d-basser Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 ok my rig is a bit tempermental at the moment, some times when i turn it on i am getting a fuzzy distorted tone especially on the note decay, as if i had distorion on or something. I was wondering if this could be anything to do with the preamp valve or whether i have a fault? The rig is an ebs Fafner into a peavey 15" BW cab. p.s. I am playing this at bedroom volume currently so it isnt anything being driven to hard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 best thing to do is have a butchers at the valve while you're playing through the amp. If you see any visual change (especially blue flashing), yellow hot elements or excessive heat then the valve on its way out. Additionally if you hear any reduced output of any kind or distortion or basically any other kind of deficiency then the valve is also on its way out. Cheaper than taking it to a tech is probably replace the valve. However, are you playing with an active bass? If so, then I recommend you check the battery in the active eq first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 right so distorion could be a sign of the valve being 'on its way out'. i will swap and see if that fixes it, i have tried it with two basses on passive and one active so it aint the bass. Any suggestions of a nice preamp valve for a Fafner or should i just replace it with the same again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 [quote name='d-basser' post='171740' date='Apr 7 2008, 08:35 PM']right so distorion could be a sign of the valve being 'on its way out'. i will swap and see if that fixes it, i have tried it with two basses on passive and one active so it aint the bass. Any suggestions of a nice preamp valve for a Fafner or should i just replace it with the same again[/quote] Well there's such a lot of variety with valves that sometimes its a question of taste because you can get a variety of outputs from compatible valves. Thing is that a preamp valve very rarely wears out, and usually after a number of YEARS of use. Luckily they're not expensive and having a back up isn't a bad thing anyway. So probably get one to replace the existing. I'm presuming you're not using an active bass then? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 [quote name='d-basser' post='171740' date='Apr 7 2008, 08:35 PM']right so distorion could be a sign of the valve being 'on its way out'. i will swap and see if that fixes it, i have tried it with two basses on passive and one active so it aint the bass. Any suggestions of a nice preamp valve for a Fafner or should i just replace it with the same again[/quote] Are you sure it's the amp rather than the cab? You might like to check that the valve is seated properly once you've eliminated the cab from the equation. As for the choice of valve - [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=42"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=42[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 (edited) yes i am using an active bass, but i also tried it with my passive one, same prob. Think I will go buy a new valve this week and see what happens. This could all be the cab though, I had trouble with this cab and my last head but I thought I had it all sorted. Would be a good excuse to buy a new cab though . As for testing the cab, well I will have to wait till I have access to another so as soon as I can persuade my mates they want a studio practice. Edited April 7, 2008 by d-basser Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 how sensitive is the cab? If the head is spilling its guts into an insensitive/inefficient cab, that might be a problem too. I had the same issue with my Acmes, thats why I switched to EBS. If there's distortion as a signal tails off, that would suggest to me that something isn't pulling its weight power wise in the signal chain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 should the cab really be spilling its guts at low volume, as I say until any of my bands get of their arse and practice/gig then it is bedroom volume. I'll try and find spec though, how sensitive is insensitive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 [quote name='d-basser' post='171777' date='Apr 7 2008, 09:25 PM']should the cab really be spilling its guts at low volume, as I say until any of my bands get of their arse and practice/gig then it is bedroom volume. I'll try and find spec though, how sensitive is insensitive?[/quote] look the spec up on the peavey website maybe? Usually anything below 99dB is towards insensitive, and anything above 100dB is towards sensitive. My EBS cab is 103db which is as sensitive as I've found. Sensitive cabs can be used with a wider range of power ratings. For example I could look at gigging with my 140w Burman heads with this cab because it more 'receptive' to the output - at least to my ears. With the Acmes (rated at 93dB) it made those heads sound like they were 30w. I'd recommend you PM Alex Claber or Bill Fitzfinnbass about sensitivity if you need to know more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 7, 2008 Share Posted April 7, 2008 [quote name='Crazykiwi' post='171831' date='Apr 7 2008, 10:17 PM']or Bill Fitzfinnbass about sensitivity if you need to know more.[/quote] Sorry, that should be Bill Fitzmaurice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted April 7, 2008 Author Share Posted April 7, 2008 i have had a gander at alot of the BFM stuff so I have a vague clue about sensitivity. I cant for the life of me find the spec on this cab though, its an old one and I am relying on the place i got it froms word on what it is because it has nothing written on it but apparently it is an 8ohm Black Widow cab. If the tube change doesnt fix it I am going to get a new cab if one of my bands starts to gig anyhoo so it isnt a huge deal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yanto Posted April 8, 2008 Share Posted April 8, 2008 [quote name='d-basser' post='171869' date='Apr 7 2008, 10:37 PM']i have had a gander at alot of the BFM stuff so I have a vague clue about sensitivity. I cant for the life of me find the spec on this cab though, its an old one and I am relying on the place i got it froms word on what it is because it has nothing written on it but apparently it is an 8ohm Black Widow cab. If the tube change doesnt fix it I am going to get a new cab if one of my bands starts to gig anyhoo so it isnt a huge deal[/quote] I used to have a Peavey BW cab which was left in my garage.Started getting sounds as you describe-found that the magnet was corroding around coil Test by moving cone gently back into magnet(as it normally functions)If there's a scraping sound it's corroded or the coil's on it's way out. I managed to clean off corrosion with a light sand and double-sided sticky tape on a narrow knife to clean out Worth a try Iain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted April 8, 2008 Author Share Posted April 8, 2008 ^thanks for that, if the sound returns I will try that, seems to be gone today. As I say I am thinking about a Dr Bass cab when I have the cash so I am not totally fussed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Burpster Posted May 3, 2008 Share Posted May 3, 2008 I've been told that when a valve is packing up you get .... Pins and needles down your left side..... Chest pains..... An urge to go to the toilet and a feeling of being stoned...... Now, was that pre amp or heart valve................. (wanders of mumbling to self!!!!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d-basser Posted May 3, 2008 Author Share Posted May 3, 2008 haha on an amp note, problem gone so I assume is was a bass prob or black magic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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