Amp on for 24 hours...

[Fernando]

I inadvertently left my Vox AC4TV on for 24 hours. Now what? I know, I know, don't do it again: check. Anything else I should do, know, try, observe, test, etc...?

[GuitArtMan]

It should be fine. Just don't do it again.

[barrymclark]

It should be fine. Just don\'t do it again.

 

Agreed. I\'ve done it. Was also careful not to do it again.

[TalismanRich]

It should hurt anything, as long as you didn't restrict the airflow. I've left amps on for days before. Tubes actually do very well being left on. Lots of audio folks leave their amps on for days on end as they feel the sound is better after the tubes are properly warmed up.

[Gitfiddler]

Now your amp is officially broken in!

[barrymclark]

Now your amp is officially broken in!

 

That\'s a way of putting it alright!

[Trouble]

I've done it a lot. I don't know if it's possible to do damage that way but so far no problems. The lamp was out on the Super for a couple years and quite often I would get interrupted while I was playing and come back a couple days later and still on.

[bolero]

I left a twin reverb on for 4 days once when I went away...doh!!

 

but it was ok

 

at least if there's no signal, it's basically idling....the AC4TV doesn't have an open back cab though, so it probably got pretty warm.

 

although I think there is a small vent in the front of the speaker baffle, at the top, so air can get sucked up through that top vent?

 

I'm thinking of converting mine to 1/2 open back

[Guest HRB853370]

You call your electric company, tell them it was an accident, and ask for a partial credit on your next bill!!

[Kuz]

I am glad that everything survived, but I wouldn't belittle the potential damage.

 

I don't know if we are talking about leaving the amp on and in Standby, or on as in ready to play.

 

I have a friend that owns a guitar store and he left an amp (on without a standby switch) on all night and the jewel light housing melt into the chassis.

 

It's not something I would make a habit.

[AP515]

I left my Mesa on all night once. It staeyd pretty cool and there were no issues. I think other than putting 24 hours on the tubes without getting the benefit of music from them, it has no damaging effect. If the amp gets hot (like my Classic 30) then I could see some permanent damage.

[Gitfiddler]

Ya know, karma is real!

 

After posting my (usual) wise-a$$ remark about Fernando's Vox AC4TV amp being broken in, since he accidentally left it on over night, I left my freshly Bill M. modded Blues Jr. on all night the other evening!!!!!!! DOH!!

 

I've never done that before. However I have left an amp on STANDBY all night, but the BJ has no standby. So it was ON, humming sweetly. No problems were noticed when I plugged and played last night.

 

Double face palm for the old Gitfiddler!!

[Fernando]

Ya know, karma is real! After posting my (usual) wise-a$$ remark about Fernando's Vox AC4TV amp being broken in, since he accidentally left it on over night, I left my freshly Bill M. modded Blues Jr. on all night the other evening!!!!!!! DOH!! I've never done that before. However I have left an amp on STANDBY all night, but the BJ has no standby. So it was ON, humming sweetly. No problems were noticed when I plugged and played last night. Double face palm for the old Gitfiddler!!

 

Your coment made me put "Instant Karma" on, so that's some positive karma (dharma?) back to you.

[barrymclark]

 

Your coment made me put \"Instant Karma\" on' date=' so that\'s some positive karma (dharma?) back to you.[/quote']

 

Depends. If it is your duty to do this then that is your dharma. Karma is the ripple effect created by actions.

 

Dharma is your duty. Karma is the response to your actions.

 

...if memory serves.

[Gitfiddler]

Depends. If it is your duty to do this then that is your dharma. Karma is the ripple effect created by actions.

 

Dharma is your duty. Karma is the response to your actions.

 

...if memory serves.

 

 

Thanks Will and Barry. I don't know about all of this karma dharma ramma damma ding dong stuff.

I just want to cure my increasing CRS (Can't Remember Sh..)!

[bolero]

interesting...I did read "the dharma bums" by jack kerouac

 

.....never understood the title, but I think I do now....thx Barry!!

 

*edit* I guess if he ever wrote a sequel it would have been called "the karma bums"

[koula901]

You call your electric company, tell them it was an accident, and ask for a partial credit on your next bill!!

 

devious!

[DetroitBlues]

I've done that on a couple occasions... Even my old KBP RD amp was left on for two days once... Didn't harm the amp at all. I read once that Eddie Van Halen's way of testing his new amp design with Peavey, was to turn it up all the way, plug in a guitar, make it feedback. Set down the guitar and come back a couple days later. If the amp was still working, then it was a successful test.

[Kuz]

It is one thing to keep the amp on to "burn in" new tubes.

 

Again, keeping an amp hot with those voltages .... again if it were I, if a power tube fails and you burn up a transformer..... ah, I wouldn't make it a habit.

 

I had a power tube fail on my Carr Rambler and smoke started flowing out. I turned off the amp just in time to save the resistor and just some minor internal discoloration.

 

It would be nice to hear what some of our amp builders think on this matter.

[Gitfiddler]

I've done that on a couple occasions... Even my old KBP RD amp was left on for two days once... Didn't harm the amp at all. I read once that Eddie Van Halen's way of testing his new amp design with Peavey, was to turn it up all the way, plug in a guitar, make it feedback. Set down the guitar and come back a couple days later. If the amp was still working, then it was a successful test.

 

DB, wasn't that done as part of his beta testing of his new series? Basically a pre-production failure analysis procedure. I doubt that amp ever left his secret lab at Fender...or wherever he is these days.

[Kuz]

I love EVH brown tone, but he was very hard on his amps and had quite a number of amp failures.

 

I would not use EVH as a role model of how to treat an amp.... here is an excerpt......

 

 

"The "resistor mod" performed on the amp was the inclusion of a very high wattage (and thus physically large) resistor that was placed in between the output transformer primaries (pins 3) of the inner two output tubes of Eddie Van Halen's amp. This not only greatly reduced the volume, it also dramatically changed the tone and was responsible for the unprecedented amount of distortion from the power tubes that can be heard from the amp. This modification was also the reason for the large amount of power tube and output transformer failures that Eddie Van Halen's amp has become famous for."

[DetroitBlues]

I love EVH brown tone, but he was very hard on his amps and had quite a number of amp failures.

 

I would not use EVH as a role model of how to treat an amp.... here is an excerpt......

 

 

"The "resistor mod" performed on the amp was the inclusion of a very high wattage (and thus physically large) resistor that was placed in between the output transformer primaries (pins 3) of the inner two output tubes of Eddie Van Halen's amp. This not only greatly reduced the volume, it also dramatically changed the tone and was responsible for the unprecedented amount of distortion from the power tubes that can be heard from the amp. This modification was also the reason for the large amount of power tube and output transformer failures that Eddie Van Halen's amp has become famous for."

 

to which he admitted, it was a fabricated lie recently. He was a terrible person to interview so they asked him to make something up and so he did not realizing people would accept it as truth.

[Ned]

I run vintage tube HiFi and my 1968 Twin through a variac. My tube tech tells me that reduced voltage (like 105 - 110) extends tube life significantly (like many times their life otherwise). Wall voltage used to be this low and so the performance is well within spec. Maybe my dog can hear the difference, I certainly can't. Output transformers stay cooler too. I still try to avoid the 24 hour marathon sessions. A lot of the damage to tubes is in the turning on and turning off (the rush of electrons, or something) and so keeping the plates hot shouldn't be a big deal. I think tube rectification helps the output tubes avoid a surge with powering on.

[DetroitBlues]

I run vintage tube HiFi and my 1968 Twin through a variac. My tube tech tells me that reduced voltage (like 105 - 110) extends tube life significantly (like many times their life otherwise). Wall voltage used to be this low and so the performance is well within spec. Maybe my dog can hear the difference, I certainly can't. Output transformers stay cooler too. I still try to avoid the 24 hour marathon sessions. A lot of the damage to tubes is in the turning on and turning off (the rush of electrons, or something) and so keeping the plates hot shouldn't be a big deal. I think tube rectification helps the output tubes avoid a surge with powering on.

 

If I'm not mistaken there is a fine line between running the tubes hot for great tone and running the tubes cold/stale tone... I believe it varies dependent of tube type. KBP has explained this to me a couple times... I don't understand the exact science behind it, I just know what sounds good to me.

[Ned]

 

If I'm not mistaken there is a fine line between running the tubes hot for great tone and running the tubes cold/stale tone... I believe it varies dependent of tube type. KBP has explained this to me a couple times... I don't understand the exact science behind it, I just know what sounds good to me.

 

Sounds right. Your ear is the best guide on such matters.

 

The other difference might be is that I am going for linearity (no distortion). Not every guitarist's goal. EL34s and 6550s seem to run fine at lower voltages. The RCA tube guide give optimal voltages and 105 is within range. Again, HiFi and guitar play by different rules. I have a modern Frenzel amp. It goes straight to the wall. It breaks up nicely and auto-biases the output tubes. I like the modern world.