ToneFest 2005

Activities Format & Daily Schedule

****Attendees: PLEASE Read Everything Thoroughly****

Arrival, Registration & Amp Test Drive Sign-up - when you arrive please go straight to the Registration Table. There you will need to do the following:

• Check-in and get your name tag if you have already pre-registered and pre-paid

• If you haven’t pre-registered and pre-paid you’ll need to do that in order to Sign-in

• Amp Check-In: Every amp brought into ToneFest to be Demoed and made available for the Amp Test Drives, MUST be properly identified with a filled out Amp Data Sheet and an appropriate color sticker prominently displayed on the amp. This must be done BEFORE the amps are brought onto the floor. EVERY piece of gear you bring into ToneFest MUST have your ID tag. This includes guitars, cases, cables, FX, power strips, etc.

• Amp Test Drive Sign-Up: The Amp Test Drives Schedule Board will be set-up at the Registration Table. There you will be signing up for 20-minute intervals. These intervals will be posted as open slots that you can sign up for. Time slots are available on a first come-first served basis. You will need to write in the amps you wish to tryout during your 20 minutes. If you finish before your 20 minutes you can give the balance of your time to anyone you wish. We ask, in consideration of all the attendees who wish to tryout amps, that the following guidelines be considered:

• Don’t hoard time slots. Leave empty slots for others if you’ve already tried amps. You may certainly sign up for multiple time slots if they are available, after a check has been made to see if others who haven’t signed up may wish to.

• Please keep your volume to a reasonable level, in consideration of the others who will be talking and trying out amps at the opposite side of the room. We realize that it may be necessary to crank an amp for a moment or two, and there will be several monster non MV 100w Plexis, Hiwatts, Customs, etc. For this reason we have made the semi-soundproof Isolated Tryout Room available.

• Amps will be marked with colored dots indicating their availability for being moved into the isolated tryout room. Green dots indicate amps that may be moved into the room. Red dots indicate amps that require permission from the owner.

Admission Fee - In previous years ToneFest charged a $10-per-amp fee to bring amps into the show and enter them in the competition. However, this year there will be NO Amp Fee. Instead we will charge an ADMISSION FEE of $10-per-Day for each day participants attend. This fee is due for any part of A day of attendance. Please make any checks payable to Faith Christian Church (our host facility). The Church will provide the facility, cold water bottles and cover all the expense of materials produced for the show. Proceeds will cover the Church’s over head and any additional expense. The Church will NOT keep any money over it’s expenses, and set aside any remaining balance in a ToneFest account for TF’06.

Meet, Greet & Amp Test Drives - These times will be open opportunities to talk to old friends, meet new ones, talk to amp builders/owners and test drive the amps you’ve been wanting to tryout. With the institution of controls over the Amp Test Drives it will provide a better atmosphere for socializing.

In order to eliminate the confusion of several amps blaring at once, we have set up an organized Amp Test Drive procedure. We will make 3 locations available for simultaneous Test Drives. There will be 2 locations at opposite sides of the large main room and the semi-soundproof small room (previously used for recording) will be available for trying out amps (with the owner’s permission). People must sign-up on the Amp Test Drive Board located at the Registration Table. (See Arrival, Registration & Amp Test Drive Sign-up above.)

Amp Demos - ToneFest was started by Vintage Amp users with a nice collection of highly sought old Amps from the 50s and 60s. Additionally, attendees began bringing their Boutique amps and custom builders started sending their new projects into the shows. We want to make sure these amps are properly presented to our participants. Therefore we have adopted a public Amp Demo format, utilizing gifted professional players demoing the amps with both single coil and humbucker guitars. The demos are set in time-limited intervals and identical cables and guitars are used for the demos.

Amp Demos / Staggered Lunches – In an effort to lengthen the amount of time for guys to test drive amps we will stagger our Lunch into 2 periods. ToneFest Staffers will cover the lunch periods in shifts so we can leave the building open and supervised for Amp Test Drives from 12 Noon to 2pm.

Pedal Demos – Participants always bring their favorite and latest pedals to ToneFest, and we never have the time to play with them. This year we will set up a “Pedal World” table where participants will be free to leave out their pedals and mark them with either a Green sticker (free to try), or Red sticker (Try with owner’s permission). You will be free to tryout the pedals with any amps you are test driving during your turn.

Amp Sales – Owners and Custom builders are free to make arrangements to sell their amps. ToneFest provides the very unique opportunity for players to see and tryout these amps you’ll seldom see in any store. However, ToneFest assumes NO RESPONSIBILITY for any sale arrangements. All sale arrangements are the private business of the buyer and seller.

Format Changes…

Clinics – This year ToneFest will be offering 2 special after-hours clinics for our participants. The clinics will carry a charge to be paid to the Instructors (separate from TF Registrations).

• Thursday evening (from 8 – 10p) Barry Weber will be giving an introductory clinic on slide guitar technique. Last year we were treated to Barry’s slide playing as he traded off with Glen Kuygendall on our Amp Demos. charge: $10

• Friday evening we are very pleased to present the skills of Berkeley Professor, Tomo Fujita (click for resume’). Tomo’s guitar versatility and infectious warm personality make him a guitar player’s favorite. For a sample of Tomo’s work please visit TomoFujita.com. Charge: $15 in advance via PayPal, $20 at the door. Please make advance payments through PayPal to music@tomofujita.com. No video taping or audio recording allowed.

Amp Evaluation & Competition - This year will not be competing amps in a “shoot-out”. We feel that in the earlier years these competitions, though subjective, were helpful for giving players who were not exposed to vintage amps and several newer boutiques, some frame of reference in evaluating them. The Vintage & Custom Amp market has changed with the entrance of many more players, and we feel the competitions are no longer necessary.

We will be providing Evaluation Forms and encouraging participants to fill in their comments as they observe the Demos and tryout the amps personally. These Evals will be made public in a positive way, so as to provide information for potential buyers.

Jams – This year we are organizing the last hour of each day for Jam Sessions. Everyone should be sufficiently warmed up by then. We will be providing a competent rhythm section (Bass, Drums, Keys, Rhythm Guitar) for accompaniment, who will be prepared with a selection of standard covers in a range of styles so that each player who wishes to participate can find a comfortable place to play. The jams will be regulated in length and in the number of players joining at a time, so as to avoid confusion.

Recording - Dean Farley has produced a large selection of recorded amp demos for ToneFest in previous years. These CDs are still available. We will not be recording TF’05. However, we will continue to record new amps throughout the year and make the files available as they are compiled.

Daily Schedule…

Thursday

09:00 - 10:00a Set up and Load In (for those coming early w/ amps)

10:00 - 11:00a Meet, Greet & Test-Drive Amps

11:00 - 12:00n Amp Demos

12:00 - 01:00p Lunch Break A (Test Drive Amps)

01:00 - 02:00p Lunch Break B (Test Drive Amps)

02:00 - 03:00p Amp Demos

03:00 - 04:00p Test-Drive Amps

04:00 - 05:00p Amp Demos

05:00 - 06:00p Jam

08:00 - 10:00p **Clinic – Barry Weber / Slide Guitar Technique

Friday

09:00 - 10:00a Set up and Load In (for those coming early w/ amps)

10:00 - 11:00a Meet, Greet & Test-Drive Amps

11:00 - 12:00n Amp Demos

12:00 - 01:00p Lunch Break A (Test Drive Amps)

01:00 - 02:00p Lunch Break B (Test Drive Amps)

02:00 - 03:00p Amp Demos

03:00 - 04:00p Test-Drive Amps

04:00 - 05:00p Amp Demos

05:00 - 06:00p Jam

08:00 - 10:00p **Clinic – Tomo Fujita / Accelerate Your Guitar Technique

Saturday

09:00 - 10:00a Set up and Load In (for those coming early w/ amps)

10:00 - 11:00a Meet, Greet & Test-Drive Amps

11:00 - 12:00n Amp Demos

12:00 - 01:00p Lunch Break A (Test Drive Amps)

01:00 - 02:00p Lunch Break B (Test Drive Amps)

02:00 - 03:00p Amp Demos

03:00 - 04:00p Test-Drive Amps

04:00 - 05:00p Amp Demos

05:00 - 06:00p Jam