Amp Died

[PRSfan nym 1985]

Re: Amp Died

exactly because all we are doing is speculating we don't know the exact make and model and none of us are actually seeing/hearing the amp's issue(s) firsthand.

since you don't know what to diagnose there is no sense in you wasting money fixing things that may or may not be broken it's going to cost you much more time and money in the long run if you are literally going to end up switching every fuse, tube, and cap. Plus if you take it to someone that knows what they are doing more times than not they warranty their work so in the event something goes wrong after the fix most guys will stand by their work.

[trevorus]

Re: Amp Died

Is he iceman'ing us?

[GoldenVulture]

Re: Amp Died

Now none of the lights for on/standby turn on or tubes glow.

Fuses?
As previously suggested ; Amp type, etc. would be help full.

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Amp Died

Brrrrr, it's cold in here.

[Toe-Knee]

Re: Amp Died

To me it sounds like one of your valves was on its way out and took the HT fuse out

I think this purely because you said the sound was deteriorating over time and the volume was lessining.

This happens when your power valves are shot.

[DTrane]

Re: Amp Died

Is he iceman'ing us?

naw, Ive been busy. Music aint my day job.

Yeah, Im just gonna take to a tech when I get some money.

It is a Crate VFX5212 combo with EL34's. Its my favorite amp. I use it like a head and run it through a cab.

Its the first tube amp Ive ever owned.

I dont think its the tubes. Theyre not very old and havent been used very much. Also, immediately after the new tubes it wasnt near as loud as my other 50w amps. I got a bad feeling its going to be a costly fix for this boat anchor

[PRSfan nym 1985]

Re: Amp Died

it could still be the tubes, just because you just put em in doesn't mean you properly biased the amp to match them

at this point don't rule anything out

[ErikH]

Re: Amp Died

If the PCB is anything like the Blue Doodoo head I used to have, it could be a fried PCB section and components. I was so glad to be rid of that thing. 3 times it was fixed under warranty. After the 3rd time I said no more, sold it, and bought my Marshall. Still have that Marshall.

Let me clarify that I am not against PCB's in tube amps. When done right and with stout enough material, they are fine. Crate's are not very stout.

[glassman]

Re: Amp Died

Crate VFX5212 = uh oh

In fact, I have one on my bench at the shop...gave the owner $30 for it when he elected not to repair it.

Those amps (the whole V series) have a transformerless power supply that can fry without warning. Crate doesn't even support it with a replacement power supply. Chances are pretty good that yours melted down too.

The one in my shop is going to get a conventional power supply and a revoicing of the gain channel...it doesn't have the digital effects like yours has which could have taken damage if your power supply failed.

Sorry about the doom and gloom scenario...I thought you might have had a Crate Vintage Club series amp which are a totally different animal...and sound pretty darn good too.

[misterwhizzy]

Re: Amp Died

How can you do a power supply without a transformer? Does it bleed off the lion's share of the voltage with resistors before passing it into the rectifier diodes and capacitors? It sounds really inefficient if that's how it's done.

[DTrane]

Re: Amp Died

I had a tech install and bias the tubes when he went through the amp so the tubes should have been biased properly. I dont care about the digital effects, never use them.

Yeah, I have a couple of vintage clubs. I like the vfx better but I like them both.

Do all V series have the transformerless power supply? I read its the ones made over seas. The vfx was made in St. Louis.

[glassman]

Re: Amp Died

How can you do a power supply without a transformer? Does it bleed off the lion's share of the voltage with resistors before passing it into the rectifier diodes and capacitors? It sounds really inefficient if that's how it's done.

It's a switching power supply like in a computer. Beyond that, my experience with them has been limited and generally involve slipping them in the parts bag that I sent home with the customer. No one has yet to click the "fix it" option yet.

I had a tech install and bias the tubes when he went through the amp so the tubes should have been biased properly. I dont care about the digital effects, never use them.

Yeah, I have a couple of vintage clubs. I like the vfx better but I like them both.

Do all V series have the transformerless power supply? I read its the ones made over seas. The vfx was made in St. Louis.

That may be...I don't know. The only experience I've had with them is with the one made in Viet Nam (IIRC). You can tell really quickly if it has a power transformer; reach around to the back of the chassis...if there are two rather large transformers mounted on the back of the chassis, it has a true power transformer. If there's only one, it doesn't. The transformerless power supply sits entirely inside the chassis.

[DTrane]

Re: Amp Died

u said reach around.

[Agileguy_101]

Re: Amp Died

Oh lord.

[DTrane]

Re: Amp Died

I checkd and theres a box that the power cable goes into and a transformer looking thng next to it.