Question about running my head at 2 ohms

[dukeisdog]

Hey everyone,

I have a Peavey Tour 700, and an 8 ohm Avatar 212. It's great for all of my bass playing, but I also use it as speakers for my iPod.

I've been thinking about getting a 4 ohm peavey 2X15, just because I've always liked the sound of 15s, and can get one for about $150. It would most likely stay at home, while the Avatar stays at my guitarists place, that way I don't have to bring it back and fourth.

Then I got this crazy idea: What about if I got two of these cabs, kept them both at home, and used them both with my head, as speakers basically. I listen to lots of dubstep, which is really bass heavy, and think it would sound intense with 4 15's.

I would hook both cabs up to my head, giving me 2 ohms. My head can only do 4 ohms. Would I be risking damaging the head even if I didn't have it insanely loud?

Is this overall a terrible idea? Forgive me if it is, it's 2 AM, and I can't sleep .

[Munjibunga]

Yes risk, yes terrible. Don't do it.

[onosson]

My advice - go to sleep and read these comments in the morning.

[dukeisdog]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Yes risk, yes terrible. Don't do it.

Could I just get a cheap power amp that could go down to 2 ohms, use the preamp from my head, and everything would be good?

[dukeisdog]

Originally Posted by dukeisdog

Could I just get a cheap power amp that could go down to 2 ohms, use the preamp from my head, and everything would be good?

Onosson - trust me, I'm trying.

[onosson]

Me too! I'm gonna go take my own advice right now - good luck!

[GrowlerBox]

Originally Posted by dukeisdog

Could I just get a cheap power amp that could go down to 2 ohms, use the preamp from my head, and everything would be good?

Yes you could, but it's very likely that your mismatched cabs would sound like crap together, and you'd have spent more money and lost more sleep for nothing. You'd be much better of getting another Avatar 212, running them both through your Peavey head and sleeping easy. You can guarantee that this will sound good, there's no such thing as "the sound of 15s" anyway, and go to sleep (that's meant to be a yawn).

[Jaco who?]

Trade your Tour 700 for a Firebass 700.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by Jaco who?

Trade your Tour 700 for a Firebass 700.

+1

[Wes Whitmore]

You could run the two cabs in series for an 8ohm load. You might get further getting cabs designed to play the deep bass that is in the music you listen to.
Wes

[kosmicwizard]

If you have an extra $150 I don't think there is anything wrong with getting the 2x15. However, I wouldn't run it at 2 Ohms, I think the idea of having a cab at your practice space and another at home is a good idea ... I also think that getting another head for your other cab in time would be an even better one. All the best, and as an insomniac, I hope you are able to get some sleep Bro. Cheers.

[gnjpowell]

Get a Hi-Fi powered subwoofer...

[dukeisdog]

Originally Posted by Wes Whitmore

You could run the two cabs in series for an 8ohm load. You might get further getting cabs designed to play the deep bass that is in the music you listen to.
Wes

How would I go about doing that? I really don't wanna get rid of the tour, I love the head, I just would like to be able to run these cabs together. To clarify, I wouldn't be running my avatar with this setup at all, it would be two 2X15 cabs. It's really too bad that the new GK MB200's don't do two ohms.

[Lowbrow]

Simply put, to run two 4-ohm cabs you'll need a head that operates at 2 ohms. The one you mention does not run at 2 ohms, so you may damage it by trying to do so.

[Balog]

Get a pair of 8ohm 2x15's instead?

[AwkwardLoudness]

You could:

- re-wire each 2x15 to be 16Ω each. Each cab has two 8Ω speakers wired in parallel for 4Ω total, so you'd re-wire in series for 16Ω.

- Use a special speaker Y-cable to connect two 4Ω cabs in series to the amp for 8Ω load total.

-Buy an integrated amp or power amp that runs stable at 2Ω

-Just use one 2x15 at 4Ω....it's probably loud enough for your purposes.

-get a pair of 8Ω cabs....2x15 or other

I'm not sure why anyone would need two 2x15 cabs for home use, but hey I like it LOUD too.

[dukeisdog]

I war two cabs to get the most bass I can out of them. Surprisingly, the avatar does a decent job as it is playing music, but I like big cabs, I like the way the cabs sound (especially the BW's), and they're fairly inexpensive. I know I probably won't need two, but if I like them well enough, I may just use the avatar at home, and use these for my bass rig.

[Wes Whitmore]

Build a series box or cable so you can run the cab at 4ohms when you just want to use one.