5150 Speaker Output Jacks and Ohms Questions

T

takk

New member
Hi folks,

I have a Peavey EVH 5150 120w head and a Marshall 4 x 12 "Slash Signiture Series" cabinet. I have 2 questions:

1. I notice that the volume fluctuates while I am playing and I am pretty sure it is because the speaker-out jacks have become loose over time. Because if I wiggle them around with my hand the volume really fluctuates. How do I go about tightening them, or should I get this done professionaly?

2. The 5150 head has a 3-way Ohms switch in the back which can be set to either 4, 8, or 16 Ohms. The are 2 paralleled speaker out jacks. The Marshal 4x12 cab has inputs for either 4 Ohms Mono, 16 Ohms Mono, or 8 Ohms stereo. What would be the best way to connect this head to the cab?

Thank you,
Takk
 
As far as the jacks go, arent they just normal jacks with a nut on the ouside that you can tighten? If they are, just tighten that nut.
You should run the cabinet in mono. 4 or 16 ohms doesn't matter much, just make sure that the amp and the cabinet are set the same.
 
Thanks for the "Run Mono 4/16 ohms" suggestion. As far as tightening the jacks, the nut only secures the jack to the amp. I was probably not clear in my original description. That nut does NOT make your speaker cable connection tighter. It's inside the jack that is loose. Any suggestions?

- Takk
 
you need to have those jacks replaced. If you are not familiar with soldering, or working on this kind of thing, take it to someone. It shouldn't cost that much. If the jacks are not mounted to a pc board, it will be a 10 minute job. 5 minutes of that is waiting for the soldering iron to heat up.
 
Thank you for the advice. I bet the prongs inside the jacks have been slightly bent and no longer grip the inpu cable very well. I'll have to take it in to get serviced.

- Takk
 
Farview said:
you need to have those jacks replaced. If you are not familiar with soldering, or working on this kind of thing, take it to someone. It shouldn't cost that much. If the jacks are not mounted to a pc board, it will be a 10 minute job. 5 minutes of that is waiting for the soldering iron to heat up.
Click to expand...

It depends on the type of jack. If they're the enclosed in plastic type, then yes, replacement is probably the way to go, If they are the open metal type, then a quick bend of the tip connector with a pair of needlenose pliers will usually do the trick.
 
ggunn said:
It depends on the type of jack. If they're the enclosed in plastic type, then yes, replacement is probably the way to go, If they are the open metal type, then a quick bend of the tip connector with a pair of needlenose pliers will usually do the trick.
Click to expand...
True, but he would still have to take it apart. The new jack is so cheap, it isn't worth jury rigging it and waiting for it to fail a month down the road. If you break the tip off, you will still have to replace it.
 
are you sure it is the jacks and not the tubes. My 5150 was loosing volume too (and actually you would hear and "waves of the beach" sound too) after about 1/2 hour. A smack on the top would clear it up for a bit. I got the tubes replace (all tubes) and didn't have the volume issue anymore.
 
Really Pissed - Long Story!!!

This is a follow-up to my original post on a volume fluctuation problem with a 5150 head. So I brought in the 5150 head to a repair shop and told them that the speaker out jacks were loose. This was my own diagnosis because when I jiggled the speaker cable near the jacks the volume would fluctuate tremendously, more than when just playing normally. No problem, pick it up in 2 weeks...

I pick it up today and they wanted to charge me $150. So I ask, "Why would tightening or replacing speaker jacks cost $150?."

They tell me that the problem was not the jacks, but that all of the pre-amp tubes had to be replaced, plus they had to replace the power cable. Aside from the fact that they never called me to say it was going to be so expensive, it turns out the paperwork was misplaced before the tech got it so he had no description/symptom to go from. Instead of double-checking with me or the frontdesk, he took it upon himself to self-diagnose the amp and determined a full pre-amp tube replacement was in order.

Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I let them plug the amp into a cab in the store and I play it for a while. No problems, sounds good and no volume fluctuation. Reluctantly, I pay the $150 and take it home.

But when I plug it into my 4x12 Marshall cab at home, the volume imediately starts fluctuating. I jiggle the speaker cable while playing and that induces a greater fluctuation in volume. Then jiggle the cable by the cab's input and it REALLY starts fluctuating. It is definately the cab's jacks; nothing was wrong with the 5150 head!!!

Shouldn't they have just given it back to me and said, "Sorry, but there is nothing wrong with the speaker jacks." and just charged me a bench fee? Or simply recommended a pre-amp tube replacement and given it back to me?

I will be seeking a refund and will keep the story posted...

- Takk
 
takk said:
This is a follow-up to my original post on a volume fluctuation problem with a 5150 head. So I brought in the 5150 head to a repair shop and told them that the speaker out jacks were loose. This was my own diagnosis because when I jiggled the speaker cable near the jacks the volume would fluctuate tremendously, more than when just playing normally. No problem, pick it up in 2 weeks...

I pick it up today and they wanted to charge me $150. So I ask, "Why would tightening or replacing speaker jacks cost $150?."

They tell me that the problem was not the jacks, but that all of the pre-amp tubes had to be replaced, plus they had to replace the power cable. Aside from the fact that they never called me to say it was going to be so expensive, it turns out the paperwork was misplaced before the tech got it so he had no description/symptom to go from. Instead of double-checking with me or the frontdesk, he took it upon himself to self-diagnose the amp and determined a full pre-amp tube replacement was in order.

Giving them the benefit of the doubt, I let them plug the amp into a cab in the store and I play it for a while. No problems, sounds good and no volume fluctuation. Reluctantly, I pay the $150 and take it home.

But when I plug it into my 4x12 Marshall cab at home, the volume imediately starts fluctuating. I jiggle the speaker cable while playing and that induces a greater fluctuation in volume. Then jiggle the cable by the cab's input and it REALLY starts fluctuating. It is definately the cab's jacks; nothing was wrong with the 5150 head!!!

Shouldn't they have just given it back to me and said, "Sorry, but there is nothing wrong with the speaker jacks." and just charged me a bench fee? Or simply recommended a pre-amp tube replacement and given it back to me?

I will be seeking a refund and will keep the story posted...

- Takk
Click to expand...

This is where you buy some black clothes and a giant lock cutter with a crowbar and some other goodies and find a plain looking pickup to barrow for the night and cover the license plate and have at the store for a good 2-3 minutes. Everything you can get. Like the old show Super Market Sweep.

That, and make sure you inform everyone of the stores name and anytime you see something online that is even remotely relevant, you drop their name and how fucking terrible they are.
 
$150 to replace $40 worth of tubes? (if that) Learn to solder and don't take the cabinet there to get it fixed, They might replace the wheels for $1500
 
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