Powering up a stored amp

andyman95023 · 11-03-2009, 04:37 PM

I've read a bunch of info indicating caps going bad if they sit to long so my question is I have a couple amps that have been siting and not powered up for quite a while 1-3 years just because of things out of my control. So what precautions should be followed or taken so not to cause anything to burn up or blow up. I'm mean really there's original amps from the 50's still operating on the original components. Are there any obvious signs indicating of any problems from sitting. My amps are in a 10x12 bedroom and I worry some theiving bastard will hear them and set me up for a burglary.

P.S I used to have access to a large shop to play these at theyre happy volume but the situation went away

Thanks
Andyman

Wilder Amplification · 11-03-2009, 07:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andyman95023

I've read a bunch of info indicating caps going bad if they sit to long so my question is I have a couple amps that have been siting and not powered up for quite a while 1-3 years just because of things out of my control. So what precautions should be followed or taken so not to cause anything to burn up or blow up. I'm mean really there's original amps from the 50's still operating on the original components. Are there any obvious signs indicating of any problems from sitting. My amps are in a 10x12 bedroom and I worry some theiving bastard will hear them and set me up for a burglary.

P.S I used to have access to a large shop to play these at theyre happy volume but the situation went away

Thanks
Andyman

The first thing you wanna do is open up the amp and visually inspect the filter caps to make sure there's nothing leaking out of them. If all's well with the filter caps visually, put it back together, then using caution, go ahead and power it up in standby mode. Keep your hands on the power/standby switches just in case you see or smell any smoke, sparks...anything that you know is not visually right or doesn't smell right.

If all goes well with the power up, with no guitar plugged in turn the amp on in play mode and before you play through it, watch the power valves for a few minutes and make sure the plates aren't turning red. 5-10 minutes should be all you need. Listen for funny noises in the speaker. A light "hiss" should be all you hear. If you hear any funny noises or crackles, this means the amp is probably due for a service and possibly a new set of valves. However, if all seems well, go ahead and plug your guitar in and play.

andyman95023 · 11-04-2009, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wilder Amplification

The first thing you wanna do is open up the amp and visually inspect the filter caps to make sure there's nothing leaking out of them. If all's well with the filter caps visually, put it back together, then using caution, go ahead and power it up in standby mode. Keep your hands on the power/standby switches just in case you see or smell any smoke, sparks...anything that you know is not visually right or doesn't smell right.

If all goes well with the power up, with no guitar plugged in turn the amp on in play mode and before you play through it, watch the power valves for a few minutes and make sure the plates aren't turning red. 5-10 minutes should be all you need. Listen for funny noises in the speaker. A light "hiss" should be all you hear. If you hear any funny noises or crackles, this means the amp is probably due for a service and possibly a new set of valves. However, if all seems well, go ahead and plug your guitar in and play.

Thanks so much for your reply. Now with the info concerning draining caps and other precautions I can safely do my own minimal routine maintenance and keep my charished vintage amps rollin and roaring

Thanks again
Andyman

11-03-2009, 04:37 PM	#1 (permalink)
andyman95023 Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Hollister Ca Posts: 19	Powering up a stored amp I've read a bunch of info indicating caps going bad if they sit to long so my question is I have a couple amps that have been siting and not powered up for quite a while 1-3 years just because of things out of my control. So what precautions should be followed or taken so not to cause anything to burn up or blow up. I'm mean really there's original amps from the 50's still operating on the original components. Are there any obvious signs indicating of any problems from sitting. My amps are in a 10x12 bedroom and I worry some theiving bastard will hear them and set me up for a burglary. P.S I used to have access to a large shop to play these at theyre happy volume but the situation went away Thanks Andyman

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