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Mixing two Ampeg 410's

Discussion in 'Amps and Cabs [BG]' started by Major Softie, Jul 22, 2013.

  1. Jul 22, 2013 #1
    Major Softie

    Major Softie

    Sep 23, 2011
    South Lake Tahoe, CA
    Okay, I'm pretty sure I know what I'm gonna hear, but I just want to double check.

    I have a 4 ohm PR410HLF, a fine cab that is no longer made. I'm pushing it with a Fender 800 Pro that handles 800w at 4 ohms, 1200 at 2 ohms. I like the sound of the PR410, but I'm curious if adding a second 410 cabinet will require me to find another used PR, or if I can expect decent results adding an SVT410HLF, or a PN410HLF. The porting of the PN seems closer in design, and it appears to more the successor to the PR, but neither is identical in either power handling or sensitivity.

    Okay, my flame jacket is on, so go ahead and hit me if this is still combining cabs that are too different to expect acceptable results. :bag:


    P.S. This is just a consideration for the future, as I have absolutely zero current need for more volume than I get out of the single PR.
     
  2. Jul 22, 2013 #2
    JimmyM

    JimmyM Supporting Member

    Apr 11, 2005
    Apopka, FL
    Endorsing: Yamaha, Ampeg, Line 6, EMG
    That is a question that really can't be answered without doing it, and since I've never done it...

    i-dunno-lol.jpg
     
  3. Jul 22, 2013 #3
    Major Softie

    Major Softie

    Sep 23, 2011
    South Lake Tahoe, CA
    Thanks, Jimmy, for your extraordinary candidness. I'm certainly aware that the simplest approach is to take my stuff down to the music store and do some testing. BUT, since the nearest music store is 1 pass and 60 miles away, I thought perhaps I might attempt to find some one who DID know before I hauled my 125 lb. cab to the podunk GC in Reno that has a very limited variety of cabs to test.

    Since I lurked here a long time before I joined, I'm aware what a prolific poster you are. I consider your post to be a very helpful "bump." Lovely graphic too. :D
     
  4. Jul 22, 2013 #4
    JimmyM

    JimmyM Supporting Member

    Apr 11, 2005
    Apopka, FL
    Endorsing: Yamaha, Ampeg, Line 6, EMG
    :D Thanks bro...good luck in your quest!
     
  5. Jul 22, 2013 #5
    walterw

    walterw Supportive Fender Commercial User

    Feb 20, 2009
    alpha-music.com
    i'd have to think that a second 4Ω 4x10 of a similar size and at least similar-looking porting, and from the same company no less, would probably be close enough in behavior to not set your pants on fire or make the baby jesus cry :)
     
  6. Jul 22, 2013 #6
    Buster Brown

    Buster Brown Supporting Member

    Feb 4, 2008
    The Plains of Kansas back from Colorado!!
    I played through a 810 PR cab years ago and I STILL, to this day, contend that it was the best cab that Ampeg ever built. Were it me, and as cheap as those monsters can be found "used" for, I would look for another PR410.

    My biggest concern (for you) would be adding another 128 pounds to the mix. You know as well as I do that the major drawback (and what led to its ultimate demise) was the god-awful weight. However, if you have the wherewithal to move those two monsters around, I would definitely recommend it.

    Good luck with your decision!!!
     
  7. Jul 23, 2013 #7
    Major Softie

    Major Softie

    Sep 23, 2011
    South Lake Tahoe, CA
    Well, don't think for a moment that isn't a consideration. I mean, it's one thing getting one (or even two) out of the truck, but then I have to put one on top of the other. I can certainly see the appeal of making the Neo (64 lbs.) the top cab sitting on the 128 lb PR.

    OTOH, the Fender 800 is a pure SS head, is probably almost 50 lbs in its rack, so obviously I haven't given in to any sense of sensibility here....


    BTW, this is a 55 year-old 5'-7" man talking here, not the power-lifter that was bragging some time ago about how he could throw this stuff around like it was nothing. :p
    Still, I can't even imagine what it must have been like to live with the 810 version of this behemoth.
     
  8. Jul 23, 2013 #8
    Buster Brown

    Buster Brown Supporting Member

    Feb 4, 2008
    The Plains of Kansas back from Colorado!!
    Yeah, as I recall, it tipped the scale at around 235 pounds. It was a chore moving it about, to say the least. But the SOUND!!! :D

    Fortunately, I always had help schleping it in and out of the band truck.

    This is the problem that I encounter all the time. I also have a MarkBass CMD121P that I use quite often for rehearsals and for what it is - it sounds great. Unfortunately, and it's only MY opinion, but when a bass player gives up "weight" for "portability" he sacrifices a little tone. The NEO speakers are great, but 80 oz magnets, they aren't...:D

    I don't know. We all find our "tone" where we find it, I guess. I now use the Heritage gear and I absolutely LOVE it! But there are times when I wish that there was a "lighter alternative" at 2 AM on a Sunday morning....:smug:

    Unfortunately, as an old man, I'm somewhat "hard-headed" in my approach to amps and cabs. Amps and cabs have always been big and heavy - even the 4Pro that I carry (along with the 610) can be like a night at the WWE anymore...:smug:

    It's the curse of the Bass Player I guess..
     
  9. Jul 25, 2013 #9
    Major Softie

    Major Softie

    Sep 23, 2011
    South Lake Tahoe, CA
    Bump.

    So, is this it guys? All you got? I really thought there was going to be a bit more input from the MASSIVE knowledge bass here.

    But, that's okay. If that's all you've got - if I have grossly underestimated the amount of arcane, detailed, technical, obsessive, fanatical devotion to this and all topics that resides here, well, then I guess I'll just experiment on my own....
     
  10. Jul 25, 2013 #10
    JimmyM

    JimmyM Supporting Member

    Apr 11, 2005
    Apopka, FL
    Endorsing: Yamaha, Ampeg, Line 6, EMG
    Sorry man, but the behavior of non-matched cabs being used together is unpredictable on a scientific level without doing it, and those cabs are so heavy that I can't think of anyone I know who does the twin-HLF schlep. So there probably isn't a lot of field reports of those two cabs together.
     
  11. Jul 25, 2013 #11
    Major Softie

    Major Softie

    Sep 23, 2011
    South Lake Tahoe, CA
    Thanks, Jimmy, but, as you had actually responded (little help as that may have been), I was really talking to everyone who didn't respond. :)
     
  12. Jul 26, 2013 #12
    AlexanderB

    AlexanderB

    Feb 25, 2007
    Sweden
    Regarding matching similar cabs:
    I sometimes use SVT-410HLF and SVT-210HE together, 210 on top of the 410. These cabs are NOT identical. They use the same 10" driver but the 210 has a bit smaller volume per driver and is tuned somewhat higer than the 410. Still they match very well and I do not hear any issues related to phase response.
    What the heck, even my EBS ProLine Evolution 2000 210 "pairs" well with the Ampeg 410 although it maybe should not... No apparent dips or peaks in the response.