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Post by speleman on Apr 27, 2015 9:00:32 GMT -7
Hello!
For the last couple of days, my Maz has been 'clipping', 'blackouted' or whatever to call it. I play for about 5 minutes on high volume, and then the amp just goes quiet for a few seconds, and then it comes back again. It seems like it only does it when i'm playing really aggressive.
I changed the V3 and V4 tubes a couple of weeks back, but other than that i haven't changed anything with it. And with the lack of knowledge of what it might be, i just turn it off when the clipping starts occuring. It might clip for a 5 seconds maybe, then i'll play for another 20, and then it clips again.
It can't be the cables, since i've tried a few and it's always the same amount of time that it goes quiet.
Hope to get some help with this.
Thanks!
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Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Apr 27, 2015 9:43:06 GMT -7
I'm not sure if this would be the problem or not, but try connecting the "send" and "return" FX loop jacks on the back with a regular guitar cable before doing any other significant investigations ('cause this is easy). Due to the way the jacks work, they're somewhat susceptible to problems over time. Might need to scroll for a while, but there's a good collection of MAZ "troubleshooting" tips here: ztalk.proboards.com/post/349901/thread
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Post by digs57 on Apr 27, 2015 11:58:10 GMT -7
v1,power,have been predominately the main culprits in any of my amp boogers...rectifier?..sounds like power tubes though to me...hang in there
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 27, 2015 12:09:22 GMT -7
Hello! For the last couple of days, my Maz has been 'clipping', 'blackouted' or whatever to call it. I play for about 5 minutes on high volume, and then the amp just goes quiet for a few seconds, and then it comes back again. It seems like it only does it when i'm playing really aggressive. I changed the V3 and V4 tubes a couple of weeks back, but other than that i haven't changed anything with it. And with the lack of knowledge of what it might be, i just turn it off when the clipping starts occuring. It might clip for a 5 seconds maybe, then i'll play for another 20, and then it clips again. It can't be the cables, since i've tried a few and it's always the same amount of time that it goes quiet. Hope to get some help with this. Thanks! I'll ask this because it isn't exactly clear from your description: Was it doing this prior to replacing those two tubes?
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Post by speleman on May 3, 2015 14:37:21 GMT -7
No, i wasn't. But i had the new tubes in and running for about 2 weeks before it started
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Post by KeithA on May 3, 2015 14:40:05 GMT -7
No, i wasn't. But i had the new tubes in and running for about 2 weeks before it started I think the point Steve would be making is that it's possible that the new tubes are the culprit do younhave have another spare set to try?
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Post by seanhazamaz on May 13, 2015 6:48:42 GMT -7
So this was happening with my Maz a couple of weeks ago, I went through 2 sets of power tubes and a rectifier tube before I just took the chassis off and cleaned all my pots and jacks with caig deoxit. Also I added some insulating material in my speaker cable plug cause i suspected a possible ground fault. My Maz is an early model that I bought on eBay so I think it had never been cleaned before. It's pretty easy to do and while it's open you can check for loose connections or bad solder joints. Hope this helps!
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Post by speleman on May 16, 2015 2:19:57 GMT -7
So i've switched back and forth between the old and new V3 & V4 tubes, and the problem still remains. Would a recording of the blackouts help you think? Not that it's much to listen to. And i'm also a bit hesitant to play it, since whatever is causing might get worse. Should i switch out some other tubes? Powertubes? Or just safe it and send it to the shop i bought it from and let them have a look at it? All i have to play on now is an old Line 6, and let me tell you: It's not alot of fun
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Post by BritInvasion on May 16, 2015 5:26:00 GMT -7
Is this a head or a combo? What you're describing sounds like a dirty and / or faulty speaker jack or speaker cable. The connection at the speaker push-on tabs is another possibility.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on May 16, 2015 6:44:35 GMT -7
Is this a head or a combo? What you're describing sounds like a dirty and / or faulty speaker jack or speaker cable. The connection at the speaker push-on tabs is another possibility. I would agree with this, although there are no forgone conclusions when troubleshooting. I will say that for the years that I was working on amps, about 95% of the time the problem ended up being mechanical in nature, not electronic. Loose wire, dirty contacts, shorted cable - that kind of stuff. The way you troubleshoot stuff like this is to start eliminating possibilities. It is possible it's your speaker cable, so how would you eliminate that possibility? Try another cable. It is possible that it is your guitar, so you eliminate that possibility by trying a different guitar. Same with the cables, etc. You keep eliminating possibilities in this way until you finally get down to the core few possibilities. Almost every item from your guitar's pickups through to the voice coil on your speakers begin as possibilities. One other thing - when you try something and you notice a change, don't stop with that one until you understand. Time after time I see folks troubleshooting and they notice something that they choose to ignore, but it ends up that is actually the cause of the problem.
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Post by zpilot on May 25, 2015 14:06:39 GMT -7
From your description that it goes quiet after about 5 minutes of driving it hard and then after a few seconds it comes back on I have to believe it is heat related. Have you tried it with a different speaker cabinet? Is it a head or a combo? If it's a head are you using a speaker cable and not a line level cable?
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