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TylerDeadPine wrote: Sat Jul 19, 2025 5:36 pm
1. Maybe different beasts but debugging circuits is debugging circuits - many SS amps are similar topology other than the amplification stages, … except active tone controsls and getting into switching, and and I can see your point.

That’s true to some degree, but some people are more trained specifically on tube amps rather than being general electrical engineers. And while they could learn ss amps it might not be worth their time and energy to to do so.

I once learned to rebuild a carburetor because I had an old car and my uncles had old cars. But I couldn’t do shit for your fuel injectors. I could probably have learned but there wasn’t personal need.

VaticanShotglass wrote: Mon Jul 21, 2025 8:51 am

TylerDeadPine wrote: Sat Jul 19, 2025 5:36 pm
1. Maybe different beasts but debugging circuits is debugging circuits - many SS amps are similar topology other than the amplification stages, … except active tone controsls and getting into switching, and and I can see your point.

That’s true to some degree, but some people are more trained specifically on tube amps rather than being general electrical engineers. And while they could learn ss amps it might not be worth their time and energy to to do so.

I once learned to rebuild a carburetor because I had an old car and my uncles had old cars. But I couldn’t do shit for your fuel injectors. I could probably have learned but there wasn’t personal need.

Fix our old cheap amps you bastards

TylerDeadPine wrote: Wed Jul 23, 2025 2:38 pm Fix our old cheap amps you bastards

Yeah, I understand the concept of "it's not worth it to fix" but if I'd like to spend $400 to fix an amp that's "worth" $200, isn't that my problem? I suppose an alternative is learning how to use an oscilloscope...

W.L.Weller wrote: Thu Jul 24, 2025 10:09 am

TylerDeadPine wrote: Wed Jul 23, 2025 2:38 pm Fix our old cheap amps you bastards

Yeah, I understand the concept of "it's not worth it to fix" but if I'd like to spend $400 to fix an amp that's "worth" $200, isn't that my problem? I suppose an alternative is learning how to use an oscilloscope...

That reminds me of a local guitar shop that won’t do much more than very basic setups, pickup swaps, and string changes.

Except the guy will return my guitar, which has some odd problem, dumb stuff like a buzz or something, and then hand it back and go into excruciating detail about every single step he’d have to do to fix it.

And I’m just like, right, I am trying to give you money to do just that.

Normally I would take that as a fair warning and get out of there but I’ve been going there for years and am not that worried about whatever he thinks will happen.

I paid way too much to get a replacement zipper sewn into a little pouch purse thing that we've had for years.
I think she quoted me the "no way he'll agree to this" price, and reader let me tell you, I showed her.

W.L.Weller wrote: Thu Jul 24, 2025 10:09 am

TylerDeadPine wrote: Wed Jul 23, 2025 2:38 pm Fix our old cheap amps you bastards

Yeah, I understand the concept of "it's not worth it to fix" but if I'd like to spend $400 to fix an amp that's "worth" $200, isn't that my problem? I suppose an alternative is learning how to use an oscilloscope...

Granted, my sample size isn't super large, but the amount of times that I've had someone willing to pay more than the value of a piece of gear to fix that piece gear is zero. Generally, I'd advice them to try and find another one of these items used and keep the original for spare parts.

Mix this with the fact that I've often had old cheap gear basically disintegrate when I've tried to work of my own stuff, or my friend's stuff as a favor, and the time risk and client dissatisfaction risk becomes too high.

For instance, let's say I quoted a client $400 to fix a $200 SS combo amp. While taking the board out to replace a part, an old ribbon cable snaps. Then I have to call the client and say, "give me $200 for the work I've done so far and I give you a pile of broken parts, or it'll now cost $600 to do the repair and fix or fabricate a new ribbon cable."

This isn't an "every time" thing, but it's not an unusual thing.

Now current production gear, that's another thing. You just order the whole board and swap it out. Then keep the old one for possible repairs if that same piece of gear comes in from another client.

I'm just cranky because I want to get my Yamaha G100ii & GK 400RB & 800RB back on the road. Worst of all, they're intermittent problems. I should probably go through and tighten/clean connections, check the unused fx loops, reverb cables on the G100, etc.

I get that most SS amps are cheaper to replace, but these Switchmasters are not easy to come by (says the guy with 5) and their intrinsic value is greater than their resale price.

W.L.Weller wrote: Thu Jul 24, 2025 11:59 am I'm just cranky because I want to get my Yamaha G100ii & GK 400RB & 800RB back on the road. Worst of all, they're intermittent problems. I should probably go through and tighten/clean connections, check the unused fx loops, reverb cables on the G100, etc.

Can't speak to the Yamaha, but pretty sure the GKs are still repairable. At least FM Nate has documented here how he has brought several 800s back to life.

Garth wrote: Thu Jul 24, 2025 5:27 pm

W.L.Weller wrote: Thu Jul 24, 2025 11:59 am I'm just cranky because I want to get my Yamaha G100ii & GK 400RB & 800RB back on the road. Worst of all, they're intermittent problems. I should probably go through and tighten/clean connections, check the unused fx loops, reverb cables on the G100, etc.

Can't speak to the Yamaha, but pretty sure the GKs are still repairable. At least FM Nate has documented here how he has brought several 800s back to life.

I've often thought that if I was every a bass player again in any serious capacity, I'd just buy two or three 800RB heads. All of the 800RB heads have three circuit boards which roughly translate to preamp, power amp, and power supply. Any circuit board can be swapped from any era. So a 2002 preamp can drop in to a 1988 unit ans work just fine. With three 800RB heads, I could always have one working, one backup, and one on the bench being restored and cleaned up.