All Tubes the Same?

[MrStitch]

I got this little crappy, ancient, practice amp, and when I was having some trouble with it, I decided to tear it apart.

One of the knobs says 'Tube Gain/Distortion' (or something to that effect). But when I was inside, I didn't see anything that even remotely looked like your standard tube..... although, I don't know that all tubes look the same.

The only 'tube' looking thing in there, looks like a fuse. You know... the kind where it has the metal caps on both ends of the glass tube, with some sort of filament running through the middle.

Is this just cruddy advertising by the company that made the amp, or is that thing really a tube?

 

[tom18222]

is it a tube amp?

 

[MrStitch]

I went to check - The knob in question says 'Tube Crunch'. And the name or title on the amp says 'The Tube Cruncher' (gee... how original), by Gorilla.

I have a Presonus Blue Tube, and have replaced the tube in that before. There is nothing in the practice amp that looks anything like a 12ax7 (or whatever it is).

Thats why I was asking about that 'fuse' looking thing. Is that a tube, as we know it in a traditional sense, or... is it just merely a fuse.

BTW, printed on the board just below that 'fuse' looking thing is, 250v @ 1 amp (er.. something to that effect)

 

[zed32]

yeah that's a fuse not a tube. sorry man, there's no tubes in that amp.

 

[MrStitch]

No reason to be sorry. The sucks anyways. hahaha

I shall continue my quest tho - My main amp sucks. Solid state Marshall. Will start a new thread on that issue later.

 

[Roguetitan]

WARNING!
Transformers hold voltage capacitors hold voltage even unplugged messing around with electrical shit can still kill the hell out of you!
if you don't know what you are doing you don't need to be fucking around the inside of any amplifier period
and according to your post it is obvious you are an accident waiting to happen.

 

[MrStitch]

Yes I am..... Story of my life.

 

[travelin travis]

you got yourself a genuine solid state turd slathered in marketing bologne.

 

[ggunn]

WARNING!
Transformers hold voltage capacitors hold voltage...

Capacitors yes, transformers no.

 

[soundchaser59]

WARNING!
Transformers hold voltage

Excellent advice, coming from someone who doesn't know how much voltage a transformer can hold!

 

[danny.guitar]

Capacitors yes, transformers no.

Even I knew that and I know shit about electronics.

 

[MrStitch]

Even I knew that and I know shit about electronics.

Well, it's gotta be a lot... cause.... well... Have you SEEN how big Optimus Prime is!?

 

[MrStitch]

Looking back... I think I'm going to lose rep power for that pun. hahahha

 

[Roguetitan]

Excellent advice, coming from someone who doesn't know how much voltage a transformer can hold!

the point is smartass that if he grabs ahold of the wrong thing inside of that amp it is his ass.
understand?

 

[Big Kenny]

Looking back... I think I'm going to lose rep power for that pun. hahahha

Only if you give a rip about rep...

 

[ggunn]

the point is smartass that if he grabs ahold of the wrong thing inside of that amp it is his ass.
understand?

Although you were mistaken about transformers holding voltage, I agree that it's better to be overcautious than not cautious enough. It's not just the terminals of the capacitors themselves that are hazardous; those circuit nodes are connected to points elsewhere in the circuitry quite a distance from the caps themselves, and those points are just as hazardous. If you don't have at least a basic working knowledge of electronics and of tube amps in particular, best not go poking around in there. It's not very likely that someone without an understanding of what they are looking at would recognize a problem or be able to fix anything, anyway.