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reggieisadork
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Post by reggieisadork » Tue Jun 14, 2005 8:29 pm

Well, I just got back from a long weekend at the in-laws and was hoping to start stompin' some blues in my basement, but when I flipped the switch the heart-warming orange glow did not fill the room. Everything was plugged in properly, tubes all snug, but no nothing. The bulb in the orange indicator light is fine. I l took a peak under her skirt and saw only the rectifier was lit. I took out all the tubes for inspection and they show no burns, breaks, or rattlings. I'm perplexed and a little sad. Any help would be greatly appreciated, even a tech guy reccommendation. I live in Walla Walla, WA (3 hrs from Portland or Spokane, about 5 hrs from Seattle). Thanks guys.
~Reggie

reggieisadork
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Post by reggieisadork » Tue Jun 14, 2005 8:37 pm

Oh, by the way, it has been picking up a bit more interference/noise in the last few months than usual. It has JJ el84's, Sovtek 12AX7WA's, and a JJ GZ34S rectifier. All the JJ's are under a year old. Hope some of this might help.
~Reggie

acorkos
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Post by acorkos » Tue Jun 14, 2005 8:47 pm

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by reggieisadork</i>
<br />I took a peak under her skirt and saw only the rectifier was lit.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Do you mean the other tubes have no orange glow at all, even on standby? there may be a blown internal (under the chassis) fuse protecting the 6.3 volt DC filament heater circuit.

Turn out the lights and have a peek back there.

mpisarcik
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Post by mpisarcik » Tue Jun 14, 2005 9:19 pm

yeah- sounds like a fuse to me- i doubt that all but the rectifier tube went out.

irish_admiral
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Post by irish_admiral » Tue Jun 14, 2005 9:24 pm

Check the fuses first, then if they are all OK, try it with valves - including a rectifier - that you know work.
Joe

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Orange AD15, Matamp 1224, Fender 'JD' Tele, G&L ASAT, Duesenberg Starplayer TV, Eggle Kanuga, Avalon D25, Warwick FNA Jazzman, Eden Nemesis / Bergantino EX112S, Eastman MD305 & other stuff...

mike
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Post by mike » Tue Jun 14, 2005 9:49 pm

yes, seems to be a fuse...

acorkos
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Post by acorkos » Tue Jun 14, 2005 10:12 pm

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by mpisarcik</i>
<br />yeah- sounds like a fuse to me- i doubt that all but the rectifier tube went out.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Most amps with rectifier tubes have a 5VDC secondary tap from the power tranny heating the rectifier tube only, and a separate 6.3VDC tap heating the other tube filaments (power tubes and preamp tubes). And a high voltage tap (HT) going to the standby switch and on to the rest of the circuit.

fiveightandten
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Post by fiveightandten » Wed Jun 15, 2005 1:08 am

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by reggieisadork</i>
<br /> I took a peak under her skirt and saw only the rectifier was lit.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">If you're sure about this, that amp has wiring issues. The 6.3V heater line for the pre-tubes and power tubes is iterrupted somewhere.

It may be something you can find and fix on your own, as Orange likes to use spade connectors in their amps, and I wouldn't be surprised if one got knocked loose somewhere.

Check the other tubes for heater glow again...and if you don't see anything, either get it to a tech or snap a high res pic of the internals from overhead and post it here.

-Nick
Image
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reggieisadork
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Post by reggieisadork » Sat Jun 18, 2005 12:48 am

Well, I took a look inside and the little black thing that reads 100u 6 3 V(RE) was dangling in there. It looked like it was just yanked out. I have no idea how this happened. I do have some eccentric friends, but I'm assuming I need a new one of those, then? It's located right below the el84 socket closest to the pre-amp tubes. I'm assuming this is the heater linefor the pre and power tubes some of you mentioned. Should I just take this to a tech or is there an easy way to pop another one of these on? Thanks again for all the help, everyone.
~Reggie

acorkos
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Post by acorkos » Sat Jun 18, 2005 1:19 am

Looks like a 100uF 63 Volt electrolytic capacitor came loose from somewhere. If you have a digital camera, take some pics and let us hacks try to help you put it all back together to save you 8 hours in a car to take it to a tech---it'l probably be there a month, too.

drum817
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Post by drum817 » Sat Jun 18, 2005 1:33 am

I have no idea how this happened.



NO OFFENSE :D But you might have a little furry friend in your basement that likes chewing on stuff, it wouldn't be the first time a mouse has wrecked an amp.
Tim (drum817) "does this mean were not doing stonehenge tommorow night???"

reggieisadork
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Post by reggieisadork » Sat Jun 18, 2005 6:03 am

None taken. I've done a lot of traveling with this little amp and it probably just needed a little help to break loose and my basement I did a little searching for a capacitor with the cryptic info on it. It says "100uF 6 3 V(RE)" and "-40+85 degree" and "(M)1485." I found a Nichicon UVR Radial Aluminum Electrolytic Capacitor 85 Degree 63V 100uF 10X12.5 at Mouser.com. It's the closest thing I found to it, although I think it's a 7mm capacitor which is not specified on this unit. I'll get a picture of the PCB and the capacitor up here shortly. Thanks.
~Reggie

acorkos
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Post by acorkos » Sat Jun 18, 2005 6:59 am

that cap from mouser is radial...meaning the 2 leads (one + and one negative) are coming off of the same end. make sure the one that fell of your amp is configured the same way, as opposed to axial: one + lead on one end, and one negative lead on the other

reggieisadork
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Post by reggieisadork » Sat Jun 18, 2005 10:44 pm

Here are the pictures. Image Image Image Image
~Reggie

acorkos
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Post by acorkos » Sat Jun 18, 2005 11:58 pm

Now you will find out the difficulties in repairing a PCB amp. What you have to do, if you decide you want to tackle this project, is to lift that PCB where the cap came from away from the chassis, so you can resolder it from underneath. That means all the slider tabs have to come off, mounting screws come off, jack nuts and any pot nuts on the outside of the chassis holding the PCB on, tube sockets...all that stuff has to be disconnected so you can get to the underside. A MAJOR pain. Either that or solder right to those leads sticking up off the PCB. That should probably work out OK. Get a DMM to check the voltages stored in the other caps so you don't electrocute yourself. And some de-soldering braid to clean off the old solder.

The replacement cap you want is indeed radial....both leads off of one end. Make sure the positive lead ends up in the correct hole before you solder.

Why did that cap disintegrate? Is it burned/exploded?

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