son of frog Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Hiya Im in a function / pub band playing anything from reggae to hard rock, And i've decided the brand names in which i want to upgrade from my 1980's trace elliot combo, as its seen better days and i really need the extra power, The products i'm looking at are The Orange Terror Bass 500 / 1000 watt head, can you advise me which would be better 500 watts i would have thought is enough and i'd rather not spend the extra £100. - My first question is Regarding this, With the cabinets, when you connect them does the RMS power rating of the two cabs have to add up to more than say 1000watt or does each cabinet have to be over 1000watt if i was using a 1000watt head with them, this has always confused me and no-one has ever put me straight. And as for Cabs, All of the ABM range by Ashdown are what i was looking at getting, I have 3 options and questions about Ohm-age. - The ABM 115 + ABM 410 (Both rated @ 8 Ohms) - The ABM 610 (Rated @ 4 Ohms) - The ABM 810 (Rated @ 4 Ohms) Which of these combinations would work best with either of the two suggested amp heads? Does 4 / 8 Ohms make a difference? Better sound etc? Also i just wondered Practically, the 610 cab seems better, because it has a set of wheels on the back etc. but could i also combine this with say, a compact ABM 115 cab. Thanks in advance and even though i'm usually really good with tech sound and ohms etc aren't my strong point, so i apologize for being a n00b haha. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Erm - do you not think using 8x10 or 6x10 + 1x15 cabs might be just a bit excessive for pub gigs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
son of frog Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 [quote name='icastle' post='1138042' date='Feb 23 2011, 01:59 AM']Erm - do you not think using 8x10 or 6x10 + 1x15 cabs might be just a bit excessive for pub gigs? [/quote] thats so true, But the thing is, i should have mentioned, I also play in a Pop rock kind of Original band, And have plans for a Modern / Hard Rock band, Influences from Nickelback (Old Stuff) theory of a deadman and King's X. haha So Power and sound quality are quite important. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duarte Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 I've been doing a lot of research on the Terror - and from what I've gathered the 1000w version is a bit excessive, and the 500w will give you plenty of volume. I can't really advise on your cab selection as I'm in a similar situation to you, but I would say that maybe you don't NEED such a big rig... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 [quote name='son of frog' post='1138043' date='Feb 23 2011, 02:03 AM']thats so true, But the thing is, i should have mentioned, I also play in a Pop rock kind of Original band, And have plans for a Modern / Hard Rock band, Influences from Nickelback (Old Stuff) theory of a deadman and King's X. haha So Power and sound quality are quite important.[/quote] I have no idea who any of those are Ok, sticking to your options, I'd play it smart and go for the ABM 115 + ABM 410 and the 1000W amp then. That gives you 950W in two reasonably manageable sized cabs. Two 8Ω cabs will give you a 4Ω load (there's a switch on the back of the Terror Bass to select 4Ω/8Ω). Using two cabs also means that you have the option of just using one of them (set the switch on the back of the Terror Bass to 8Ω) for smaller gigs - just don't turn your amp up too high though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 [quote name='Duarte' post='1138050' date='Feb 23 2011, 02:11 AM']I've been doing a lot of research on the Terror - and from what I've gathered the 1000w version is a bit excessive, and the 500w will give you plenty of volume. I can't really advise on your cab selection as I'm in a similar situation to you, but I would say that maybe you don't NEED such a big rig...[/quote] I'd need to stand on a chair to reach the amp controls if it was on top of an 8x10 cab! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
son of frog Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 thanks for the replies so far. Im not sure i'll really need the extra 500watt, although it does seem to vary by brand and model... From what i've heard the 500watt Terror is really loud, And yeah, the 8 x 10 would probably be a bit much effort, But similarly the 410 + 115 combination probably would too, I wouldn't really like buying both, and just leaving one sitting lonely in my house... lol So i know id end up using it... perhaps the 610 would be more practical, something of a compromise between the other options... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
son of frog Posted February 23, 2011 Author Share Posted February 23, 2011 (edited) I've sort of answered my own question but really appreciate someone setting me straight on the whole Ohms rating system... haha Just want to make sure i make the right decision... its a lot of cash... especially for a student like me... Of course i have tried out the terror and it was ace, just cant test volume in the shop. haha Probably end up with the 500watt head and the 610, If i ever needed more i could always upgrade to the 1000watt, and then a compact 115 underneath the 610. And @ icastle... your rig can NEVER be big enough! hahaha although the 610 isn't the most practical cab for small gigs, i'm guessing it will hold up well in the larger ones, Someone with some experience of using this cab.... or another like it can enlighten me, I believe Ampeg do something similar? Frog Edited February 23, 2011 by son of frog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 If you need a modular rig for pub gigs and bigger/louder gigs I'd get the 500watt head and 2 8 ohm 410 cabs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 I dont think you'd be able to add another cab to the 6x10 or 8x10 unless your amp runs at 2 ohms. I don't think there'd be any point to pairing a 1x15 to either a 6x10 or 8x10 as it'd probably cut more out than add. Out of your choices, I'd get 2 1x15s. This would give you a good dispersion for gigs & also an easier carry for those smaller gigs that don't require a coffin against the wall. 2nd choice would be 2 4x10s. I wouldn't mix speaker diameters at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Having had an OTB, 500 watt version, I used it on 4 ohm setting, through one Marshall 412 4 ohm cab, and for pub gigs, both gain & volume couldn`t go above 2. One decent 4x10 would be more than enough with the Terror. Out of the suggestions, I`d get the 410 with the 115, but only use the 115 at very large stages/outdoor gigs where I needed that extra bit of presence (and then I`d prob prefer another 410). Other than that, the 115 is unlikely to be needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorick Posted February 23, 2011 Share Posted February 23, 2011 Thought i'd add an opinion here. I'm using a 500w Terror through two 2x10 Ashdown ABM cabs for one band. They're 8ohm cabs that have been re-speakered to run at 400w, and the OTB is man enough to run them at not even a third of the volume/gain on tap. Great sound as well Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marky L Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 (edited) Just to add my experience to the confusion... I run an Ashdown 500w head into both my Ashdown 1x15 and 2x10 and for live pub work it is way more than adequate. We're a four piece rock(ish) band and are quite loud (any more so and it would become an intolerable racket!) and with my input at around 9 o'clock (1/4) which gets my VU needle hitting red when I play hard, and the output at 12 o'clock (1/2) I'm plenty noticable in the live mix. Oh and no FOH for me. At some point I would like to get a 4X10 to give me a bit more oomph. Edited February 24, 2011 by Marky L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The thought of lugging all that gear around is giving me back ache! As more and more people are ditching big rigs it baffles me? Any venue big enough to need an 8x10 and 1000w flat out would also be through a PA if you started whacking it up your just going to get the sound engineer telling you your too loud and drowning out your band, He won't increase the whole mix to suit your rig he will just put your fader to nothing and you end up with a hit and miss sound from the audience point of view. 4x10 would be absolute max cab size for me , 2 if wembley or similar was booked (seriously). Horses for courses and all that shizzle but many top/pro players on this site are down to a couple of 1x12's or no amp at all it seams. If it's to look cool then that's another matter just remember to book a roadie! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Defo Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 I've just picked up a ABM210T which I run from a HA3500 with a VX115 underneath - sounds perfect for U2/Police type rock and versatile enough to respond to the graphic if someone asks me to slap or turn an overdrive pedal on. Bargain at £250 new Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
icastle Posted February 25, 2011 Share Posted February 25, 2011 [quote name='Marky L' post='1140194' date='Feb 24 2011, 05:51 PM']Just to add my experience to the confusion... I run an Ashdown 500w head into both my Ashdown 1x15 and 2x10 and for live pub work it is way more than adequate. We're a four piece rock(ish) band and are quite loud (any more so and it would become an intolerable racket!) and with my input at around 9 o'clock (1/4) which gets my VU needle hitting red when I play hard, and the output at 12 o'clock (1/2) I'm plenty noticable in the live mix. Oh and no FOH for me. At some point I would like to get a 4X10 to give me a bit more oomph.[/quote] +1 I'm running the same sort of setup (albeit from different manufacturers). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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