Cabinet suggestions

[TonyRage]

Just picked up a pre-fender SWR SM-900 -- Off my GAS now! -- and a steal at $659. I am not going to be going nuts with it (don't need to play for 1000 people yet), but down the road, I can only hope.

So it puts out 650 watts at 8 ohms, or 900 @ 4 and I am looking for a cabinet that will handle that, and give me some growl and some punch. The amp is going to be racked with an ADA MB-1, play a Modulus Q5 and I use a variety of pedals. Style is country/rock in one band, and world/funk in another, and top 40/classic rock in yet another. Hence the ADA and SWR combo (ridiculous tone control).

So, I am thinking 4x10, maybe 6x10. Between $300-$1000 (I could go higher if need be, but not for a few months).

Suggestions?

 

[Stumpy]

Eden D410XLT ... All the growl / punch you will need.

 

[TonyRage]

I never see anyone recommend the XST? It seems to cost more. What are you getting or not getting with it (other than smaller size).

 

[JGR]

You like SWR so maybe you should stick with an SWR cab - Goliath Sr., Henry 8x8, or a couple of Goliath III's or Triads would be nice.

JR

 

[TonyRage]

Would I need 2 goliath III's? One handles 700 (pre-fender) or 800 watts (post fender) at 8 ohms. I would probably prefer to go goliath/bertha as a stack, rather than 8x10, but wouldn't one goliath put out a hell of a lot of sound.

 

[poor_gear_whore]

I would look around for a used 12 stack. 4 12s and they are 8ohms, so you could run two.

 

[TonyRage]

Who makes a nice 4x12? Will it still have the punch of a 4x10?

 

[Chris V.]

If you get a 4x12 with tweeters. Or two 2x12's + 1x8 with a tweeter. That'll have some sucker-punch to it.

 

[seansbrew]

My Pre-Fender SM-500 sounds great thru my Schroeder 1210 cab. I also used to play a Modulus and it sounded great thru this rig. I recommend a Schroeder 21012.
http://www.schroedercabinets.com/21012.htm

 

[poor_gear_whore]

Who makes a nice 4x12? Will it still have the punch of a 4x10?

The 12 stack is a discontinued cab from SWR. They were one of the better sounding cabinets SWR has made. You might have a little bit of a hard time finding one used. They do pop up in the classifieds here from time to time. I know that Mesa Boogie, Aguliar and GK make 4x12s now.

 

[GreyBeard]

You like SWR so maybe you should stick with an SWR cab - Goliath Sr., Henry 8x8, or a couple of Goliath III's or Triads would be nice.

JR

+1 I had a Triad for a while, really nice cab.

 

[JimmyM]

I have to put in a good word for my new favorite speaker combination, 12" w/tweeter and 15". For a small rig to put out a lot of sound, you can't beat the 12"/15" combination. 15" on the floor, amp rack in the middle, 12" on top, and you get massive lows with a full-range 12" hitting you in the back of the head so you can hear yourself.

I'm doing it with a Markbass 12" combo and my old B-15N 15" as of last night, but I wish I had this combo with my SM-500 (currently for sale in the Amps ad forum!). I used a 4-10" with the SM-500, and the audience heard a great sound but it often blew right past me. This is a way more efficient and smaller speaker setup. Vertical stacks with smaller cabs are the way PA systems are designed now because the audience hears it better with much less horsepower, and it works wonders on bass as well.

 

[TonyRage]

Thanks guys. Some good suggestions. I am leaning towards the eden d410 (xst, xlt ???), and maybe a 15 below. But I might just start buying some speakers and build me something nice. I like the idea of 10's for the studio, but I do worry about how much low end I can pull on stage without a 15.

On a side note, I recorded on my buddies Ampeg SVT (300 watt model) with an SWR Bertha tonight. The room was around 12x10 feet and I swear the room itself was acting like a speaker, this huge dull boomy low end (not through the mic mind you). Pretty funny stuff.

 

[TonyRage]

And if the triad is only rated to 400 watts at 4 ohms, can it even handle the output of the SM-900, or would I have to lay back on the gain/master?

 

[JimmyM]

If you're planning to play really really loud, you should never get a speaker that's rated below the amp's RMS wattage out of one side. Most of us, however, will never begin to use the amount of wattage in an SM-900. That's the reason I got an SM-500. I would run my 4-10" out of one side and it would kill me with volume if I needed it, and it was only 150w.

But if you want to get all insane with volume, you're better underpowering the speakers slightly than overpowering them slightly.

 

[TonyRage]

Thanks Jimmy.
I have some things to learn still. I'll probably go to a higher wattage speaker cause I do get some festival gigs (gotta love playing in bands with promoters), and of course I still hope to be a rockstar someday.

So one more question. If I get a 4x10 at 8 ohms and 800 watts, do I still need a 15 rated at 800 watts, and 8 ohms, or can I run a 400 watt 15 at 8 ohms? The combined 4 ohms would ideally (although I know the amp is probably never going to put out it's "rated' max) give out 900 watts. Does that mean I need cabs both rated at more than 900, if I was to crank it up, or can the combined wattage of the cabs equal over 900?

 

[JimmyM]

The wattage will be spread out equally over two speakers, and yes, two 8 ohm cabs will give you 900w total, or 450 a side. But the power handling doesn't change with the impedance, so a 400w cab at 8 ohms will be a 400w cab at 4 ohms.

For my purposes, a 400w 15" would be all I'd need or want with that head, and I would more than likely never worry about overpowering it. Speakers can often take more wattage (not much more) than their rating, so you'd have to judge whether 400w handling would be enough on a case by case basis. Personally, I think you would be alright with a good 400w 15" and an 800w 4-10", but if you want to cause sterility in small children and old people, maybe I'd get a 500w bottom cab.