jp - I agree with ya. I wasnt saying that those shoes were at 130db or above, I just said those shows were super loud, and that they were painful...
i dont think any shows approach 134 or above, but that doesnt mean there arent some loud ones...
I dont know where the clipping comes from, i think it is a sony deal. if the knobs are below 3 (which going mic in at primus w/o an att cable dictated to keep the levels below 0) there is massive clipping. If you go above 4, even if the over lights are lighting up like firecrackers, the sound is better, and there is less clipping than there was when I kept the levels down...
going line in solves that problem, and I am able to hover between 4 and 8 on the level knob depending on the volume of the show...
sorry if I wasnt clear...