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Post by stratdev on Mar 19, 2007 16:15:08 GMT -7
I recently sold my Stang Ray head to prsnstrat. Things were going well at home. He gigged it and it was fine the first two sets... then the power loss. Here's his description:
On another point of note...I gigged with the 'Ray for the first time this past weekend. She was putting out fat and georgeous sounds for the first two sets. And, I plug in for the third set and my volume is down to about 20%!! I went from cutting tone to barely audible...yikes!! Of course, I panicked and turned the amp off, and played acoustic the rest of the night... So I am wondering if you could shed some light on what the culprit might be? I have not messed with anything yet since I wanted to gather as much info as possible before I start troubleshooting. My worst fear was that the transformer blew or something major like that.A point of note is that I was using a Hot Plate, and a reverb unit in the fx loop. Everything was hooked up correctly, and like I said it was humming along beautifully for the first two sets. It was so bizarre!!
Any ideas guys? I suggested checking the following. What did i miss? 1) did ya take all pedals off the Ray and go straight in? Still show power loss? 2) EF86 may be failing... 3) did the loss of power occur when you took the amp off standby? Could be a power tube, though I would expect a bit more volume than 20% with only one down.
Thanks in advance for any ideas!
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Post by DRZ on Mar 19, 2007 16:28:28 GMT -7
Got to be a tube, maybe a pair of EL-84's at most.
Z
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Post by Bill on Mar 19, 2007 19:05:29 GMT -7
Hey guys...been there, done that. I'm 99% sure it's tube related, the only problem is locating which tube. Fortunately there aren't too many tubes to deal with. Most likely it's the EF86, but I've had it happen with the 12AX7 and power tubes as well. I've had "dip free" volume for about 3 months now since popping in a new Dario Miniwatt. I know how you feel , you're playing along with amazing clean power & punch...and suddenly there is WEAKNESS. About the time you start to check everything the power and volume come back. Very mysterious and frustrating. To be safe, I sent mine to Z and it checked out good. Just bad tubes. I'd Keep a full set in the gig bag, at least a pre and EF.
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Post by prsnstrat on Mar 19, 2007 21:10:56 GMT -7
Wow...I love this board! Thanks for the help you guys...I was really stressin. I really can't say enough about you guys.
I'll try plugging straight in; replacing the power tubes and maybe the EF86 and go from there.
Thanks SO much!! Brandon
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Post by Jim @94 Amps on Mar 20, 2007 14:57:39 GMT -7
The large majority of amps that come back for repair just need new tubes.
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Post by Sam A. on Mar 20, 2007 15:06:33 GMT -7
I had the same thing happen with a fender Blues Jr. a while back. I slapped in a new set of EL-84's and the problem vanished.
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Post by myles on Mar 22, 2007 11:05:46 GMT -7
Always replace the output set with a full output set ... do not try to find the one bad tube, replace the set or your output set will not be matched. Output set is the first suspect. I would also replace the rectifer for long life sake with any NOS GZ34 / 5AR4 from Mike at www.kcanostubes.com
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Post by prsnstrat on Mar 22, 2007 14:33:04 GMT -7
Always replace the output set with a full output set ... do not try to find the one bad tube, replace the set or your output set will not be matched. Output set is the first suspect. I would also replace the rectifer for long life sake with any NOS GZ34 / 5AR4 from Mike at www.kcanostubes.comThank Myles, I was going to replace the entire quad of output tubes, the Ef86 (got from KCA) and a new rectifier...just for consistency's sake. She's definitely lost some power and tightness in the bottom end since last weekend...so I am hoping replacing the tubes does the trick. I'll let everyone know what I find out when I get all the tubes replaced. Thanks everyone! Brandon
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Post by prsnstrat on Mar 26, 2007 14:39:52 GMT -7
Welp, I got my Dario Miniwatt from KCA today and picked up some JJ El84s and replaced them in my 'Ray today. Juala, that power and punch is back. *Seemed* to have done the trick. The proof will be at the next gig. It's really really loud again...but in a great way...just like I remember. Can't wait for rehearsal this week! Anyway...just wanted to update everyone who was so kind with advice. I'll chime in again after the gig.
Thanks everyone!
Brandon
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Post by Bill on Mar 26, 2007 17:41:17 GMT -7
The last time mine was dipping up and down, it also seemed to lack some horsepower. I put in a brand new Dario and the amp immediately kicked butt once again. I thought EF86's were supposed to last for years, but I'm on my third one in less than a year.
Thing is, I like the amp so much it's no problem...just keep a spare 86 ready to pop in.
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Post by prsnstrat on Apr 2, 2007 7:20:05 GMT -7
A week has gone by and the amp is still sounding punchy and loud...and of course amazing. The funny thing was even at a decreased output the tone was still there! Two more rehearsals and a gig in the next two weeks, so I'll keep chiming in. Thanks everybody for your help. Sincerely, Brandon
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Post by hdahs143 on Apr 2, 2007 7:24:59 GMT -7
Awesome!! ;D
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Post by prsnstrat on Apr 20, 2007 22:07:18 GMT -7
Wow..I used the 'Ray last weekend...through a Bogner OS 2x12...and I was in tone heaven all night long. I want to replace the V30 with something better to pair with the Hellatone 30 though...just a tad harsh with this amp. Maybe a Silver bell or a Blue Dog. It's a good sign for me, that I am diggin an amp. I usually move on to speaker configs.
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