Tube Rattle In A Head?

Drunken Bowling

New member
Is this common? I think one of the tubes in my Class 5 head is rattling. Anyone else ever get tube rattle in their head?

The wording of this post sounds really weird and awkward, I know, but I just don't know how else to word it.
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

I had that problem in my Crate VC52X12. Turned out that there were rubber O-rings at the base of the metal covers for the power tubes. The O-rings had rotted out so I got new ones at the hardware store. Problem solved.
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

There's 3 ways to solve it.

Tap on the tubes with a pencil, find out which one has internal components that are rattling, and replace it.

Buy tube dampers, which are burn resistant rings you put around the tubes.

Buy a tube of silicon glue and put a stripe of it around the middle of the power tubes.
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

Is this common? I think one of the tubes in my Class 5 head is rattling. Anyone else ever get tube rattle in their head?

The wording of this post sounds really weird and awkward, I know, but I just don't know how else to word it.

I would say this is pretty common. Tubes do develop a rattle one way or another even in an amp head. I've owned and played quiet a bit of amp heads through the years and I've had this problem the whole time but I just learned to ignore it. On gigs I don't really hear it anyway which was 99% of the times I played. I have an Egnater Tweaker amp head right now and it has some tube rattle in it. Now that I don't gig anymore, I hear it all the time and it gets pretty annoying at times. I think some of those tube dampers are a good idea.
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

Does your head set on a speaker cab.?
Yes, actually, for a while I was stacking the head on the cab, but this past weekend I set the head on the floor next to the cab and I few times I think I heard the noise that I thought was the rattle. So for now I'm going to assume it has something to do with the guitar, maybe a loose screw on one of the tuners or something.

Thanks, everyone!
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

There's 3 ways to solve it.

Tap on the tubes with a pencil, find out which one has internal components that are rattling, and replace it.

Buy tube dampers, which are burn resistant rings you put around the tubes.

Buy a tube of silicon glue and put a stripe of it around the middle of the power tubes.

+1
 
Re: Tube Rattle In A Head?

+2 Also you might check loose socket contacts. Easy fix. But use hi temp (RVT) engine gasket silicone (the blue stuff).
 
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