Class AB head used on its own?

[funkydoug]

hi folks,

hoping someone with better electrical knowledge than me can help with this. Can a class AB head be used for silent practice? Like an ABM head used without a cab attached, for example? 

Lots of Class D amps make it clear you can do it, but what about a sled? 

Cheers, Doug.

[VTypeV4]

Depends on the type of class A/B amplifier..

If it's an all valve affair or has a valve output stage (Boogie 400+, SVT CL, CTM100 etc) then the answer is usually a firm 'no'.. The valves / output transformer need to 'see' an electrical load to prevent damage / meltdown. Some may have an internal dummy load / output mute to facilitate no speaker connection but this is not that common - check the spec.

On the other hand, if it has a transistor output stage (as per Ashdown ABM, SWR SM, SVT 3 etc) then it will be fine - I used to use my old Trace 400SMX as just a pre-amplifier stage for recording many times.

No idea what a sled is but I hope this helps..

[funkydoug]

thanks for the info @VTypeV4, much appreciated.

Good to know this is an option for Trace / ABM type amps. 

 

(by sled I mean 'lead sled', sometimes used as a nickname for heavy solid state amp heads).

[VTypeV4]

All good.