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KUSTOM - Speaker Ohm Requirements [message #25327] Fri, 29 July 2016 00:23 Go to next message
LeeNails
Messages: 26
Registered: June 2016
Location: earth
Junior Member
I recently bought a Kustom Hustler and a Kustom Sidewinder, and am now sprucing them up. I also own a K250 head and two 2x15 cabs. The K250's optimal ohm load is listed as 4 ohms on the back of the amp, but I don't see the ohmage listed on the back of either of my 2x15 cabs (chrome ports & Kustom Electronics, Inc badges on both). I think they are each 8 ohms, so I'd have to use BOTH to get 100 watts RMS outta the head. . . is that accurate?

The Hustler, which sounds GREAT, has 4x10's and the Sidewinder has 1x15, but there's no ohmage listed on the back of either amp. I was under the impression that these are essentially identical amps, and that only the cabinets and speaker compliments differ. Is this true?
Re: KUSTOM - Speaker Ohm Requirements [message #25328 is a reply to message #25327] Fri, 29 July 2016 06:26 Go to previous message
stevem is currently offline  stevem
Messages: 4728
Registered: June 2004
Location: NY
Senior Member
The Husler and the Sidewinder both want a 8 ohm load to output there max wattage.

On any Kustom ,or any solid state amp for that matter running a load higher or lower than design will almost half the output wattage, but running a lower load will make the amp run twice as hot which is not good dependant on how loud you play it, and a higher load will run the amp cooler than stock.



The pre K250 2-15 cabinets where all fitted with 16 ohm drivers wired in parallel for a 8 ohm load even though all the K200 series heads from 65 to 70 needed a 4 ohm load for max power.

The reason this was done is due to the fact that they offered set ups with 2 speaker cabinets so when these where used you than had the needed 4 ohm load.

The 2-15" cabinets from the 71 and up years where fitted with two 8 ohm drivers and gave the needed 4 ohm load as they too where wired in parallel.

To first off tell what era cabinet you have take a look at it side ways, if the top is not as deep as the bottom section than it is a K200 cabinet, if there is no taper seen on the front from top to bottom than it is from the K250 years of production .
Also note that the late made 1971 era amps used a much courser texture black tuck & roll on them.

Other spotting features of the K250 cabinets are silver verticle stripes in the grill cloth, and rectangular serial number tag on the rear of the cabinet.

The 75 watt power section of your Husler or sidewinder thru a 15 driver would be very nearly as loud as a K 200 head thru a stock drivered K200 2-15" cabinet with its 16 ohm load!

Any cabinet you use should be checked out with a ohm meter to prove out what it is wired up as after all of these years, and it's interesting to note that any of the tall 3 speaker cabinets be they from the 200 or 250 series had 16 ohm driver in parallel and gave a 5.3 ohm load so these cabinets where far louder than the 2-15" cabinets!

[Updated on: Fri, 29 July 2016 06:41]

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