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Really stuck on going 8 or 4 ohm...

Z

Zildjian106

Apr 8, 2007
395
1
#1
So I own a Trace AH500-7. I love it to death.

Currently I am using it with a Mesa 210 8ohm cab and I need more volume.

I am looking at a 410 or 212 and can't decide whether to go 4 or 8 ohms. If I go 8 will my head be able to drive say a Aguilar GS212 or 410?
 
#7
WordToHerb said:
i always get 8 ohm cabinets. The volume increase from an 8 ohm to a 4 ohm cabinet is very small and hardly noticeable.
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As I've posted many times, it depends:smug:

Going from 8 to 4ohm with a 210 with an amp that puts out a ton of watts at 8ohms, you are correct. With a big 410 with an amp that puts out less watts than you really need at 8ohms, you would be quite surprised at the difference. It is again not just about volume (which you will notice), but about the amp not hitting its power amp limiting when pushed beyond its 8ohm limits.

Blanket statements of 'always go 4 for more power' or 'always go 8 because you won't notice the difference' are not very useful. It's not that simple, and even the +3db increase quoted by many as the result of approximately doubling the power is not very helpful without knowing how much power the cab can take, and what wattage you are starting out from.

IMO and IME
 
#8
JimmyM said:
250-ish is plenty. I've played metal gigs on less.
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As has been posted many times, the cabinet SPL and cone area is a better indication of 'loud enough' than just pure power spec's. These sort of blanket statements are not that helpful to me.

250 watts into a mid-voiced, high SPL cab used by a player that doesn't dial a ton of low end into his/her sound can be loud enough for pretty much anything (example, the old GK800/Hartke 410 rigs).

If you use a relatively widely voiced head into a more fully voiced cab (i.e., lower general SPL), combined with a player that wants it pure and deep and/or uses some agressive techniques like slap (which result in a lot of transient peaks), then it could take a MASSIVE amount of watts to get up to high volume levels and have a full, non-compressed low end without any clamping when you really pound on it.

Per my post above, it's not that black and white.
 
#9
KJung said:
As has been posted many times, the cabinet SPL and cone area is a better indication of 'loud enough' than just pure power spec's. These sort of blanket statements are not that helpful to me.

250 watts into a mid-voiced, high SPL cab used by a player that doesn't dial a ton of low end into his/her sound can be loud enough for pretty much anything (example, the old GK800/Hartke 410 rigs).

If you use a relatively widely voiced head into a more fully voiced cab (i.e., lower general SPL), combined with a player that wants it pure and deep and/or uses some agressive techniques like slap (which result in a lot of transient peaks), then it could take a MASSIVE amount of watts to get up to high volume levels and have a full, non-compressed low end without any clamping when you really pound on it.

Per my post above, it's not that black and white.
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All of you guys play way too freakin' loud! ;)

Not a bad point to consider, though I still think that wattage levels are getting ridiculous. Cliff Williams can do AC/DC with two SVT/810 rigs. I see no reason someone needs 500w or more to play a local gig in a 150 seat bar.

However, if I were the OP, I'd get a matching 210 instead of a 410. You can stand them vertically on end and make a taller stack that throws more and disperses mids and highs much better, spend less money, and get the silly wattage, too.
 
#10
JimmyM said:
However, if I were the OP, I'd get a matching 210 instead of a 410. You can stand them vertically on end and make a taller stack that throws more and disperses mids and highs much better, spend less money, and get the silly wattage, too.
Click to expand...

i agree, the identical cab will give you 5-6dB PLUS the added dispersion. not only that, but you will get your sound up higher to hear for yourself better, too. as jimmym said, thats a nice cheap solution.
 
#11
billfm just answered this very well in the recent 8/4 switchable thread. sorta like

if your amp isn't loud enough through your 8 ohm cab you need a bigger amp, better cab, or both.

all things being equal you won't get a huge difference with a 4 ohm over an 8 ohm cab. personally i prefer to buy an 8 ohm one so i can always use another 8 ohm cab with it later.

my 2 cents
 

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