Ampeg B15N | Clicking Issue | Merch Announcement!

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Күн бұрын

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@ancienttech4636 2 ай бұрын

When the transformer primary breaks down internally, it can flash over and you'll see what looks like a short inverted sawtooth on the B+ rail. It starts off fast when you first power the amp up because the voltage is high and hits the flashover threshhold more quickly, slowing down as the output tubes draw more current, loading the supply down. The click propagates back to the preamp tube plates and is amplified, so pulling the phase inverter prevents the amplified click from getting to the output stage. Nice job!

@RealBastard-q9u 2 ай бұрын

I have serviced over 1000 valve amplifiers and don't recall any transformers causing clicking, but there's always something new to learn! I've had many amps that motorboated but it's not been the output transformer's fault. From your video it's not obvious whether the amp is motorboating or there's an insulation breakdown issue. Thanks for your informative videos.

@ToolFan68 2 ай бұрын

I think you nailed it.

@epsilonvonvehron5820 2 ай бұрын

A bass player friend had a clicking noise coming through his amp. We eventually traced it to his watch that was interfering with his pickup coils. The fact that the click was one per second was a big clue. 😊

@telmore6490 2 ай бұрын

Colleen, This might sound strange but can you try these steps. Using the original output transformer turn the amp off and let it cool say for like 15 minutes. Now take a hair dryer on its lowest setting and lightly apply heat around the output transformer itself until its warm to the touch might take a minute or two. Now turn the amp back on does it still make a ticking sound? I am hoping this heating process might disturb something like a winding that has arc'd over to the shell or nearest ground point. It might even shift some previously dried varnish back into place.

@EmptyChordMusic 2 ай бұрын

That intro is fire! And cudos for figuring out that one!

@jonathanhorne6503 2 ай бұрын

I’ve never seen that specific fault before. I’ve been playing with tube amps off and on since my high school band days. I’m a septuagenarian now. Good work.

@TheNCGardener 2 ай бұрын

I was thinking a diode breaking down in the power supply. This type of trouble tests your skill set, fortitude, and pride, from the greed. Great job sticking with it and not giving up. Electronics has a way of teaching us that just when you think you have a good understanding, you really don't.

@that_thing_I_do 2 ай бұрын

Thank goodness the clicking sound wasn't the alien Predator... so good to know you're safe

@FazioElectric 2 ай бұрын

Thank goodness 😂👽

@GregMusic-sr3gz 2 ай бұрын

You were correct. Something was arcing. That is all I can think of that would explain it. Assume the insulation on the wires degrades or it overheated somehow and degraded the insulation. My first thought would have been something with the tubes. How do you see failures in capacitors other than visual? Open circuit? Short circuit? As a retired Electronic Technologist and guitar hobbyist, I find your channel interesting. Thank you for the content. Interestingly in 3 years of college never was taught how tubes worked, and I graduated in 83 although I specialized in digital circuits stuff in college which was new technology then. I am reminded by how far technology has advanced when I remember working on Digital Brand Computer Hard Drives for their mini computers which were the size of two small bar fridges stacked on top of one another (just the hard drive), were belt driven, and only held 80Mb, lol. You could shake them across the floor doing a repetitive seek like an out of balance washing machine on spin. The were designed to be bolted to the floor in a computer room.

@Funkybassuk 25 күн бұрын

Fascinating 👍🏽

@michaelspiering7585 2 ай бұрын

I think that the arcing inside of the output transformer is caused by the constant hammering of the coils by a single note, probably an E. I think that the low note causes the coils to loosen and rub the enamel insulation to wear and cause arcing between the conductors.

@lostreb 2 ай бұрын

All the techs in the comments that have come across the same or different problems respectfully offering their input never ceases to amaze me. And, of course, you Colleen once you come across something you will not quit until you resolve the problem. When you mentioned the problem only happened when you turned the amp on triggered immediately the "this is going to be a time-consuming diagnosis" because you have no choice to replicate the problem without letting it cool down before powering it back up again. Thank you for sharing this problem / resolution. You rock Colleen!! Please keep the great, informative videos coming.

@fordsrestorations970 2 ай бұрын

I love those kind of pizzas... I found a vintage electronic dealer that sells all types of electronic Salvage . I would love to build a captain video 1950s spaceship to match the music I do . Watching your videos helps me remember things I done when I was a kid in my Dexter's Laboratory

@KarlKarsnark 2 ай бұрын

Neato. I played my Strat through a B-15N along with a little combo amp for overdrive and reverb. Sounded great and gave an awesome "skinny-fat" sort of tone with lots of low end thump. The flip-top really is handy and looks super cool. I don't know why more companies don't do a similar design.

@ancienttech4636 2 ай бұрын

@@KarlKarsnark Because it weighs a ton! 🤣😂

@donaldkusnerik4473 2 ай бұрын

Sporadic/intermittent noise irrespective of the volume control position usually suggests something amiss in the output section. Helps to narrow down troubleshooting. Nice job, I have a '67 that is PTP and near and dear to me.

@archloy 2 ай бұрын

Sounds like mechanical noise of something heating up (like wood in a house, but faster of course, or a motor cooling down). Hard to find indeed ! Thanks for sharing this :)

@Zelleram55 2 ай бұрын

Commenting at 3:35 in video before seeing the rest. I am thinking it’s bad resistor with crack you can’t see. Try freeze spray and chop stick to locate and keep it happening for longer. Now at end of video. Well I was wrong on that. Thanks for sharing Colleen. Always more to learn that is for sure.

@tspicks4360 2 ай бұрын

Thumbs up for the fun promo segment in itself, along with the always interesting content of course. Love the channel!

@TimJames-mj2hg 2 ай бұрын

I had a smaller version of those top rack ampeg's. I dug it out of a dumpster, the transformers were about the only thing that wasn't replaced. Was a 64 I think. I had to track down adapters for two of the tubes. This was pre eBay, so. Good job bringing that beast back to life

@MattRedinius 2 ай бұрын

Such a great video! I recently had a 30s radio with two 47 power tubes fed by a transformer from the preamp. Transformer acts as phase inverter, and is wired exactly like an output transformer in reverse. Anyway, I chased a static popping sound for too long before finally condemning that transformer and replacing it. After pilling the covers of the bad trans, it could be seen that the laminations were pretty loose and deteriorated.

@MattRedinius 2 ай бұрын

Hit enter too soon ;) Just wanted to close by saying that this stuff happens to professionals all the time, and you handled it like a professional, by consultation and careful troubleshooting, not just throwing parts at it. Extra credit for the resistors strapped across the caps when having to get creative making a part when one isn't available. Again, Well done!

@peacetrain3320 2 ай бұрын

A hi-pot test on the transformer might indicate which winding is shorting to the tx core.

@richardbrobeck2384 2 ай бұрын

Nice and yes regardless if it's a solidstate or tube amp I have ran into crazy issues !

@techslfink9722 2 ай бұрын

My first guess would be caps too, my second something with an unstable feedback. Sometimes it is the most unexpected cause - nice job!

@f.k.burnham8491 2 ай бұрын

Output tx problems can be hard to trace, as you experienced. If it is loose plates in the tx, pull the covers and soak in a can of shellac for a few hours, let dry for a couple of days (Or put in conventional oven at 150- 200 deg.F for 6-8 hours), and that will fix it. I ran into the problem numerous times in TV sets, where it was more of a buzzing than a clicking; and sometimes in the antique radios I worked on, especially in the PS section. The shellac needs to totally soak into the tx winding areas and core laminations. I saw much more internal arcing in both power & output tx is items that had been left in damp places and the customer did not bring them in to let them thoroughly dry out before turning on.. Moisture could also cause arcing between tube pins/ ground on the sets too. Good job on catching the bad tx.

@alexatienza5292 2 ай бұрын

You are my idol I am also a electronic tech in Edmonton, Canada Thanks for all of your videos

@weschilton 2 ай бұрын

Very cool, thanks for sharing your troubleshooting process and your discoveries!

@waynegram8907 2 ай бұрын

The output transformers common ground must have had milliohms of resistance from the internal transformer insulation. When transformers heat up or age the insulation internally will add resistance. You can use a milliohm meter to measure the milliohms from the transformers chassis mounts to the transformers common ground wire.

@mikeshaw4951 2 ай бұрын

My buddy used to have a B15N fliptop...... When you put the head on top of the cabinet and powered it up a plastic plate with Ampeg printed on it would light up.

@GAK1atatt Ай бұрын

You could have pulled the output tubes and just turn it on. The hv will be at its peak with no load and should start the arc. BTW It’s nice to see a woman do this and know what she’s doing! Your voice is nice, too. I’ve done this kind of job for60+ Year’s. I’m also a designer of hi end stereo amps with lots of tubes. Kudos for you!!!

@jamiboothe 2 ай бұрын

Hey!, I had a clicking issue, that was steady, in an Alamo 6-A amp, I purchased in a bundle of amps, a few months back. There is no available schematic for that amp. I plugged it into my variac, and slowly bring up the power. The amp had a filter cap replacement job, and it looked a bit sketchy. I was very conservative with bringing up the power, and got no sound from the amp. I decided to swap out tubes one at a time, with known working tubes. Still no sound, except, i had no replacement for the 6SE7 tube. I looked through my stash of unknown quality tubes, and found a metal jacket 6SE7. I put that in, and all of a sudden I got sound, that clicking sound. I figured some sound was better than none. Long story short, I did not have the voltage high enough to get sound from the amp, but the clicking sound was audible with the lower voltage. I assumed I had an issue that I did not have the skillz to fix. Anyways, after some online questioning of more talented repairmen than myself, I put the original 6SE7 in the socket, and I had tone, and no clicking. Actually, the amp sounds fantastic. My problem was being over cautious, and assuming a bad tube was good, and a good tube was bad. Now, I have to figure out how to fix the tremolo, without a schematic.

@george-st-george 2 ай бұрын

A great and interesting mystery........with a happy ending !!!!! Always fun !!! Cheers !!!

@oldguy5381 2 ай бұрын

Always a pleasure

@JasonClute 2 ай бұрын

I watched all the way through but I should have took a shot without looking at other’s comments because it sounded like high voltage arcing so I was on the right track. I’m curious why it goes away with heat. I’m guessing it was in the OT primary with either a turn to turn short or barely open winding shorting. Would be interesting to see what DCR is in each half. Maybe once it’s warm, the barely open windings are making better contact maybe from a slight expansion. Thx for the video!

@nathkrupa3463 2 ай бұрын

Great work miss 👏 ❤😊 I wondering how you repaired old radios Great women

@Oaklandguitars 2 ай бұрын

I wanna hear the history of all the cool stuff on your walls! Wall tourrrrrrr!

@cajuncoinhunter 14 күн бұрын

I was thinking leaky diode at start up with the power rush then voltages calming down when caps fill up and level off ...... The transformer would have been suspect at the end ..... Great thinking ....

@tbd6403 2 ай бұрын

Sick merch promo!

@TrialByFire76 2 ай бұрын

Such a fun intro and t-shirt logo! 😃 Quick question.. as an artist I choose an amp for the sound.. and after decades of playing different rigs- a (1998) Ampeg VH-140C and a (1992) Fender M-80 Chorus are what we record with the most. Check out GTO Firestarter for a sound sample. At some point we are going to want these heads serviced so without offending the 'Tube Gods' :) Could you please share your personal and professional opinions about owning and working on solid state guitar amplifiers? Would love to hear your thoughts!

@dougtaylor7724 2 ай бұрын

The insulation breaks down internally on the output transformer. Basically arcing and flashover in the internal winding. That’s why one are clicking faster than others. Very rare problem.

@danielsaturnino5715 2 ай бұрын

I had that happen after replacing filter caps. A bad ground was the issue in my case.

@jcwear89 2 ай бұрын

That was really informative! Thanks 👍🏼😊

@KeritechElectronics 2 ай бұрын

Nice intro - friggin' hilarious, totally tubular! Maybe the output transformer's insulation is breaking down. You might try mitigating voltage spikes with reverse-biased diodes across its primary (anodes to ends, cathodes to center tap) or output tubes (anode to GND and cathode to plate), or lowering the plate voltage to prevent insulation breakdown, but generally if it's dying, it's dying... I was also thinking tube sockets - bakellite / phenolic ones sometimes show insulation breakdown from plate to heater/cathode/suppressor grid if B+ is high. That usually ends with a charred socket, pretty easy to spot.

@goodun2974 2 ай бұрын

The transformers are potted (tar? beeswax? likely *not* epoxy) and perhaps tge potting material has become conductive, or a charred arc-path developed when moisture infiltrated the can?

@KeritechElectronics 2 ай бұрын

@@goodun2974 possible; insulating paper or magnet wire enamel breakdown may be a thing too.

@johnnyphoney5669 Ай бұрын

I would guess someone once overloaded the transformer so that the wire coating inside got roasted and it’s arcing inside now during initial surge during power on. Maybe the amp was played without a load, or 8 ohm load was hooked into 16 ohm output. It could be that it was looking fine for a while but there was some short inside the transformer, so because of that short it was constantly getting overloaded and then the fried coating got more and more burned out until the clicking issue appears.

@frieddo 2 ай бұрын

I have the exact same problem on a b15NF, the clicking is way softer but is constant and won't go away (what a pleasure on sustained notes on recordings ...) i've spent hours trying to understand where it comes from ... need to check output transformer then ...

@vihuelamig 2 ай бұрын

I wonder if one of those 'noise tester/signal tracers' would have got it? I can't say because I've never used one! Come to think of it would they pick up noisy or microphonic tubes?

@Andy-ql9wh 2 ай бұрын

Cool Intro. good OT tip too, thanks for sharing!

@Jon-BEDM 2 ай бұрын

Excellent work, as usual.

@tonibarski4283 2 ай бұрын

well done, great troubleshooting !

@jonnybeck6723 2 ай бұрын

Coleen, what do you think of old B-15 Portaflex's as GUITAR amps? Folks always see them as bass amps only...

@mohasalman-p8m 2 ай бұрын

thanks for your profitly repair notes.please creat a video about test and ignore levels capacitors.

@coilhead 2 ай бұрын

In 30+ years of doing this I've replaced more Ampeg B15 transformers than I can remember. Power and output...... Not unusual for one or both to go bad. The clicking I've only experienced once and that was in a Super Reverb and it was the power transformer. Crazy making since it was super intermittent! Good work and thanks for sharing. Say hi to Bryan Sours for me.

@hartholz7015 2 ай бұрын

Subscribed. You're a specialist. I played Fender and VOX. I made the Vox sound so hard or more than a Marsh., the amp of my beloved guitar player, Jeff Beck. But the MM and Ampeg always seemed very good to me, too. I have some difficulty listening to your message, I speak bad English. Please, will you speak very academic, very regular, for the people like me. Regards

@robertparker3580 2 ай бұрын

awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!

@bluesful 2 ай бұрын

Question I've always had for techs - how do you get really heavy amps up onto your workbench without killing your back?

@rhs1856 2 ай бұрын

Excellent video + intro!!! 👍

@RadioDeadAir 2 ай бұрын

Ah, the good ol' flip top ... internal arcing in the OT? Yeah, that *is* weird ...

@iamoneofus4653 2 ай бұрын

very interesting ,i would of never guessed it was the output transformer ,you are a genius Miss Fazio

@giulioluzzardi7632 2 ай бұрын

....or too much time spent next to a drummer whos beat the amp was trying to emulate. A ghost in the machine and climate change causing this "Motorboat" effect.( Sorry just being silly). Your videos are almost as good as an episode of Columbo!

@markbernier8434 2 ай бұрын

As soon as I heard the sound I said transformer plate movement. Sometimes a few drops of lacquer on the plates will fix it. First time I heard it was an industrial transformer 15 20 KW something like that.

@timmorrell9245 2 ай бұрын

Have a b 18 doin same thing thanx for the tip

@goodun2974 2 ай бұрын

What is the amp with huge pointer knobs and bare wood cabinet to the right of Colleen, in front of the Marshall combo?

@fordsrestorations970 18 күн бұрын

HA !! In my state I grew up with the fazio's and their Pizza shop ....

@rpm4999 2 ай бұрын

Crazy vidz 😁love them

@petezah6557 2 ай бұрын

I had the same exact problem with my Bassman.

@fraenkiboii 2 ай бұрын

you put a tube into a pizza, pulled it out and then put it into an amp? That's so dirty. I love it 🤪😜😏🔥

@Blueguitar007 2 ай бұрын

I had a clicking on tremolo on a Princeton, it was a JJ tremolo tube and I swapped it out with another brand and it quit. Different scenario but still might help someone.

@lsmiii 2 ай бұрын

Do you work on pedals? I built a DIY boost and it isn't boosting. I have no idea how to troubleshoot it :(

@BasicDrumming 2 ай бұрын

Great video.

@maryannmoran-smyth3453 2 ай бұрын

On my 71 Marshall super lead 100. I will get a popping sound. If I hit a cord hard with the pic turned out to be the tube socket. I had a crack in the plastic between two pins. It would ark.

@RickBaconsAdventures 2 ай бұрын

Hey Colleen, fellow electronics enthusiast here about your age. Can't get the checkout thing to work on your site to buy the new shirt. There's no box to enter my card info, it just stops at the discount code box and won't let me go any further.

@FazioElectric 2 ай бұрын

Hey there! Thanks for letting me know. A few people have mentioned this issue, but it works ok for others. Are you attempting to purchase via your phone or computer?

@RickBaconsAdventures 2 ай бұрын

@@FazioElectric I am using a regular computer. I was just now able to get the page to load correctly by temporarily going around my DNS firewall (special box at work, not software). Seems that stripe or squarespace is trying to use something that is in one of the common blocklists. I'm sure it's just an error and there's nothing to worry about. You could put a note on the site if enough people have trouble. Glad I was able to place my order, love the new design! The intro was great. I love jokes like that, learned about tubes from my grandpa who was an EE in those days

@FazioElectric 2 ай бұрын

@@RickBaconsAdventures I’m so glad you were able to get around it! Thank you for your persistence :) I’m chatting with tech support now just to make sure, and I added a note on my website. Thank you so much for the support and for bringing this to my attention! I’m so glad you enjoyed the intro, we had fun making that hehe. Long live tubes!!!

@ericwilson2585 2 ай бұрын

Yeah it's kinda hard to see electrons when they're not going in the right direction. Lol. I work on all kinds of different stuff, lawnmowers, snowblowers, 4-wheelers , minibikes, snowmobiles, occasionally music equipment, but mostly cars. But then all of a sudden 3 different people brought 4 "red" guitars for me to repair all within 2 weeks. Go figure eh?

@fordsrestorations970 18 күн бұрын

Someone said decaying rubber, rubber pads & particular types of wire can actually conduct voltage, grounding out.

@RJGNZ 2 ай бұрын

0:24 Just how I like my valves

@davidlemnah4938 2 ай бұрын

Plate Resistors in the Phase Inverter

@mikeshaw4951 2 ай бұрын

Is that pizza green pepper and onion? That's my favorite!

@borowland5744 2 ай бұрын

I think it is the output transformer.

@mikeshaw4951 2 ай бұрын

So your input is the output?

@borowland5744 2 ай бұрын

@@mikeshaw4951 yeah, kinda, maybe. Haha

@billsoule5824 2 ай бұрын

When you mentioned the clicking it reminded me of this video from Uncle Doug and the same symptom whereas his was a straight out open between one side of the primary xfmr to the B+ center tap. Does your bad xfmr primary have regular continuity that you would expect with the plate-plate taps and CT? if that measures OK you may have still been getting a momentary flyback dielectric breakdrown inter-winding, especially primary to secondary or the core. The momentary short would start the cycle over again. In the case of yours I would expect you were seeing an L/R time constant involving the inductance of the xfmr vs the increasing conductivity of the tube as it warmed up, lowering the R and increasing the time contant, thus lowering of the click rate. That's a guess on the mechanism. kzbin.info/www/bejne/r57ae6Cejqekf8k

@MusicMike939 2 ай бұрын

Too bad Bob Rigoni that owned music stores in Waukegan, Illinois has passed away. He would have known how to fix that problem for sure. I almost typed fox 🦊 instead of fix 😜😎😍

@erictripton 2 ай бұрын

Makes you miss Rosangela's Pizza on West 95th St. Oh yeah bad OT😅

@mp1454 2 ай бұрын

😮😊👌🥰👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

@See_you_next_timee 2 ай бұрын

noiceeee

@Zbigniewkrupka 2 ай бұрын

Witaj 🤝 Pozdrawiam z Polski 🇵🇱👋

@powerade92 2 ай бұрын

This? This type of thing right here? Is exactly why I'll stick to setting up my own guitars, and happily pay someone else to work on my amps.

@HerbieBancock 2 ай бұрын

Unless it's a modern Ampeg in which case the cause is private equity garbage milking a brand name that no longer means anything.

@offbeatbassgear 2 ай бұрын

Ampeg destroyed its legacy after it shipped all production offshore. I know dealers that gave them up because of all the issues with failing and defective units. One regional store chain told me they had a return rate of 25% within the warranty period, and that Ampeg never improved QC or revised its return policies to make service claims easier.

@deepdance111 2 ай бұрын

Nice Idaa ...to Intro~~~:) ...Best regards from Poland:)

@jamesbruno5896 2 ай бұрын

Weird one thanks for sharing!

@tiki_trash 2 ай бұрын

Nice intro, ha ha.

@TheOlmecindian 2 ай бұрын

Hi fazio are you an 80’s baby ??

@goodun2974 2 ай бұрын

Looks like a martini tattoo on Colleen's inside right wrist; shaken, or stirred? 🤔 (James Bond says "shaken", always😉). I'm not into tattoos myself, but that's a nice subtle one ---- and Ms Fazio can do what she wants!

@Hanover_Fist 2 ай бұрын

Freeze spray would have shortened the process.

@FazioElectric 2 ай бұрын

I tried freeze spray and heat to get the issue to rear its head more - it only clicked at start up!

@markpippitt6539 2 ай бұрын

It is probably the metal oxide varistor that is on the primary side of the power transformer circuit. You can temporarily short it out. Get rid of the death cap when you are in there also.

@longrunner258 2 ай бұрын

Shorting a metal-oxide varistor would short the whole power input.