are the gallien-Krueger 800rb's really loud?

[maytoxrok]

i just sold a ampeg svt classic and looking into other "industry standards" i found the 800rb. it says its 300 watts solid state, that doesnt seem like a lot to me. going from 300 watts tube which i think is a lot more. does anybody know if these 800rb's can really handle live shows and loud rock band practices without being miced? i've been seriously considering buying one of these but im just scared it wont be loud enough. another thing, a friend of mine had a genz-benz 750 which i believe is 750 watts and it wasnt loud enough at times so i dont know..can anybody inlighten me?
-Mike

[The Golden Boy]

Is a GK 800RB capable of a gigging volume? Yes.

Is a GK 800RB an efficient use of power? ??

The GK was designed as a biamp amp. IIRC it's designed to handle 300w@4ohms through the low channel and 100w@8ohms through the high channel. Whether you're biamping or not- you're still getting that power split. Of course running 100w through an 8 ohm cab may not be something you're comfortable with doing...

300w SS per cab is optimal for most any rehearsal/bar/club rock band, IMO. Depending on your cab setup- the GK 800 may not be the best for you. I had one for several years- I loved it for what it was. I never had any overheating problems with it- however I've heard of and witnessed many instances of them overheating.

One thing that may be affecting your overall percieved volume is your eq. Although it sounds best to have a scooped mid thing going on when you're by yourself- the kick drum and the guitars and cymbals eat up a lot of your lower and higher end- so the mids are kind of what you want to be emphasizing because that's what gets heard.