I have just joined a band that play rock/metal and we will be playing gigs in the near future. I currently own an SWR redhead which is 400watts at 4ohm but is always getting drowned out by the drums. Am looking to invest in a new head and cab happy to spend decent $$ as long as I won't be needing to upgrade again. Looking for something with some power and punch but with so many choices it's hard to narrow it down. Any advice would be appreciated. Oh also my basses are an ibanez k5 and I hav an sr 5005e prestige on order. Cheers
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Advice on buying head and cab for gigs
- Thread starter Keetrain
- Start date
Can the head go to 2 ohms? If so add an other good 2x10 cab.
A 4x10 setup usually kicks a drummer pretty good.
A 4x10 setup usually kicks a drummer pretty good.
A good amp with 300-500 watts will do, but remember, it's the speakers that make the loud volume. Think 4x10 as a minimum, more is better. matched cabs are best, (2x 212, 2x 410, etc)
Does the amp have an extension speaker jack in the back? Can the amp go down to two ohms? IF so, your best option is to get an identical SWR 2X10.
Although its a pain to be drowned out, by being louder just makes a mess of a sound. Talk to the drummer and the band, the drummer could be using heavy sticks to keep up with the band?
Take down the volume, all bass set I use are set 5 on the 10 scale, no distortion, deep and clean. I'm old! 54 this yr so I've got lots of gear over the years. There is no perfect fits all set up, I play unplugged sets with a schertler set up its 3 amps in one with a max 180 watts it slaves to a separate 180 power cab both have a bi amp with 180 to a tight 8 and 2" 20 watt horn. Both sit on two powered 10 " 360 sub whoofa cabs. As all can be spread they are light to carry an stage wise bass enough to almost a Bose pa clarity if you want.
Bigger gigs an Ampeg svt 4 pro which has two Amps in one it's used by lots of top bass players as it copes with anything thrown at it. I like fretless double tracked under a sub tone so take a big 18" sub with a 4 10 with 3 position horn. The amp is set up as a split and separates the frequencies brilliantly.
From the 70's I picked up an early 60's Ampeg v4b. It's 135watts and easily on stage hold a sound to the svt. It drives very expensive double magnet electro voice 15" as it blows speakers by the dozen. This is great for true guts rock.
So but the best you can afford, build it up as bargains appear and buy new gear that every one raves about. Don't get simulation get the amp you want. With a great collection of top cabs. My only word of warning. The old Ampeg was new ruined beyond repair as the transformer baked. It to over 10 yrs to fix!
Have fun. Old git
Take down the volume, all bass set I use are set 5 on the 10 scale, no distortion, deep and clean. I'm old! 54 this yr so I've got lots of gear over the years. There is no perfect fits all set up, I play unplugged sets with a schertler set up its 3 amps in one with a max 180 watts it slaves to a separate 180 power cab both have a bi amp with 180 to a tight 8 and 2" 20 watt horn. Both sit on two powered 10 " 360 sub whoofa cabs. As all can be spread they are light to carry an stage wise bass enough to almost a Bose pa clarity if you want.
Bigger gigs an Ampeg svt 4 pro which has two Amps in one it's used by lots of top bass players as it copes with anything thrown at it. I like fretless double tracked under a sub tone so take a big 18" sub with a 4 10 with 3 position horn. The amp is set up as a split and separates the frequencies brilliantly.
From the 70's I picked up an early 60's Ampeg v4b. It's 135watts and easily on stage hold a sound to the svt. It drives very expensive double magnet electro voice 15" as it blows speakers by the dozen. This is great for true guts rock.
So but the best you can afford, build it up as bargains appear and buy new gear that every one raves about. Don't get simulation get the amp you want. With a great collection of top cabs. My only word of warning. The old Ampeg was new ruined beyond repair as the transformer baked. It to over 10 yrs to fix!
Have fun. Old git
Going to sleep typing. I meant buy old gear not new. Ahhhhhhh. Old git out
Ps you can guess through the other typos.
Ps you can guess through the other typos.
It's a great and classic combo, but it's not what I would use for a metal band, and you're right, it's not expandable if it's already operating at 4 ohms. I agree with getting at least 300w and a 410. That will make you competitive. Two 410's or an 810 would be better, but a 410 is a good loud cab that should be good for most situations.
Depends on your tonal goals, but for my I get by with one Genz Benz Neox212 on all my gigs. I'll run it with either my SVT, my Aguilar DB750, or my Markbass LMIII.
My mistake...the current manual says the Redhead can do 2 ohms. Well, with a 4 ohm extension cab, I imagine you could pull off enough volume for metal unless you're trying to fill a stadium. I'd also consider adding some mids. SWR amps have a mid scoop with all knobs at noon, so some more mids might help you hear yourself better.
The Redhead should be a 2 ohm amp. I would guess that the internal speakers are 8 ohm total rather than 4, which in that case, you could add a 4 ohm Goliath 4x10, for maximum volume.
BUT, I know for a fact that SWR has had 4 ohm 2x10s in the past so it wouldn't be unheard of if the Redhead's speakers were 4 ohm total. In that case, the most you would want to get would be 4 ohm Goliath Jr 2x10. Even that should give you plenty of volume. Or you could replace the drivers in the combo to get it to 8 ohms.
BUT, I know for a fact that SWR has had 4 ohm 2x10s in the past so it wouldn't be unheard of if the Redhead's speakers were 4 ohm total. In that case, the most you would want to get would be 4 ohm Goliath Jr 2x10. Even that should give you plenty of volume. Or you could replace the drivers in the combo to get it to 8 ohms.
The SWR Super Redhead paired with a Goliath II 4x10 8 ohm was my main rig for many years of road work with a VERY loud band. The Redhead was rock solid and always sounded good, but I must admit that it isn't the ideal rig for hard rock/metal. First of all, it is a very "pretty" and neutral sounding amp: sort of like a warm and loud direct box. This is not an amp that has "nuts".
The trick to getting it to cut with a rock band is to 1. Put a good compressor in front of it to knock down the transients a bit 2. boost the mids to taste and 3. Turn the Aural Enhancer knob to about 2 o'clock. Although the Redhead has plenty of power to get the job done, it does run out of headroom when you really dig into it. In a hard rock/metal band, that's, like...um, every note! So I know where you are coming from.
Stock, the internal speakers are 4ohm. I ran it at 2.6ohms for years and did not have any trouble with the amp. I did, however, go through the stock PAS drivers more than I would have liked (about 3 pairs). I also noticed that running an 8 ohm 4x10 with it caused the amp to push more power through the amp's speakers than the extension (which you would expect), causing an unbalanced sound.
On the advice of SWR, I ended up replacing the 4-ohm load PAS drivers with Eminence Neos running 8 ohms. Not only did the extended x-max of the new drivers extend the low end, but the amp was substantially lighter. Also, the amp wasn't working so hard and the sound was more balanced. Definitely an upgrade.
If you are shopping for a new rig for a rock band, I can give you a tip that worked for me: Mesa M-Pulse 600, Avatar 410 8 ohm, Avatar 2x12 8 ohm. Dialed correctly, the Mesa sounds like the Redhead and an SVT had a Baxandall love child. I couldn't be happier with mine.
Good luck.
The trick to getting it to cut with a rock band is to 1. Put a good compressor in front of it to knock down the transients a bit 2. boost the mids to taste and 3. Turn the Aural Enhancer knob to about 2 o'clock. Although the Redhead has plenty of power to get the job done, it does run out of headroom when you really dig into it. In a hard rock/metal band, that's, like...um, every note! So I know where you are coming from.
Stock, the internal speakers are 4ohm. I ran it at 2.6ohms for years and did not have any trouble with the amp. I did, however, go through the stock PAS drivers more than I would have liked (about 3 pairs). I also noticed that running an 8 ohm 4x10 with it caused the amp to push more power through the amp's speakers than the extension (which you would expect), causing an unbalanced sound.
On the advice of SWR, I ended up replacing the 4-ohm load PAS drivers with Eminence Neos running 8 ohms. Not only did the extended x-max of the new drivers extend the low end, but the amp was substantially lighter. Also, the amp wasn't working so hard and the sound was more balanced. Definitely an upgrade.
If you are shopping for a new rig for a rock band, I can give you a tip that worked for me: Mesa M-Pulse 600, Avatar 410 8 ohm, Avatar 2x12 8 ohm. Dialed correctly, the Mesa sounds like the Redhead and an SVT had a Baxandall love child. I couldn't be happier with mine.
Good luck.
