Profet 5.1 volume question

DAMAGED

DAMAGED

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G'day,
I've just started playing bass (switched from guitar) and I bought a second hand Profet 5.1 & Pro 411 cab.

I had my fist practice with the band (a metal band) today using this rig & I was very dissapointed with the volume. I did have some issues with the preamp clipping so i had to run it about 4.5 - I think the problem might be that i'm using light gauge strings & because we down tune the flabbyness for the strings caused some peaks in my signal path. My bass is a Vintage LEST96SB (stingray copy) but i've bypassed the tone circut because it sounded like utter crap, but i've still got the wilkinson stock humbucking pickup in it but i'm considering installing the EMG active with the coil tap.

I've noticed the cab is 8 ohms & since the head is only 500w @ 4ohms I will not be getting the full 500w from it.

So my question - if i got a 4 ohm cab will I get much more volume??
 
DAMAGED said:
G'day,
I've just started playing bass (switched from guitar) and I bought a second hand Profet 5.1 & Pro 411 cab.

I had my fist practice with the band (a metal band) today using this rig & I was very dissapointed with the volume. I did have some issues with the preamp clipping so i had to run it about 4.5 - I think the problem might be that i'm using light gauge strings & because we down tune the flabbyness for the strings caused some peaks in my signal path. My bass is a Vintage LEST96SB (stingray copy) but i've bypassed the tone circut because it sounded like utter crap, but i've still got the wilkinson stock humbucking pickup in it but i'm considering installing the EMG active with the coil tap.

I've noticed the cab is 8 ohms & since the head is only 500w @ 4ohms I will not be getting the full 500w from it.

So my question - if i got a 4 ohm cab will I get much more volume??
Click to expand...


welcome to the forum mate.

getting a 4 ohm cab will make it louder. or you get another cab with 8 ohms, that´s even more louder :-) maybe a 115 for more low end.

i had the profet 5.1 too. it clips very soon. it´s ok when the led flickers more often then only when you play hard notes. don´t be afraid to turn up the gain. i had to learn that in a long time :-) it just shouldn´t light up constantly.
the profet is a pretty loud amp!
 
Add another 8 ohm cab toi get full volume from the head. Maybe boost bass and mids a bit. Does that amp, have a input and out put gain, if so adjust the inout gain until it justs starts to clip on your hardest playing, then use the output gain for adjusting volume.
 
Yeah, I could get another cab - I like the punchyness of the 10" speakers so i'd avoid a 15". I dont really want to lug 2 cabs around either, I might look into an 4 ohm cab.

The 5.1 only has input gain & master volume.

I've just played with heavier gauge stings & it's smoothed out the sound a lot. I've got an old DOD bass compressor pedal here too I might try instead of the inbuilt one.
 
The 5.1 is a great amp.

;)

Don't be afraid to push the gain section a little - the LED clips a little prematurely. Use your ears - it's OK for the clip LED to be flickering (not on constantly) quite often with this head. Also - realise that it's also OK to push the master volume too. Most amps will deliver around 95% of their output when the master volume is at 12 o'clock due to the type of potentiometer being used. The Pro FET 5.1 will keep delivering more usable power up to a little past 3 o'clock on the master volume dial.

Do a search here, and you'll find a few in depth discussions we've had about the Pro FET 5.1 volume issue. Also - we've discussed how they modified the gain and volume curve by changing a few pots in the Pro FET 5.2 head, which is still 500w, but seems significantly louder.

...additionally, as you're aware - with a single 8 ohm cab, your head is delivering somewhere around 300w +/- of the 500w available. Going to two 4 ohm 4x10 cabs will be very loud indeed!

A single 4 ohm cab will be louder than what you have, but not as loud as two 4x10s. Perhaps even consider a WCA 211 Pro to go on top of your 4x10? That will give you a very loud, and lovely sounding 6x10 configuration. The 211 Pro sounds great on top of a 411 Pro!

:d
 
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Eberbachl said:
The 5.1 is a great amp.

;)

Don't be afraid to push the gain section a little - the LED clips a little prematurely. Use your ears - it's OK for the clip LED to be flickering (not on constantly) quite often with this head. Also - realise that it's also OK to push the master volume too. Most amps will deliver around 95% of their output when the master volume is at 12 o'clock due to the type of potentiometer being used. The Pro FET 5.1 will keep delivering more usable power up to a little past 3 o'clock on the master volume dial.

Do a search here, and you'll find a few in depth discussions we've had about the Pro FET 5.1 volume issue. Also - we've discussed how they modified the gain and volume curve by changing a few pots in the Pro FET 5.2 head, which is still 500w, but seems significantly louder.

...additionally, as you're aware - with a single 8 ohm cab, your head is delivering somewhere around 300w +/- of the 500w available. Going to two 4 ohm 4x10 cabs will be very loud indeed!

A single 4 ohm cab will be louder than what you have, but not as loud as two 4x10s. Perhaps even consider a WCA 211 Pro to go on top of your 4x10? That will give you a very loud, and lovely sounding 6x10 configuration. The 211 Pro sounds great on top of a 411 Pro!

:d
Click to expand...

Thanks for the information. Yeah, i've had a look around the forum for info about the 5.1. The 211 sounds interesting. Cheerz.
 
...oops - I just re-read my post!

I said:

Going to two 4 ohm 4x10 cabs will be very loud indeed!
Click to expand...

That would make a 2 ohm load, and would be a very bad idea (it would be very loud though - until your head shut down :lol: )!

:d

...of course I meant two 8 ohm cabs for a total load of 4 ohms.

;)
 
Eberbachl said:
...oops - I just re-read my post!

I said:



That would make a 2 ohm load, and would be a very bad idea (it would be very loud though - until your head shut down :lol: )!

:d

...of course I meant two 8 ohm cabs for a total load of 4 ohms.

;)
Click to expand...

Yeah, understood mate. Thanks
 
Hi,

If you use a 8 Ohms cab on the Profet rated for 500 w @ 4 Ohms, you have about 60% of power @ 8 Ohms. So, at 8 ohms you should have 300 Watts.
So, it's normal in you case you don't have the 500W.
If you want to have the total 500 W, you have to add a second 8 ohms cab to the first one, to have in total a 4 ohms cab, and in this case you will be use the amp at the maximum, so 500 W @ 4 ohms.
You can add, for example, the 211 pro or the 411 pro (8 ohms) to you cab.

Hope this helps you !
 
Everyone's covered how to get louder, so I'll skip that and suggest an alternative: Have the band turn down. A 4x10 cabinet and 300 watts should be fine for practice - if it's not, IMHO, the band is practicing WAY too loud.

"But the drummer is so loud."

Yep. He needs to quiet down. Smaller sticks might help.. . Our drummer uses the "Hot Rods" for practice and it brings his level down a good bit.

Drummer doesn't want to cooperate? You have an HR issue. You're a band and have to work together - if someone's not a team player, maybe they should be on a different team.

I admit I'm an old fart, but I've been doing this a long time, and I've learned that practice volume and stage volume need to be low whenever possible.

Here are some reasons:

* Your hearing. It's a fact - Overexposure to high sound levels will do damage, and nothing can fix it once it's done. And it happens faster than people realize. If you REALLY love your music and are truly dedicated to it, you'll value your hearing over anything else and do whatever it takes to protect it. I use earplugs at practice, and in ear monitors at a safe level for performances.

* At extreme levels, it's hard to really make out what everyone's doing. With a lower level, it's easier to pinpoint what needs improvement, so practice time can be more productive. End result: If the band sucks you'll easily be able to tell and work toward getting better. If the band is already really good, you'll hear it and 'polish' the performance even further, to the point even the other musicians are saying "damn, they rock."

* With PA support at a show, you don't need much level on stage. It's easier on everyone if you don't in fact - and the sound man can mix you better out front. The audience won't know the reason why, they'll just know that when you take the stage, everything sounds better.

* Feedback. I hate it when someone approaches a microphone, then "squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!" - everyones ears burn and the whole vibe is shot, at least for a while. And nothing is more garage-band amateur than a loud burst of feedback. It's reminiscent of a high-school assembly. With lower stage volumes, everyone can hear the monitors better and they don't have to be so loud. Lower monitor levels = less chance for feedback, and less feedback is ALWAYS a good thing.

Anyway these are just a few reasons. I know it doesn't directly address how to get louder, but maybe some of these points will help anyway. I've thought about writing a whole article on this topic but haven't yet. Maybe I should (or not).

--Tim
 
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Now that's a great advice coming from Tim IMHO.
Earplugs will do two things:
- will protect your hearing
- you'll hear the bass better
 
I too am looking at adding on an extra cab to my 5.2 and 600w (8ohm?) 4x10 cab - mainly to get a bit of extra volume when required, so I guess I'll need another 8ohm cabinet to get it down to 4ohms total?

I also use ear plugs when my covers band plays at some larger venues, you can here the bass better, it filters out a lot of the high trebbly noise - but it does filter out my back up vocals a bit and I find it harder to hear my own singing!
 
Many years later.......

I just added a Profet 5.1 to my arsenal - got it still new for a song at the shop's clear out. I also own an Eden WT550 and these two are pretty much different. But on to the 5.1. I find that depending on whether I stick my Thumb 6 into it or one of my other basses, I have to set the pre gain to about 12 or 1 o'clock. Then I run the master at 1 o'clock at least to get a fair amount of juice. It stays however pretty clear. Using the "shape" control along with the deep and brite switches engaged you can get even more gain and a serious slap sound. So what I am reading above about the 5.1. is that you need to run them gains pretty high! Hope I am correct!

Ps I use 2 x Hartke HX112 Hydrives at 4ohms.

Warwick Thumb 6
Yamaha TRB's x 3
Cort NA6
Yamaha BB414
Squier Fretless Vintage Jazz
VX Custom Bass
Eden WT550
Profet 5.1
Genz-Benz NEOX 212T
Hartke HX112 Hydrives
 
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