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is there a 4 ohm cab that's rated 500 watts?

#23
Old Garage-Bander said:
Yeah! How do they do that? I get eight speakers adding up to 4 Ohms, but six? What's the magic? Always been curious about that.
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It's called "nominal impedance." Nominal impedance - Wikipedia

Cabs aren't exactly 4 ohms, or exactly 8 ohms, at all frequencies.

When a manufacturer markets a cabinet as "4 ohms" or "8 ohms" basically it is for amp-safety purposes. An "8 ohm cabinet" isn't exactly 8 ohms at all frequencies, but it is generally safe to use with an amp head that can push 8 ohms.

Another example is the Barefaced Six10 and Eight10. They are both marketed as "4 ohms" but since they use the exact same drivers, but have different numbers of them, it's impossible that they could both be exactly 4 ohms. But they should both be safe to use with an amp head that can handle a 4 ohm load.

That's my layman's understanding, anyway. There are probably some additional subtleties that are over my head. :)
 
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#25
Lets see... Here are a few I know of. I personally play through a DNS410 and it
the following DNA cabs:
DNS-210 700-watts rms power handling
DNS-410 (I have this cab) 1400-watts rms power handling
not quite good enough are the DNS-112 (450-watts rms) and the DNS115 (450-watts rms)
​
Eden cabs:
D810XT 1700-watts rms power handling
D610XST 1500-watts rms power handling
D410XST 1000-watts rms power handling
D410XLT 700-watts rms power handling
D212XST 600-watts rms power handling
D210XST 500-watts rms power handling​

In truth, there are a lot of single cabs out there that will handle 500-watts rms, but none of them are cheap. Don't forget to keep in mind their Sensitivity ratings. Some cabs have high power handling but low sensitivity so they can handle the power but don't give you much volume for it. Shouldn't have to worry too much about that with the major brands, but worth keeping in the back of your mind..
 
#29
I second (third?) (fourth?) the Barefaced SuperTwin. However, it's not a "hifi" cab, so if you need tons of "bright", then that ain't it, because it's more "vintage" sounding. In that case, in addition to what is mentioned in the thread, you can also look for a Bergantino. They are excellent, for example the HD212 which I have sitting right next to my Barefaced SuperTwin. There are other models as well.
 
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#34
Bodeanly said:
Keep in mind that having a 500 watt cab doesn't mean you cannot blow its speakers with a 500 watt head.
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just wanted to stress this. i play with a lot of attack, and i've blown speakers rated higher than the head i was playing through, and i never turn my heads up past around 2/3. there may be reasons for this other than wattage - excursion, for example - but i like my cabs to have plenty of headroom.
 
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#35
So, literally tons of cabinets fit "nominal impedance 4 Ohms, minimum power handling 500 W, continuous." Or dozens, they probably don't weigh even one ton put together.

The size/weight/volume tradeoff is where you should focus to advance your decision logic.

One cab that is darned close to "cover anything" without being too obnoxiously humongous is the old Genz Benz UB-212T I have, 63 lbs, 600 W, 101 dB/W
@ 1 m. But honestly if I played in a really loud band I'd want more cabinet. A 610 or 810 will blow my 212 out of the water not only in volume but in depth too. And at an acoustic gig, I can turn down but it will not be as good a fit as if I'd used a 112.

The Bergie 212's a number of posters have suggested are all even better than my Genz Benz 212. Or maybe you need to travel light and the band is chill, so a 210 might work?
 
#36
BassmanPaul said:
As a 4Ω cabinet will not be much louder than an 8Ω version may I humbly suggest that you buy an 8Ω cabinet. Doing so will allow you to add a second identical cabinet for a significant increase in volume and headroom. buying a 4Ω box limits you to one cabinet.
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This is true. OTOH one kickass single 4 ohm cab that can take better advantage of your amplification that is 4 ohm capable might be preferable. I use a single 4 ohm cab everywhere because it works and I'd rather not have to carry two cabs around to get the same job done. And my one cab is overkill for the majority of my gigs.
 
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#39
I run an old Peavey 1516 with my Minimax and it kills. I think the cabinet is rated for 200 or 300 watts at 4 ohms. but have never had to push it that hard. I play against two half stacks and a hard hitting drummer. I don't think I've ever had the volume past 11 o'clock with the 1516.

The downside is it weighs like 75 or 80 pounds. But I always take a hand truck with me so it is manageable.
 
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#40
BassmanPaul said:
As a 4Ω cabinet will not be much louder than an 8Ω version may I humbly suggest that you buy an 8Ω cabinet. Doing so will allow you to add a second identical cabinet for a significant increase in volume and headroom. buying a 4Ω box limits you to one cabinet.
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well now..that just all depends on what kind of amp you have..I am running two ampeg SVT HLF 4 x10 cabs (4 ohms each) with my SVT Pro 4 amp..you can also run two 8 x 10 cabs ( 4 ohms each)..I am running dual parallel mode not bridge mode..A and B channels for speakers use independent amps in dual parallel..this amp will also let you run 2 ohms at each speaker channel in dual parallel...but you can only run 4 ohms at bridge mode..
 

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