How much wattage?

[Musky]

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='1186383' date='Apr 3 2011, 12:59 AM']It's the fashion for smaller cabs meaning they trade off sensitivity, thus need more watts for the volume.[/quote]
It rather depends on the cabs doesn't it? Acmes definitely, BFB Midgets less so.

I tend to think it's just the decreasing cost of the extra wattage myself. If you can have 500w for the same price that 300w would have cost you a few years ago, why not? Having said that, the increase in volume from going from 300w to 500w is insignificant.

[Mr. Foxen]

[quote name='Musky' post='1186398' date='Apr 3 2011, 01:25 AM']It rather depends on the cabs doesn't it? Acmes definitely, BFB Midgets less so.

I tend to think it's just the decreasing cost of the extra wattage myself. If you can have 500w for the same price that 300w would have cost you a few years ago, why not? Having said that, the increase in volume from going from 300w to 500w is insignificant.[/quote]

Actually, expectations of bottom end are another factor. Also, apparently going from 300w to 500w can make a difference between not enough and enough, when Wil's Tech21 head into Schroeder cab was clipping, he borrowed my Matamp power amp, and ran the pre out, the Matamp was 500into 4ohm, and very unlikely to have a higher high pass than the Tech21, and it made enough difference to show it was the amp being the limiting factor rather than the cab. I think that might have been down to the extra bottom end you can get rather than volume from the bit more power.

[chris_b]

My recommendation for a 500 watt amp as opposed to a 300 watt amp has nothing to do with volume. My view is that an amp being thrashed will not sound as good as an amp that is just ticking over, and that a 500 watt power amp running at 300 watts will sound better than a 300 watts power amp running at 300 watts.

The cost of a watt is not very high but the effect of enough watts on your tone and sound is what I look at when I buy an amp.

[watchman]

[quote name='allighatt0r' post='1185729' date='Apr 2 2011, 12:47 PM']An 8x10 is COMPLETELY ridiculous for a pub gig. Are you out of your mind?!?![/quote]

I tend to use a 6x10" for pub gigs, and small ones at that. I like the sound. What can I say? It is entirely possible that I'm out of my mind, of course, but it's feeling good.

[Lozz196]

For pub gigs I`ve always used either a 4x12, or a 4x10 & 2x10 together. Not turned up ridiculously loud I might add, but cos I liked the depth of sound from that many speakers - I`m more of a sit at the bottom holding it all together bassist, and have found that a 2x10 or 1x15 on its own doesn`t provide enough depth for me - with what my budget permits, that is.

However, my back has decreed that I shall be sensible from now on, so its a single lightweight 4x10 for me - and would have been two 2x10s, if funds had permitted.

Loads of speakers don`t have to equate to being loud, however they certainly equate to aches & pains

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

I used to use two cabs with an ashdown Mag300, but I wanted something smaller & more convenient. Now my Schroeder 1212L and Markbass LMII are loud enough that I can be 'too loud' for any pub gig if I wanted to.

Not bad for a rig I can carry with my bass from the carpark to the stage in one trip.

[ThomBassmonkey]

Personally I'd go for a Gallien Krueger 2001RB-II, then start collecting 8Ohm 410RBH cabs until you have 8. After that, get Obbm (from these forums) to make you some splitter leads and you'll be good to go!

1080w into 36 10" speakers. If you're worried that's not enough power, don't worry, you can daisy chain the heads. You could have 4320w on tap with 4 heads.

That would be enough for small gigs and you'll have more than enough headroom!

[Spike Vincent]

You can never have too much power,headroom is always useful,and ultimately it comes down to space,both in your transport and the size of the stage. I still use the Peavey MK.6 head and 2 1x 15 cabs I've had since the late 80's. One cab for the few small gigs we play,both cabs for the many middle size ones,and it goes through the PA for the big 'uns.

[gjones]

[quote name='ThomBassmonkey' timestamp='1301848568' post='1186885']
Personally I'd go for a Gallien Krueger 2001RB-II, then start collecting 8Ohm 410RBH cabs until you have 8. After that, get Obbm (from these forums) to make you some splitter leads and you'll be good to go!

1080w into 36 10" speakers. If you're worried that's not enough power, don't worry, you can daisy chain the heads. You could have 4320w on tap with 4 heads.

That would be enough for small gigs and you'll have more than enough headroom!
[/quote]

But would there be any space left in the room for the audience? They'd have to stand outside.

[neepheid]

Not played huge places but so far I've not needed more than 350W into a 4 ohm 4x10. Like, turned up to 4. I hope that by the time I have an ego that requires an 8x10 then I'll have a roadie or two to put it in place

[paulypbass]

Personally i would invest in a 500watt head or somthing round that power with a 410 and a 115. Then you have plenty of power with two cabs for bigger gigs and for practice you can just use one cab. invest in somthing like a hartke or ashdown. My hartke with a 410 is perfect for practice.

[Mark_Bass]

I'd probably not go for anything more than 500w. I play generally pubs these days *cries* and i don't get my Mesa cranks dot much more than a quarter. 8ohm cabs are probably a good shout as like the others have said it gives you room to expand, getting a monster 8x10 is awesome until you have to move it regularly then you'll probably wish for either 2 cabs, or a van and a roadie or three to move it.
I use a nice Ampeg 410HLF which has lots of bottom end and isn't too much of a pain to move into a van.

[StraightSix]

I would always suggest two cabs for flexibility - one cab for rehearsing and small gigs, two cabs for bigger venues.

It's best not to mix speaker sizes IMO - go with two 2X10 or two 2X12 cabs as BFM has stated.

Secondhand is a great way to buy and get maximum value for money.

[EdwardHimself]

[quote name='DeeBassist' timestamp='1301700794' post='1185454']
Hey there, I was just wondering what kind of power I'd be needing for playing gigs going from small pubs, to small stage venues, like, academies and stuff.

I was thinking of investing into an Ashdown MAG 810 cab with and Ashdown MAG 300 Head. Would this be enough power to be able to heard in a gig?
[/quote]

Yes.

/thread.

[fatback]

Strange I see not much love here for the 1X12 or 1X15 solution in pubs, but the neos are so portable, and you just double up if you need to. f you can afford it, check out BFB compact or midget. Loud.

[sixdegrees]

[quote name='watchman' timestamp='1301838728' post='1186765']
I tend to use a 6x10" for pub gigs, and small ones at that. I like the sound. What can I say? It is entirely possible that I'm out of my mind, of course, but it's feeling good.
[/quote]

I use a front-ported 610 too for all gigs. Far easier to tilt and roll, and it's one less trip to the car compared with multiple cabs.
I previously used a 1x15 and 2x10 (both 8 ohm) with the idea of only having to take one to rehearsals or smaller gigs. In practice it never happened.

I'd go for a 4 ohm 4x10 and keep it simple.

[Jack]

In an ideal world, you have an amp thats just big enough for the gig because smaller amps are easier to transport and fir on smaller stages better. Of course, this is never possible. I'd agree that around 500W into a decent amount of speaker area (say, 4 10"s or 2 12"s) is about right for the majority of gigs. A decent 500W head into a 8ohm 4x10" gives you around 300W to play with and room to add another cabinet later on if you really really need to. If you're loud enough to compete with a drum kit on full-bore then you're loud enough full stop because as soon the soundman starts micing the drums they should really be reinforcing the bass as well.

If I could do my rig again I'd have bought two 1x12"s rather than the 1x12" and 2x12" I have now. I've never really used both cabs together. But then, I wanna change my setup around anyway.

Edited March 20, 2012 by Jack

[sixdegrees]

The argument about 8 ohm cabs does my head in. Surely if you went for a 4 ohm cab in the first place, and got full power from the head, you would be less likely to want to add an extra cab to get more volume/presence? And the 4 ohm option would be kinder to the head in the long run.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

[quote name='sixdegrees' timestamp='1332267960' post='1585872']
Surely if you went for a 4 ohm cab in the first place, and got full power from the head, you would be less likely to want to add an extra cab to get more volume/presence? And the 4 ohm option would be kinder to the head in the long run.
[/quote]No, and don't call me Shirley.
Getting full power from the head is moot, driver displacement is what limits output. Nor will a 4 ohm load be kinder, the lower the impedance load the higher the current draw, the higher the current draw the more heat produced, more heat shortens component life.

[xgsjx]

& the 4Ω cab would probably only put out 3 db more than the 8Ω equivalent.

[Mr. Foxen]

And only then provided the amplifiers power supply was ideal, and that the driver has twice as much excursion as it was previously using.

[StraightSix]

...and the 4ohm cab gives you no room for additional cabs if your amps minimum impedance load is 4ohms.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

[quote name='xgsjx' timestamp='1332269890' post='1585905']
& the 4Ω cab would probably only put out 3 db more than the 8Ω equivalent.
[/quote]It may have 3dB higher sensitivity, but not 3dB higher output. Output is limited by displacement, displacement is not altered by impedance.

[dave_bass5]

In case no one noticed this thread is almost a year old. It seems like the OP went for a Laney Linebacker PL65 combo.

Still a good discussion though.

[xgsjx]

So you're saying he made a good thread & then bought a crap combo!