Question for gearheads[views:2676][posts:20]____________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:03pm - immortal13 ""] Is it possible to bring up the impedance my head puts out with a power amp? My new Basson cab requires a minimum load of 750 watts at 8 ohms, but my head only puts out 450 watts at 4 ohms. Would a power amp bring up the impedance and wattage? And if so, would I need a pre-amp to go with it. For the record, my head is an Ampeg SVT-3 PRO, and it has a preamp output and power amp input, right next to each other like a lot of heads have. Would this work, or do I need a new head? |
| __________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:06pm - Niccolai ""] that's not what your cab requires, it's what it can handle. and with impedance, the lower the ohm number, the higher the actual resistance. |
| ____________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:08pm - immortal13 ""] No, the cab can handle 1000 watts at 8 ohms. There was a big piece of paper on top of the cab that said: Minimum power requirement: 750 Watts at 4 ohms. So the lower the ohm number, the higher the resistance means? I used to know this, but kinda forgot after a year of not needing that knowledge. |
| __________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:08pm - SteveOTB ""] Niccolai said:that's not what your cab requires, it's what it can handle. and with impedance, the lower the ohm number, the higher the actual resistance. Read on the right side, it mentions about needing an amp rated at 750+ watts at 8 ohms. http://www.bassonsound.com/b410b.htm |
| __________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:09pm - Niccolai ""] that's a wiiiierd cab then. is there a series crossover in it? based on what your saying, your head is only about 225-280 watts at 8 ohms... and for some reason your cab needs three times the power to run it. That's a very unorthadox setup. |
| __________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 7:25pm - SteveOTB ""] Niccolai said:that's a wiiiierd cab then. is there a series crossover in it? based on what your saying, your head is only about 225-280 watts at 8 ohms... and for some reason your cab needs three times the power to run it. That's a very unorthadox setup. So essentially what we need is MORE POWER!!! [img] |
| _____________________________________ [Dec 28,2007 10:33pm - immortal13 ""] Niccolai said:that's a wiiiierd cab then. is there a series crossover in it? based on what your saying, your head is only about 225-280 watts at 8 ohms... and for some reason your cab needs three times the power to run it. That's a very unorthadox setup. That is around what my head runs at 8 ohms. Would a power amp be a good way to push more power? And would I need a preamp to go with it? |
| _____________________________________ [Dec 29,2007 2:10am - unholy_dave ""] immortal13 said:Would a power amp be a good way to push more power? yes And would I need a preamp to go with it? you should plug the preamp output into the input of the power amp. your head will then act as the preamp. |
| _______________________________________________________ [Dec 29,2007 1:43pm - ArrowHead likes Ellios Pizza ""] unholy_dave said:immortal13 said:Would a power amp be a good way to push more power? yes And would I need a preamp to go with it? you should plug the preamp output into the input of the power amp. your head will then act as the preamp. But without a load connected to the power amp output of his head, he's going to fry his output transformer. The simple solution is either A) buy a cab rated for your head B) buy a head rated for your cab |
| __________________________________ [Dec 29,2007 2:37pm - Niccolai ""] I'm afraid pete's right. your head has a built in power amp, you just can't aplify an amplifier to increase power consumption. |
| ______________________________ [Dec 29,2007 2:56pm - Blue ""] yup. sell your head and buy a powerful as fuck head, or go the preamp/poweramp route. if you're not looking to kill yourself monetarily, go pre/power and buy used. |
| _____________________________________ [Dec 29,2007 3:33pm - unholy_dave ""] ArrowHead likes Ellios Pizza said:unholy_dave said:immortal13 said:Would a power amp be a good way to push more power? yes And would I need a preamp to go with it? you should plug the preamp output into the input of the power amp. your head will then act as the preamp. But without a load connected to the power amp output of his head, he's going to fry his output transformer. that head is solid state, it should be fine. a better suggestion though, is what you and blue both said. i'd trade thaat thing in or sell it and move up to the svt 4 pro, 1200 watts @ 4 ohms, and nearly identical preamp section |
| __________________________________ [Dec 29,2007 3:51pm - Niccolai ""] I would try sending an email to Basson first before anything though it sounds fishy that their cab won't work with any head that uses less then 750 watts at 8 ohms. It may be a typo? |
| _____________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 10:40am - immortal13 ""] unholy_dave said:ArrowHead likes Ellios Pizza said:unholy_dave said:immortal13 said:Would a power amp be a good way to push more power? yes And would I need a preamp to go with it? you should plug the preamp output into the input of the power amp. your head will then act as the preamp. But without a load connected to the power amp output of his head, he's going to fry his output transformer. that head is solid state, it should be fine. a better suggestion though, is what you and blue both said. i'd trade thaat thing in or sell it and move up to the svt 4 pro, 1200 watts @ 4 ohms, and nearly identical preamp section Nope. My head is a tube head with a mosfet power section. Can't get the SVT-4 because I need a head that runs 8 ohms, not 4. |
| ___________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 10:50am - Niccolai ""] any head that will handle a 4 ohm load will also handle an 8 ohm load, since 8 ohms is less resistance. generally speaking, a amp that uses 400 watts at 4 ohms, will use in the area of 200 watts at 8 ohms. half of the resistance means half of the power is needed. |
| ______________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 11:04am - unholy_dave ""] immortal13 said: Nope. My head is a tube head with a mosfet power section. i'm aware of that, my point is that a solid state power amp (MOSFET or otherwise) will not be damaged by not having a load attached to it. it makes no difference whether there are tubes in the preamp. Can't get the SVT-4 because I need a head that runs 8 ohms, not 4. like niccolai said, any head that is stable at 4 ohms will run at 8 no problem. if were you i'd get rid of the bassoon and get an ampeg. look around, someone's always selling one somewhere (craigslist is a good resource for that) and you can often get one used for around 500 bucks. |
| _______________________________ [Dec 30,2007 12:16pm - Blue ""] he just got rid of his ampeg 4x10, he is endorsed by basson now. |
| ___________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 12:44pm - Niccolai ""] plus basson cabs are fucking killer. I wouldn't want to get rid of it. Like I said before, call basson and tell them exactly what you have and want to do. they will be able to give you the best idea. |
| __________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 1:11pm - sinistas ""] There's a lot of bullshit in this thread, but check it out anyways. Basson claims that if you underpower the cab, the voice coils will break: http://acapella.harmony-central.com/archive/index.php/t-1184179.html |
| _____________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 2:07pm - unholy_dave ""] sounds like the folks at Bassoon are a bunch of clowns. the only way a voice coil is going to burn out with an underpowered amp is if you drive the amp to ungodly amounts of clipping, and even then it's unlikely. and your tone would go to shit long before then anyway. total bullshit. |
| ____________________________________ [Dec 30,2007 4:26pm - immortal13 ""] Blue said:he just got rid of his ampeg 4x10, he is endorsed by basson now. Didn't get rid of it yet. Still up for sale. $400 if anyone wants it? |