isteen Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 Got a new head to my two cabs. The head has 3 cabinet outputs - two jacks and one speakon. Will there be any difference in: A) head to cab one via speakon, and link cab one to cab two via the link/speakon on the cabs? B) head to cab one via Jack. Head to cab two via another Jack in the head? Will the power and ohm be the same? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleabag Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 Why not tell us who made the head ? The specs will then tell us what the outputs do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinehead Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 2 hours ago, isteen said: Got a new head to my two cabs. The head has 3 cabinet outputs - two jacks and one speakon. Will there be any difference in: A) head to cab one via speakon, and link cab one to cab two via the link/speakon on the cabs? B) head to cab one via Jack. Head to cab two via another Jack in the head? Will the power and ohm be the same? I'd say both would be the same ie. cabs connected in parallel. Frank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isteen Posted April 12, 2018 Author Share Posted April 12, 2018 The head is a modded up Behringer 450 watt, but that should not matter. BTW: That Behringer Sounds pretty good, after upgrading 36 internal bits and pieces Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 12, 2018 Share Posted April 12, 2018 You can cable from amp to cab to cab or amp directly to both cabs. Same difference. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianrendall Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 On 12/04/2018 at 19:08, isteen said: The head is a modded up Behringer 450 watt, but that should not matter. BTW: That Behringer Sounds pretty good, after upgrading 36 internal bits and pieces This sounds like it deserves its own thread I reckon. Sounds interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 slightly off topic, but I don't really understand why manufacturers can't use the speakon sockets that take a jack up the middle, no innuendo intended 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianrendall Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 5 minutes ago, PaulWarning said: slightly off topic, but I don't really understand why manufacturers can't use the speakon sockets that take a jack up the middle, no innuendo intended My BF Midget cab is speakon only. I wonder if they can be retrofitted to be dual use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 17 minutes ago, ianrendall said: My BF Midget cab is speakon only. I wonder if they can be retrofitted to be dual use? I don't see why not, might knacker up any warranty though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lemmywinks Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 20 minutes ago, PaulWarning said: slightly off topic, but I don't really understand why manufacturers can't use the speakon sockets that take a jack up the middle, no innuendo intended This annoys me too, surely the cost saving can't be that much? I bought a pack of two for a few quid inc delivery a while ago, they're only marginally more expensive for the end user to buy than a regular Speakon. To the OP I would just use Speakon, it's a much better way of hooking up cabs to amps and can't be pulled out accidentally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markymac60 Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 (edited) Hi, according to all the amp manuals I've read - all high power amps use speakon cos it conducts the signal better. 500 Watts and over you generally don't see jack sockets. I had a BH450 and always used speakon. It's more solid connection. Great amp for under £200. Edited April 14, 2018 by Markymac60 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 Jacks? My amp has a cable terminal where you push a button & insert bared cable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 Speakons come from the PA industry where power amps of thousands of watts, long cable runs and many feet and gear movements always posed a threat. The bass world is totally different. Very short cable runs in inaccessible places and significantly lower power requirements means that jack plugs can still be an option. Using jack plugs didn't bother the good people at Ampeg when they designed the powerful 300 watt SVT or the guys at Mesa when they designed the 400 and 400+. Use speakons, why not? But don't demonize jack plugs. They work just as well for bass players and with negligible risk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Starr Posted April 14, 2018 Share Posted April 14, 2018 Speakons are rated at up to 30A whereas 1/4 jacks are rated at up to 5A depending upon exactly which plug and socket you are using, there's a lot of variation. So the power handling of a Jack is 100W into 4ohms maximum. 200W into 8ohms. If you are dealing with anything less than the best quality jacks you can only down rate from this. They were designed for carrying phone signals. We get away with using them for speakers because it is the peaks that are 300W or whatever when we play the average power is way below that however using a component rated for a third or less of its specified maximum handling risks eventual failure. If the contacts are dodgy through age you are going to get some sparking across them too. In addition some Jacks momentarily short out whan you pull the plug out or plug it incorrectly which isn't great for your amp. Don't get me wrong, I'm the sort of old bloke who reaches for jacks for preference and ease but let's not pretend its something we ought to be doing. I used to wire safety pins into old style fuse boxes to stop them blowing mid gig, that wasn't right either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isteen Posted April 14, 2018 Author Share Posted April 14, 2018 8 hours ago, ianrendall said: This sounds like it deserves its own thread I reckon. Sounds interesting. I got the head second hand for something like £60. I had 36 components upgraded for £75. Now it really sounds good - not the 450 watts anymore - somewhere between 350-380 I think. Sounds way better than I expected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lojo Posted April 16, 2018 Share Posted April 16, 2018 I know everyone says Speakon are better , but I use 2 jack cables to drive my 2x210 mark bass gear and it's not really lacking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted April 16, 2018 Share Posted April 16, 2018 1 hour ago, lojo said: I know everyone says Speakon are better , but I use 2 jack cables to drive my 2x210 mark bass gear and it's not really lacking I doubt anybody has, sound wise anyway, I've had to replace every speakon socket on our PA speakers because they stopped locking into place, and they're fiddler to connect and disconnect, I get the connection shorting problem with jacks but provided you make sure the volume is turned down there's not that much advantage IMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lojo Posted April 16, 2018 Share Posted April 16, 2018 Ha that's true , the reason I'm using jacks is because my quality speakon cables fell apart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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