Simple Cab question.. I think

[Carbuff]

These are the inputs on my crate 4x12 that I just got. (Ok, have you stopped laughing yet?) There are no markings for which one is for mono operation. So, does that mean that either one will do for 8 ohm mono operation? Also, am I assuming too much here? If there are 2 inputs like this then its a stereo/mono cab right? Normally I would just plug it in and see for myself but Im plugging in a tube amp and dont want to hurt anything.

[Bert]

My guess (and it's just a guess) is it doesn't support mono operation. If it did, in mono mode it would either be 4 ohms or 16 ohms assuming it's 8 ohms in stereo.

You can safely test this at low volumes without damaging your amp. Plug in a single channel and see if all speakers are powered or if each input activates only one side. If it's the latter, you don't really have a mono mode.

[Carbuff]

Ok, what I did was I used the headphone out on my home stereo and using a regular mono patch cable plugged it in to each side. The volume is very low ( I guess that has to do with the stereo power) but all 4 speakers seem to be on regardless of which jack I plug into. So I guess mono mode is working. Im guessing that If I now plug something else into the other input then 2 of the speakers will play the radio and 2 will play whatever else I plug in. That would be stereo mode working properly, right?

[Dreamland_Rebel]

my guess is one is in and one is out. so you can daisy chain mulitiple cabs via one speaker out on a head.

[hippietim]

You should measure it. Stick a cable in each jack and see what it measures. Then stick two cables in and see what each measure.

[Carbuff]

Ah, I see. You would think that that would be marked on the back or something. Well, my little valve jr. is working just fine with it for now. And btw, the crate website is of no help at all. No documentation on this cab that I could find.

[Carbuff]

You should measure it. Stick a cable in each jack and see what it measures. Then stick two cables in and see what each measure.

Good idea. Now to break out the meter.

[Carbuff]

my guess is one is in and one is out. so you can daisy chain mulitiple cabs via one speaker out on a head.

The funny thing is though, they are both labeled as inputs. You would think if one was in and one was out they would be labeled as such.

[krimson]

I'm surprised they even labeled them. I have owned quite a few speaker cabs that didn't evey have labels, but I would venture to say theat the input text is not totally accurate. I would agree that the extra input would actually be used to daisy chain another cabinet. So you could use either input resulting in 8 ohms, or daisy chain another cabinet of the same ohmage and the result would be 4 ohms total.

I used to have cheap Ampeg 4x12 cabinet (made by SLM) and the input dish looked exactly like that, same wattage too, and they were both mono inputs that could be used to daisy chain another cab. I even opened up the back panel and decided to sell the cab after seeing the puny little magnets that each speaker had.

[hippietim]

I would open the thing up.

[toejam]

I've got a Crate cab like that, too. It's definitely mono, but you can daisy-chain another cab off of it. Either jack you use is fine. I'd just email Crate and ask them anyway.

[danastas]

Um, this is the way all my cabinets have arrived recently. Avatar does it this way too. For Avatar, it is Mono, either input will do. It all depends on how the speakers are wired (in other words, give Crate a call or simply check inside to see if it's series or parallel).

[toejam]

Um, this is the way all my cabinets have arrived recently. Avatar does it this way too. For Avatar, it is Mono, either input will do. It all depends on how the speakers are wired (in other words, give Crate a call or simply check inside to see if it's series or parallel).

That's a good point, too. Series doubles and parallel halves.
If the cab is wired in series, then daisy-chaining them will be 16 ohms. If it's in parallel, then it'll be 4 ohms.

[Josh Jackson]

It says, impedance: 8 OHMS
my guess would be that both inputs are 8 ohms.

[Carbuff]

Ok, heres the deal. Both of the inputs measure 7.8 ohms, and either will power all 4 speakers. When I daisy chain my other 1x12 (8 ohm) it reads 4.2 ohms. and yes those speakers have tiny magnets. They are all rated at 8 ohms too so I guess theyre wired 2 in series and the 2 pairs in parallel. And I guess theyre all wired in parallel with the other jack too.