how loud can I safely go?

[Reverand J]

so I've got myself an Alpha 112p, all stock including the speaker as far as I know.  I've got the drive and the bass-eq set to 10 and the mid-eq, mid-sweep, and treble-eq all set to zero.  I've got my guitar plugged into the normal input, the pickup selector on the passive neck humbucker with the volume cranked and the tone rolled all the way back to zero.  As you can see, I'm essentially trying to create the thickest bass sound I can muster.  Can anyone give me an idea of how high I should be able to set the master volume on the amp without blowing the speaker?  Can I crank the master wide open and still be safe?  There's just a ton of bass pumping out of this thing even with the master set at one, and I like the amp exactly how it is so I don't want to risk having to replace the speaker.

[Rich Briere]

Yo J,

Ever hold the gas pedal to the floor for an hour on a car that you love? Why ask the amp to do that?  If you really like the sound, find the point where the amp tells you that it's happy and don't go any higher. Many great amps have turned to dust because someone asked them to do wayyyyy more than they were designed to.  If your amp is "stock", it's old, and tired. While it's a SUNN, the best amp company ever to exist, it's still simply a mortal.  :^>)


Bass-ically Yours,
Rich Briere
http://www.richbriere.com