Hooking up a head to a single or group of cabinets is often a confusing topic. Most of us just want to play music and don’t have time to learn about watts and ohms. But this is an important topic to understand so you don’t damage you or your amp.
First, it’s important to use speaker cables when hooking up a head to your cabinet. Instrument cables used between your guitar and amp might look similar, but they are drastically different. Speaker cables are thicker and not shielded. Even gauge numbers can be confusing – just remember, the thicker the cable, the lower the number. Use at least an 18 or 16 gauge speaker cable so you don’t damage your rig.
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Impedance is a measure of resistance. When electricity flows to a load, some of the electricity is resisted or impeded. Impedance is measured in ohms – denoted with the Greek letter omega ( ). Most cabinets have an impedance of 4, 8 or 16 ohms. More ohms mean more resistance and with more resistance there is less power flowing to the speaker.
Amp heads specify how much power is sent to a load (a cabinet or group of cabinets) of a certain impedance (the amount of resistance measured in ohms). For example, you may see an amp rated “400W @ 4 ohms.” Likewise, a particular amp head might send 200 watts into an 8-ohm load, but the same amp will send 350 watts into 4 ohms. More power will flow from an amp as the ohm rating (resistance) decreases. If you went down to 2 ohms, that same amp might send 600 watts to the load.
All of this is important because amps are designed to work within a certain resistance. If there is not enough resistance, the amp will put out more juice than it can handle, leading to overheating, and eventually burning up!
You probably don’t want your amp catching fire, no matter how cool it looks onstage.
If you are running your head to one cabinet, things are pretty straightforward. If your head says 300W @ 4 ohms, you need to plug it into a 4-ohm cabinet that can handle 300 watts. If you plug it into an 8-ohm cabinet, you might only get 200 watts of power and you’ll probably get less volume. If you plug it into a 2-ohm cab, there’s not enough resistance and the amp will overwork itself, which results in FIRE!
When you hook up more than one speaker to an amp, there are two ways they can be arranged: series or parallel. Series means chaining the cabinets together, one to the next. Parallel means sending one output of the bass amp head to one cabinet and a second output from the head to another cabinet. Parallel is two or more side-byside connections.
When you add a second cabinet, realize there are now two places for the amp’s power to go. Adding a second cabinet causes the total impedance (amount of resistance) of the load to change.
It’s easiest having each cabinet with the same impedance (e.g. each cab is 4 ohms or 8 ohms). In order to determine the total impedance of the cabinets (all with the same impedance), take the impedance of one cabinet and divide that amount by the total number of cabinets. For instance, two 8-ohm cabinets wired in parallel will have a total impedance of 4 ohms; two 4-ohm cabinets would have an impedance of 2 ohms. Remember, if your amp can’t handle a 2-ohm load it could go up in flames – that’s why this is so important. If your amp says it can put out a certain number of watts at 4 ohms, you can only hookup a total load of 4 ohms, 8 ohms or greater – not 2 ohms!
If you are hooking up two cabinets of different impedances, there’s a little more math involved. For instance, if you have a 4-ohm cab and an 8-ohm cab, the equation is as follows: 4 x 8 = 32, then 4 + 8 = 12. Divide 32 by 12 and you get 2.667 ohms. If your amp is rated only for 4 ohms, you can’t use this configuration of cabinets with 2.667 ohms.
If you are still confused, get someone with experience to verify that your amp hookup is okay before you turn it on. Make sure you use the correct cables and have extras to avoid the temptation of using an instrument cable. Most importantly, know the specs of your head and cabs. If you’re heads up, you’ll be able to get down! Go forth and hook up!
Rick Wheeler
Rick Wheeler currently works as Larry Carlton’s guitar tech and front of house engineer. He is also an accomplished jazz guitarist, vocalist, and educator. You can contact Rick at rickwheeler@hughes.net
Gibson originally launched the EB-6 model with the intention of serving consumers looking for a “tic-tac” bass sound.
The Gibson EB-6 was announced in 1959 and came into the world in 1960, not with a dual-horn body but with that of an elegant ES-335. They looked stately, with a thin, semi-hollow body, f-holes, and a sunburst finish. Our pick for this Vintage Vault column is one such first-year model, in about as original condition as you’re able to find today. “Why?” you may be asking. Well, read on....
When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye. The real competition were the Danelectro 6-string basses that seemed to have popped up out of nowhere and were suddenly being used on lots of hit records by the likes of Elvis, Patsy Cline, and other household names. Danos like the UB-2 (introduced in ’56), the Longhorn 4623 (’58), and the Shorthorn 3612 (’58) were the earliest attempts any company made at a 6-string bass in this style: not quite a standard electric bass, not quite a guitar, nor, for that matter, quite like a baritone guitar.
The only change this vintage EB-6 features is a replacement set of Kluson tuners.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
Gibson, Fender, and others during this era would in fact call these basses “baritone guitars,” to add to our confusion today. But these vintage “baritones” were all tuned one octave below a standard guitar, with scale lengths around 30", while most modern baritones are tuned B-to-B or A-to-A and have scale lengths between 26" and 30".)
At the time, those Danelectros were instrumental to what was called the “tic-tac” bass sound of Nashville records produced by Chet Atkins, or the “click-bass” tones made out west by producer Lee Hazlewood. Gibson wanted something for this market, and the EB-6 was born.
“When the EB-6 was introduced, the Bass VI was still a glimmer in Leo Fender’s eye.”
The 30.5" scale 1960 EB-6 has a single humbucking pickup, a volume knob, a tone knob, and a small, push-button “Tone Selector Switch” that engages a treble circuit for an instant tic-tac sound. (Without engaging that switch, you get a bass-heavy tone so deep that cowboy chords will sound like a muddy mess.)
The EB-6, for better or for worse, did not unseat the Danelectros, and a November 1959 price list from Gibson hints at why: The EB-6 retailed for $340, compared to Dano price tags that ranged from $85 to $150. Only a few dozen EB-6 basses were shipped in 1960, and only 67 total are known to have been built before Gibson changed the shape to the SG style in 1962.
Most players who come across an EB-6 today think it was a response to the Fender Bass VI, but the former actually beat the latter to the market by a full year.
Photo by Ken Lapworth
It’s sad that so few were built. Sure, it was a high-end model made to achieve the novelty tic-tac sound of cheaper instruments, but in its full-voiced glory, the EB-6 has a huge potential of tones. It would sound great in our contemporary guitar era where more players are exploring baritone ranges, and where so many people got back into the Bass VI after seeing the Beatles play one in the 2021 documentary, Get Back.
It’s sadder, still, how many original-era EB-6s have been parted out in the decades since. Remember earlier when I wrote that our Vintage Vaultpick was about as original as you could find? That’s because the model’s single humbucker is a PAF, its Kluson tuners are double-line, and its knobs are identical to those on Les Paul ’Bursts. So as people repaired broken ’Bursts, converted other LPs to ’Bursts, or otherwise sought to give other Gibsons a “Golden Era” sound and look ... they often stripped these forgotten EB-6 basses for parts.
This original EB-6 is up for sale now from Reverb seller Emerald City Guitars for a $16,950 asking price at the time of writing. The only thing that isn’t original about it is a replacement set of Kluson tuners, not because its originals were stolen but just to help preserve them. (They will be included in the case.)
With so few surviving 335-style EB-6 basses, Reverb doesn’t have a ton of sales data to compare prices to. Ten years ago, a lucky buyer found a nearly original 1960 EB-6 for about $7,000. But Emerald City’s $16,950 asking price is closer to more recent examples and asking prices.
Sources: Prices on Gibson Instruments, November 1, 1959, Tony Bacon’s “Danelectro’s UB-2 and the Early Days of 6-String Basses” Reverb News article, Gruhn’s Guide to Vintage Guitars, Tom Wheeler’s American Guitars: An Illustrated History, Reverb listings and Price Guide sales data.
Originally released in the 1980s, the Victory has long been a cult favorite among guitarists for its distinctive double cutaway design and excellent upper-fret access. These new models feature flexible electronics, enhanced body contours, improved weight and balance, and an Explorer headstock shape.
A Cult Classic Made Modern
The new Victory features refined body contours, improved weight and balance, and an updated headstock shape based on the popular Gibson Explorer.
Effortless Playing
With a fast-playing SlimTaper neck profile and ebony fretboard with a compound radius, the Victory delivers low action without fret buzz everywhere on the fretboard.
Flexible Electronics
The two 80s Tribute humbucker pickups are wired to push/pull master volume and tone controls for coil splitting and inner/outer coil selection when the coils are split.
For more information, please visit gibson.com.
Gibson Victory Figured Top Electric Guitar - Iguana Burst
Released in 1983, the Roland SDE-3000 rackmount delay was a staple for pro players of the era and remains revered for its rich analog/digital hybrid sound and distinctive modulation. BOSS reimagined this retro classic in 2023 with the acclaimed SDE-3000D and SDE-3000EVH, two wide-format pedals with stereo sound, advanced features, and expanded connectivity. The SDE-3 brings the authentic SDE-3000 vibe to a streamlined BOSS compact, enhanced with innovative creative tools for every musical style. The SDE-3 delivers evocative delay sounds that drip with warmth and musicality. The efficient panel provides the primary controls of its vintage benchmark—including delay time, feedback, and independent rate and depth knobs for the modulation—plus additional knobs for expanded sonic potential.
A wide range of tones are available, from basic mono delays and ’80s-style mod/delay combos to moody textures for ambient, chill, and lo-fi music. Along with reproducing the SDE-3000's original mono sound, the SDE-3 includes a powerful Offset knob to create interesting tones with two simultaneous delays. With one simple control, the user can instantly add a second delay to the primary delay. This provides a wealth of mono and stereo colors not available with other delay pedals, including unique doubled sounds and timed dual delays with tap tempo control. The versatile SDE-3 provides output configurations to suit any stage or studio scenario.
Two stereo modes include discrete left/right delays and a panning option for ultra-wide sounds that move across the stereo field. Dry and effect-only signals can be sent to two amps for wet/dry setups, and the direct sound can be muted for studio mixing and parallel effect rigs. The SDE-3 offers numerous control options to enhance live and studio performances. Tap tempo mode is available with a press and hold of the pedal switch, while the TRS MIDI input can be used to sync the delay time with clock signals from DAWs, pedals, and drum machines. Optional external footswitches provide on-demand access to tap tempo and a hold function for on-the-fly looping. Alternately, an expression pedal can be used to control the Level, Feedback, and Time knobs for delay mix adjustment, wild pitch effects, and dramatic self-oscillation.
The new BOSS SDE-3 Dual Delay Pedal will be available for purchase at authorized U.S. BOSS retailers in October for $219.99. To learn more, visit www.boss.info.