What does 350w continuous and 700w Programable mean?

[gilmour]

Arrrgghh, I hate this head and speaker stuff, it really confuses me! I feel like such a fool I just don't get it.

As per my previous post I'm looking to get a new rig (probably eden time traveller - 8/4/2 ohms 250/405/620w), but want to do it in stages, as I can;t afford to do it all in one go. Starting with the head and using the cabs I currently have.

One of my cabs is a Peavey 115BX BW, although not the most prestigious piece of kit I think that it's fine for the time being. mys question is this:

I've been told that the power rating is 350 watts continuous and 700 watts program. What does this mean?? and will it be ok to use with the Eden?

Thanks again

[obbm]

have a read of [url="http://www.doctorproaudio.com/doctor/temas/powerhandling.htm"]this[/url]. Don't give up after the first paragraph. What you want to know is in there.

[Alien]

Continuous power rating = the amount of power the speaker can handle for a long period of time.
Program power rating = the amount of power the speaker can handle for a short period of time.

With the BW, it can handle a 350 Watt amp, running a sine wave, flat out but with no distortion, and it'll basically do it forever. The program rating means that you can actually use a 700 Watt amp running real music (which has loud bits and quiet bits), because it will only actually hit 700 Watts occasionally. (With a dynamic instrument like a bass, the average power will probably only be about 70 Watts if your loudest peaks are 700)

There are other things to bear in mind though. If you put 500 Watts through the BW at 500Hz, it'll probably be fine. However, 200 Watts at 50Hz will probably kill it through overexcursion. There's only so much bass you can get out of any given speaker, and if it starts to distort you're using too much power, or too much low EQ. Speaker power ratings are a guide to how much power to use (plugging a 1000 Watt amp into a 10 watt speaker is pretty dumb - you'll never get the amp above 1), but at the end of the day if it sounds OK it probably will be OK. If it distorts, turn it down, or get another speaker if you need to be that loud.

Andy

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Continuous Power = Real World Rating (volts x amps= watts)
Program Power = Inflated Rating for Advertising Purposes
Peak Power = The Engineering dept has been sacked, only Advertising dept remains.
Peak Program Music Power = If You Buy This You'll Buy Anything.

Edited November 23, 2019 by Bill Fitzmaurice

[warwickhunt]

To put it in real world context on a day to day basis, I ran a 1000watt pre/power rig into a 300 watt cab for a couple of years with no issues. We still presently run a pair of Peavy Hi-Sys 1x15 PA cabs (350 watt rating) with a 1200 watt poweramp; the power amp is run with the gains on full and the output is governed by the desk faders. These speakers have been driven like this for 14 years with 50-75 gigs per year + rehearsal time, power amps have come and gone (gradually getting lighter) but output power ratings of the amps has never been below 1k... the speakers are still going strong and we've never blown a speaker or horn despite putting the whole band through it on many, many occasions. Use 3 of your senses; your ears, eyes (watch meters/indicators) and your common sense. I could also include your sense of smell (i.e. things getting too hot and starting to overheat), you'll not go to far wrong if you don't do something daft.

[Samuel Burns]

Resurrecting this thread as it fits my situation: I've been offered (for a good price I think) a 410TVX and a Tour 700. The cab has 4Ω 350RMS/700W program, does this means I will blow the cab with this head?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

Do you play with the amp dimed and ignore the warning of impending doom that heavy distortion signifies? If so you can blow that cab with a fifty watt amp. If you play at sensible levels and turn it down if the speakers sound strained you won't harm it with a thousand watt amp.

[Samuel Burns]

On 22/11/2019 at 20:25, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

Do you play with the amp dimed and ignore the warning of impending doom that heavy distortion signifies? If so you can blow that cab with a fifty watt amp. If you play at sensible levels and turn it down if the speakers sound strained you won't harm it with a thousand watt amp.

This will be my first rig, thus my dumb questions. My only experience is a PF-500 through a 1X15" Ampeg at the practise room and my own practise amp.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

It's not a dumb question, though it is a common one. You might want to reconsider the 410TVX. The Sheffield drivers it uses are entry level, while the 18mm MDF construction is overly heavy yet not durable. The 2.5mm xmax of the Sheffields means that while they can handle at least 75 watts each thermally they're mechanically limited to around 25 watts each. There are 1x12s that can put out more than the 410TVX.

[Samuel Burns]

The Peavy cab comes with the amp. Another option for me would be the Hartke XL's. I'm looking for used gear, since it will be my first rig.

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

I agree that used is the way to go, but don't settle, and in the case of the 410TVX I think you would be. The drivers that Hartke uses are an unknown quantity, so I can't venture an opinion there.

[Samuel Burns]

40 minutes ago, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

I agree that used is the way to go, but don't settle, and in the case of the 410TVX I think you would be. The drivers that Hartke uses are an unknown quantity, so I can't venture an opinion there.

So what would you recommend?

[Bill Fitzmaurice]

You can't go wrong with Ampeg.