Ashdown Klyston 115 400w 8 ohms

[BassAdder60]

I’ve picked up a secondhand Ashdown Klyston 115 400w 8 ohm ported bass cab from a nice local guy.

it’s the one with the tall cab and lower grille port and England flag logo so built in U.K. some years back. Not sure what speaker but perhaps Eminence ?
Has a switchable horn .. 

 

Ok question what would I run with this as a second cab ? Naturally they don’t make them anymore 

 

If it works out I will be letting go my two near new Pro Neo 210H cabs that I purchased direct from Ashdown earlier this year. 
 

This old cab is heavy and larger but that isn’t a problem for me in transport or lifting terms 

 

What do you other Ashdown users think ? 
 

Also I want to stick to Ashdown as a brand 👍

 

Also it’s not a question of impedance as I’m aware of the ability to run two 8ohm cabs

Edited October 18, 2021 by BassAdder27

[Phil Starr]

one of the big advantages of @Ashdown Engineering is that you can ask them

[BassmanPaul]

A nice Ashdown 8Ω 2x10 should run quite nicely.

 

Resultant impedance would be 4Ω. 

Edited October 18, 2021 by BassmanPaul

[BassAdder60]

1 hour ago, BassmanPaul said:

A nice Ashdown 8Ω 2x10 should run quite nicely.

 

Resultant impedance would be 4Ω. 

Yes that’s true .. the matching impedance is the easy bit, matching it with a different Ashdown design ported cab is the first question as the current compact ported is firstly rated to 300w ( this can be upgraded to 400w) but would it be better choosing the 115 cab or 210 cab ? 
General opinion is same speaker cab again but what if that’s no longer made ? 

[Phil Starr]

There are good reasons to choose to simply double up cabs, it is the only way to preserve the original sound and only increase the volume. It also avoids the problems of matching power handling, loudness, impedance and all the other technical and practical things. 

 

However you can 'solve' the technical issues to match cabs and it is possible to get a good sound, just different from either of the cabs you are using. The only problem is like blending spices you can never sure if they will clash or complement until you try them and the perfect blend can be a matter of luck or a lifetime trying things.

 

Why do you want a second speaker? Isn't this one heavy enough  ? Seriously though it's a 400W 15" speaker in a big box driven flat out it's going to be louder than your drummer and is going to make it difficult for your singer to hear themselves as well as bleeding bass guitar into all the vocal mic's. If it doesn't cut through then that is more likely to be about frequency response and eq or the noisy bad manners of the rest of the band rather than lack of ooomf. You might be anticipating a problem you don't actually have. I'd wait and try it on it's own first before deciding if it needs back up.

 

[uk_lefty]

8 hours ago, BassAdder27 said:

Yes that’s true .. the matching impedance is the easy bit, matching it with a different Ashdown design ported cab is the first question as the current compact ported is firstly rated to 300w ( this can be upgraded to 400w) but would it be better choosing the 115 cab or 210 cab ? 
General opinion is same speaker cab again but what if that’s no longer made ? 

I see these every now and then on eBay. So either try to find another or see if Ashdown can do a front grille/ cover or badge so you could match up a different Ashdown cab but keep the look consistent. No guarantee they will do it but if you don't ask you don't know.

[BassAdder60]

8 hours ago, Phil Starr said:

There are good reasons to choose to simply double up cabs, it is the only way to preserve the original sound and only increase the volume. It also avoids the problems of matching power handling, loudness, impedance and all the other technical and practical things. 

 

However you can 'solve' the technical issues to match cabs and it is possible to get a good sound, just different from either of the cabs you are using. The only problem is like blending spices you can never sure if they will clash or complement until you try them and the perfect blend can be a matter of luck or a lifetime trying things.

 

Why do you want a second speaker? Isn't this one heavy enough  ? Seriously though it's a 400W 15" speaker in a big box driven flat out it's going to be louder than your drummer and is going to make it difficult for your singer to hear themselves as well as bleeding bass guitar into all the vocal mic's. If it doesn't cut through then that is more likely to be about frequency response and eq or the noisy bad manners of the rest of the band rather than lack of ooomf. You might be anticipating a problem you don't actually have. I'd wait and try it on it's own first before deciding if it needs back up.

 

Thanks Phil 

 

If it’s enough on it’s own then that would be great. 
Yes it’s larger than the current compact ported cabs from Ashdown so may be all I need to gig with.

This may make my Pro Neo 210 cabs redundant!

[BassAdder60]

8 hours ago, Phil Starr said:

There are good reasons to choose to simply double up cabs, it is the only way to preserve the original sound and only increase the volume. It also avoids the problems of matching power handling, loudness, impedance and all the other technical and practical things. 

 

However you can 'solve' the technical issues to match cabs and it is possible to get a good sound, just different from either of the cabs you are using. The only problem is like blending spices you can never sure if they will clash or complement until you try them and the perfect blend can be a matter of luck or a lifetime trying things.

 

Why do you want a second speaker? Isn't this one heavy enough  ? Seriously though it's a 400W 15" speaker in a big box driven flat out it's going to be louder than your drummer and is going to make it difficult for your singer to hear themselves as well as bleeding bass guitar into all the vocal mic's. If it doesn't cut through then that is more likely to be about frequency response and eq or the noisy bad manners of the rest of the band rather than lack of ooomf. You might be anticipating a problem you don't actually have. I'd wait and try it on it's own first before deciding if it needs back up.

 

Thanks Phil 

 

If it’s enough on it’s own then that would be great. 
Yes it’s larger than the current compact ported cabs from Ashdown so may be all I need to gig with.

This may make my Pro Neo 210 cabs redundant!

 

This is the cab in question 

Edited October 19, 2021 by BassAdder27

[BassAdder60]

Ok folks .. had band rehearsal and I took all three cabs along, the second hand Klyston 115 and my new Pro Neo 210 cabs x 2 

 

Verdict …. Pro Neo cabs sounded better for what I wanted in the band and were very punchy yet full.

The Klyston cab is very nice and deep and will fill a room easily but not as punchy and it’s heavier to carry.

 

The Klyston will be going up for sale on here real soon I think as the Pro Neos for their size certainly packs a punch 

But in fairness I paid nearly £800 for my two Neo cabs so I would hope they sound half decent which they do 👍

Edited October 20, 2021 by BassAdder27