Does the Ampeg 810 "good years / bad years" argument extend to 610hlf?

pablomigraine · #1 07-05-2011, 08:57 PM

There's been a lot of talk lately about the various years which the Ampeg SVT-810e was manufactured regarding different materials / construction etc.... I have noticed some dramatic differences in sound in one SVT-810 Vs. another.... but does anyone know if this argument extends to the SVT-610HLF? Was this cab ever made with lesser speakers or either particleboard or OSB?

Any opinions would be appreciated!

Thanks!!

PRW

JimmyM · #2 07-05-2011, 10:35 PM

Don't know but it extends to the 410HLF as far as I'm concerned.

pablomigraine · #3 07-05-2011, 10:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Don't know but it extends to the 410HLF as far as I'm concerned.

Then it can only be true for the 610 as well. Can u elaborate Jimmy?

JimmyM · #4 07-05-2011, 10:51 PM

Sure...the SLM cabs were mostly made with OSB, for one. The LOUD cabs are plywood. I also think the imported speakers in the LOUD cabs are better, with more high end and mid content. The older 410HLF's go super low at the expense of upper mids and highs. The new ones are a little tighter on the bottom, but just enough to cut down on the excessive rumble of the older cabs.

I would assume same holds true for the 610HLF, which is a cab I like quite a bit more than the 410HLF. The 810e and 410HLF are two extremes, and the 610HLF sits in the middle of them. For me the 810E is king, but I think the 610HLF gets unfairly slagged because it's more middle of the road.

will33 · #5 07-05-2011, 11:25 PM

Didn't the 610hlf used to be (or still is?) essentially a sealed 410 and a ported 210 all in one box?

If they used the same 810 speakers in the sealed portion I would assume the same changes apply to the same years. The bottom ported 210 section would use a different spec speaker. Likely the same one they use 4 of in the 410hlf considering mass manufacture , etc.

joeydavidson · #6 07-06-2011, 01:00 AM

^no, all speaker chambers are ported in the 610hlf, I had a look inside mine when I had it.

coreyfyfe · #7 07-06-2011, 08:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by will33

Didn't the 610hlf used to be (or still is?) essentially a sealed 410 and a ported 210 all in one box?

If they used the same 810 speakers in the sealed portion I would assume the same changes apply to the same years. The bottom ported 210 section would use a different spec speaker. Likely the same one they use 4 of in the 410hlf considering mass manufacture , etc.

All six speakers are the same 6 ohm driver (they have to use a different driver to get a 4 ohm total rating). The internal bracing is similar to the others but the holes in the baffle board between the pairs of drivers are much larger on the 6x10 than on my 8x10 so I'd say there probably is enough air movement internally that it should be considered a ported 6x10, not a sealed 4x10 and ported 2x10.

will33 · #8 07-06-2011, 08:08 AM

OK, I wonder where the hell I got that idea then.

coreyfyfe · #9 07-06-2011, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by will33

OK, I wonder where the hell I got that idea then.

I've seen it posted here before, but really looking at the internals of the cab, there are separate baffles, but you could drive a truck through the holes in them IIRC.

Quickie · #10 07-06-2011, 08:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Don't know but it extends to the 410HLF as far as I'm concerned.

Could you clarify? That's one of the cabs I have owned in the past and am thinking about again.

Quickie · #11 07-06-2011, 08:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coreyfyfe

All six speakers are the same 6 ohm driver (they have to use a different driver to get a 4 ohm total rating). The internal bracing is similar to the others but the holes in the baffle board between the pairs of drivers are much larger on the 6x10 than on my 8x10 so I'd say there probably is enough air movement internally that it should be considered a ported 6x10, not a sealed 4x10 and ported 2x10.

Ampeg 810 is sealed. No holes. Are you speaking of another brand?

will33 · #12 07-06-2011, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coreyfyfe

I've seen it posted here before, but really looking at the internals of the cab, there are separate baffles, but you could drive a truck through the holes in them IIRC.

That would make them braces and not dividers/subchambers.

fenderhutz · #13 07-06-2011, 08:35 AM

Other than being a little on the boomy side, I really liked the room filling volume that cab produces. Was it a great sound? Not really, but when going head to head with a hard hitting drummer and a Marshall 100 watt tube half stack it got the job done. Mic'd it sounds fine as well. Wasn't bad either.

The main Head I used with it was a Trace Elliot rack mount from the 90's that was rated at 500 or 600 x2 for wattage. I could rip paint off walls with only 500-600 Trace watts. The cab took the beating just fine.

coreyfyfe · #14 07-06-2011, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quickie

Ampeg 810 is sealed. No holes. Are you speaking of another brand?

Nope ampeg. It's not perfectly sealed, there is a space for the wires to pass through (though it's covered with batting, etc), but that's my point. In the 610HLF the divisions are not sealed like that, they are for internal bracing.

pablomigraine · #15 07-06-2011, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by will33

Didn't the 610hlf used to be (or still is?) essentially a sealed 410 and a ported 210 all in one box?

If they used the same 810 speakers in the sealed portion I would assume the same changes apply to the same years. The bottom ported 210 section would use a different spec speaker. Likely the same one they use 4 of in the 410hlf considering mass manufacture , etc.

Quote:

Originally Posted by joeydavidson

^no, all speaker chambers are ported in the 610hlf, I had a look inside mine when I had it.

The source of all the confusion regarding the four-sealed / two ported 610 HLF was this picture appearing in the owner's manual:

which makes it appear as though the top four are sealed in pairs, which is not the case...

JimmyM · #16 07-06-2011, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quickie

Could you clarify? That's one of the cabs I have owned in the past and am thinking about again.

USA 410HLF's I've played have always had way too many lows and not enough midrange for my tastes. The newer ones, however, seem to have dialed the lows back just a smidge and gave more weight to the upper mids and highs. Still not my favorite cab, but I think it's a lot better now.

pablomigraine · #17 07-06-2011, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

USA 410HLF's I've played have always had way too many lows and not enough midrange for my tastes. The newer ones, however, seem to have dialed the lows back just a smidge and gave more weight to the upper mids and highs. Still not my favorite cab, but I think it's a lot better now.

I agree in terms of the 410HLF.... way boomy, artificial -sounding lows.... the only 610HLF I have ever played is a brand new LOUD-era one from last week. I have to say.... I was really impressed.... best sounding Ampeg cab I've ever heard. Second best out of the four 610 cabs I've tried and WAY more even a response across the range than the Mesa. Plenty of mids, and clear and articulate mids at that... the lows were much tighter than the 410HLF and it didn't sound as "artificial" as that cab in the low-bass..... plenty of 110Hz "Shove"... only complaint was the weak sounding tweeter and big "notch" around the X-over frequency... the hallmark of all inexpensive crossovers and tweeters. I bet a Selenium tweeter and beefed-up Dayton Xover would do wonders for this cab. The porting seems identical to the 410... I doubt there was ever any attempt at actually "tuning" the cabinets to the drivers in terms of cubic volume, port size, length, flare etc.... but the porting worked much better with 6 drivers as opposed to 4....