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New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15971] Mon, 18 July 2011 11:17 Go to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
Hi all,

I just bought a pair of 302-PA Kustom cabs and have a bunch of questions before I can start using them. Any help is appreciated, I'm a total noob to cabinets and PA systems. These things are a beauty, even as road worn as the pair I got they have a lot of character. I can't wait to hear how they sound with my own setup Smile.

I read that the cabinets are 8 ohm...is that each, or together? I have an 8 ohm out on my Fender Pro Jr. 15 watt amp and need to know if it's safe to plug into one of the cabs.

Also, I use a Mackie Onyx Satellite I/O system on my computer, which I would like to run out to these in addition to my monitors to use as PAs. The outputs on the Satellite say 100 ohm line-level outputs. Can I run the cabinets straight from this, or do I need something in between? What kind of cable should I use? I was warned not to use guitar cables, but not told what to use.

Lastly, one of the cabinets is missing two 8" speakers and one 12". Does anyone know what type of speakers to replace them with? Are the originals available, or else what is a suitable alternative?

Thanks in advance to anyone who can educate me on my new towers. I'm really excited (got the pair for $75) and am dying to get them hooked up, I just don't know what I'm doing and would hate to fry any of my equipment! I had never heard of Kustom but after doing some research I feel like I got a little piece of history out of the deal Smile.

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15972 is a reply to message #15971] Tue, 19 July 2011 08:44 Go to previous messageGo to next message
pleat is currently offline  pleat
Messages: 1454
Registered: June 2004
Location: Belding, Mi
Senior Member
Each 302 cabinet uses 12 ohm speakers wired in series and parallel for a total of 6.5 ohms each cabinet. using two cabinets to the amp, the amp will see 3.25 ohms total. Finding the right replacements will not be easy. I's suggest replacing all the speakers with 16 ohm speakers, it will raise the impedance of each cabinet, but will give you more options as to drive them with different amps.
The 100 ohm line out is not a speaker out but rather a low impedance signal out to drive other devises, not a speaker cabient.
Speaker cables are two wire parallel wires, much like an electrical extension cord. Guitar cables are a small single wire and a larger braided shield surrounding the center single wire.
pleat

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15973 is a reply to message #15972] Tue, 19 July 2011 10:54 Go to previous messageGo to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
Thanks pleat,

I guess if I have to replace the speakers I may as well redo the whole thing. I'll see if I can find out what I would need to do to make them powered, perhaps...assuming that's what I would need to use them in place of my monitors as PAs. I liked the idea of having them around for their vintage sound, but from what I can tell they aren't going to be useful as is. If that's too complicated, I'll see about wiring new speakers in to make them 16 ohm each (which together is an 8 ohm impedence, correct?) and hook them up to my Pro Jr. instead. It might take a while for me to afford 10 guitar speakers, maybe I should make a new baffle and put a few different drivers and a horn in each. I dunno, so many choices and none of them look easy or cheap at this point.

Thanks for the info, I really want to use these towers in some way, I was just hoping there was a way to use them as-is in my setup.

Has anyone else found ways to use these towers without the matching head?

-Vinny

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15974 is a reply to message #15973] Tue, 19 July 2011 11:29 Go to previous messageGo to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
Come to think of it, maybe I just need to find a used powered amp of some kind...what would I be looking for to match them up? I don't need a mixer, per se, as I mix in my laptop. I just need to know what specs to look for Smile.

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15975 is a reply to message #15971] Tue, 19 July 2011 18:18 Go to previous messageGo to next message
stevem is currently offline  stevem
Messages: 4775
Registered: June 2004
Location: NY
Senior Member
Any 2 channel power amp can drive those cab`s.
A amp rated for no more than 200 watts rms at 8 ohms will work well.

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15977 is a reply to message #15975] Wed, 20 July 2011 12:40 Go to previous messageGo to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
Thanks, that's very helpful to know Smile

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15978 is a reply to message #15977] Wed, 20 July 2011 16:21 Go to previous messageGo to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
My guitar amp runs an 8 ohm speaker output, if the speakers are 6.5 ohm could I run them by adding a resistor? Would it be a 1.5 resistor or is the math different than that? I know you aren't supposed to run tube amps to cabs with less resistance but I'm not sure if it's as simple as adding a resistor to make up the difference.

Thanks again Smile

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15980 is a reply to message #15978] Wed, 20 July 2011 19:27 Go to previous messageGo to next message
stevem is currently offline  stevem
Messages: 4775
Registered: June 2004
Location: NY
Senior Member
We are talking about the difference between impeadance and resistance.
A speaker rated for 8 ohms Impeadnace will measure any where from 5.6 ohms to 6.8 ohms in resistance, so your 8 ohm guitar amp will be right at home with a speaker(s) who total resistance is 6.5 ohms.

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15981 is a reply to message #15980] Wed, 20 July 2011 21:17 Go to previous messageGo to next message
cassent5150 is currently offline  cassent5150
Messages: 341
Registered: August 2009
Senior Member
You say you have a pair. Did you pull the back off both cabinets? If so, you can use the fully functional one for a pattern. You need to check the sum total impeadence of the good speaker to make sure that its wired correctly. If you have a multimeter to check ohms check the ohms at the speaker input jack. Theres no telling how many people had those cabs and if anyone has messed with the wiring. In this way you wont accidently damage your amp. Its like stevem was saying, keep in mind your checking resistance so 6.5 or higher is cool. Then check each speaker you need for the other cab individually so you know what your looking for in ohms. I would think you could get those speakers off ebay pretty cheap. I believe any cts Alnico speaker around 50 watt rating would work for a replacement.

A quick look at ebay I saw these 12" upgrade (Standard paper composite cone, but notice the 4 wave cloth type surround for those lower HZ and will last forever) if you'd like to check them out see the link below

http://cgi.ebay.com/Pair-CTS-401-122-16-Ohm-Speakers-Guitar- PA-/230642546822?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35b35df8 86

Steve C

[Updated on: Wed, 20 July 2011 21:45]

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15982 is a reply to message #15981] Wed, 20 July 2011 22:54 Go to previous messageGo to next message
vincentlepes is currently offline  vincentlepes
Messages: 6
Registered: July 2011
Junior Member
I believe they may be 12 ohm speakers from what I have read on other threads here, but I may over time replace the speakers in the bad tower with 16 or 8 ohm speakers and then when that one is ready I'll get the other to match. That is, unless I get a great deal on a lot of 4 12"s and 6 10"s Smile. 8" 12 ohm speakers aren't easy to find, apparently. If I do go ahead and replace them, I will probably take the 8"s and put 10"s in instead. I may need to adjust or replace the baffle but that shouldn't be a big hassle.

I'm still torn though, part of me thinks getting them going as PAs is the way to go, as the loudest sound I have for a mix is from my monitors...but then again a pair of matched cabs with nice guitar speakers in there would take my Pro Jr. into blow-your-face off territory. So many choices...

I've been meaning to get a multimeter ever since I lost mine a few years back, so I'll pick one up and see what the actual resistance values are. Thanks for all the info, you guys are great.

Peace!

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Re: New 302-PA Cab Owner [message #15983 is a reply to message #15971] Thu, 21 July 2011 06:29 Go to previous message
stevem is currently offline  stevem
Messages: 4775
Registered: June 2004
Location: NY
Senior Member
Radio Shack still sells a good pocket meter for about 30 bucks!

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