Tube Amp Maintenance & Care. What's Your Secret ?

junkiemanxl

Active member
Hi friends,

I am just wondering what are the rituals of care and maintenance you have for your beloved tube amps.

Cleaning, Warm Ups, Warm Downs , yada yada yada...

With upgrades aside.

Share your DO & DONT'S that will help keep your tube amp sounding great and lasting for years to come.

Combo's, Head's, Cab's
Do include your amp model as well. Some softies might find the info helpful

Cheers!
:)
 
Cleaning, Warm Ups, Warm Downs , yada yada yada...

Do include your amp model as well. Some softies might find the info helpful

Actually, not much man.. My fender is pretty idiot proof. I mainly turn it on, let it warm up, and start playing... I don't really have a warm down period either... which is why I wish they built a standby switch to it.

But the amp feels pretty solid.
 
Actually, not much man.. My fender is pretty idiot proof. I mainly turn it on, let it warm up, and start playing... I don't really have a warm down period either... which is why I wish they built a standby switch to it.

But the amp feels pretty solid.

I have a VOX AC15HTVH head and a Vox V112HTV Cab and it does not have a standby switch as well.

I'll usually make sure the vol is turned to zero, plug in, warm up for about 30 secs and start playing.

After playing, I'll return the volume back to zero, unplug the guitar and let it sit for a minute or so before powering off.

The lack of standby switch on my amp bothers me as well.

Is that healthy for the amp?
 
Try to play your amp at least once a week too, to prevent the filter caps from drying up and leaking in the long run. Hope this helps.
 
to preserve the life of the tubes make sure you turn on the power switch for at least a minute or 2 before turning on standby switch.

Yup and turn it on at least once a week to prevent the caps from drying up.

Try not to subject the amp to hard knocks or jolts.

make sure there is enough cooling around the amp.

make sure the volume knobs are down before plugging or unplugging anything.

Make sure your speakers are always connected to the head when turning the amp on.

If you want to fiddle with your amp, do your fiddling with the amp turned off.

cheers.
 
Try to play your amp at least once a week too, to prevent the filter caps from drying up and leaking in the long run. Hope this helps.

I have never heard of this ^ :???:

But what is known Electrolytic capacitors have a rated "working voltage" (WV) which is the voltage it can handle. Ideally, an electrolytic capacitor should be operated at a voltage between 1/3 and 3/4 of its maximum working voltage. This is enough voltage to keep the electrolyte from drying out while it allows some margin of safety for unexpected voltage surges. Never replace an electrolytic with one that has a lower voltage rating.
15 years is good for any caps made in the last 20 years, but the caps from the 50's, 60's were designed to last only 7-10 years back then. All those old brown paper filter caps are way over due to be replaced. I've seen filter caps blow and take chokes and output transformers with them when they went. Cheapest insurance for any tube amp is fresh electrolytic caps.

To put it simple...if you just purchased a vintage amp check when the caps was last replaced.
Make sure they are replaced with the correct value and type as i have seen some locals having dodgy tech's replacing em with the *cheap* off the shelf with completely wrong ratings. Well the owner brought home a toaster instead of a nice vintage amp.

I hope this helps.

 
I'll usually make sure the vol is turned to zero, plug in, warm up for about 30 secs and start playing.

After playing, I'll return the volume back to zero, unplug the guitar and let it sit for a minute or so before powering off.

The lack of standby switch on my amp bothers me as well.

Is that healthy for the amp?

Thing is, i've played through vintage Fender amps which have never had the benefit of such care... And they were totally fine. The only problems you mainly get are if you play very loud, and keep driving it, then one of the nights those tubes will just blow. But that's ok. They're basically like light bulbs. They have a lifespan. So just get them replaced properly. Other than that, I've not seen the need for extra care...

Could be worse... Could be the transformer that blows...:twisted:
 
About turning the volume down before powering up or down, think it applies more to the speakers, as they dun really like the buzz, hum and pop when you unplug/plug in.

Yeah, the lack of a Standby switch bothers me, too. Not too sure, but read somewhere that some amp circuits are design in such a way that the rectifier will not supply power to the tubes immediately upon power up, thus giving time for the tube filaments to heat up. So, maybe that's the reason for the lack of a standby switch.

As for fiddling with the insides, even with the amp off, unplugged from the wall wart, the remaining charge in the caps could still give you a hell of a shock. Ouch!

PS: Oh, yeah. No need for warm downs. When you cut the power, it cools down anyway.
 
Here are the guts of Sears (Silverstone) 50's tube amp .... sooo neat and clean compared to the crap we get nowadays.

Those are original caps and they still work fine .... might replace em tho ;)

sears_gut.jpg


sears_gut2.jpg
 
woah,this thread could not have come at a better time .i'm new to tube amps and this really comes in handy for reference and knowledge..

for me,i do the usual warm up 1-2 mins...switch the stand by and play and put in back to stand by..and 1-2 minutes later,off the power. from what i've read and been told to do.
 
i am actually waiting for my amp to spoil, or for the tubes to blow so i can be lazy and just get a new amp instead XD
 
heh, if its a combo amp with spring reverb in it, give it a good hard kick and listen to the funky sound thats coming from the speaker(after kicking it). Other than the sound, it will help to shorten the lifespan of the amp. Not to mention, its so rock and rolling!
 
If the that's the case than E-CAPS must come with expiry date ?!! LOL

Guys make sure your new amps are purchased one month after factory ship date ...if not your E-caps will dry out !!!!

LOL
 
haha not play 24hrs, i play 24mins then fall aslleep 6hrs,
then come back after 18hrs, then start again, then fall asleep again..

:D
 
You know, I've seen tube amps being sent back to the store for repair just one day after they're bought during a blowout sale and those amps were untouched for a few years. You can deduce your own theory of what happened to those amps.

Shops who know a thing or two about tube amps warm them up regularly, like Guitar Gallery. I guess that's how some folks who bought amps more than a month old after their factory ship dates seldom have problems with them.
 
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Maybe you have point ...but how abt caps from factory ...who knows how long they sit on the shelf ?!!

What i see ...the problem with amps in regards to what you said ...is usually due to oxidization on the jacks and pots or whatever connecting parts rather the components.... after stored in bad humid conditions.
 
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