610Ls?

[joeyrogerson]

so whats the deal with these?

Im looking to buy one but am a bit confused.

it looks like they run at 6ohms.  ok, but wait, who in hell makes a 6ohm amp?  not even Sunn (right?).

so do you pair them with a normal 4, 8, 16ohm map and run the thing at 4 or what?



Ok thanks.

[EdBass]

With solid state amps it makes no difference what the impedence of the cabinet is, as long as it isn't too low for the amp to remain stable, usually as low as 4 ohms is safe, some can run as low as 2 ohms safely. There are even commercial amplifiers that can safely run at <1 ohm, but aren't relevent to this conversation.
I think the Sunn 6 ohm 6X10 was designed to run with the Sunn solid state amps.
You should be OK at 6 ohms with any of the Sunn tube amps, provided you use the 4 ohm, or more preferably the 8 ohm tap.

[djc]

how does running a 4ohm cab on the 8ohm tap affect the amp (200s) and sound quality (tonal qualities and volume)?

[EdBass]

how does running a 4ohm cab on the 8ohm tap affect the amp (200s) and sound quality (tonal qualities and volume)?

It should generally perform at less than spec across the board.
Most tubeophiles agree that a mismatch of <100% is acceptable from a damage control perspective; i.e. the transformer should be able to handle it, and while it won't do anything good for your output tubes they should also be able to hang, albeit with an abbreviated life expectancy.
It's not an exacting science. The impedance of a cabinet isn't a fixed quantity; the actual impedance fluctuates based on frequency, wattage, air resistance, etc. A cab rated at 8 ohms may actually show the output transformer <6 to >10 ohms for brief periods in actual use. A speaker rating of 8 ohms is sort of a mean average, and the output transformer buffers these load fluctuations in order to match the amplifiers output stage impedance as closely as possible.
Work the transformer too hard and it will fail, and almost definitely take some of it’s sibling components with it.
So... while it should "work", your 200S mismatch scenario would be testing the integrity of the amplifiers design parameters, and you should expect performance less than design specifications accordingly.
But why the dilemma? Your 200S has a 4 ohm tap you can use.

[djc]

But why the dilemma? Your 200S has a 4 ohm tap you can use.
 
 
 

Don't know if I did that quote right...

it sure does.  and that's where I plug my 4ohm cab into.  but I vaugely recall someone saying use the 8ohm tap as it uses both sides blah blah blah, it says 4 I plug it into 4.  just curious if there is any truth to that 8ohm statement and if there is any damage or benefits resulting.

Thanks

[EdBass]

I don’t know of any magical mojo that involves mismatching cabinet and amplifier impedance. I think only bad things can come from intentionally using the wrong tap. Always use the tap the closest matches the impedance of the cabinet(s) you are using.
The output transformers on vintage Sunn tube amps like your 200S have 4, 8, and 16 ohm taps available, and they are either wired to use the 8 ohm and 4 ohm taps, or the 8 ohm and 16 ohm taps. These jacks interconnect in a parallel circuit and default to the lower impedance tap. It sounds like yours is wired for 8 and 4. The reason it's like that is to use two 8 ohm cabinets. If you plug into either jack separately you get the 8 ohm or 4 ohm tap, as they are hopefully marked. If you plug two cabinets into the two speaker outputs in the amp, it runs them parallel and uses the 4 ohm transformer tap; as two 8 ohm cabs in parallel gives you a 4 ohm load.

[djc]

really I can't imagine 2 cabs on this monster.  I play blues/jazz/rock in 500 seat halls and its got plenty of jam and monster tone with my 4-10 cab

If I could find 2 4-10 cabs wired at 8ohms I would definately try it but definately don't need it.  I like 10's for punch, I don't like 2-10 cabs, just don't seem to have the same tone 4 will produce.  12's and 15's and god forbid 18's seem too flabby for me.

I'm rambling.  thanks for the info.