the contract...

[indysmith]

That's a really tough situation to be in.

On the one hand, if you piss someone off enough, he will break, plain and simple, especially if he's already emotionally unstable/unreasonable, such as this fellow is.


My advice is proceed with caution.

If you indicate in any way that you will retaliate with this guy, including plain ignoring him and playing guitar anyway, he can have you arrested for AGGRAVATED HARASSMENT. This is a booking offense and you might spend the night in jail. If he decides to press charges, you WILL have to go to court over it.

If this guy is in the least bit law-saavy, you could have a MAJOR PROBLEM ON YOUR HANDS.

Even if you try to explain to the police you're in the right, they will not want to listen to you. They will want to fill their quota, especially if this guy is pissed to the point of pressing charges against you. You will have to wait until it goes to trial to plead your case.

Once again --

proceed with caution!!!

Haha, TO this is england not the states. What's more likely to happen is he'll come round here or i'll go round there and we'll kick shite into eachother before sitting down and working something out, but yeah i'll make sure not to piss him off to the point of him taking me to court, however unlikely that seems.

[MDV]

I had this problem in halls.

The guy above me really hated it when I played. He used to stamp on the floor.

So I used his stamping as a click and played on.

Once he stared jumping round: the stamping being louder and moving all around the cieling. I decided to believe he was moshing, so I played really heavy riffs to the timing of the jumping.

Then some supervisor person came round and said I was too loud. I turned down. He still stamped about, but 'they' came to check the volume again and said it was fine (TV kind of levels) and told him to be more reasonable. Never heard anything about it again.

[FELINEGUITARS]

you need a louder amp - thn you wont hear the phone ring

[horsehead]

you need a louder amp - thn you wont hear the phone ring

nice

[HTH AMPS]

you need a louder amp - thn you wont hear the phone ring

That's my kind of solution - gets the HTH stamp of approval  :lol:

In all fairness though, your contract states no guitar amps.  In agree that other people will get away with blasting out music, but people have no tolerence for guitar.

My (upstairs) neighbours used to stamp on the floor when I first moved in, but I ignored them and they soon got tired of it.  I'm fair about it though, I'll never play before 12pm or after 9pm.  I consider that fair AND it's not like I'm cranking the f*uck out of the amp either, we're talking a similar volume to what you have a home-cinema setup at when watching a film.

In return I accept that they insist on hoovering every f*ckin Saturday morning when I'm attempting to catch up on some sleep.

The solution - get a headphone amp.  I just recieved my Black Box the other day and was jamming over the beats till 1:30am - try doing that with a guitar amp at that hour in the morning.

 :twisted:

[indysmith]

I do the same not playing before 12 or after 9 - thats just mean. I play about the same volume as you also. Nevermind.

As for headphone amps - just don't like the idea. hate having wires around me while i play. However; my girlfriend has got me some very tasty Grado SR-80s for xmas, and those new vox am-Plugs are looking quite appealing (AC30 one sounds pretty good in this months guitarist mag CD)

[TwilightOdyssey]

Off topic a bit, but SR-80 = excellent headphones. I use them to check mixes all the time. (I also know John Grado very well, as I do a lot of business with his company, Grado Labs)

[Kilby]

Having had bar-steward neighbours in the past, door slamming @ 4am and playing music very loud 20 minutes after we put the kids to bed. It is very difficult to have get anything done when having issues with noise (not saying that you are being unreasionable)

Is it specifically guitar amps that are banned, or playing a guitar through an amp ? I say this because you could always start learning to play keyboards (or even better drums)

Another option would be a USB interface, amplitube and some PC speakers ?

HTH, what do you think of the black box ?

[dave_mc]

That's a really tough situation to be in.

On the one hand, if you piss someone off enough, he will break, plain and simple, especially if he's already emotionally unstable/unreasonable, such as this fellow is.


My advice is proceed with caution.

If you indicate in any way that you will retaliate with this guy, including plain ignoring him and playing guitar anyway, he can have you arrested for AGGRAVATED HARASSMENT. This is a booking offense and you might spend the night in jail. If he decides to press charges, you WILL have to go to court over it.

If this guy is in the least bit law-saavy, you could have a MAJOR PROBLEM ON YOUR HANDS.

Even if you try to explain to the police you're in the right, they will not want to listen to you. They will want to fill their quota, especially if this guy is pissed to the point of pressing charges against you. You will have to wait until it goes to trial to plead your case.

Once again --

proceed with caution!!!

i agree wholeheartedly. You have to remember that on internet forums, people are anonymous, and often suggest macho ways to act which they'd never even entertain in real life- yet you might be tempted to take their advice.

is playing your guitar through your amp worth going to court over, and possibly having a criminal record for?

annoying, yes, but probably not worth it. As you yourself said, it's against the rules to have a guitar amp- no matter how quietly you think you're playing, even if it is at TV volume, you're technically breaking the rules even by plugging in. Which, in a court of law, or even by student halls rules, means you don't have a leg to stand on. Even if it doesn't get you to court, is it worth being kicked out of halls for? I know plenty of people who've been kicked out of halls of residence for pretty minor offences- it can happen very easily.

plus it's worth remembering that it doesn't seem as loud when you're playing. My sister was forever telling me to turn down- she's recently started playing herself, and when playing with the same amp settings, she's like "it's not so loud when you're playing, is it?"...

[Haha, TO this is england not the states. What's more likely to happen is he'll come round here or i'll go round there and we'll kick shitee into eachother before sitting down and working something out, but yeah i'll make sure not to piss him off to the point of him taking me to court, however unlikely that seems.

no-one in england sues?  :roll:

[Ratrod]

Just call Davey for some dirty deeds done dirt cheap.  :twisted:

[broken cord]

One word answer: Accustic!

[BigK]

One word answer: Accustic!

or get a pod and some wireless headphones if you really dont like wires.

[Johnny Mac]

This thing will eat you up if it goes on and will effect the way you play, as in you won't be putting any passion into your playing because you will be holding back.
I play through my Tascam Guitar Trainer most of the time so I can let rip without my conscience holding me back. I can get the levels on my amp very low and beneath tv levels but it winds my brother up and I know that my neighbours can hear it, so I use the amp when I know the neighbours are out ect and in my mates new sound proofed shed!

As far as acoustics go, they will be louder than an amp that is quieter than the telly. A friend of mine had a neighbour who would complain about his acoustic guitar after around 10 minutes and when I lived with my parents donkeys years ago my Dad would complain about me playing an electric unplugged.

I know it's a bummer but you can't do anything these days without some boring whinging numpty complaining, they do it because they can.

Rise above it! Adapt, apply and overcome!  :lol:

[blue]

i generally practice with an unplugged electric anyway, it can be difficult to find a convenient time to fire up the amp.