Ampeg SVT410he: does it lack bottom end?

[Apiazza388]

I have been keeping my eye on the 410he. I haven't had a chance to sit down and get some face time with it yet so I have been looking at reviews across the internet. I see a number of them say that the cab lacks bottom end. I guess my question is does anyone think otherwise? possibly when used with an SVT-CL?

[dukeisdog]

Originally Posted by Apiazza388

I have been keeping my eye on the 410he. I haven't had a chance to sit down and get some face time with it yet so I have been looking at reviews across the internet. I see a number of them say that the cab lacks bottom end. I guess my question is does anyone think otherwise? possibly when used with an SVT-CL?

I found that my 01' 810e lacked bottom end, but it was manageable, you just couldn't feel it in your chest like some bigger ported cabs. I never found that it lacked in volume, though.

[sad_katz]

It lacks the bottom end extension compared to ported cabs. As for the "bassy" volume (low-mids), no.

[grendle]

Originally Posted by dukeisdog

I found that my 01' 810e lacked bottom end, but it was manageable, you just couldn't feel it in your chest like some bigger ported cabs.

+1

They do a little but its a good thing in the mix. That's the one thing that I really like about the sealed ampeg cabs, they always sound great in the mix. All that bottom end that you think you want turns to mud in the mix. My bass always sounds full, big and right were it should be with those cabs.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by grendle

+1

They do a little but its a good thing in the mix. That's the one thing that I really like about the sealed ampeg cabs, they always sound great in the mix. All that bottom end that you think you want turns to mud in the mix. My bass always sounds full, big and right were it should be with those cabs.

Word. I never lacked for low end balls with one. It just loses the frequencies that interfere with the bass drum and create mud.

[noeinstein]

I a/b'd the 410he vs 410hlf and had to spend the extra dough for the hlf... that sound was so much more satisfying. Having said that, I was never really happy with how it played with others. I agree with grendle... sounded kind of muddy.

[Turock]

If you are going to be using it with an SVT, you may want to consider that it is an 8ohm cabinet.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by Turock

If you are going to be using it with an SVT, you may want to consider that it is an 8ohm cabinet.

Good point.

[Apiazza388]

Originally Posted by Turock

If you are going to be using it with an SVT, you may want to consider that it is an 8ohm cabinet.

I would be pairing it with an additional cabinet.

[73jbass]

I just got a used one locally,and with my Thunderfunk 550,it doesn't lack bottom end,and is plenty loud. Just depends on what you want a cab to do.

[TylerDurdenPSSC]

I ran one for years with GREAT success in a modern melodic metal band.

Lacked no bottom end, never got mud, never got lost in the mix.

When I swapped up to a RBI and SVP1600, I added a 115EN to abuse full powa of the amp. Didn't actually notice any 'new' bottom end, the 410 already got me there, the 115 just got me louder...

If I were to do it again, I would have just bought a second 410.

[afroman]

Ampeg cabs do fairly heavy low-end roll off. But as others have stated, thats why they work well in the mix.

They dont fight with the low end of the drums and are able to cut through the mix with their inherent midrange bump.

[derridiandrift]

Originally Posted by afroman

Ampeg cabs do fairly heavy low-end roll off.

Well, let's qualify that. The traditional 810 and 410HE do that. The SVT-410HLF does not. It has tremendous deep-bass extension, which is not surprising because it is a ported cab. I agree with you on the voicing of the traditional sealed 810 sound. Very nicely suited to preventing unwanted rumble in the mix.

Now, back to the OP and the original question, I find that the Ampeg sealed 410HE used by itself lacks some of the magic that their 810 delivers in spades. But the 410HE is still a nice cab for those applications where you want that tight sound without the scooped super-deep bass extension of the 410HLF. Someone already mentioned this, but do be aware of the impedance mis-match. The 8 ohm 410HE will work with your SVT-CL. I owned both pieces and ran that set-up sometimes. There's a difference in the tone that the SVT-CL delivers when it's run on an 8 ohm cab because the output transformer is wound for 2 or 4 ohms. Many will tell you that it's not good for the amp or the tubes. It never damaged my amp, but I didn't do it all time. Still, I would suggest that it's not worth doing because it doesn't sound great and the head isn't spec'd to work that way.

For portability, if you want to run two 410HE cabs instead of an 810, you can do that and get the 810HE sound, or at least pretty close to it. If you go that route, my suggestion is to get a pair of the newer SVT-410HE cabs made overseas. They have nicer sounding drivers than the USA ones, and they're now made of plywood instead of mdf. They're also a tiny bit lighter.

Lastly, on pairing the SVT-410HE with another cab, I used it with an SVT-15EN. Others like this setup. I didn't. Two SVT15EN cabs sounded great to my ears, as did two SVT-410HE cabs. The mix and match didn't work for me. YMMV, as always.

[afroman]

Originally Posted by derridiandrift

Well, let's qualify that. The traditional 810 and 410HE do that. The SVT-410HLF does not. It has tremendous deep-bass extension, which is not surprising because it is a ported cab. I agree with you on the voicing of the traditional sealed 810 sound. Very nicely suited to preventing unwanted rumble in the mix.

Now, back to the OP and the original question, I find that the Ampeg sealed 410HE used by itself lacks some of the magic that their 810 delivers in spades. But the 410HE is still a nice cab for those applications where you want that tight sound without the scooped super-deep bass extension of the 410HLF. Someone already mentioned this, but do be aware of the impedance mis-match. The 8 ohm 410HE will work with your SVT-CL. I owned both pieces and ran that set-up sometimes. There's a difference in the tone that the SVT-CL delivers when it's run on an 8 ohm cab because the output transformer is wound for 2 or 4 ohms. Many will tell you that it's not good for the amp or the tubes. It never damaged my amp, but I didn't do it all time. Still, I would suggest that it's not worth doing because it doesn't sound great and the head isn't spec'd to work that way.

For portability, if you want to run two 410HE cabs instead of an 810, you can do that and get the 810HE sound, or at least pretty close to it. If you go that route, my suggestion is to get a pair of the newer SVT-410HE cabs made overseas. They have nicer sounding drivers than the USA ones, and they're now made of plywood instead of mdf. They're also a tiny bit lighter.

Lastly, on pairing the SVT-410HE with another cab, I used it with an SVT-15EN. Others like this setup. I didn't. Two SVT15EN cabs sounded great to my ears, as did two SVT-410HE cabs. The mix and match didn't work for me. YMMV, as always.

You are right making a differentiation between the HE and HLF cabs. They sound very different. Regardless, Ive never liked the 410hlf. Too much low end that can easiky end up getting muddy. You can try and EQ some bass out but I feel that its just the inherent tone of the ported hlf design.

In the end, if I had to choose, I prefer the 410he over the hlf.