the quest continues

[Bluescout]

So after finding the time to read through a bunch of threads here, a lot of it points towards an Eden or Ampeg but I'm still looking around at stuff.

 

I find that the Ampeg pr 410hlf only has 96 db sensitivity

 

The SVT 410 has 98 db

 

I see an SWR Goliath 410 on Craigslist with 103 db

 

The single ported Eden 410XST blazes out 104 db

 

The dual ported Eden D410XLT is rated at (wooo hooo!!) 106 db

 

Avatar doesn't list the sensitivity but Eminence lists their Delta 10 between 94 and 98 until you get over 1KHz, where it tops out at 102. I don't know if Avatar's cab design adds but they aren't telling.

 

 

back to the books....

[D Aussie]

"back to the books...."

 

Mate, Its time to stop reading and start listening.

the db rating counts for {censored} if you dont like the way the thing sounds.

[Bluescout]

I find when I over analyze things I end up thoroughly educated. I'm sure I'll like the tone of any higher end cab or can EQ it to sound good.

[illidian]

 

Originally posted by Bluescout I find when I over analyze things I end up thoroughly educated. I'm sure I'll like the tone of any higher end cab or can EQ it to sound good.

 

 

Not true on the sound part.

 

Higher end cabinets are voiced differently from each other very much so. Numbers don't tell you how the thing will sound, your ears will have to be the judge.

[Bluescout]

So, if my cheapo cab runs 98 db spl (probably generous), and I were to get a cab that runs 101 db spl, that could make my 275watts at 8 ohms seem like twice that number.

[D Aussie]

Not always, mate.

The sad thing is the monkeys that measure the statistics (or just make them up) have no consistant measure.

Ask these questions about spl and thd on the live sound forum for much more concise answers.

Good luck with your quest!

[illidian]

Originally posted by D Aussie Not always, mate. The sad thing is the monkeys that measure the statistics (or just make them up) have no consistant measure. Ask these questions about spl and thd on the live sound forum for much more concise answers. Good luck with your quest!

 

+1

 

Sensitivity isn't a real number, it's made up by the company who made the cabinet. There is no standard way of doing it, and there are many different ways of testing it (and @1w/1m doesn't help much).

 

Maybe Roger can step in here and explain how Sensitivity is a marketing tool more than a fact for A/B comparisons.

[KeroseneTrewthe]

 

Originally posted by D Aussie Mate, Its time to stop reading and start listening. the db rating counts for {censored} if you dont like the way the thing sounds.

 

 

 

100% Correct.

[greenshag]

let your ears be the judge, not the specs...

[takeout]

Judging volume with your eyes is like judging taste with your finger.

[lug]

In many cases (but not Eden) a high sensitivity rating is at the expense of extended frequency range. A note from the Eminence site:

**********

SPL represents one of the most useful specifications published for any transducer. It is a representation of the efficiency and

volume you can expect from a device relative to the input power. This is important because it requires twice the power to

increase the volume of a speaker by 3dB. For instance, to increase the volume of a 50W guitar amplifier 3dB (an audible,

but relatively small amount), it would require 100W of power. The same outcome could be achieved more economically by

replacing the speaker with a model that is 3dB more sensitive.

 

Loudspeaker manufacturers follow different rules when obtaining this information. You cannot necessarily compare like for like

when looking at the sensitivities of different manufacturers

[J.]

Speaker efficiency is a big deal, but like all things nowadays it's very hard to get an idea from the specs alone. If there was one concrete way that all speakers were measured in terms of efficiency, and some sort of neutral agency rated all of the cabinets, specs would mean a lot more than they do now.

 

I don't know who said this, but I recall someone saying that they A/B'd the Eden 410XLT and the Ampeg PR410HLF and that there wasn't a huge difference between the two in terms of overall SPL. The 96db versus 104db is a HUGE difference if both are similar and honest ratings, but that's almost never the case.

 

A lot of manufacturers will cheat on the sensitivity rating by using the only the frequencies at where the cabinet is most efficient instead of an average of a large spectrum. You can also cheat by mic placement... does 1w/1m mean one watt of power with the mic placed one meter away from the baffle board, or does it mean one meter away from the dustcap?

[Bluescout]

Yea, I'm sure that sentitivity is mostly bull and definitely can be influenced but it's a start. Whatever can be said about all the ratings, I'm sure an $800 Ampeg or Eden cab beats a $200 cab most of the time and there's a reason for it. I'm going to yank a speaker out of my Sonic 410 and see what it is.