Volume difference between 550 and 800 watts.

[philthygeezer]

Will it mean anything through the same cabs? I am looking at:

 

Yorkville XS800H

IAMP 800

Eden WT-550

Thunderfunk TFB-550

 

to run through 2 Aguilar GS112s.

[bassmaniac]

The 800 watt amp will be able to get louder before unwanted distortion occurs., assuming it's the same quality amp as the 500 watt amp.

 

To actually hear a difference between wattages of amps of the same quality (approximatley 3 db), one needs twice the wattage of the other. Humans do not percieve senses linearly, instead we percieve them logarythmically.

[Jazz Ad]

You will clearly perceive difference in headroom though.

[78pbass]

One thing to consider is that the Aggies are fairly inefficient, so that added power may be needed.

 

 

With speakers so hungry, I'd consider a pre-power setup.

[Rippin' Robin]

 

Originally posted by 78pbass One thing to consider is that the Aggies are fairly inefficient, so that added power may be needed. With speakers so hungry, I'd consider a pre-power setup.

 

 

+1

[philthygeezer]

 

Originally posted by 78pbass One thing to consider is that the Aggies are fairly inefficient, so that added power may be needed. With speakers so hungry, I'd consider a pre-power setup.

 

 

GS112 specs

 

Sensitivity: 102 dB @ 1W 1M

 

This is ineffiecient? Perhaps times have changed but when I bought them they were thought to be quite efficient. Could you explain this more?

[J.]

The trouble is, you can't even begin to make a volume/loudness assumption these days due to the simple fact that published specs are so varied in terms of honesty and measurement.

 

If every single manufacturer adhered to a universal protocol for measure specifications such as output wattage, speaker sensitivity, etc, then it would be possible. Unfortunately with the ratings war being waged today, it's nearly impossible.

 

 

As far as sensitivity goes, yes 102@1w/1m is extremely efficient for a 1x12 bass cab. The thing is, how did they get that rating? One watt given to the speaker with a mic placed one meter from the baffle board? What if it's one meter from the dustcap on the woofer? Is the 102db rating an average across a certain frequency span, or is it a number taken at a certain frequency where the cabinet happens to be very efficient?

 

Same goes with amplifiers. I remember a forumite on the Live Sound forum testing a powered mixer from Yamaha that was rated at 300 watts at four ohms. He said (please forgive and excuse my layman's rendition of this) that it did achieve 300 watts, but it did it right before it went up in smoke. He said his product, although rated at 200 watts @ 4 ohms, could deliver a solid 200 watts all day long. Needless to say, his product's 200 watts would probably be superior to that particular Yammie mixer's 300 watts.

 

On top of that, total volume is dependent on a lot of things. The amp may have a lot of power, but what if the input gain is really low on the preamp section? What if the amp can acheive it's rated power, but only for a very short time before getting tired (please excuse my layman's rendering again)?

 

That said, I think any of those choices should give you plenty of volume and headroom for any given situation. All are good reputable brands with good products, and Aggie cabs are known to be good stuff as well. You'll have to go and try them yourself to get the real answer. You may find that one of the 550 watters seems to have more 'oomph' and headroom than one of the 800 watters does. If you can try each of them out, the next best would be to ask people that have tried out the specific amplifiers you're looking at.

 

There, I typed a whole bunch and still didn't answer your question.

[philthygeezer]

Thanks for responses, guys.

 

I may get the opportunity to try a wt-550 with the cabs soon.

 

I'd like to try a GK 1001rb II amp too just to see.

[phatster]

I KNOW ITS REDUNDENT BUT....................The Genz 600 could do the job or you could move up to the 1200!! GB is very convervative in their ratings{they are honest} so you might get what you need with the 600,I do.My cabzilla rig has 2-18 cabinets with a 2-12 for "highs".I just added a ampeg pr-410 for a little more mids..the 600 does it all.

[illidian]

Originally posted by phatster I KNOW ITS REDUNDENT BUT....................The Genz 600 could do the job or you could move up to the 1200!! GB is very convervative in their ratings{they are honest} so you might get what you need with the 600,I do.My cabzilla rig has 2-18 cabinets with a 2-12 for "highs".I just added a ampeg pr-410 for a little more mids..the 600 does it all.

 

 

You use 2x18, 4x10, 2x12 in your rig? I think you need a 6x8 to go along with that.

 

That is so much speaker area that a 100 watt amp could handle what you're doing (of course, the Genz will do it better).

[phatster]

Yep...that 600 can drive all those speakers...can you say Bottomfeeder!