200 watt GK louder/thicker than 350 watt ampeg??

[Joshua Vance]

So I was rehearsing last night and my keyboardist brought his GK 1x12 200 watt combo for me to use instead of lugging my 350 watt ampeg bh115hp. Long story short before I plugged in I was concerned that I would be under powered seeing the diminutive stature of his smaller GK, but damn, it not only was louder, but just way thicker and deep than my ampeg. What in the world is going on here? It's 150 watts less but sounds twice as good...?

 

[basscooker]

Is the amp running 8 ohms on your combo? Does your amp have a speaker output connector?
The GK may in fact be like 25-50 watts more. Does the GK have external speaker connectors?

 

[Mushroo]

Are you sure Ampeg BH115HP has 350w? I thought it was a 220w practice amp.

AMPEG BA115HP ***???? Distorting?

 

[Joshua Vance]

Is the amp running 8 ohms on your combo? Does your amp have a speaker output connector?
The GK may in fact be like 25-50 watts more. Does the GK have external speaker connectors?

I'm afraid I don't know off the top of my head. They're both combos and are not running any external speakers

 

[Al Kraft]

The voicing difference between GK and Ampeg is not insignificant IMO, not to mention that GK heads usually tend to punch above their weight class. Add to that the cabinet design plus potential speaker sensitivity differences and that can sometimes make as much or more impact on what we hear than 50 or even 100 Watts.

 

[Joshua Vance]

Are you sure Ampeg BH115HP has 350w? I thought it was a 220w practice amp.

AMPEG BA115HP ***???? Distorting?

Oh man sorry everyone I'm an idiot. It is indeed a 220 watt amp.

 

[NOVAX]

Yes. GK for the score!
GK needs a new pedal preamp to throw that baked in goodness onto your combo.

 

[Hundred proof]

All things being equal, voicing and harmonic content can make one seem louder than the other. I have a 70s ACC Acoustic head running 70watts @ 8ohms that hits way above its weight class noting it has a 5% total harmonic distortion rating.

 

[birminghambass]

I used Ampeg for about 15 years. Then I played a GK 700rb. It was so much louder, clearer, deeper, and punchier than my SVT3 Pro, and V4B. I immediately sold all my Ampeg gear and bought a GK stack. Still rocking GK 10 years later.

 

[Kukulkan61]

I can vouch for that observation!!

 

[bolophonic]

I had an SVT-350 4x10" rig for a few years that never seemed to cut the mustard no matter how high I cranked it or how I eq'ed. I replaced it with a 700RB-II and a 2x12" can and now I am twice as loud as I used to be.

 

[SJan3]

Is the amp running 8 ohms on your combo? Does your amp have a speaker output connector?
The GK may in fact be like 25-50 watts more. Does the GK have external speaker connectors?

I'd like think 25 to 50 watts more would be virtually inaudible. Could be speaker efficiency.

 

[basscooker]

I'd like think 25 to 50 watts more would be virtually inaudible. Could be speaker efficiency.

Agreed.

I was pointing out that if the Ampeg was rated to work with an external and the GK isn't, they may be capable of near the same power as they sit.

Turns out they are running about the same power..

 

[S-Bigbottom]

Amp voicing as well as the cabs voicing can play more of a role than watts.

With the same head you can put it on different cabs and also have these types of results.

 

[Spirit of Ox]

I have two early model GK 400RBs (91,93) They are very powerful for 100 watts at 8ohms and 200 at 2ohm. As said, GK has a more powerful wattage rating than claimed with lower THD although they will overdrive when cranked aka Hitting the rails. It's a nice drive compared to a lot of solid state heads due to the GIVE technology.

 

[Standalone]

GK watts are rated conservatively. Ampeg run-of-the-mill solid state stuff is rated optimistically.

 

[InhumanResource]

So I was rehearsing last night and my keyboardist brought his GK 1x12 200 watt combo for me to use instead of lugging my 350 watt ampeg bh115hp. Long story short before I plugged in I was concerned that I would be under powered seeing the diminutive stature of his smaller GK, but damn, it not only was louder, but just way thicker and deep than my ampeg. What in the world is going on here? It's 150 watts less but sounds twice as good...?

Lots of variables. Could be a much more sensitive driver, could be sending more juice at a particular volume setting, could be the voicing/EQ, could be other things I'm not thinking of!

 

[And I]

More likely the gk has a more sensitive driver, turning the same amount of power into more sound.

 

[rodl2005]

GK inherent EQ too..... along with cab tuning etc

Iirc, GK is scooped at 12 o'clock settings. Letting it feel thicker louder..
Is the gain and volume controls taper even... yeah, variables!

 

[Oddly]

I do know that, at least with the GK MB range, if the combo says it's 200w, then it is 200w, and not 200 only when you add another cab., which seems to be the case with a lot of other makers.