Hooking up ext cab to Superchamp XD

There are SCXD & SCX2 owners' forums here, very long ones where every topic imaginable regarding these amps is discussed. Give the search button a workout.

To answer the questions; no, the line out is not for speakers. A 4 ohm cab, assuming it has 2 8 ohm speakers if wired in series gives you 16 ohms. If you're playing at bedroom levels that's not going to hurt anything but it won't sound optimal. Don't push high volume through this setup though; these amps are cheap, considered disposable by Fender and many of the components are marginal. They do sound soooo much better through a good 12" and I've had mine in 2 different 1-12" cabinets with good results.

 

https://www.fmicassets.com/Damroot/Original/10002/OM_leg_gtramp_Super_Champ_XD.pdf
(scroll to page 6, and look at diagram label 'O' -- speaker out)

Disclaimer: I don't have that amp and never used one, but..
Looks like that amp wants to 'see' an 8ohm load for the speaker. I would hazard a guess that the speaker out bypasses the internal speaker. I wouldn't try to get tricky/fancy to work around that. Just use a cabinet with 2 big efficient speakers (say 2 4ohm drivers wired serially) if you want to get most overall db output.
A single efficient 12" speaker may also do what you want..

The OEM speakers in a lot of Fender amps leave a lot to be desired. You might also consider just upgrading the internal 10" driver to something like an Emi Ragin' Cajun (100.5db) or 1058 (98.7db)

https://www.eminence.com/pdf/Ragin_Cajun.pdf
https://www.eminence.com/pdf/Legend_1058.pdf

 

Unfortunately without major surgery the short answer is no. On the other hand the good news is that a 12" extension cab with an upgraded speaker is a big improvement and well worth doing.

 

I think we've (as a society) become use to referring to the lesser expensive amps as disposable solely on the fact that the labor costs alone many times excedes the actual cost of some of these amp. Fender authorized repair shops are told that many cheaper amps, especially warranty work, are told "Do Not Repair" because it's cheaper to send a replacement amp! Sad for the enviroment but a bargain for those that are handy in doing their own repairs! I had a friend that retrieved several bad SS amps from a authorized dealer that tosses them in the dumpster. Many were 5 minute fixes (bad connector or poor solder joint).
Bottom line... if you're handy with electronics and willing to put a little time, anything can be done (and usually very inexpensive).

 

Unless it's a blown digital chip - no fix for that.

After the XD had been out for a couple years, people with blown XD's under warranty were being sent the vastly inferior (sound-wise) X2s as a replacement. If that's not disposable...

I'll say this - be very careful with static electricity around these amps. This kind of circuitry is very susceptable to static discharges, even ones that are too small to feel. I'm trained in ESD handling and I use that training whenever I use my XD. I've been inside mine a number of times and I can testify first hand how cheap they are.

You really should check out the XD & X2 User groups I referred to rather than expect us to repeat the many reports of failures of these things.

 

Moved my SCXD into a PRRI raw cab and equipped it with a Weber F150 12" speaker. The improvement over the stock setup is night and day. YMMV

 

By disposable, I'm thinking he meant that if you break them, they're not worth fixing.

 

Well, I was starting to write a rather lengthy reply, but I'll just boil it down to: the stock (OEM) speakers in many Fender amps are so-so at best. You might be pleasantly surprised at what a good speaker upgrade might offer (sound wise, output wise).

A 2x12 will 'push more air' for certain and might sound a bit 'bigger' in some ways, but it might not be any louder than a quality upgrade to your internal 10" speaker (a Rajin Cajun [RC], many Weber models, etc) owing to efficiency ratings. The RC at over 100db is a very potent 10" the rating of which compares very well to many 12" counterparts.

Where things get a little weird, is that many modeling amps are often paired with speakers having a fairly flat response curve (as to not 'color' the resulting sound at the speaker much).

Many folks here and around, are not big fans of undertaking speaker swaps. They can be a real pain. I have found the effort worthwhile and have had fantastic results. Researching and testing does take some time and can be a bit of a gamble. Not everyone is willing to take that on.

FWIW/YMMV

 

I've had a SC x 2 for nearly 10 years. I have it in a custom made 12" combo cab (Eminence 1258 Legend) and it rocks. I've also run it through a 2 x 10 cab that works awesome. Even though I've had mine a while with no issues every amp guy I know considers them disposable.

 

Mine have been rock solid for years , LOL OP . any more if people ask a question someone always says use the Search button , but someone will respond sooner or latter .

 

Right, they'll swap in a dozen pickups trying for the "right" sound but won't touch the speaker. But the speaker is what you hear, after all, and a swap can make 100x the difference of a pickup swap for sometimes the same money. Pickup changes are for fine tuning once you get in the ballpark.

My SCXD feeds a Reverend 1250, a great speaker for both Fendery clean and punchy distortion. I used a Weber 12F150W for a while but the distortion sounds were a bit weak & blurry compared to the Rev; A Greenback also works well. That Weber is now in my old PR and that's where it stays - perfect combo.

 

Yup. I hear ya. So true. And speakers are cheap (relatively) too!
I'll admit to being a bit on the extreme side on this subject, but I have found that with a variety of speaker sizes, types, efficiencies.. I can mix/match to get to sounds that work for any given situation. I think I said in another thread somewhere recently that with 4 separate cabinets I can use each on it's own (4 options, each at 8 ohms) AND I can use a (parallel) Y splitter cable to pair up any two at a time (driving load down to 4 ohms). That's 10 different configurations ('sounds') coming out the speaker(s) from the same amp. The paired up boxes with the 4 ohm load allows the amp to pump out more power as needed too (uncommon in my case though).

 

I recently built an attenuator with resistors & an L-pad; no matter what the speaker config is the amp always sees 8 ohms. So I can run 2 or more cabs in parallel and the amp is none the wiser, except for the sonic blueballs it must feel from outputting power that doesn't result in more volume.

 

I’m currently running my XD thru and old odd ball Fender slant back 212 cab. Stock speakers. It does add more presence to its sound. But there are limitations as to what it can do. All good advice here. Do read the SCXD owners thread elsewhere on the forum. I think there’s over 100 pages of info for you there.
They are great little amps. Please be careful with the impedances and respect the amp for what it can and can’t do.

 

The XD is well known for having the main board die suddenly and without warning. And when it does, it's landfill. That has prevented me from taking the chance on a used one, since they seem to go for $200 or more on Ebay, and I can't afford to chance that much on something that may not last.
I spent $250 on the GT40, and after less than a year the volume started dropping out and Fender couldn't be bothered. So, yes, they consider their digital amps "disposable", and if one dies you're SOL, and they expect you to just buy another. God help the folks with Tonemasters that they paid $1k for when they die.

 

Hence, my ESD comment.

 

If they are so bad why are so many still play so well. Bought mine used 7 or 8 years ago. No I don’t gig with it, I’m a bedroom player or ill sit in with a few friends. Ive never had an issue with mine. It gets played most every day that I’m home.