The Steel Guitar Forum

Hi everyone! I just got a Walker SS preamp with two Walker speakers. I haven't found the best power amp yet. Is it possible to use the Nashville as a power amp and still get a true stereo rig?

Would it mess anything up? I've been using the Preamp into the Nashville and it's been fine. Preamp into Nashville, bypassing the amps controls and just using the speaker. Now that I have both speakers, can I make it stereo until I find a good power amp unit?

Also, I see online stereo power amps that are 75 watts for 4 ohm, each side3. Is this enough power for each speaker in a live gig situation? What should I be looking for?

75 Watts is quite a bit, but I don't know what power amps your looking at that your worried about power.

Crown XLS 1000 is a nice lightweight reasonably priced power amp, it puts out 350 watts per side at 4 ohms.

Robert, thanks for the reply. I just don't know a lot about power amps so I thought I'd get some info from fellow steelers.

This is what I found on craigslist, an Alesis RA150 stereo with:

Power Rating Stereo @ 4 ohms: 75 watts per channel RMS
Stereo @ 8 ohms: 45 watts per channel RMS
Bridged @ 8 ohms: 150 watts RMS

It said it's more for studio, control room situations.

Would this power a walker preamp and two 15s properly?

It should with some to spare.

To answer your original question, NO the NV400 can not be used to get a true stereo (2 channel) rig setup. You need a separate power amp (or a stereo power amp) to power each speaker separately.

The power amp you are looking at should work fine. It is stereo and that's what you need. I personally would go with a higher powered one so I had more headroom, but for most situations, that one should be fine.

I will echo Richard's concern here, 75 watts per side is minimal power for stage use with a band, 2 x 150 watts would be more appropriate for gigging with.

One thing I think happens to us steel players, is that by putting the volume pedal in line between guitar and amp, we tend to lose a lot of the volume we would get if we had plugged straight into the amp. I know I have noticed this as I don't ever play with my volume pedal wide open. My little Nashville 400 gets a good workout next to my guitar players Fender Deluxe Reverb (at what 22 watts?). Of course, if I played wide open or plugged straight into my amp. I would probably turn his Deluxe into sawdust.

Has anyone else noticed this phenomenon? Or is it just me?

When I used rack systems, I had 200 - 300 watts per side simply because most power amps tend to be high wattage for PA system use. And higher powered ones usually are not much more expensive than the lower powered ones.

Richard Sinkler wrote:One thing I think happens to us steel players, is that by putting the volume pedal in line between guitar and amp, we tend to lose a lot of the volume we would get if we had plugged straight into the amp. I know I have noticed this as I don't ever play with my volume pedal wide open. My little Nashville 400 gets a good workout next to my guitar players Fender Deluxe Reverb (at what 22 watts?). Of course, if I played wide open or plugged straight into my amp. I would probably turn his Deluxe into sawdust.

Has anyone else noticed this phenomenon? Or is it just me?

True I guess that would depend on each player and what they usually end up with as their full open position. For some I guess it could be as little as 50%. Looks like I stand corrected on recommended wattage ratings.

Richard Sinkler wrote: When I used rack systems, I had 200 - 300 watts per side simply because most power amps tend to be high wattage for PA system use. And higher powered ones usually are not much more expensive than the lower powered ones.

True going from 350 watts per side to 500 watts per side usually is only about $100 extra, same with going from 75 Watts to 350 watts.

Your speakers' wattage rating and impedance are important factors in choosing a power amp. There's a heck of a lot more that contributes to the final output of an amp than the number of watts the power amp produces. What you want is maximum efficiency through the whole chain without fear of blowing the speakers.

When comparing a tube amp to solid state, you typically need to double the amount of wattage for a solid state (at least). A deluxe reverb IS comparable in output to a Nashville 400 imo, but because it is efficient in the right areas for guitar, or steel up to a certain volume. A nashville 400 produces a lot more bass, which sucks up a ton of power.

Thanks everyone for the advice! I found a power amp with any juice for live gigs. Should have a nice stereo rig up and running in a day or two!