4 Ohm cab and 8 Ohm cab into a two seperate 8 ohm ouputs ?

[Jitterboy]

Got two Trace Elliot cabs one rated at 8 ohm's the other 4 ohm.

I also have a Trace Head which has two 8 ohm outputs.

Will i damage the head / or cab ( 4 ohm one ) in anyway by playing it though this head ?

Any help, thanks

[seungkoo]

i believe that would push the amp to 2.66 ohms. Im not sure how a trace handles anything below 4ohm. I wouldnt do it without knowing.

[cheezewiz]

What he said. Don't do it. That gives you less than a 4 ohm load (2.66), and your head is apparently only rated down to 4 ohms

[RickenBoogie]

+1 don't do it. 2 8 ohm taps meant for 2 8 ohm cabs.

[lbwdog]

To clarify the two posts above, it would be a 2.67 Ohm load if you use both cabs at the same time.

It wasn't clear to me if that was the question.
You can use either cab by itself, or two 8 Ohm cabs together, but not a 4 and 8 Ohm at the same time.

[Standalone]

Originally Posted by lbwdog

To clarify the two posts above, it would be a 2.67 Ohm load if you use both cabs at the same time.

It wasn't clear to me if that was the question.
You can use either cab by itself, or two 8 Ohm cabs together, but not a 4 and 8 Ohm at the same time.

WOAH there... if each output is *labeled* 8 Ohm, that implies 8 Ohm min. Each. A 4 Ohm cab in either of these, even alone, could fry the amp.

lbwdog is a frequent TB poster, and I hate to override his advice, but I'm sure if he thinks about it for a second, he'd realize that we need more information before greenlighting use of that 4 ohm cab.

I can't imagine a TE amp not handling at least one 4 ohm cab, but if the Original Poster would post photos of the rear panel or let TB know what model TE amp it is, then we could let you know if you might be able to use that 4 ohm cab by itself. Until then, based on the info you gave, you should ONLY use the 8 ohm cab, unless I've mis-read something.

[IvanMike]

It would help if we knew what amp it is for sure. AFAIK, all of the SS trace amps handle 4 ohm loads (the stereo ones handle 4 ohms a side). The tube V types have a selector switch IIRC.

[babebambi]

It boggles the mind that this kind of posts usually do not include model # and such info of the equipment in question.

[MuzikMan]

Originally Posted by babebambi

It boggles the mind that this kind of posts usually do not include model # and such info of the equipment in question.

If you want to know what model the stuff is you could probably just ask and leave the useless commentary out of the thread.

[MuzikMan]

What model amp and cabs are you using? There are model specific characteristics that need to be taken into account to be able to help you in a meaningful way.

[walterw]

Originally Posted by Standalone

WOAH there... if each output is *labeled* 8 Ohm, that implies 8 Ohm min. Each. A 4 Ohm cab in either of these, even alone, could fry the amp.

it's good to be paranoid, but there's no way a trace-elliot solid state amp would be built that couldn't handle a 4Ω cab. that's obviously two parallel jacks wanting to see 4Ω minimum total.

Originally Posted by Standalone

I can't imagine a TE amp not handling at least one 4 ohm cab

neither can i.

for the OP, if the amp could do 2Ω, you could comfortably run both cabs, but it would be goofy, as the 4Ω cab would get most of the power, leaving the 8Ω cab mostly just taking up space.

i suppose if the 4Ω cab was a 2x15 and the 8Ω cab was a 2x10 it might make sense, but if they're equally-sized boxes, there's little point.

[Downunderwonder]

AFAIK all SS Trace amps do "two 8 ohm" outputs. One 4 ohm capable amplifier with two parallel sockets.

So you can run the 4 ohm cab on it's own, or the 8 ohm cab, but never both at the same time.

[Jitterboy]

Right sorry i put this up in another thread with the amp spec but no one seemed to reply

Ive got a Trace Elliot GP12 SMX head rated at 280 watt output with two 8 ohm outputs.

I also have a 1048H Cab ( 4 x 10" + high freq horn )

Rated at 8 ohm ( tested it )

Not sure the wattage as the writing has been scrapped off at the back of the amplify


I also have a 1524 ( 2 x 15" ) which i just recently got.

Its rated at 4 ohm

And 400 watt output.


Been looking at the manual for the GP12 SMX head online:

http://mail.foretold.nl/foretold/equipment/GP12SMX.pdf

It does mention:

Where possible use XLR leads, as they provide a more reliable connection and less signal loss than jack to jack leads.
Most TRACE ELLIOT cabinets have an 8 ohms impedance (the exceptions are the 1524, 1084H and 1084 models which
have an impedance of 4 ohms).
This means you can connect two cabinets to each output channel of a TRACE ELLIOT amplifier (In the case of the 4 ohm
cabinets, only one can be connected per channel).
Never connect two amplifier out put channels into one speaker connector panel.

Not sure if that means it would be fine with one 4 ohm cab on one output and one 8 ohm cab on the other :/ just don't wont to fry anything up

[IvanMike]

AFAIK that is NOT a stereo head (a stereo head has two power amplifiers in it). So no, you can't plug a 4 ohm and an 8 ohm cab into it without damaging the head.

I have no clue why trace would put 8 ohms by each output. Generally an amplifier will always have two speaker outs (so you can connect two speakers without daisy chaining them), but will say "4 ohm minimum load" or something like that next to it. If you're unsure about this whole Ohms/Impedance thing, click the link in my sig and read the thread about Ohms.

In order to run both those cabs at once you'll need something like a poweramp that you can run the line out of the trace head into, or a stereo amplifier.

[Downunderwonder]

IMO Trace does an admirable job of helping out noobies to get the best out of their gear and not do anything "silly". If only everyone read their manual...

How to EQ for big lows volume: cut lows and boost low mids..
Boost and cut EQ by same amounts on average to maintain overall gain..
Never plug two amps into one cab, it's even written on the connection panel of every Trace cab, just in case..
They kind of fell down in not specifying a 4 ohm min load on the amp but two 8 ohm cabs is 4 ohm anyway, all in all I'd say they did it better than most manufacturers.

Shame they used fading pens to write serial numbers and specs on the gear.
The 1048 is 300W from memory.

[BassmanPaul]

As far as the manual link, it appears to show a pre-amp and not an integrated head. It clearly shows the line outs being routed to stereo power amplifiers and then to the cabinets.

The only Trace amps that are compatible with a 2Ω load are the ones with tube output stages IIRC. So you can run either cabinet but not both.

[Jitterboy]

Originally Posted by IvanMike

If you're unsure about this whole Ohms/Impedance thing, click the link in my sig and read the thread about Ohms.

Thanks for that really cleared my mind up on what exactly impedence is

Yeah so from what im hearing its either one or the other :/

bummer... thought the 1048H and 1524 would have been a great combination

Probably why they introduced the 'bright box' for the 1524 just to keep those highs there in the backgound.

Right thanks to everyone here :P you have probally saved me from doing somthing really stupid till next time adios amego'sv

[Jitterboy]

Isn't a stereo head used for when you are inputting two seperate instruments :S ?

[Downunderwonder]

Trace stereo bass heads are generally mono input, biamp high and low frequencies or crazy power for lots of cabs. A stereo 600 W trace is two 300W amps, will drive 4 cabs or 2 of the dual 15 cabs.

[Jitterboy]

Ah right ta for that.