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Post by aurules22 on Mar 9, 2015 20:55:31 GMT -7
So I've had some seriously bad luck with my Ray recently. First my ef86 went microphonic, so I did a full retube. Then And then in a span of about a week, I had another ef86 go microphonic, and el84 had a gas short, and I blew one of my celestion Blues.
I've finally got everything sorted out, and my replacement NOS tesla ef86 came in the mail today. overflowing with excitement, I plug in the tube and wouldn't you know it... Now my amp has some kind of awful static crackling noise that stays on all the time. Has anyone has any experience with this problem?
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Post by headshrinker (Marc) on Mar 9, 2015 21:08:37 GMT -7
If it sounds like bacon cooking, probably a power tube. Take a look at them. One may be red plating or starting to go. You'll seethe red plating and maybe a little fireworks sometimes. Give the rectifier a look too.
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Post by aurules22 on Mar 10, 2015 5:41:22 GMT -7
So far I've swapped out every tube, including the matched quad of el84 power tubes, with spares that I had. The static remains in every case. The only tube I don't have a replacement for is the EF86, and the trouble started as soon as I stuck that tube in there. The EF86 has got to be the problem. Today I'm going clean all the tube pins/sockets with contact cleaner and see if that doesn't remedy the problem. If not, it's off to the tech.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Mar 10, 2015 6:02:38 GMT -7
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Post by aurules22 on Mar 10, 2015 11:11:19 GMT -7
Thanks Mike, I bought some CAIG DeoxIT and I'm going to go through each tube and clean them, hopefully that'll reduce all the chatter going on. If not, well... dang.
Note: I read in the manual where loose chasis screws may be the cause of intermittent crackling and static. That sure sounds like the symptoms the RAY is suffering from right now. When I get home I'll have to check that out.
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Post by headshrinker (Marc) on Mar 10, 2015 11:31:25 GMT -7
One more thing. Be sure your cell phone is off or in airplane mode. Sometimes as it looks for a tower the amp picks it up and it makes weird sounds.
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Post by aurules22 on Mar 10, 2015 11:56:22 GMT -7
One more thing. Be sure your cell phone is off or in airplane mode. Sometimes as it looks for a tower the amp picks it up and it makes weird sounds. Interesting, that could definitely be a possibility.
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Post by drew on Mar 10, 2015 16:37:06 GMT -7
I've heard of some Ray owner saying the effects loops contacts can cause noise, while you're cleaning connections i'd recommend cleaning the effect loop jacks. Even if you don't use them.
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Post by John on Mar 10, 2015 18:07:20 GMT -7
I've had my cell near my amp, and yes, it makes a lot of noise.
As drew said, clean your effects jacks. take a guitar cable and shove it in each effects jack a few time.
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Post by aurules22 on Mar 11, 2015 9:26:16 GMT -7
None of the above methods did anything for the amp, and to make matters worse im already starting to get some of the "jingle bells" microphonic rattle from the new ef86. I've emailed Dr Z, that's basically my only option now..
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Post by drew on Mar 12, 2015 8:25:27 GMT -7
I would agree, faulty ef86.
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Post by John on Mar 12, 2015 11:40:58 GMT -7
If you send it to the Doc...one way or another, he'll fix you up.
I fried the rec tube on a Z-28 years ago. I was worried about what else might have been damaged. Doc said ship it to him and he'll personally go over it. I shipped it, he put it on the bench, looked it over and shipped it back. (even signed the chassis) And the Doc did it for free! It's his name on the amp (ok, his initial!)...but he cares about making sure they work right.
If it's not too difficult, I'd ship it to Z-amps in Cleveland rather than taking it to a local tech. You'll have to pay for shipping each way.
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Post by doctorice on Mar 14, 2015 6:20:50 GMT -7
I agree: if it's a knotty problem, let the Z team take care of it. They charge a reasonable price for work done and the to/from shipping expense is worth it for the peace of mind that the amp was worked on by those who know it best.
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Post by Jaguarguy (Mike) on Mar 15, 2015 14:51:58 GMT -7
I agree with John and Mike 100%!
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Post by aurules22 on Mar 19, 2015 5:22:12 GMT -7
The Stang Ray is back up and running! My problems were definitely due to the bad EF86 I received. My replacement NOS EF86 came in yesterday, popped it in, and voila!!! Amp is running fine now and sounds beautiful. I'm finally getting to hear the tone with the Blue/Greenback speaker combo as well
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Post by captainron (Ron) on Mar 19, 2015 8:19:47 GMT -7
^^^^I had an EF86 go bad this week as well...microphonic rattle....problem was intermittent. Glad you got it fixed! Tubes can be hit or miss...like Mike said^^^^.
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