Bill Fitzmaurice

Not enough to make it worthwhile. And it's not underpowering the cab per se. It just lacks sufficient power to overcome the cab's poor sensitivity in the lows. You're fighting against Hoffman's Iron Law. It's a futile effort.

Valve amps can work better with lower impedance loads, depending on the output transformer load rating.

The values each of the rheostats would have at any given level of attenuation are the same as those for a fixed LPad, which you calculate with this: https://sengpielaudio.com/calculator-Lpad.htm

You've got a double whammy. The EBS cab is physically too small to have high sensitivity in the lows, the Elf isn't powerful enough to overcome that. The Streamliner can. I'd have no problem driving my 112 with the Elf, but my cab is nearly twice the size of yours.

I get that, but the flaw in your logic is that there's no benefit to pulling the full power from the Elf. All else being equal, and it never is, the difference in the potential maximum output of a 4 ohm versus 8 ohm cab with your amp is roughly 2dB. That's audible, but barely, and it assumes you actually need to pull all of the power out of the amp. You probably don't, and if for some reason you do a pair of 8 ohm cabs will go louder than one 4 ohm cab.

If you want 4 ohms 'to get all the watts out of my amp' that's OK if you never need more than one cab. But if you do you won't be able to, as the ELF has a minimum load of 4 ohms. 8 ohms is more practical, and easier to find. As for 'small...with good lows' those attributes are mutually exclusive, so if you're going small you have to accept that it won't go as low as a larger cab.

Correct. An LPad is a pair of resistors that attenuate a signal while maintaining a constant impedance load, without which a high pass filter won't work. Those resistors can be of set value for a set degree of attenuation, or they may be variable value, for a variable degree of attenuation. They're typically not used to realize flat response. If that was the case they wouldn't have been used on innumerable hi-fi speakers that had drivers of equal sensitivity for the last 75 odd years. Their primary function is to allow the user to tailor the response of a speaker to their own taste. Some speaker designers use fixed value LPads to match the sensitivity of midrange and high frequency drivers to that of the woofer when they are higher, but more often than not they use variable value.

And as noted the impedance of the 1/4" output is ten times what it should be. Combine that with the lack of an XLR input on the power amp and what you have is two non-standard devices that doomed any attempt at using them together.

Quite right. I didn't notice that the only way the Sadowsky pre can deliver the required low impedance output is with the XLR output, while the Sumo doesn't have an XLR input, a curious omission. For that matter the high impedance of the Sadowsky 1/4" output is very unusual.

Don't make more of it than you should. All attenuation does is to turn down the tweeter. If a user can't figure that out they should stick to acoustic instruments. 😉

☺️

Because the average horn loaded high frequency driver has 10dB higher sensitivity than the average woofer attenuation by one means or another is a necessity. It can be with a variable LPad, or with a fixed value LPad, or with DSP. Yes, the bass and preamp can reduce the treble, but their frequency passbands don't necessarily line up with that of the tweeter. Besides, there's nothing wrong with tweeter attenuation, we've been doing it for a hundred years, so why not?

You won't get a good guitar tone from a bass cab, at least not if you plan to overdrive it. It's tough to beat a Celestion Greenback.

The key word is 'top'. They're made to be used along with a subwoofer. Some are capable enough to replace a bass speaker, but by no means all, and short of trying them you have no way of knowing.

Considering the target audience I'd say the ad is spot on. I'm 75 but I haven't forgotten what got me started doing this when I was 15, and it wasn't trying to impress my parents.

True. Just like a box of chocolates when you mix drivers you never know what you're going to get.

If that's too crude you're too old. 😲

The difference between tens and twelves is slight. Just having the combo up on top of the extension will make the high end more obvious. For that matter putting it on a stand would.

Assuming the Silverado Special is a 2x12 I'd get a 4 ohm 2x12 extension.

That's a hi-fi speaker. The main drawback is it has lower sensitivity than a pro-sound speaker, so it won't go as loud with the same amp.

Tell that to Derek Smalls. ☺️

Pedals are made to go into bass amps. Rack mount pre-amps are made to go into power amps. I'm sure there are exceptions, but the only way to know if any combination is to make sure that the output voltage of the pedal is at least equal to the required voltage to drive the power amp to full output. Unfortunately neither your SPB-1 nor your GSS provide those specs. The impedances aren't the problem, it's the output voltage of the pedal and the input voltage sensitivity of the power amp.

The SBP-1 is a floor pedal, not an active bass, but you're on the right track. Floor pedals by and large are gain configured to drive a full on bass amp, not a power amp.

I drive a BMW. How do I load my gear? Very, very carefully.

Create your own riser. A road case for your cab or combo would work well without needing extra pack space.