Maching Cabs to Heads - power ratings

[KidBanjo]

I've been looking for a new rig, and I've pretty much nailed it to the Hartke LH500, I've played a few amps, Ashdown Mag II, Hartke 3500, Laney RB4 and Gallien-Krueger Backline.

I was really keen on the Hartke 4.5XL cab but not 100% on the tone or weight!

I was wondering if I was to pair it up with a Warwick WCA 411 PRO which is rated 600w what would be the implications?

As I would be matching it to an amp giving out about 350w at 8ohms would I be better getting a cab around that rating? Or does it not matter?
Basically am I going to get the same volume from the Warwick cab as a cab with a lower rating?

Cheers

 

[billfitzmaurice]

Basically am I going to get the same volume from the Warwick cab as a cab with a lower rating?

Cheers

How much output you'll get from a cab is almost competely unrelated to its power rating.
Most cabs will reach full output at no more than 1/2 their rated power, so an amp power to speaker power ratio of at least 0.5:1 is a good idea. Going as high as 2:1 will let the amp work easier, more than that isn't of much value.

 

[KidBanjo]

thanks billfitzmaurice, I've had alot of help from the forum, its made narrowing down on my idea amp a whole lot easier!

I guess what I'm getting at is will with the same amp turned up to the same level and plugged into a cab rated 300w or 800w will the output volume be roughly the same? Ignoring differences in sensitivity and other factors.

I'm looking at trying the hydrive cabs now and they are rated at 1000watts! Tone is one thing but not sure how I can trust my perception of volume in a shop.

Thanks again for any help yous guys can give

 

[Richard Lindsey]

thanks billfitzmaurice, I've had alot of help from the forum, its made narrowing down on my idea amp a whole lot easier!

I guess what I'm getting at is will with the same amp turned up to the same level and plugged into a cab rated 300w or 800w will the output volume be roughly the same? Ignoring differences in sensitivity and other factors.

I'm looking at trying the hydrive cabs now and they are rated at 1000watts! Tone is one thing but not sure how I can trust my perception of volume in a shop.

Thanks again for any help yous guys can give

Well, you shouldn't "ignore" sensitivity, because that's basically the thing that makes cabs sound louder or quieter.

But yes, assuming that sensitivity and frequency response are pretty much the same between two cabs rated to handle 300 and 800 W, your volume should not differ much between the two cabs.

A cab's power handling, in and of itself, does not directly determine volume in any way.

 

[SamsonWade46]

listen to these guys they know what they are talking about......aka ditto to what they said