PA head as a bass head?

accidentprone13 · #1 12-22-2012, 11:22 PM

There's a 300 watt Sunn PA head on Craigslist for $150, $400 for that and a pair of Peavey SP-2's with Black Widow speakers... My bass sound is with a lot of pedals anyways, so I often don't rely on the clean tone of the amp... Would this be louder than my Hartke HA2500 (which would be 250 watts with 2 4x10 cabinets)? Would it sound like dogshit? Could I plug my cabinets into said PA head? Sorry for the questions, I just never thought of PA heads as a way to get more volume until now!

B-string · #2 12-22-2012, 11:28 PM

PA amps can be a cheap way to get more power. But in your case the Hartke and two 410's will kick the 300 PA head and two SP-2's.

JimmyM · #3 12-22-2012, 11:29 PM

The difference between 250 and 300w is imperceptible to the human ear.

accidentprone13 · #4 12-22-2012, 11:34 PM

Good to know! Then I guess I redirect this thread to: how the hell do I get more volume while not muddy-ing it up when using distortion pedals without selling my car for a Sunn 2000?

B-string · #5 12-22-2012, 11:43 PM

Cut the bass and and low-mids back some. That will stop using your amps power for muddy stage rattle.

Downunderwonder · #6 12-22-2012, 11:44 PM

If that's a tube head it's probably snaffled already.

JimmyM · #7 12-22-2012, 11:48 PM

You could buy a cheaper higher powered head with a significant amount of extra wattage. Or you could try what B-string said. Honestly, 250w through two 410's should not be a quiet rig by any means. Sounds to me like you're wasting a lot of wattage pushing lows too much.

accidentprone13 · #8 12-22-2012, 11:57 PM

Okay, I've come to that conclusion a couple times on here and on the internet elsewhere. I hope that works. I think the main problem is that I'm in a two-piece band and carrying all string work by myself, and he has a Bonham sized kit, so I'm competing with a lot of volume. However, if you guys say I shouldn't be struggling that much then hopefully I just need to re-EQ.

JimmyM · #9 12-23-2012, 12:03 AM

That's pretty cool doing a project like that.

Downunderwonder · #10 12-23-2012, 12:11 AM

Not a tube head then? There are some 300W Sunn PA tubers.

Drum and bass two piece? weehah! You really want a subwoofer PA to give people what I think they would be looking for: huge thumping kick! Too bad about sub bass sorry dude. You got the rest to play with.

On that theme, you might as well invest in some budget drum mics and a full PA and go to town on stage with a 2x10.

accidentprone13 · #11 12-23-2012, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimmyM

That's pretty cool doing a project like that.

It's great fun, and gets a lot of attention, we've just kinda hit a brick wall with this bass amp problem.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Downunderwonder

Not a tube head then? There are some 300W Sunn PA tubers.

Drum and bass two piece? weehah! You really want a subwoofer PA to give people what I think they would be looking for: huge thumping kick! Too bad about sub bass sorry dude. You got the rest to play with.

On that theme, you might as well invest in some budget drum mics and a full PA and go to town on stage with a 2x10.

I'm not sure if it's tube or not, didn't ask! I can email the guy and see if it is!

Downunderwonder · #12 12-23-2012, 12:25 AM

Ask what taps it has while you're at it.

Downunderwonder · #13 12-23-2012, 12:26 AM

You'd need to spend a bit on getting it tuned up but a 300W tube power stage is a thing of beauty.

walterw · #14 12-23-2012, 12:44 AM

this is the kind of gig where you need to throw the rules out the window and create a bass wall o' doom!

sub cabs, bass guitar cabs, distorted guitar amps, you should have it all going!

(in all seriousness, a clean "bass" rig, along with a crunchy guitar rig for all the effects and craziness, could be really cool here.)

accidentprone13 · #15 12-23-2012, 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by walterw

this is the kind of gig where you need to throw the rules out the window and create a bass wall o' doom!

sub cabs, bass guitar cabs, distorted guitar amps, you should have it all going!

(in all seriousness, a clean "bass" rig, along with a crunchy guitar rig for all the effects and craziness, could be really cool here.)

i'm A/B/Y-ing between my Hartke and a Peavey 115 right now, but still plateauing volume wise, maybe I should add more!

walterw · #16 12-23-2012, 01:19 AM

wrangle 5-600 watts for the dual 4x10 stack, say from a newer hartke head or even a regular power amp, then get a straight-up guitar rig, even a tube guitar rig, that you'd use for the effects and overdrive.

Downunderwonder · #17 12-23-2012, 01:28 AM

Nah, rules is rules. Rule breaking rigs with visaul appeal is little league stuff. Shoot for the big time and follow the rules along the way. Get yourself a couple of 2x10. Use one of them with PA support. If you got the goods you will sound great, a soundman's wet dream, or mix yourselves with your own PA.

Half the PA vs Backline threads someone chimes in with the time they were backstage at some famous cats' gig with their weeny mic'd rigs. Follow the rules, get famous.

Re the 300w tube option, grab it if you can, just because it can come in handy for a hairy arsed rock band, and it's bargain priced.

accidentprone13 · #18 12-23-2012, 03:20 PM

It is a solid state PA head, so no dice. However the guy was selling one of these for $200 (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-a...ereo-power-amp). I'd have to get a mixer, or something to run the bass through, but could that work s a head?

Floyd Eye · #19 12-23-2012, 03:22 PM

Seems like a decent deal based just on the SP2s if they're in good shape.

B-string · #20 12-23-2012, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by accidentprone13

It is a solid state PA head, so no dice. However the guy was selling one of these for $200 (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-a...ereo-power-amp). I'd have to get a mixer, or something to run the bass through, but could that work s a head?

You can feed that PA amp from the effects send of the Hartke. The Hartke will then be your preamp and will have no trouble running without a speaker cab attached.