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#240813 by J-HALEY
Sat Mar 21, 2015 6:42 pm
I was talking with a friend about this subject. He said keep them plugged into the electric outlet it keeps them alive. Any of you guys heard this?
#240820 by Badstrat
Sat Mar 21, 2015 9:23 pm
"I was talking with a friend about this subject. He said keep them plugged into the electric outlet it keeps them alive. Any of you guys heard this?"

That is one of the most moronic things I have heard for quite a while. (Other than when a politician opens his mouth)

If he says leave them turned on, that's truly idiotic. Wear and tear on the tubes at the least.

If he says leave them plugged in but "off" that's even dumber yet. The amp off/on switch is in line with the the cord before it gets to the transformer.

I have a better idea for him. Tell him to cut the A/C chord off an old appliance and leave that plugged in. Then he can store his amplifier elsewhere with the cover on it in a cool dry place. :)
#240822 by Paleopete
Sat Mar 21, 2015 9:55 pm
Sounds pretty idiotic to me. Simply keeping the cord plugged in does absolutely nothing except give the mice something to chew on, in turn creating a fire hazard.

Leaving an amp turned on makes a kind of sense, physically expanding and contracting from heating and cooling down seems to me would bring along a good possibility of damage or fatigue to internal parts inside the tubes. Leave it off, no expansion, leave it on, no contraction. I had a friend who left his amp turned on standby at a club with a piece of duct tape over the power light, so the club owner wouldn't shut it off. 3 years I know of it worked perfect with no problems whatsoever, I have no idea how long they were still house band after I left the area.

I've left my Champ turned on for long periods of time, Super Reverb too, no problems and no blown tubes. The Champ finally blew a capacitor, while at band practice after only running 45 minutes or so. I ran the same tubes in the amp for 20 years. I'm still using the same tubes the Super Reverb started with, except for a preamp tube I swapped to get a hotter one in there. Been running those tubes about 15 years...and it stayed on 24/7 on standby for about 2 years.

Storing amps - Cool, dry place, cover if you have one, let it sit there. If it were me I'd plug it in and play it a little every few months. The only thing likely to happen is electrolytic capacitors tend to dry out after 20 years or so, especially if never used. If one fails in the right place, it can fry a transformer. Last one I bought was $125, about 10 years ago. Everything else will be fine stored and untouched without being plugged in.
#240828 by J-HALEY
Sun Mar 22, 2015 1:05 am
I told him to just turn them on and play them occasionally. The reason I ask this is because my Crate Palomino set up for a while. I turned it on the other night to play thru it. The volume knob was extremely sensitive and scratchy. It crackled and went silent. The power light comes on but it makes no sound now.
What I get from you guys is that leaving it plugged in just makes it easier to turn on and play thru Occasionally which is probably the best way to keep it working!
#240830 by MikeTalbot
Sun Mar 22, 2015 2:24 am
That's interesting Mr. Haley. I've been working on some material this evening - using the same guitar and amps as last night - but it doesn't as good. Humidity? I don't know...

And if I had left the stuff spun up from last night? I confess I worry about mtbf - mean time between failurese - a property of this gadgetry. Don't know which is best. Leave my computer on - my amps (which is almost a computer) off.

Modeling amps are weird anyway - one setting I use can never be the first, or it sucks. That's why I'm looking at alternatives.

Talbot
#240841 by Paleopete
Sun Mar 22, 2015 3:39 pm
Jeff - Sounds like the volume pot is really dirty. Open it up and spray some contact cleaner in the pot, work it all the way both directions about a dozen times, then try it. Sometimes you have to do it twice to get it cleaned up well. I just had to open up my Arion Analog Delay for the same reason, it stopped working and I had no delay for our last gig. It does that about once a year, I Have to open it up and spray the pots again, then it's fine for a while. It's t he only one that ever quit entirely, most of the time I just have a scratchy really noisy volume or tone pot. Also just found out I Have to do my lap steel, volume knob is dirty and making noise now. Last time I did it was about 2 years ago...

I guess it's about time, I just realized I've also done the Marshall Bluesbreaker Overdrive, Harmony bobkat guitar, and one other one in the past month...I know, power jack on my distortion pedal...they get dirty now and then, pull out the contact cleaner. I think we still have to do the bass player's amp too. It's been making noise lately and I don't know if he's opened it up yet. No problem, takes about 20 minutes with an amp...
#240858 by GuitarMikeB
Mon Mar 23, 2015 12:41 pm
I wouldn't leave a tube amp turned on all the time - those tubes get friggin' hot!
#240863 by Badstrat
Mon Mar 23, 2015 3:54 pm
Anytime you turn on an amplifier, no matter how long or how short of a time it has been off, it wears on the amp. The power surge when you turn on something electrical would do more damage than leaving it off. Leaving it on in standby promotes wear and tear on the filaments in the tubes and dries out the the capacitors and the frequency response begins to falter.

Want to store your amp properly? Store it where it won't get exposed to moisture, as moisture will deposit residue in the controls. A film eventually coats the inside of the pots and they loose contact with the wiper.

I know. what I am talking about from experience. I have done guitar, keyboard, and electronics repair for music stores for over 50 years. I was an electronic Lab Technion for Zenith Radio when I was younger, and I began repair work at my uncles television shop when I was 8 years old. That is what my comments are based upon, not old wives tales or electronic Internet voodoo magic that some idiots spread around the Internet in order to appear knowledgeable. Take it or leave it. It all boils down to what you choose to believe. Common sense isn't everyones bag of tea. :)
#280850 by fingers002
Wed Nov 08, 2017 4:52 am
Fender Deluxe acting up. Change Rectifier since its most likely to fail. Nope! Ultimately, replaced entire mixed set purchased from dealer in Austin TX. When I say "mixed" I mean different mfrs. The 12AX7 were "JJ" and I had heard mixed reviews about them. Sure enough one was defective . . . plates too close to glass and noisy as hell - trash.
#280943 by EarleG1967106
Mon Nov 13, 2017 1:57 am
Most sensible advance I have heard or read is to store in a dry comfortable place with air circulation.
Turn on the the amp every month or so for around 30 minutes and move the controls back and forth.
Allowing the circuits, etc. to warm up helps keep capacitors and other innards in good condition.

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