Need more input/output jacks! HELP!

Hekbass · #1 03-04-2013, 02:36 PM

I have a TC Electronic RH450 head. It has only one speaker output. I ordered two Hartke cabs from separate stores - a 410TP and a 210TP. Each sound great separately, but they both have only ONE input jack each!

Before you think I'm a complete dumbass (you wouldn't be too far from the truth), there are pics online of the Hartke 210TP and it clearly shows it has 2 jacks. Mine has only one for some reason. Maybe they did different runs of it with that small variation (FML)?

HELP! How do I connect them all together?

P.S. I remembered I have one of those Radio Shack 1/4" splitters. I could plug that into the amp head and it would give me the extra jack I need...but, that seems kinda like a bad idea for some reason.

BassmanPaul · #2 03-04-2013, 03:14 PM

Don't run the 2x10 with the 4x10 unless it has twice the impedance of the 4x10.

Hekbass · #3 03-04-2013, 03:39 PM

Thanks. But, I don't want to open the "impedance matching" can of worms. Both cabs are 8ohms, which when combined would yield a load of 4ohms, which is perfectly safe for the amp.

My issue is HOW do I physically hook them up - I don't have enough jacks to even do it wrong (assuming the impedances were wrong).

Rick Auricchio · #4 03-04-2013, 09:53 PM

You can use whatever adapter necessary to get both cabs connected. A Y-adapter will do the trick.

But Paul's advice should be heeded. With two 8-ohm cabs, power will be split: half to the 410, half to the 210. So as soon as you start overdriving the 210 you'll have to back off the volume. And the 410 will be loafing, well below its volume limit.

Bass_Pounder · #5 03-04-2013, 09:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rick Auricchio

You can use whatever adapter necessary to get both cabs connected. A Y-adapter will do the trick.

As long as it is speaker wire, and NOT a standard Y adapter made from instrument cable

RickenBoogie · #6 03-05-2013, 07:52 AM

Agreed, the reason to NOT pair a 210 with a 410 of the same impedance, is each driver in the 210 gets DOUBLE the juice of the other cab, making it the weak link. Very unbalanced, and not a good pairing. For this to work, it needs to be a 4 ohm 410 and an 8 ohm 210, and the amp would need to be stable to 2 ohms.

Hekbass · #7 03-05-2013, 08:09 AM

A few things:

1- What I have is a solid splitter. It's not made out of cable. It's solid plastic, with two 1/4" holes on one end, and a single male 1/4" plug on the other. Like this one:
http://www.amazon.com/Splitter-Male-.../dp/B001NZVH7G

2- Would it work if I got me a 4ohm 2X10 instead, and kept the 8ohm 4X10 cab?

3- Also, someone mentioned I could use a power attenuator and keep everything I have. Something like this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Orig...00621055135%26

So, which of the options above are ok to go with?

Thanks for all your input!

beans-on-toast · #8 03-05-2013, 08:30 AM

The splitter sounds fine. A plastic box with one in and two out is all that you need. The important thing is that it's good quality. Some splitters use inexpensive jacks and the cable doesn't take much of a pull to yank out.

There are splitters for speaker connections and there are instrument splitters. The speaker ones typically use a bus wire (18 gauge) or a circuit board to connect the terminals from the three jacks all in parallel. The instrument splitters have lighter shielded wiring like the type that you would see on an instrument cable. You need a splitter intended for speaker connections. If you aren't sure which type you have, take a looking inside the box just to be sure.

Hekbass · #9 03-05-2013, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RickenBoogie

Agreed, the reason to NOT pair a 210 with a 410 of the same impedance, is each driver in the 210 gets DOUBLE the juice of the other cab, making it the weak link. Very unbalanced, and not a good pairing. For this to work, it needs to be a 4 ohm 410 and an 8 ohm 210, and the amp would need to be stable to 2 ohms.

Would it work if I got me a 4ohm 2X10 instead, and kept the 8ohm 4X10 cab? Isn't the TOTAL impedance load the actual thing that matters? Or is it really important which speaker has the lower impedance?

And, are we talking about daisy-chaining, or using a splitter? I think the OHM math would be completely different depending on which hookup method I use, yes?

Hekbass · #10 03-05-2013, 09:37 AM

Well, looks like I GOT A SOLUTION.

I hooked it all up with my 1/4" splitter, and it sounds neat. I live in a small condo, so I can't play too loudly. But, I bumped it up to the point where the walls rattled (between 3 and 4 on the volume dial) and played a few low notes, and it sounded clear and nice. So, I guess I'm good!

THANKS EVERYONE!

Bass_Pounder · #11 03-05-2013, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hekbass

Would it work if I got me a 4ohm 2X10 instead, and kept the 8ohm 4X10 cab? Isn't the TOTAL impedance load the actual thing that matters? Or is it really important which speaker has the lower impedance?

And, are we talking about daisy-chaining, or using a splitter? I think the OHM math would be completely different depending on which hookup method I use, yes?

No...........

If you did the way you are saying, only 1/3 of your power will be going to the cab with 4 speakers, and 2/3 of your power will be going to the cab with 2 speakers - completely backwards, and a recipe for blowing the 2X10.

Hooking them through a splitter OR daisy chaining is the same thing - parallel connection.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hekbass

Well, looks like I GOT A SOLUTION.

I hooked it all up with my 1/4" splitter, and it sounds neat. I live in a small condo, so I can't play too loudly. But, I bumped it up to the point where the walls rattled (between 3 and 4 on the volume dial) and played a few low notes, and it sounded clear and nice. So, I guess I'm good!

THANKS EVERYONE!

Except you are still giving twice the amount of power to the speakers in your 2X10.

Pay attention to the 2X10 when playing gig volumes as it is your weak link and subject to getting damaged long before your 4X10 breaks a sweat.

Hekbass · #12 03-05-2013, 11:52 AM

I asked Ed Friedland (yes, the guy that writes for Bass Player magazine), and he said he'd never run speakers of different ohm ratings together. *shrug* I get a different answer every time I ask someone. It's voodoo!!

So...yes, I'll pay attention to the 2X10. I don't think I'll ever be pushing the rig too hard if I can avoid it. I'll keep the volume under control. Whenever I've played live it's either a really low volume gig (in which either cab by itself would easily do the job), or there's massive PA reinforcement, reducing my onstage rig to basically a monitor function. So...I think I'll be fine as long as I keep the volume under control. At least I sure as hell hope so.

THANKS!

edfriedland · #13 03-07-2013, 11:37 AM

I didn't say I'd NEVER run two cabs of different ohms, what I said is you shouldn't run 4 and 8 ohm cabs with a head that has a 4 ohm minimum load. If your amp permitted a 2ohm load, you could safely do this, but you'd find the 4ohm cab was getting more of the power.

Hekbass · #14 03-08-2013, 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by edfriedland

I didn't say I'd NEVER run two cabs of different ohms, what I said is you shouldn't run 4 and 8 ohm cabs with a head that has a 4 ohm minimum load. If your amp permitted a 2ohm load, you could safely do this, but you'd find the 4ohm cab was getting more of the power.

Crap! I'm sorry.
This is all so confusing to me. Yes, I looked at your email again, and you're right. I was looking at so many different sources, and I was very stressed over the whole thing, so I must've gotten the info jumbled up in my head. My apologies.

In any case...so far, so good. I plugged in a "Y" 1/4" splitter on the back of the amp, and ran a speaker cable from each of the two jacks that the splitter gives me, and it seems to be working fine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwIurU4q8rc

Thanks again.

**CL400Peavey** · #15 03-08-2013, 10:41 AM

With an 8 Ohm 410 you should be pairing a 16 Ohm 210 to split the power evenly between all the speakers.

You really dont have much to worry about in terms of damaging the speakers. The RH450 is a 236 watt amp, no danger of blowing up your cabs.

Nephilymbass · #16 03-08-2013, 11:50 AM

If you really want to do it, all it would take is going to a shop that can add a out jack so you can connect one cab to the head and that cab to the other cab. I use a family owned store in my area for modding stuff like that. They've put speakon inputs on cabs for me even built several of my cables. For example my speaker cable is like a 5 foot speakon cable in the lowest gauge (thickest) cable I could find. And I have a custom made rack mount panel with 3 xlr outs so I never have to climb behind my rig with a flashlight on stage to hook up to the xlr. As far as balancing the ohm ratings on cabs. A lot of them can be changed fairly easy depending on the design (each speakers individual ohm rating and how the cab is wired) so if they are both the same impedience you might be able to change that also. How a cab is wired wether it be series or parallel can determine the ohm rating. This is how many guitar cabs have adjustable ohm rating.