Bugera G5 head stopped outputting sound

[Ewizard]

I don't own a G5. I found those pics on the interweb. I appreciate the offer, but keep them and use them on a project.

My only warning is that while the resistors were undersized in the amp, that may have been on purpose. They may have wanted the resistors to act like a fuse as opposed to having a more expensive part blow up instead. It looks like they used 1-watt resistors, maybe half watts? I would have gone with a 2-watt or 3-watt metal oxide as opposed to the carbon film they used.

We never quite got that far in discussion though. In this case, If it fixes your issue, you know that you could replace the 5-watt resistors with a slightly lower wattage rating. You just never really know what the engineer's intentions were.

 

[ehdwuld]

In this case i feel as they just copied what the Blackstar engineers did.

I could be wrong

 

[ehdwuld]

Well when the resistor failed it took the transistor with it. Replaced that still dont work . Giving up

 

[Mincer]

Well when the resistor failed it took the transistor with it. Replaced that still dont work . Giving up

Giving up as in trashing it, or finding a tech to check it?

 

[ehdwuld]

Tech has it
i think i will just move on
paid the Tech a $60 bench fee to look at it

he called said it was something else

I like that litle thing
I have been eyeing thw H&K Tubemiester 20

 

[Mincer]

He didn't say what it was?

 

[ehdwuld]

He didn't say what it was?

he said he replaced the known bad parts
it still didnt work and he was troubleshooting back to the transformer

 

[ehdwuld]

Gave up got the amp back from the tech

$60 into the repair and still chasing it
The amp Was $200 when i got it

Tech wanted to "donate more time to it"
But i was done

I have ordered a H&K Tonemiester 20 to replace it
I like the power soak
Keeps the neighbors from calling the cops

I have several nice combos
The Carvin Belair
The Laney GC80A
Roland Cube 30
VIP2

When the Bugera first horked up
i got a Blackstar BEAM 20 watt stereo amp
i was gonne use it for my travel rig
But like my tube amps
It comes alive with the volume above 1/2 way
And really doesnt sound good until then
Can't really take that on the road
I have been asked to find a different hotel while in Georgia.

Dang it

The Positive Grid Spark Go cured this
Fits in the gigbag better too

Well my new amp should arrive tomorrow
It ain't got reverb but i got pedals
And the lighted front looks so cool

 

[Mincer]

Well, you may have done the right thing...

 

[ehdwuld]

I am saddened
I had grown quite attached to that cheap little thing

but it is as the Fates intended

I can still use the emulated out if i need to as the preamp isnt damaged
just keep it on standby and a dummy load in the speaker path

the new H&K will will run sans speaker when set to mute on the power soak , I think
oh my thats Amazon saying its here now

brb

 

[Ewizard]

I know this is a Necro thread, but thought I would follow up and hammer in a point I was trying to make earlier.

These dime a dozen amps are truly nothing more than E-Waste crap. The why is obvious, the reason is even more insideous. I had a family friend ( passed away ) who was an inventor. I am about to age myself, so don't judge, but he invented a re-roller for accountant's adding machines. It woudl re-roll the tape so you could use the other side of it to do more work on ( imagine an old adding machine with the paper rolls, and being able to use both sides of the paper ). The company he pitched it to loved it and the first thing they asked was how long he expected them to last. He obviously said forever. They told him that if he made it so it would break in 3 years, they would produce and sell his invention....

Planned obsolesence is a thing, and if you think it only applies to hardware, you would be mistaken. It exists at all levels of production. So, when you buy a cheap toy of an amp, that should easily last a lifetime, yet it breaks after a few years, you now know why they made it so cheap. You also understand how they intended it to continue to make them money. If you like it, you will likely buy another.

It is not that cheap crap doesn't sound good, it does and can, it is just where your money goes. It is great until it cost more to repair than it's actually worth. That is why I don't like PCB and other mid tier brands. Even the higher end brands ( Two-Notes and Diezel ) use PCB boards, and despite how good they may be, it is inferior to time, compared to a real turret board amp. No more, no less.

 

[Mincer]

I don't think there are any modern gain-level amps being made on turret board, is there? I also hate buying something I know isn't going to last and become landfill food. But like a lot of musicians, we are all going to buy the best we can at the time (and for the purpose we need). A practice amp at home needs to sound just good enough to inspire me at home volume levels. And while I love clean tube combos live, I have to balance that with the weight I am willing to carry myself.

 

[ehdwuld]

I appreciate your interest in reviving this thread

As I have my planned retirement coming up. I will dig into the amp to see if I can return it to service.

I will document it here if it works
It's already broken so I cant hurt it

I think most folks think it's in the tube monitor circuit.

It may just be a solder connection came loose.

I have a multitude of amps at the moment

And I do love the H&K I replaced it with