SWR Workingman's 12 Question

[RBrownBass]

I have a (pre-Fender, just in case it matters specwise) SWR Workingman's 12 combo and I will be receiving a Hartke 2200 (2x12 w/tweeter, angled top, 300W, 4ohms) cab in a few weeks. I'm definitely going to purchase a more powerful head soon, probably a GK Backline 600, but I'd like to try the cab out anyhow for a couple of gigs first.

I can make a plywood "cabinet" for the amp section in a couple of hours, no problem, but my real concern is what to do with the output to the speaker. Should I solder the male part of a cable to the wires that curently lead to the main speaker and use that, or can I use the external speaker output with a regular cable and just leave the main speaker wires hanging (but taped so they don't contact one another or anything else)?

[vin*tone]

I'm not sure what you're trying to do. Are you wanting to plug the other head into the speaker of the combo?

[RBrownBass]

Originally Posted by vin*tone

I'm not sure what you're trying to do. Are you wanting to plug the other head into the speaker of the combo?

There is no "other head" yet. I'm just looking to power the Hartke cab until I can afford the GK head. The speaker from the SWR combo will not be used, just the amp.

[RBrownBass]

<bump>

[David1234]

Both your plans can work. You might like to build a female speakon socket into the cab you're making and connect the existing wires to that. That way you'll still have the option of a further extension speaker, and the mods will be quite reversible. Once you get the bigger head, you might as well put the combo back together for practising. It's handy owning more than one good amp!

Note, there's a good chance that the hartke won't sound as loud as the combo does now (based on its specs; it should sound deeper, but overall quieter).

[RBrownBass]

Originally Posted by David1234

Both your plans can work. You might like to build a female speakon socket into the cab you're making and connect the existing wires to that.

Thanks so much- I think you understood everything except that I'm not building a speaker cab- I'm building a protective enclosure for the amp head. Kinda like a small rack. Think of it like taking the speakers out of a combo cabinet and then sawing off the top so you don't have to carry the speaker part around when you want to use only the amp. I'd do that, but I will want to flip the combo at some point so I'm not going to chop it up. So I'm building an enclosure instead.

Once you get the bigger head, you might as well put the combo back together for practising. It's handy owning more than one good amp!

I plan to. There's a lot of convenience in being able to leave one amp at a rehearsal space, too.

Note, there's a good chance that the hartke won't sound as loud as the combo does now (based on its specs; it should sound deeper, but overall quieter).

Now this is something I didn't expect. I figured that the Hartke cab would be louder as it uses the amp's minimum load (the Hartke is a 4 ohm cab, while the SWR combo's speaker is 8 ohms with the option of an extension 8 ohm speaker), AND it has two speakers instead of one. With the stock-wired SWR, I'm putting 100W into a single 12" 150W woofer and tweeter in a small cab. With the SWR unplugged from its speaker and plugged into the Hartke, I'll be putting 160W into two 12" 150W woofers and a tweeter in a considerably larger cab.

Why would the combo be louder? Am I missing some science here?

[T-Bird]

Hi.

The way the WM's are constructed, making a headcase for the amp is as simple as You said. If You are planning to dime that small amp to 4 Ohm load, I'd improve the cooling though.

Originally Posted by Auriaprottu

I figured that the Hartke cab would be louder as it uses the amp's minimum load (the Hartke is a 4 ohm cab, while the SWR combo's speaker is 8 ohms with the option of an extension 8 ohm speaker), AND it has two speakers instead of one. With the stock-wired SWR, I'm putting 100W into a single 12" 150W woofer and tweeter in a small cab. With the SWR unplugged from its speaker and plugged into the Hartke, I'll be putting 160W into two 12" 150W woofers and a tweeter in a considerably larger cab.

Why would the combo be louder? Am I missing some science here?

Didn't look at the specs, but first of all, the power increase from 100W to 160W is less than the smallest noticeable increase of 3dB. Secondly, if the sensitivity of the hartke cab is the same or less than the SWR speaker, all You'll gain is the 3dB from the added speaker. Thirdly, the cab wattage(s) rating (s) are about useless as nuns nipples .

Both the SWR and Hartke use Eminence drivers, but getting T/S specs is impossible.

My guess is that the volume will be the same with both of the options. Based only on the comparison with the SWR 10" in my WM that was replaced with Hartke XL 10".

Regards
Sam

[RBrownBass]

Originally Posted by T-Bird

Hi.

The way the WM's are constructed, making a headcase for the amp is as simple as You said. If You are planning to dime that small amp to 4 Ohm load, I'd improve the cooling though.



Didn't look at the specs, but first of all, the power increase from 100W to 160W is less than the smallest noticeable increase of 3dB. Secondly, if the sensitivity of the hartke cab is the same or less than the SWR speaker, all You'll gain is the 3dB from the added speaker. Thirdly, the cab wattage(s) rating (s) are about useless as nuns nipples .

Both the SWR and Hartke use Eminence drivers, but getting T/S specs is impossible.

My guess is that the volume will be the same with both of the options. Based only on the comparison with the SWR 10" in my WM that was replaced with Hartke XL 10".

Regards
Sam

Thanks for the info. I know now not to expect any additional volume from the new (to me) cab, then.