2 x 112 hartke hydrives vs 1 x 410 hartke transporter

[Rik (ESA)]

So I've moved to the hydrives from a supposedly inferior and budget transporter cab. The tp is rated at 300w @ 8 ohms as are the hydrives, but I use two hydrives, yet I used to get considerably more volume from the cheap 410, to the point where I don't have enough volume with my little mark 2 and 2 x hydrive cabs... Surely I am doing something fundamentally wrong (besides switching from a cab that sounded good to my ears, for the sake of pursuing the lightweight dream!), as 500w should be enough in anyone's book!

I recently posted in here about the cabs being "boomy", which I think is now sorted via the eq, however now the issue is volume! Should I move back to a brute of a 410 or are there things to try to get along with the hydrives? Volume aside, I love the aesthetics and portability, but now realising that looks and size maybe aren't everything!

[goblin]

That sounds bizarre. I use a pair with a ToneHammer 500, and one thing it sure ain't short of is volume! It sounds like one thing you could've done is lost certain frequencies that cut when you played with the EQ, it does happen. How're you connecting the cabs to the amp?

[Rik (ESA)]

Cheers goblin! Jack out of amp to speakon in on first cab, then speakon out of first cab into speakon in on the second cab...

[Phil Starr]

Nothing wrong with the way you are connecting up.

First of all I know nothing specific about the two speakers you are usingbut from a purely technical point of view what you are experiencing makes sense. Cheap speakers are often quite loud but the trade off is low Xmax or excursion, they run out of puff with a lot of deep bass going through them and they often lack deep bass. They sound loud because they have a huge hump in frequency response between 1kHz and 3kHz just where our hearing is most sensitive. This has the frequency response of the Eminence Betas which is typical of the sorts of speakers that go in mid priced 4x10's http://www.eminence.com/pdf/Beta_12A.pdf.

packing four 10's into a smallish box also gives a large bump in the bottom end around 100Hz making the bass sound louder too. Again the usual characteristic of a mid priced 4x10. Your 12's are probably giving more deep bass and less upper bass than you are used to, a more accurate but perhaps less satisfying sound. This would explain the boominess problems you described, your old speakers didn't boom because there was noreal deep bass to make the room resonate

Having the 4 speakers also beams the sound in a narrower band and, depending upon where you stand, you could be hearing a lot of your own sound even though for the audience there is plenty of bass with your 12's.

You may well have traded the 'in your face' sound of four lairy 10's for the more accurate frequency response of your 12's. Having a flatter sound from your speakers to work with however means that your new speakers will be much easier to eq, so boost some of the mids and try and dial in the sound you want that way, you may also want to fiddle with the balance between your bridge and neck pup's to get some mid scoop as a different balance will work better with your new speakers.

I've just been gigging with some new 1x12's and I've had the boom problem and for the first time ever I've been told I was too loud. I hadn't noticed because the much more controlled studio type sound wasn't shouting the way my old cabs worked. I thought I was playing at the same volume but the drummer said he couldn't hear his own snare drum (that'll get him back for the cymbals)

Don't worry if you have to turn the amp up louder so long as it doesn't distort, ironically they often have to work a bit harder with better speakers

[Rik (ESA)]

Really very helpful mate, thanks very much! Will persevere!