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Why am I not loud?
- Thread starter pipedreams
- Start date
Don't use the deep switch, and don't use the compressor, it is very bad.
Maybe it's because your ears are not trained yet for live bass sounds. Bue I never heard a good sounding bass player that used the deep switch.
Often, begginers have it engaged because they think it sounds good and then live you don't hear them.
Why do people like the deep switch?
First what does it do?
It stupidly boost the bass while stupidly cutting your mids.
When I say stupidly, I mean to an insane level, the deep switch is almost like having your mid knob to 0.
Mids in bass is where all the tone lies, all the note definition is there otherwise you only have the low punch but no audible note with a band.
That switch also greatly help people with bad technique, because having no mids covers up bad technique, you have no fret clank, and all your volume is magicaly even with that switch.
Maybe it's because your ears are not trained yet for live bass sounds. Bue I never heard a good sounding bass player that used the deep switch.
Often, begginers have it engaged because they think it sounds good and then live you don't hear them.
Why do people like the deep switch?
First what does it do?
It stupidly boost the bass while stupidly cutting your mids.
When I say stupidly, I mean to an insane level, the deep switch is almost like having your mid knob to 0.
Mids in bass is where all the tone lies, all the note definition is there otherwise you only have the low punch but no audible note with a band.
That switch also greatly help people with bad technique, because having no mids covers up bad technique, you have no fret clank, and all your volume is magicaly even with that switch.
+1
Also if your sansamp is a BDDI it boosts the bass and treble a lot. I find that it makes my bass disappear in a band setting. Try getting rid of it and just working with your amps eq and gain. i bet you will hear yourself better. The BDDI is deceiving because it sounds so good alone, but so soft with a band.
Set everything flat. See if it's loud enough then. If it's not, ask your band to turn down. Then adjust your tone in between songs at rehearsal.
The 2x10 + 1x15 with SVT4 should absolutely be louder than acoustic drums and that's where you all should be basing your volume, period.
The 2x10 + 1x15 with SVT4 should absolutely be louder than acoustic drums and that's where you all should be basing your volume, period.
Nope, they will get as much power as you send to them. The amp is very dumb, it only knows the ohms its hooked to, not what the wattage the cabs can handle. The 200 watt cab can only handle so much before it melts down. A clipping amp signal from an over-taxed amp will kill a speaker faster than a a clean signal from a big amp running more watts than the cab is "rated for".
Example: Running a 1000 watt cab with a 100 watt amp at 110% (eleven) is going to be far worse than running your 1,200 watt amp at 50% into your 200 watt/500 watt cab combo. Distortion Kills!
Yes, cabs can be pushed way beyond their rated tolerance but pushing 1200w into a 200w cab is a REALLY bad idea.
If you ever blow up a 1000w cab by overdriving a 100w amp, you'd be the first in the universe to who this happens, let me know...
Maybe you could take the head out to a store or to and try other cabs. See if they react the same way that your current rig does...
My suggestion is Eden, Aguilar, etc. to hear what is going on.
My suggestion is Eden, Aguilar, etc. to hear what is going on.
You should read the FAQ about underpowering there is a link to an interesting thread with audio ENGINEERS explaning in technical details why what you said is impossible.
Pipedream
There is a ton of bad and misinformed info on this thread!
"Justopenyourmind" Seems to have a proper handle on this stuff.
I played in a reggae band for many years- talk about loud and low bass. I used (and still use) the SVT 4 Pro. I had tons over cabs over the years. The DEEP button on the amp definitely sweetens up the sound when you are playing alone or at low volume. Otherwise the DEEP button only muddies up the noise and takes away tons of your power/headroom.
I've also had the ampeg 410 HLF Pro cabinet. That cabinet sounded really nice, alone and at low volumes. It has a very smooth beefy sound. But it is terribly inefficient! It is also backbreakingly heavy and big for a 410. It just will not get loud. If you want more volume then I don't think it is the cab for you. If you want to be louder get some cabs that are far more efficient than what you have. Look for cabs that are rated at 103+DB. I would start with a single 410. If you find one you like- you could buy another of the EXACT same cab when your funds permit. They will be easier to move around than an 810.
When you are trying to EQ your tone, don't just boost the things you want to hear more of. You should start by lowering the EQ points of the things you don't want to hear. Your technique and attack on the strings while playing can help you acheive the low tones you want. try playing softer, and play closer to or even over the fretboard. use the soft meaty pads of your finger to help acheive a lower dubby sound.
So in order to get more volume out of your SVT4 pro--
use very efficient cabs
don't boost the low end so much
more speaker area is your friend
good luck to you! And remember. There has been a lot of bad info on here from people with good intentions- they just don't really have their fact right.
There is a ton of bad and misinformed info on this thread!
"Justopenyourmind" Seems to have a proper handle on this stuff.
I played in a reggae band for many years- talk about loud and low bass. I used (and still use) the SVT 4 Pro. I had tons over cabs over the years. The DEEP button on the amp definitely sweetens up the sound when you are playing alone or at low volume. Otherwise the DEEP button only muddies up the noise and takes away tons of your power/headroom.
I've also had the ampeg 410 HLF Pro cabinet. That cabinet sounded really nice, alone and at low volumes. It has a very smooth beefy sound. But it is terribly inefficient! It is also backbreakingly heavy and big for a 410. It just will not get loud. If you want more volume then I don't think it is the cab for you. If you want to be louder get some cabs that are far more efficient than what you have. Look for cabs that are rated at 103+DB. I would start with a single 410. If you find one you like- you could buy another of the EXACT same cab when your funds permit. They will be easier to move around than an 810.
When you are trying to EQ your tone, don't just boost the things you want to hear more of. You should start by lowering the EQ points of the things you don't want to hear. Your technique and attack on the strings while playing can help you acheive the low tones you want. try playing softer, and play closer to or even over the fretboard. use the soft meaty pads of your finger to help acheive a lower dubby sound.
So in order to get more volume out of your SVT4 pro--
use very efficient cabs
don't boost the low end so much
more speaker area is your friend
good luck to you! And remember. There has been a lot of bad info on here from people with good intentions- they just don't really have their fact right.
And your post isn't devoid of it either. For instance:
Well, sorta. It means the speakers inside add up to 400w of thermal dissipation before the voice coils will start to heat up to where they can warp. More importantly, the cab will take a lot less than 400w before the speakers run out of excursion and just give you distortion as you crank the volume further.
Right on the first point, but a cab doesn't need a certain amount of power to "start sounding good" unless you want the sound of the speakers distorting (as is often the case with guitar speakers).
A clipping amp is no worse for speakers than a fuzz pedal or any other source of clipping. Which is to say, not bad at all. The bad-for-speakers part is that you've got a cranked 1200w amp. Overpowering harms speakers, period, whether clipping or not.
Bassy is right on the money here. After doing a ton of reading on this site about speakers, it seems to me that Bill F. Maurice's horn-loaded designs are the kings of efficiency across the frequency spectrum. They're also very very cheap if you have some tools and know how to build them yourself. Traditional speaker cabs can't keep up unless you're talking about seriously big stuff like 8x10's or multiple smaller cabs. My advice: do like I did and just go 8x10 + 2x15
You won't need 600w, much less 1200.
Wouldn't that indicate a phase issue? I thought that pushing in the bridge button caused one channel to swing out of phase. Shouldn't the sound be quite different for stereo and bridged connections without inverting one side?
From what I know the only way to use the full 1200w is by pressing the mono-bridge switch and using the special central speaker plug.
If you press the mono bridge but use the 1/4 jack on power amp A and B im guessing youre still gonna be in stereo mode.
Each power amp can only put out 300w @ 8ohm so im guessing thats what each of your cab are getting.
When you daisy chain them in one power amp, the amp see them as a 4ohm load. One power amp puts out 490w @ 4ohm so each cab probably get 245w.
Thats the way i understand it at least by reading the manual and trying a few combo on my SVT4
If you press the mono bridge but use the 1/4 jack on power amp A and B im guessing youre still gonna be in stereo mode.
Each power amp can only put out 300w @ 8ohm so im guessing thats what each of your cab are getting.
When you daisy chain them in one power amp, the amp see them as a 4ohm load. One power amp puts out 490w @ 4ohm so each cab probably get 245w.
Thats the way i understand it at least by reading the manual and trying a few combo on my SVT4
Really? 8x10's or similar sized cabs are far easier to move around than any smaller cab you have to deadlift off the floor IMO.
Really? 8x10's or similar sized cabs are far easier to move around than any smaller cab you have to deadlift off the floor IMO.
Who says you have to "deadlift" any of the smaller cabinets? A 410 with casters is easier to move around, lift, and fit into a "normal" sized vehicle with ease.
My Aguilar GS112 is an easy one hander cabinet. it sound fantastic-- but its not the cab for the OP. Its very inefficient at 95db. it would take lots of them to be LOUD. The good thing about the AMPeg amp here is that the SVT 4 Pro could literally power 4 of these per side- for a grand total of 8- 12s!
I am all for the Billfitzmaurice cabinet designs. I am seriously considering building a couple of his Jack 110's or jack 112's. They can be built very light using 1/2" wood. Any they are extremely sensitive- so they are are VERY loud for their size. Of course I only "know" this from reading about them- i've never heard or used on myself.
If one were to build a composite BFM cab, as some on his forum have done- you could have some killer loud cabs that would only weigh 20-25 or so pounds.
