Frank the Tech Guy

The Frank the Tech Guyblog has moved. The new address is http://www.louisvillemusic.org/techcolumn/

Nashville’s record flooding over the first weekend in May caused over one billion dollars in property damage, which made national headlines. But for musicians in Music City, a lot of the damage is intensely personal - hundreds of Nashville’s top stars, working musicians and tour support company owners lost what will likely be several millions of dollars in gear.

Most of the damaged gear was located at Soundcheck Nashville - a storage rental hub in an industrial park down by the Cumberland River. Owner Ben Jumper said the 160,000 square feet of space he rents out is all flooded and the losses will be in the tens of millions. The storage facility is full of classroom-sized “lockers” used to store gear. National touring musicians based in Nashville use the giant facility to rehearse and store their gear when not on tour.

Keith Urban lost his gear. Vince Gill lost most of his entire guitar collection, including irreplaceable vintage pieces with historic value. A tractor-trailer full of LeAnn Rimes’ road gear was under several feet of water. And Brad Paisley, set to start his next tour on May 21, lost his staging, props, guitars, amps and equipment. The list goes on and on. Literally hundreds of musicians use the facility and store their gear there.

As you can see from the picture above, the flooding was deep and extensive. That’s a 24 ft box truck parked at the facility, with water up to nearly the top of the cab. The fence and entrance gate are in the foreground of the picture, with a security camera barely above the water level.

Restoring musician’s equipment damaged by floodwaters is a daunting task. Many of the stringed instruments will likely be a total loss. The electronic equipment may be at least partially salvageable. Much of the amp restoration work is being done by Tour Supply of Nashville, great guys who do a great job. Mercury Magnetics, a leading manufacturer of transformers for musical equipment, is offering free refurbishing for power and output transformers damaged by the flood. But the amount of equipment damaged is staggering, and the resources to repair it in short order are overtaxed.

I currently have two pieces from the flood in my shop at Uncle Sam’s Jamms in Louisville - a bass amp head and a direct box. I expect to receive more in the next few days, as musicians fan out from Nashville to other nearby communities with repair facilities who can help restore the music to the Music City.

Musicians and others in the music industry are a close-knit group - we come together to help each other in times of crisis. This is no exception, and Nashville and its community of professionals will get through it. And I certainly don’t mean to minimize the losses felt by all of the affected residents of the Nashville area who lost their homes, businesses and possessions - many, many suffered greatly from this tragedy. They, too, will persevere.

From time to time, I get questions from my customers at Uncle Sam’s Jamms concerning the age of their vintage amps. The most frequently asked questions concern Fender amps from the 50’s up through the 70’s. In most cases, it’s not difficult to determine the year of manufacturer of most Fender models from those periods.

On the inside wall of your Fender amp cabinet, there may be a tube location sticker which shows the tube layout, model number, production location etc. There may also be some letter date codes rubber stamped on this sticker. These date codes will contain two letters of the alphabet which refer to the year and month of production, and may be interpreted as follows:

Code Year
A 1951
B 1952
C 1953
D 1954
E 1955
F 1956
G 1957
H 1958
I 1959
J 1960
K 1961
L 1962
M 1963
N 1964
O 1965
P 1966
Q 1967
R 1968
S 1969

Code Month
A January
B February
C March
D April
E May
F June
G July
H August
I September
J October
K November
L December

In the absence of the rubber-stamped date codes, EIA numbers taken from the transformers may allow you to determine the date of production of your amp. These numbers always begin with “606″ , and are followed by three or four digits in various combinations. If three digits are present, the first digit would refer the units of the year i.e. (”7″ would mean 1967). If four digits are present, the first two digits refer to the year i.e. (”66″ would mean 1966). The last two digits would refer to the week of the year i.e. (”26″ would mean the 26th week or approximately June). Here is an example: EIA 606-4-21 would mean the 21st week of 1964. It is also advisable to add about 6 months to the date to allow for time these parts may have spent in storage.

There are other methods used to date “Silverface” amps, you will need to get the date codes from your speaker frame, tube chart or pots.

Pots and speakers are usually stamped with a 6 or 7 digit code that can be dated as follows:

The first 3 are the manufacturers code

137xxx = CTS
304xxx = Stackpole
140xxx = Clarostat
134xxx = Centralab
381xxx = Bourns
106xxx = Allen-Bradley

Speaker Manufacturers codes

220xxx = Jensen
465xxx = Oxford

The next number(s) is (are) the year. Initially this was a single digit, latter that was extended to two digits for clarity.

The last two digits are the week of the year. Note that if these digits are larger that 52, it probably is NOT a date code!

Thus a pot with the code of 137634 would be a pot made by CTS in 34th week of 1966.

Note that speakers also use the same type of date code.

Always remember that pots, speakers and transformers may have been changed during a repair!!

For more info, check out these references:

“Fender Amps, the First Fifty Years” by John Teagle and John Sprung
“How old is that Fender in the Window” by Richard Smith
Fender’s web site - www.fender.com

Until next time, keep on playing on that vintage Fender amp! I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

If you own a UHF wireless microphone in the 700MHz band, you may have only a few months remaining where you can still use it, both from a legal standpoint and from an interference perspective. In other words, it may eventually not be usable due to interference. And if you continue to use one of these microphones, you may be interfering with the new 4G digital communications platforms that are licensed in that frequency band for public safety and first responders.

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission will prohibit hundreds of existing wireless microphone models from being used in the U.S. by June, 2010 because they operate in the 700MHz spectrum band, which was auctioned off to mobile voice and broadband carriers in 2008.

The FCC prohibited electronics makers from selling existing devices that operate in the 700MHz spectrum as of Friday January 8, 2010 in an order issued the same day. Any existing devices broadcasting in the 700MHz band will have to stop operating by June 12, the FCC said.

The main products affected by the ban will be wireless microphones, which have operated without FCC licenses in television spectrum for years. While many wireless microphones operate in lower spectrum bands, and will be able to continue there, the FCC has listed more than 300 models of wireless microphone and related components from 12 major manufacturers that will no longer be allowed to operate in the 700MHz band after June 12, 2010

Among manufacturers listed on the FCC site with wireless microphones operating in the 700MHz band are Audio-Technica, Shure, Sennheiser, Sony and Samson Wireless. Representatives of Shure and two microphone groups didn’t immediately respond to a request for comments on the FCC’s order.

Most wireless microphone systems will continue to work because they don’t operate in the 700MHz band, said Matthew Nodine, chief of staff in the FCC’s wireless telecom bureau. Many wireless microphone makers and users have expected the FCC order since the agency auctioned off the 700MHz spectrum for mobile broadband and other uses in early 2008, he said.

The FCC will try to assist wireless microphone customers with any questions about making the transition to other microphones, Nodine said. Customers may also want to contact their microphone makers, he added. “We’re going to do everything we can to help out customers,” he said.

The FCC has already begun reaching out to people using wireless microphones, and the FCC will conduct an “aggressive” education campaign to reach out to wireless microphone users, the agency said in a press release.

The 700MHz band was formerly used by U.S. television stations, but the U.S. Congress voted in late 2005 to require stations to move off the spectrum and switch to all-digital broadcasts. U.S. TV stations exited the 700MHz spectrum last June.

The goal of the digital TV transition was to free up spectrum for commercial and public safety uses, but the portion of the spectrum dedicated for police and fire departments failed to sell in an early 2008 auction that raised $19.6 billion for the U.S. treasury. Several lawmakers pushed for the digital TV transition after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the U.S. Many of the rescue agencies that responded to those attacks couldn’t communicate with each other because they were using incompatible communications devices on different areas of the spectrum.

The Public Interest Spectrum Coalition, made up of six consumer and digital rights groups, petitioned the FCC to ban the use of wireless microphones on the 700MHz band.

The FCC’s action will allow “for rapid deployment of new wireless technologies while protecting consumers who bought wireless microphones in good faith,” Harold Feld, legal director of coalition member Public Knowledge, said in a statement. “As a result of this order, more spectrum will be available … in the 700 MHz band for new services.”

The FCC order requires wireless microphone makers to tell customers that the devices operate in television spectrum without FCC approval. These notices will “curtail the previous deceptive advertising practices by wireless microphone manufacturers,” Feld said.

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski said the commission’s ban on wireless microphones in the 700MHz spectrum was a “necessary and essential action” to complete the digital TV transition.

“Our decision will accelerate the buildout of 4G wireless networks, and will prevent interference with first responders who rely on the 700 MHz Band for mission-critical communications,” he said in a statement.

Nobody likes to learn that a product that they purchased and is still functioning will soon be illegal to operate. But wireless microphones operated essentially free gratis - that is, without licensing - for many years between TV channels in the UHF band. Now that the transition to digital television is complete, the remainder of the UHF spectrum is empty - the only thing that remains is wireless microphones and wireless intercoms in the 700MHz band. Those must be removed as well, so that the spectrum can be designated for emergency communication systems between first responders. The terrorist attacks of 9/11 demonstrated the weaknesses in our emergency communications systems - different agencies were unable to communicate with each other due to different types of radio systems operating in different frequency bands. The transition of 4G to the 700MHz band will allow all emergency responders to communicate with each other - even if they are from different regions and different agencies.

So, now is the time to shop for replacement wireless microphones. Until next time, I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

Welcome back, seekers of technical knowledge! (Wow, was that lame or what?) Anyway, last time we discussed the aspects of bias, and how a control voltage on the grid of an output tube in your amp controls the amount of current flow in the tube itself. To recap, this bias voltage acts as a control valve, setting the idle current in the tube at just the right value, so that the tube neither burns itself up by carrying too much current, nor sounds brittle and choppy because it has too little current and is in “cut off” mode.

Our discussion last time focused on the majority of larger tube amps which use adjustable bias. But a good number of amplifiers use either fixed bias or cathode bias designs. Let’s look at those designs.

Fixed bias is pretty simple, really. If you understand adjustable bias, then you’ll find that fixed bias is a design which uses fixed resistors to set the negative bias voltage on the grid permanently, rather than offering an adjustable resistor (rheostat or potentiometer) to allow the bias to be adjusted. The advantage of this concept has been heralded for many years by Mesa Boogie, who proclaims that their amps have an automatic bias system that requires no adjustment, thereby making it easier and simpler for their customers to change tubes themselves. In itself, that is quite true – no adjustment needed, and anyone can change the tubes. The disadvantage is that it’s always necessary in a fixed bias design to set the bias on the “cold” side, to ensure that regardless of the characteristics of the tubes installed, the current through the tube won’t exceed the maximum limit. In other words, they have to err on the side of caution. This means that the output tubes response is pretty sterile – by setting the bias cold, the output tubes add very little coloration to the sound of the amplifier – no early breakup, no “bluesy” overdrive. But most Mesa Boogies are crunch machines, and blues isn’t their sound. The overdrive in a Mesa is handled completely in the front end of the amp, by stacking extra preamp stages. The bottom line is that fixed bias is a low maintenance design, requiring no action by the owner. But (and this is just my personal opinion) – you almost might as well have a solid state output, because you’re getting very little in tonal enhancement from the output stage.

Cathode bias is also a fixed type of bias, but it’s handled differently than what we are calling fixed bias. Generally, cathode bias is deployed in smaller wattage amplifiers. It has the advantage of eliminating the need for a negative voltage from the power supply, which means that the power transformer has fewer secondary windings, thereby reducing cost. So … if you’re up on the technical aspects of using a negative voltage to repel and “slow down” the quantity electrons leaving the cathode headed for the plate, you might be wondering how this control can be accomplished without having a negative voltage available? Well, in electronics, voltages are relative to each other. If we can raise the cathode voltage to a moderate positive voltage (say perhaps 10 to 50 volts, depending on the tube), and we then keep the grid at or near 0 volts (ground potential), then the grid looks negative with respect to the cathode. The electrons on the cathode are still strongly attracted to the plate, because it is a few hundred volts more positive than the cathode. But the grid is still a partial barrier to the electron flow, because it is more negative than the moderate positive potential of the cathode. So, as far as the electrons are concerned, they can’t tell the difference – they behave the same as they do in a fixed bias or adjustable bias configuration where the cathode is at 0 volts, and the grid is at -10 to -50 volts DC.

So how do we achieve this positive voltage on the cathode? It turns out that it’s pretty simple. Whenever you force current flow through a resistor, a voltage develops across the resistor, and the polarity of the voltage depends on the direction of the current flow. If we put a resistor of typically a few hundred ohms between the cathode and ground, the current flow through the tube automatically “lifts” the cathode voltage above ground. The final voltage of the cathode depends on the value of the resistor, and can be calculated fairly accurately though the use of some formulas. By choosing the correct value of resistor, the cathode is set at a moderate positive voltage, and a sort of “automatic” bias is achieved.

Cathode bias has a couple of advantages over fixed bias. It offers some compression, some even-order harmonics, and earlier break-up. It also is somewhat self-adjusting, depending on the specific characteristics of the tube installed. To a significant degree, it’s responsible for the warm bluesy tone quality of the old Fender Champs, the Vox AC15 and AC30, the old Silvertone amps, and pretty much any amplifier that uses 6V6 or EL84 output tubes.

So, including last month’s blog, that’s pretty much our discussion of bias in tube amplifiers. Yep, it’s pretty technical, but it’s a necessary, integral part of how the amp works, and one of the important reasons that a particular amp sounds the way it does. Meanwhile, keep on rockin’, and I’ll be back next time with more technical goodies. I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

Tube bias refers to a voltage setting on the control grid of the output tubes which controls the amount of idle current of the output tubes (power tubes). Much like the idle in your car’s engine, a tube amplifier needs to have the output tubes biased properly for optimal performance. If the output tubes are under-biased (idle current is too HIGH), the audio signal will tend to distort earlier and the tube life will be shortened. This condition is sometimes referred to as biased “too hot”. If the output tubes are over-biased (idle current is too LOW), the audio signal will deteriorate more quickly and the amp will sound thin, cold and sterile. Therefore, this scenario is sometimes referred to as biased “too cold”. Typically, a hotter bias will give you louder, punchier and fuller sound; a colder bias will give you a cleaner, thinner sound.

What’s the perfect bias?
There is no such thing as the “perfect” bias setting that is acceptable for a particular tube type in a specific amp. There are vast differences in output transformers and tubes, varying quality between tube manufacturers and even significant variation between individual tubes of the same brand and type. Bias ranges are also subject to personal taste.

The (boring) intricate details
For those who love the intricate technical details, this paragraph will describe the physics of vacuum tube operation and how the bias voltage plays an important role. If you’re more content with a broad-brushed version of the bias overview, skip on down to the next paragraph. A vacuum tube amplifies by taking a small voltage on the grid element and delivering a much larger voltage on the plate element. Here’s how it works: A tube has a third element called the cathode which emits electrons when heated. The heat from the tube’s heater warms the cathode, giving these electronics sufficient energy to jump through the vacuum space of the tube and land on the plate. Why do they want to do this? Because electronics have a natural negative charge, and the plate of the tube is connected to a rather high positive voltage (several hundred volts). In the physical laws of electronics, opposites attract and the negative electronics are just dying to get to that positive plate. The grid element of the tube is located between the cathode and the plate, and acts as a control valve for how many electronics can successfully make the trip. The grid has a voltage applied that is somewhat more negative than the cathode (typically by about 40 or 50 volts). This is called the bias voltage. Since the grid is negative and like voltages repel, the grid tries to repel or push away the electron flow coming from the cathode. But you can think of the grid as like a sieve or screen (or a protected border with insufficient guards!) – some electrons do make it through, and they wind up making it to the plate. The more negative we adjust the voltage on the grid, the more the electrons are repelled, and fewer make the journey to the plate. The less negative we set the grid voltage, the larger the number of electrons that make it through. Without the grid, there would be no control on the flow of electrons from cathode to plate, and the tube would soon burn up due the excessive current flow and the resulting heat that would be generated. If we set the bias much too negative, no electrons can flow and the tube is “cut off”. If we set the bias insufficiently negative, the tube is in “runaway” and will soon burn up. Now, in addition to the constant DC bias voltage, the grid voltage is modulated slightly by the input signal applied – that’s the audio signal of your guitar reaching the output tubes. This slight variance in grid voltage causes the current to the plate to change in the exact same manner. The plate voltage is applied to the tube through the windings of the output transformer, and the resulting change in the current through the primary of the transformer creates an identical and rather sizable change in the secondary of the transformer – and that is connected directly to your speaker. Whew!

Why must bias be reset over and over again?
So, once you’ve had the bias set and adjusted on your amplifier and you have the perfect sound that you like, why do you need to ever have it adjusted again? Because, as I mentioned before, tubes will vary greatly in their specific characteristics. First, as you might imagine, it’s tough to build a tube in the first place. Much of the process of assembling the components of a tube is done by hand. The individual plate, grid, cathode and heater components are assembled on a jig using hand tools, and then wired to the pins in the base, before the assembly is enclosed in the glass envelope. Naturally, there are slight variations in spacing, size and positioning between the components from tube to tube – and these variations mean that the electrical characteristics will differ. After they are built, each tube is tested and graded according to its specific characteristics, and then sorted matched up with other tubes of similar performance. You can purchase a pair or quad of matched tubes, but there is no guarantee that this bundle of two tubes or four tubes will be exactly like the previous set that you purchased. So, you must “tweak” the bias in your amplifier to fine tune the bias setting so that the new tubes will again perform properly and sound the way you like.

What about fixed bias?
But, you say – what about a fixed bias amp, such as a Mesa Boogie design? How do they get by without requiring (or allowing) you to change the bias? A very good question, and one we will address in our very next blog article. Stay tuned. I’m Frank the Tech Guy – keep on rockin’.

Recently, two great technical innovators in the world of music passed away, only one day apart. I’d like to spend a little time reflecting on their contributions and innovations.

Les Paul died of pneumonia at the age of 94 on August 13, 2009. His contributions to the music field are legendary, and he is credited with building one of the first solid body electric guitars in the 1940’s. Gibson designed a “Les Paul” guitar incorporating his suggestions in the early 1950’s, and the Les Paul guitar is still one of Gibson’s most popular models today, after more than fifty years.

Les Paul is also credited with development of the multitracking recording technique. His first record using the multitracking technique was “Lover (When You’re Near Me)” released by Columbia Records in 1948 and featured Les Paul playing eight different parts on electric guitar. His first overdubbing experiments used acetate discs, but he later switched to using the more accommodating magnetic tape. He later worked with Ampex to design and build the first multitrack tape recording machine, the Model 200. For nearly 40 years, the recording industry used the multitrack tape recording system to record and produce every record since the early 1950’s.

It is incredible enough to have contributed so much to the development of the electric guitar (and certainly not to minimize the contributions of Leo Fender and Adolph Rickenbacker), but to also have developed multitrack recording is phenomenal. Les Paul of course was also a magnificent and innovative guitar player, and had continued to perform at the Iridium Jazz Club in Manhattan until very recently.

Ted Weber died at the age of 58 of complications from pulmonary sarcoidosis the next day after Les Paul, on August 14, 2009.

Not as well known as Les Paul, but certainly a technical contributor to the music field, Ted had designed and produced a unique type of guitar speaker which was well known for its tone quality. His speakers, individually hand-made in Kokomo, Indiana, were found in the amplifiers of many nationally known musicians, including Kenny Chesney, Brad Paisley, Joe Walsh, Trey Anastasia, Metallica, Derek Trucks, Rascal Flatts, Brooks & Dunn and Taylor Swift. Ted also had a Louisville connection – he studied electronics at the old United Electronics Institute in Shively, and graduated valedictorian of his class in 1971.

Ted’s knowledge and insight into finding the all-elusive perfect tone for guitarists is also legendary. His company also built custom amplifier kits for those who wished to build their own hand-wired boutique guitar amplifiers. Ted was one of a kind – a truly “nice guy” who went out of his way to help his customers. He responded personally to hundreds of emails each day, offering suggestions to guitarists on ways to improve their sound. I have had many conversations with Ted over the years, and purchased many of his company’s fine products. He will be missed. His company will continue under the leadership of his son and partner, T.A. Weber.

Ted’s and his family’s sense of humor and perspective is evident in the following graphic they are now displaying on the www.tedweber.com web site … it’s called a “Tedstone”

Until next time, keep on working on that perfect song with the perfect tone. I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

A common question I hear from guitar and bass players is “How do I know when to change output tubes?” A very good question, since output tubes aren’t cheap, and while you don’t want to change them needlessly, you also don’t want to sacrifice tone quality and risk damaging your amp by using tubes that are on their last legs.

So, how do you know when it’s time for new tubes? The short answer is to change them on a schedule, based on how often you play your amp. If you play moderately, about once a year is a good rule of thumb. If you play a heavy schedule (3-4 days per week, 3-4 hours per day or more), about every six months would be better.

Now for the long answer - determining by certain symptoms when your output tubes may be running on empty. These tips are especially useful when you’ve just bought a used amp from a store, an individual or on eBay, and you’re not sure how old the output tubes might be.

Signs that new output tubes might be in order
1. Output is weak, breaking up or distorted.
This one is tricky because it can also be due to the output transformer. But, if only due to complexity, cost, and likelihood of failure, it makes sense to change the tubes first.
2. Tubes show signs of overheating, darkening of the glass, or the plates of the tube glowing cherry red (shut down the amp if you observe this last symptom).
This can also be a sign of output transformer damage or decay or just overbiasing. With any output tube change the bias needs to be checked but with this one it is especially important.
3. Internal arcing
Make sure and check the tube sockets and screen grid resistors if this happens. Usually accompanied by B+ or primary fuse failure.
4. Bad tone
This one is highly subjective and if your output is not less than normal it is likely that your tone issues lie elsewhere - the preamp tubes may be the more likely culprits in this case.
5. Looking for a different sound?
Again, pre-amp tubes are probably a better choice for this but if you have some experience and have heard a lot of tubes, the output section can be a place to tweak your amp. Remember, if you decide to change from 6L6 outputs to EL34 outputs and your amp is not equipped with a bias selector switch on the back, you will need to have the bias circuit modified by a tech.
6. Cracked glass – tube looks “milky” inside.
No choice here. Reach for new tubes. And always change the output tubes as a set – a matched set.

Things that do not directly indicate time for an output tube change
1. Blue light or blue glow in the tubes that pulses with your playing
When tubes are flashed, the residual impurities in the vacuum are more or less removed. The less perfect the vacuum in the tube, the more blue pulsing you will see. By itself this indicates almost nothing. Ignore it.
2. Dirty tubes
Wait until they are cool and clean them with a paper towel sprayed with glass cleaner. Your amp will run cooler and love you for it.
3. Humming, noise, hiss, etc
None of these directly indicate power tube failure. If you don’t know for sure and your tubes are relatively new anyway (say six months of moderate playing or three months of heavy playing) then taking the amp to a tech may be less expensive in the long run. Hum, for instance, could come from out of balance on the output section. But that could be coming from a problem with biasing or the OT or it might have nothing to do with the output section and might be a crossed heater wire in the preamp or an unbalanced hum rejection circuit for the heaters, failing filter caps or any other number of things.

Output tubes are the heart and soul of your amplifier. You change your strings regularly to ensure a good tone - don’t forget to change your output tubes when needed for the same reason.

Until next time, take good care of your amp and it will take care of you. I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

Hi! We’re back. Last time we discussed the level of available service on electronic musical products, focusing particularly on guitar and bass amplifiers. As promised, this time we will talk about pro audio equipment, keyboards, and effects units, and how the availability of repair services varies greatly by brand name.

First, let’s focus on PA equipment for a moment. Since some of the larger amplifier manufacturers also build PA gear, we’ll touch on some names briefly that we discussed last time. Peavey comes to mind first. Peavey offers a wide variety of pro audio equipment and even commercial PA gear for building installations. As I said last time, Peavey has one of the best service departments going today, and service availability shouldn’t be a concern at all when it comes to purchasing Peavey equipment. I’d give Peavey a 5-star rating on support for their products.

We’ll also discuss Behringer, since they are a major player in both the amplifier and the pro audio market. I’ll quote what I said last time, since it is applicable to the Behringer pro audio line: “With Behringer products, all warranty service is in the form of exchange. You take your broken Behringer amp back to the dealer, and they arrange for a replacement unit. On occasion, they may be able to give you a replacement on the spot, if they have sufficient quantity in stock. But that is the exception rather than the rule, and in most cases you’re going to have to wait until they get a replacement from the factory. Most of the time, that’s about 1-2 weeks. Sometimes, however, it can be several weeks, if the warehouse doesn’t have it available. After warranty, service is in the hands of non-warranty service centers, and all of those are stand-alone electronics shops. Behringer has a weird rule about not allowing dealers who sell their products to be a service center for them. So, you may have bought your Behringer from Bill’s Local Music Store, but you’re might to have to take it to Joe’s Electronics for service, even though Bill’s Music has a service center on premise. In Kentucky, there is only one Behringer service center, in Elizabethtown. There are none in Indiana. Servicing Behringer products can be a challenge for non-authorized service centers, due to lack of parts and documentation. Even for the authorized service centers, parts supply can be slow and unpredictable. So, even though Behringer products are actually good buys for the money (some of their products are actually exceptionally good), the adage that ‘you get what you pay for’ still holds true. Service availability may be a bit below your expectations.”

Mackie has also been a major player in PA gear for the past 15 years, but that is changing. Mackie is part of Loud Technologies, and we discussed the abysmal support that they offer for their products earlier when we touched on the Crate and Ampeg lines. Their support, both during and after warranty, is simply horrible. If you have a broken Mackie product that must have a factory part in order to make it function, chances are slim that it will work again. If you value your gear, you won’t make Mackie part of that equation.

On a brighter note would be Yamaha. Much like Peavey, they have a great parts department, offer fine support for their service centers, and really do build some quality products. My only beef with Yamaha PA products is their EMX line of powered mixers. Due to the design of the power supply, they have an unusually high failure rate in my opinion, and they are quite difficult to repair. After warranty, that translates into high repair bills for the EMX product line. If you steer clear of the EMX powered mixer line, Yamaha offers some fine equipment and good support.

A quick rundown on other brands of pro audio equipment: My five-star list would include Peavey and Yamaha, plus Crest, QSC, Allen & Heath, Community Sound, A*R*T, Bag End, and Klark Teknik. My four-star list includes Crown, JBL, Alto, Ashly, Denon, Lexicon and Numark. Three-star would be Phonic. Two-star would include Nady, Galaxy, Rane and Behringer. One-star would include Mackie and EAW (also part of the Loud Technologies family.

Now, a word about keyboards. We’ll touch on what I would call the “big three” – Yamaha, Korg and Roland. Yamaha tops the list in support – see the discussion on their quality of service in the PA section, above. Korg comes next, with a pretty good service center. I rank Roland last, not because they don’t have good support, but because they are very picky about how many service centers they have and their qualifications and requirements for being approved as a service center. You would think that their requirements would be a good thing – and in a way, it is – but they make it so difficult and so costly for the service center to qualify that there are actually very few Roland service centers. That means when it comes time for service, you may not find a Roland service center close to you. And that means more of a hassle for you, compared to the ease of finding service for Yamaha and Korg owners.

Finally, a quick note on effects units. Most floor pedals cost between $100-$200, and in many cases after-warranty service isn’t cost effective. However, I’ll make note of the companies that do a darn good job of supporting their products (and those that don’t). Dunlop is excellent at support, so fear not if you own a Cry-Baby or an MXR pedal. Visual Sound is a small company in Tennessee that makes a few types of quality chorus and delay pedals, and their service and support is outstanding. Morley is another outstanding company. Digitech and DOD used to be quite good for repair and support, but they are now part of Harman International, and that knocks them down to about a three-star rating. Boss is part of the Roland family – see above discussion on Roland. A Behringer pedal is a bargain compared to the others, but consider it a throw-away if it should fail after warranty.

I hope this has shed a little light on some “behind-the-scenes” information on service that a lot of musicians might not know – until it’s too late. Until next time, keep on playin’. I’m Frank the Tech Guy.

Today, let’s talk about service issues on various musical products, and why it’s a good idea to think about these things before you buy a particular brand, or from a particular retailer.

You know, when you buy a car the thought of service most likely enters your mind. The car salesman probably mentions it, or might even take you on a quick tour of the service department. We all know that cars are going to need service. Not so much when it comes to musical gear. Perhaps it’s because we’d rather not think about problems down the road. The salesman might mention the warranty, but they might not tell you exactly how the warranty terms are fulfilled (more on that later). And what about service after the warranty? Let me tell you my perspective on these issues, and hopefully it will make you a bit wiser when it comes time for your next purchase.

First, the brand. Different manufacturers are all over the map when it comes to how well they support their products, and in what manner they support them. I won’t be as organized or detailed as Consumer Reports, but I’ll run through the brands that come to mind, and tell you how well they stack up.

We’ll start with guitar amps. Line 6 pops into my mind, because they are one of the better companies when it comes to support. They have field service centers all over the country, they honor the warranties, they are good at supplying parts to the service centers, so if you decide on a Line 6 product, you’ll be in good hands. Now, they do stop supporting products after a few years … for example, if you own an AxSys from the late 90’s or one of the original Flextones, some parts are no longer available. That’s understandable, because Line 6 products are very similar to computers (actually, they ARE computers in many ways). If you own a 1997 computer today, it’s obsolete and generally not repairable. Same goes for a 1997 Line 6 amp. Digital technology marches on.

What about the traditional companies like Fender and Marshall? In both cases, support is good. Lots of support, good parts availability, product documentation is strong for their flagship products. Consequently, a service guy like me can fix pretty much any problem that might occur in a Fender or Marshall amp, regardless if it is a vintage model from decades ago, or a new issue. One note about both Fender and Marshall … their lower end products (practice amps and smaller wattage units) are not field repairable under warranty – they have to go back to the manufacturer and are replaced with another unit. Turnaround from the time you take your broken amp to a dealer or service center until the time you receive your replacement can be 3-4 weeks. In addition, the manufacturers make no commitment to stock parts for these lower-end products for after warranty service. So, your little Fender or Marshall practice amp may wind up being disposable should it break after the warranty has expired. This is not unique to these companies – most smaller amps from most manufacturers today are similarly throw-aways.

Peavey? Again, good support. In fact, Peavey has one of the best parts departments around today, and they stock many parts for their products from as far back as the 70’s and 80’s. Lots of service centers, lots of documentation – good product choice if you are concerned about repairs.

So far, so good, right? Well, I can’t go any further without talking about the other end of the spectrum. First, I’d like to talk about Crate and Ampeg. About five years ago, if you had asked me to pick some brands that had really good support from the manufacturer, Crate and Ampeg would have been at the top of the list. Part of the St. Louis Music family of brands (SLM Electronics), there wasn’t a better tech support and parts department around. But SLM was purchased by Loud Technologies in 2004, and it has been nothing but pure hell since then. And it’s getting worse. Loud Technologies is a consortium of investors who decided to make money by buying up musical instrument manufacturers and outsourcing all manufacturing. So, they bought Mackie Products first, and closed the factory in Woodinville, WA and moved production to China. Next, as I mentioned, they bought SLM and closed down all Crate and Ampeg manufacturing plants in Arkansas and moved the headquarters operation from St. Louis. More recently, they have purchased Martin Audio. Their technical support is non-existent, their parts department is a total shambles, their warranty support is horrible, their Chinese manufacturing subcontractor has stopped making new products due to lack of payment from Loud, their stock has been removed from NASDAQ due to their failure to file reports with the stock exchange for the past two years, and I expect them to announce bankruptcy any day now. It’s really sad that they could take some brand name products and trash them as completely has they have. Bottom line – be very, very cautious about buying Crate or Ampeg. You won’t find too many stores carrying a selection of these brands right now, since Loud is having serious manufacturing issues. But keep this in mind when buying used products from a store, individual or from eBay. It might be difficult for me to fix it if a need a specific part and Loud Technologies has gone belly-up.

Okay, Frank, what about some high-end tube amps, such as Bogner, Engl, Mesa Boogie?. I can’t say enough good things about Bogner and Engl – they take care of their customers. First, they build very good products, and they stand behind them. ‘Nuff said. Mesa Boogie builds a good product (lots of players love their Dual Rec or Triple Rec). However, some issues come to mind that cloud the Mesa Boogie picture. First, their design on many of their amps is suspect – they use a ton of photocell switching, and the photocell elements that they employ are not without problems. Next, their boards are hand-wired down to the chassis, making component replacement (such as one of the afore-mentioned photocells) very time-consuming and therefore more costly. Finally, they are not dealer or service-center friendly. Let’s just say that they appear to have the “big head”. They never answer their phone – you have to leave a message, and more often than not they don’t return calls. They do have parts support, but it’s hard to order parts when you have trouble reaching them. They are very, very s-l-o-o-o-w-w in paying warranty claims, and so hardly anyone wants to be a Mesa Boogie service center (there is only one authorized service center in Kentucky, in Richmond). Now, I work on a lot of Mesa Boogie amplifiers out of warranty, and generally don’t have problems getting parts because many of the parts are commercially available. But there are a few parts which are custom Mesa Boogie items, and those make it more difficult to service the unit. Just keep in mind when purchasing a ‘Boogie that service is not as smooth as it is with a Marshall, Engl, or Bogner.

Here are some of my ratings on some other major guitar and bass amp manufacturers. My five-star list for service support would include Ashdown, Gallien-Krueger, Genz Benz, Hughes and Kettner, Polytone, Tech 21, Vox, and Yamaha. My four-star candidates are David Eden, Hi-Watt, Lee Jackson, and Randall. The three-star list includes Epiphone, Gibson, Hartke, Laney, Rivera, Soldano, and Trace-Elliott. Remember, these are my rankings based on my experiences and opinions. Your experience may differ.

Can’t end without talking about Behringer. What Wal-Mart is to shopping in your community, Behringer is to the music industry. With Behringer products, all warranty service is in the form of exchange. You take your broken Behringer amp back to the dealer, and they arrange for a replacement unit. On occasion, they may be able to give you a replacement on the spot, if they have sufficient quantity in stock. But that is the exception rather than the rule, and in most cases you’re going to have to wait until they get a replacement from the factory. Most of the time, that’s about 1-2 weeks. Sometimes, however, it can be several weeks, if the warehouse doesn’t have it available. After warranty, service is in the hands of non-warranty service centers, and all of those are stand-alone electronics shops. Behringer has a weird rule about not allowing dealers who sell their products to be a service center for them. So, you may have bought your Behringer from Bill’s Local Music Store, but you’re might to have to take it to Joe’s Electronics for service, even though Bill’s Music has a service center on premise. In Kentucky, there is only one Behringer service center, in Elizabethtown. There are none in Indiana. Servicing Behringer products can be a challenge for non-authorized service centers, due to lack of parts and documentation. Even for the authorized service centers, parts supply can be slow and unpredictable. So, even though Behringer products are actually good buys for the money (some of their products are actually exceptionally good), the adage that “you get what you pay for” still holds true. Service availability may be a bit below your expectations.

Finally, a word about buying online from companies like Musician’s Friend, Sweetwater, American Music Supply, etc. Your problems with a broken unit are generally more complicated and frustrating when dealing with one of these companies than if you bought the same amp from a local brick and mortar dealer. Those of you who have experienced warranty issues with a product from an online retailer know that this is true, and have learned that buying local gives you a true friend in the music business. Today, you’ll get pretty much the same price no matter if you buy it online or buy from a local dealer. So why not support your local dealer and buy here in town? Trust me, you’ll appreciate the extra mile they’ll go for you when the time for service comes.

Next time, we’ll continue this discussion by talking about manufacturer support for PA gear, keyboards, and a little bit about effects units. Until then, keep on playin’. I’m Frank the Tech Guy.