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Post by mikiedreb on Apr 30, 2010 10:10:11 GMT -7
Picked up a Brake Lite to install in my '69 Pro Reverb. Clicking through the various settings....I noticed very little if any attenuation on the "1" setting. The others ramped up as I expected. I pulled out the old Fluke and found the following resistance readings: Off: .2 ohms 1: .2 ohms 2: 13.4 ohms 3: 28.1 ohms 4: 49.4 ohms Is this Brake Lite defective? Shouldn't the off position offer 0 resistance? or position 1 indicate more?
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 30, 2010 19:38:18 GMT -7
Weird. I've never put the meter on mine, so I took the opportunity.
First off, calibrate by hooking your probes together. When I do that, I get .2 ohms. That's a short circuit right there - you're measuring the resistance of the wire in the probes.
I measured both with a speaker connected and with no speaker. I have an 8 ohm Alnico Gold in there.
With the speaker connected, I get this: Thru: 6.9 ohms (I believe this has the meter directly across the speaker terminals) 1: 5.3 ohms 2: 9.9 ohms 3: 13.6 ohms 4: 16.6 ohms
So that's way different from yours. So I unplugged the speaker and this is what I got:
Thru: infinity (open circuit) 1: 24 ohms 2: 24 ohms 3: 24 ohms 4: 24 ohms
Not really sure what to make of all that, but I would say you should talk to your dealer and maybe do a swap for another BL.
And do not operate your amp with that thing set to thru or position 1 - your numbers indicate a short circuit right there and you could cause some problems.
Edit: Just a thought - how are you connecting it to your amp? You should have the cord coming out the the BL plugged into the amp's output, and your speaker should be plugged into the jack on the BL.
Also where did you take those readings? I took mine on the plug that goes into the back of the amp. If you measured at the output side, that would be a whole different thing.
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Post by bustertheboy on Apr 30, 2010 23:34:07 GMT -7
No speaker, just connected tip in to tip out, I get 0: 0.4 ohms (this is my probe resistance which is what benttop is talking about) 1: 0.4 ohms 2: 0.12 ohms ( a little different to yours- remember the fittings are slid either side to adjust) 3: 28.9 ohms 4: 49.8 ohms I'd say yours is ok mikie
Brett
P.S. my measurements were with nothing connected to the BrakeLite- one side of the meter to tip of the BL lead, the other to the hot terminal of the BL output socket, which I suspect is what mikiedreb has done
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Post by mikiedreb on May 1, 2010 1:17:15 GMT -7
Thanks for taking the measurements. I also metered from tip in to tip out.
It appears that although there are 4 levels of attenuation indicated on the dial, 1-4.... there are only 3 levels of attenuation available....as both 0 & 1 provide the same resistance.
The good news is........both positions 2 & 3 sounds fantastic !!!!!!
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Post by benttop (Steve) on May 1, 2010 6:50:38 GMT -7
Tip in to tip out... I hadn't thought of doing it that way. I metered from tip to sleeve on the plug (Brake Lite input).
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Post by bustertheboy on May 3, 2010 3:49:55 GMT -7
I think there may be more going on than just resistance, because all of the settings are different in terms of volume out. You've got a large resistor as well as the rheostat- I'll have to think about the way it is wired up Brett
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Post by mikiedreb on May 3, 2010 12:46:38 GMT -7
Can anybody confirm a volume reduction from 0 to 1? I don't detect one, however my g/f says don't hear half of what see says...
There are 2 adjustable bands in the BL....one for position 2, another for position 3.....
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Post by bustertheboy on May 3, 2010 13:47:29 GMT -7
I've very definitely got a volume reduction between 0 and 1- in fact I wish it was less! The adjustable bands affect settings 2 and 3. I've adjusted mine to the right (with the rheostat and adjustable bands to the bottom of the unit and resistor to the top). Don't forget, if you do decide to adjust, mark where they were to start with using a sharpie or something. I felt the amount of attenuation was too much because I play just over the edge of breakup beginning. Brett
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Post by mikiedreb on May 3, 2010 15:52:45 GMT -7
There may be an issue with mine then. Time to talk to the dealer. Thanks to all who have taken the time to reply.
Mike
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Post by benttop (Steve) on May 3, 2010 17:51:52 GMT -7
Keep one thing in mind: everyone hears quite differently. I have seen numerous posts about attenuators that do nothing, yet as it turns out, they are doing exactly what they should. The listener just can't perceive it. This has happened way more than once around here. On the other hand, some of us can perceive much smaller changes in volume.
It is said that 3db is the smallest change that can be perceived by the human ear. I dispute that - I can hear changes as small as 1 db. But many folks can't even perceive a 3db change. You might be one of those - have another player give a listen and offer their opinion.
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Post by mikiedreb on May 3, 2010 21:18:57 GMT -7
Steve.......excellent point......I most definately will have someone else check it out before proceeding.
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Post by Eddie on May 8, 2010 22:46:59 GMT -7
Have you tried playing while having someone else turn the knob from 0 to 1 and back again? Is it possible that by the time you reach to the dial and click it over then hit another note, you've lost your perspective on where the volume was? Also, I've heard it's easier to hear the volume going back up than down... or was it the other way around? Can't remember.
Anyway, mine has a definite diff between 0 and 1.
Best, Eddie
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2010 23:28:51 GMT -7
Can anybody confirm a volume reduction from 0 to 1? I don't detect one, however my g/f says don't hear half of what see says... There are 2 adjustable bands in the BL....one for position 2, another for position 3..... It's supposed to be calibrated to 2 dB from the factory.
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