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Program Rms vs. Cont. Rms?

D

daystcity

Mar 23, 2008
253
0
Where am I?!?!?
#1
Hi, I've recently acquired a peavey 1516 that is running great but I have a safety question. On the back plate, it sais that the max power is 400W RMS Program and that the max power is also 200W RMS 28.3v Cont.:eyebrow:

If I get an amp (carvin 400W at 4 and 600w at 2 ohms) that is running at 400 W, am I going to blow the speaker? I've searched about this but found nothing. Thanks in advance!
 
#2
Program RMS is the absolute max the speaker can take over short periods of time. Go with the standard RMS rating (if in doubt, lower number!).

As for your amp... it's highly likely you'll blow your speaker with that unless you're very conservative with the volume. If you push your amp past 50% you'll be putting more than 200w into it, which is fairly bad. However, if you keep the amp's volume at 50% or less, your speaker should be fine.

Generally speaking, it's better to have more wattage in the speakers than the amp (but, if you upgrade your cab at a later point, you'll have the wattage to back it up! ^_^).
 
#3
This cab is doing great so far and I'm not looking to upgrade, (hopefully, limited budget:() but If I get another 4 ohm cab and run them at 600W at 2 ohms, will each cab be getting
300W? Also, this cab has black widows, and I remember hearing somewhere that peavey was modest with their power ratings, (hopeful)!
 
#4
crazyguy832 said:
If you push your amp past 50% you'll be putting more than 200w into it, which is fairly bad. However, if you keep the amp's volume at 50% or less, your speaker should be fine....

Generally speaking, it's better to have more wattage in the speakers than the amp...
Click to expand...
There is no "wattage in the speakers" except for what the amp puts there! I know you just meant the wattage rating written on the back of the cab, but it's important to be clear about the terms. Also the amp's volume control is not a literal direct control over the amount of wattage it's putting out. You can turn the knob up to 50% and get anything from one watt to the absolute maximum wattage the amp is capable of- depending on the signal you feed it.
 
#5
So in a nutshell, The carvin at 400W is going to blow the peavey:(. In a last ditch effort, Is there anyway I can be sure that I won't hurt my precious cab with a carvin or equivelent head?

edit: aside from playing soft, I know, but I would like peace of mind as well. Bongo's comment worries me:(.
 
#6
Oh really, bong? Huh... I thought I had heard someone else say something akin to what I did... my bad.

^_^

Day...

Hmmm...

I'm sorry, I've honestly got nothing. I'm pretty sure if you kept the volume very low you'd be fine, but that's worthless for gigs/band practice.
 
#8
Don't get me wrong, I wasn't at all saying that the amp would blow the cab. In fact I'm pretty sure they'll work together fine! All I was saying was the volume knob is not any kind of way to tell how much wattage is being put out. As long as you don't hear any flapping, farting, or other speaker cone distortion while you play, it's all good. Use your ears, not your knob. ;)
 

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