Did I blow this amp???

[frits51]

Well, I bought a 1001RB-II on Ebay. Took it to band practice tonight. In my haste/excitement/stupidity, I connected the GK speakon to my Eden WT-330 speakon instead of disconnecting the speakon from the Eden and connecting the cab to the GK. That's right... I disconnected the speaker cable from the speaker instead of the Eden and connected amp to amp.

The Eden was turned OFF. I powered up the GK. When the light turned from red to blue, there was a medium volume pop which I did not expect.

On the GK, all EQ knobs centered, all other knobs at zero, -14db input pad engaged. Turned the volume up about 1/3 on my active bass, preamp up about 40%, master up slowly.

Very distorted, even at low volume. Tried different settings on preamp and master. No good, still very distorted.

So, I gotta ask... did I blow this amp putting its speaker signal into another unpowered amp? Could the 1001 have blown that fast if the impedance it was connected to was very low?

The GK is definitely blown, I just want to know if I did it. The seller's add said that everything worked as it should, no issues.

If you can type and laugh (or cry) at the same time, I would appreciate hearing from the TB community.

Thanks.

[IPYF]

Define 'medium volume pop'
A lot of GKs pop coming out of protect mode but usually that sound would be heard through the speaker.

If you heard a pop while connected amp to amp, that might be a pretty serious problem. Other people will know better than me whether the amp to amp connection definitely did it but I'd say you might have done it.

Worst part is that you never even tested it once with a correct load, so you'll now probably never know whether it shipped broken or not.
There's no way that a 1001 will sound fully dirty at any volume level on the dial, definitely not flat.

What's the cab?

[skychief]

Originally Posted by frits51

If you can type and laugh at the same time, I would appreciate hearing from the TB community.

Thanks.

if its any consolation, im crying, not laughing.

You messed up; no doubt. It would be unfair for you to challenge the seller's claim that all was well with the GK prior to the sale when you pooched the hook-up by connecting the output to another amp. Powered up or not.

The good news is, you will not ever make this mistake ever again.

[B-string]

I guess the only question is did you cook the Eden as well?

[frits51]

The Eden was turned OFF during the madness and is fine. I used it last night after the 1001 drama.

Cab is GK 115 neo, 400W and yes, I connected everything properly after noticing my mistake. I could not come far off of zero on preamp and master before getting distortion with bass volume up only about 30-40%. It seems to me more like a preamp problem, not output stage. I would think that doing what I did would more likely damage the output stage if anything.

No, I am not going to go to the seller to cover my mistake. I just wanted some input from folks who might know as to whether it was possible that I had damaged the amp.

Again, could the 1001 have been INSTANTLY damaged from such a connection? You're right... I will NEVER do this again!

[frits51]

IPYF... yes, it was a pop out of the speaker. So, that's normal stuff for GK?

I agree. Too bad the first run was messed up. I'll probably never know for sure.

[punkjazzben]

Originally Posted by frits51

IPYF... yes, it was a pop out of the speaker. So, that's normal stuff for GK?

If the GK was connected to the Eden, not the cab, how would the GK cause a pop out of the speaker? Sorry if that's a stupid question - maybe I'm missing some detail.

[frits51]

A perceptive question, not stupid.

I had one output of the GK connected to the Eden. I had the other output of the GK connected (properly!) to a 210.

[obsidianbass]

Ah, so you had a load a well. I have a GK 1001rb-ii and just connect it to one 4 ohm cab. I've never tried 2 at once. I will say I have used the amp on more than one occasion without any speaker load (just running direct to FOH) and there has never been an issue. Powering up the GK without a speaker (or connected to another amp that isn't powered up would probably be ok (I assume), but since you were also connected to a speaker, I think you must have simply fried the amp. Bummer man.

[RickenBoogie]

At this point, the op would be fortunate if the Eden isn't fried as well. Connecting amps and spkrs is serious business, and care should be used at all times.

[mjac28]

Originally Posted by frits51

So, before I contact the seller about selling me a defective amp

I feel sorry for your loss but I think contacting the seller wouldn't be cool and it's the reason I stopped selling on eBay too many folks doing things like that and immediately clicking the contact seller button.

[BassmanPaul]

You're lucky the Eden survived; as for the GK it's tech time.

[frits51]

+1 to RickenBoogie re: serious business!

Eden is fine. Used it last night after the 1001 drama.

[frits51]

obsidianbass - Both the 210 and the 115 are 8 ohm cabs = 4 ohm load.

[frits51]

mjac28 - I clarified above after the original post.

I never intended to try and get the seller to pay for MY mistake.

Just posting here to see if it's plausible/likely that I damaged the amp.

Looks like it is.

[B-string]

If you think the preamp is the problem you can verify by plugging your bass into the effects return jack. The woofer and boost controls will be active. You won't have much volume but if the sound is clean the power amp is fine. It is even possible the effects return jack internal contacts are the problem.
The protection circuit should be able to protect the G-K's output but was not designed with what you did in mind?

If you get clean signal from the effects return jack, what you did is very unlikely to have had any effect on the preamp.

[frits51]

Good stuff! I'll try that.

Thanks.