Since I had an hour to waste and have a few heads and cabinets lying around I played around a little.
Cabinets: Ampeg 410H/2 x Ampeg 210 AVs/Bergantino NV115/Bergantino NV215/Fender Neo 810
Heads (all tube): Ampeg V4B reissue/Orange AD200/Fender Super Bassman 300
Briefly - Ampeg 210 AVs: just a perfect match for the Ampeg V4B (surprise), lovely midrange vibe going on and just totally in tune together.
Ampeg 410H: good with the V4B although it could be a little down on grunt to really drive it at a decent gig, very nice and tight with the Fender Super Bassman, worked with the Orange AD200 - tight, but had to wind the bass back to about nine o'clock.
Bergantino NV115: this is a very full range speaker even though it has no tweeter it has a 6" mids driver, sounded a tad bright with the V4B, nice with the Super Bassman but absolute magic with the Orange AD200 - thick, beautifully tubey but still very articulate. Similar results with the Bergantino NV215, unsurprisingly. If you have been one of those who has dismissed Orange tube heads in the past, then this could be the combination that will change your mind.
Fender neo 810 - I have only just acquired this and didn't have the time to try it with any head other than the Fender Super Bassman 300. The huge pro of this head is that it is considerably lighter than any other 810 around that I can find, it looks great with the Super Bassman on top and it can cop a wide variety of vibes. I won't have the opportunity to gig this in a decent size venue for a few weeks, but initially impressions are tight, loud and punchy. It is a bit different in character to the Fender neo 610 I traded in for it, with a little more happening in the midrange. I think the V4B would work well with it but the obvious choice is the of course the Super Bassman. It should be enough for any large gig I am likely to do.
Anyway, it was just a thought on mixing and matching. All tube heads - I love 'em. I do tend these days to match gear from the same manufacturer where possible, obviously Bergantino has to be an exception.
I am sure there are people out there who are using other mix and match combinations........
Cabinets: Ampeg 410H/2 x Ampeg 210 AVs/Bergantino NV115/Bergantino NV215/Fender Neo 810
Heads (all tube): Ampeg V4B reissue/Orange AD200/Fender Super Bassman 300
Briefly - Ampeg 210 AVs: just a perfect match for the Ampeg V4B (surprise), lovely midrange vibe going on and just totally in tune together.
Ampeg 410H: good with the V4B although it could be a little down on grunt to really drive it at a decent gig, very nice and tight with the Fender Super Bassman, worked with the Orange AD200 - tight, but had to wind the bass back to about nine o'clock.
Bergantino NV115: this is a very full range speaker even though it has no tweeter it has a 6" mids driver, sounded a tad bright with the V4B, nice with the Super Bassman but absolute magic with the Orange AD200 - thick, beautifully tubey but still very articulate. Similar results with the Bergantino NV215, unsurprisingly. If you have been one of those who has dismissed Orange tube heads in the past, then this could be the combination that will change your mind.
Fender neo 810 - I have only just acquired this and didn't have the time to try it with any head other than the Fender Super Bassman 300. The huge pro of this head is that it is considerably lighter than any other 810 around that I can find, it looks great with the Super Bassman on top and it can cop a wide variety of vibes. I won't have the opportunity to gig this in a decent size venue for a few weeks, but initially impressions are tight, loud and punchy. It is a bit different in character to the Fender neo 610 I traded in for it, with a little more happening in the midrange. I think the V4B would work well with it but the obvious choice is the of course the Super Bassman. It should be enough for any large gig I am likely to do.
Anyway, it was just a thought on mixing and matching. All tube heads - I love 'em. I do tend these days to match gear from the same manufacturer where possible, obviously Bergantino has to be an exception.
I am sure there are people out there who are using other mix and match combinations........
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