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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3410
Location: GA USA | I know you are just the guys to help with (son) Adam's Bass Amp. He has an Ashdown MAG300, and just acquired an Ampeg 6-10 cabinet. Before that he was using an old Sunn cab with 2 15" Yamaha speakers. It wasn't performing right with the amp anyway.
After switching to the Ampeg and upgrading the cables, the amp was cutting out in the middle of songs. Switched back to the old cab and had the same problem.
We opened up the head and saw no obvious problem. Plugged it in, and the fan didn't turn on every time it was switched on. Is the fan the problem? |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 1380
Location: Central Oregon | Get a stick & whack it if the fan doesn't come on. He could call it his "Fan Club"! Hardy har har! |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3410
Location: GA USA | My mistake. I should have said "Anyone not from Central Oregon have an idea?" |
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Joined:
September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | How about Northwest Oregon...
Just guessing... If the fan does not come on, there may be other thermal cut-off switches, causing the unit shut-off when it gets too warm.
But if the fan sometimes comes on, sometimes not, it my be a loose connection...
If the "fan club" works, it is a loose connection...
BUT! have you tried cleaning the fan motor? Is it difficult to spin? Alot of dusty crap blows by there.
But as previously stated, if the unit does not work when the fan does not work, it may mean it is not getting power. Same if the fan works and unit works, then both stop simultaneously.
Y'know, when you find the problem you will kick yourself when you discover it was something simple! :rolleyes:
At least I hope that is the case. |
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Joined:
December 2001
Posts: 7222
Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Not enuff info. Being that the problem seemed to start with the new cab and cables, just try switching to the old cables. It may be the new cables causing the problem. But, you also mentioned "It wasn't performing right with the amp anyway" which leads me to believe there was something wrong with the amp in the first place. Please define "wasn't performing right." |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3410
Location: GA USA | Hmmmm, here's where my ignorance kicks in.
I THINK the problem with the old cab may have been that when the speakers were replaced, one of the jacks was removed and with only one place to plug in, only half of the amp's capacity was being used.
At least three sets of cables were used with the new cabinet. Adam thought that getting a high quality cable might be the ticket, but not so.
So last night he played with the old cabinet, and it didn't work, so it must be the amp, right? |
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Joined:
May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | When confronted with this kind of problem, I always start with the source and work my way to end.
First try it with another amp or combo.
Are the pickups OK?
Are the electronics in the guitar OK?
Output jack OK?
Cables OK?
Input to head OK?
and so on until you get to speaker. |
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Joined:
May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Also, I've found that the quality of cables doesn't make that much difference. It's the length of the cables that matters more. |
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Joined:
October 2005
Posts: 4044
Location: Utah | My first thought is that the impedance is wrong. If the old cab was worked on, the impedance could be wrong. The new cab with 6 speakers could be the wrong impedance for the amp.
An amp splits the power between the electronics and the speakers. If the speakers are the wrong impedance, the electronics could end up soaking up all the power and will get very hot.
It could be a thermal switch as mentioned already, or the fan. If it's been running real hot, something could be burnt. |
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December 2001
Posts: 10582
Location: NJ | impedance mismatch |
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Joined:
March 2003
Posts: 195
Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado | According to the manual, the Mag300 uses a variable speed fan that is thermostatically controlled. So if the amp is getting hot but the fan is not coming on, that's your problem. The amp is also 4 ohms impedance, so make sure any cab you use is not lower than 4 ohms.
Good luck!
Cc |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3410
Location: GA USA | Thanks. When I used the word impedance. Adam was sure he knew how to fix that with a knob on the amp. Since the amp is at his practice space, I didn't have access to it. He came home from practice saying it worked fine, and sounded better. Thanks for helping. |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 3410
Location: GA USA | I wanted to wrap this up with a testimonial. Problems still persisted, so Adam and his friends called GC, who gave him the numbers of two electronics service centers they refer to. I had already told him that he should take it to TOO MANY GUITARS .
Both of these places wanted an inspection fee. Too Many Guitars didn't know him, but according to their standard practice, they took it, found the connection problems, fixed it... all for less than the inspection fees from the others.
I know Sam and Colin are familiar with them. Anyone else in Atlanta should consider them first for service, setup, refretting, gear...
One of the owners is Samova's pal Kerry, who is the person who originally assembled my Deacon in 2001, and he's the only person I've trusted to work on it. |
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Help... Bass Amp Troubles
