Markbass reliability - or rather the lack of!!

dodgnofski · #1 06-15-2010, 03:31 PM

Hi Guys,

I have a Markbass F1 which was manufactured in July 2007.

One of the main reasons I bought this supposedly 'high end' amp was reliability?? - however, even though this amp has only had ultra-light use - mainly at home! - last night it stopped working & the only sound I'm getting is a 'frying' sound from the speakers?

Having owned every make of Bass amp under the Sun over the last 30 + years - from a Selmer Treble & Bass through to Trace Elliot etc - 'this' is the 'only' amp ever to let me down.

OK - I accept that it is out of warranty - but I would expect an amp costing this kind of money to last longer than this - especially as the amp has had a very easy life & still looks like new!!

If anyone else has had this problem, I would be most grateful for any suggestions on how to resolve it??

I contacted Markbass who passed me onto their UK repair people who 'guesstimated' that I wouldn't get much change from £200!! - which would then make this a very expensive amp - if I decided to have it fixed & 'trust' it again

!!

**TheMutt** · #2 06-15-2010, 03:35 PM

Sorry to hear about your amp. Are you sure that it was your amp that fried, and not the speakers? I've never had an amp fry on me, but I would check to make sure the speakers are okay.

Spinal Tapper · #3 06-15-2010, 03:37 PM

that sucks. i've had good luck with my R500 (knocks on wood)

BassmanPaul · #4 06-15-2010, 03:43 PM

I too would look to your speakers and cabling. The biggest killer of SS amps is too low an impedance caused by user error, a crossover failure or a faulty speaker cable. OTOH stuff does fail and usually at the most inopportune time.

The old T&B50 was a great little amp eh!

Paul

dodgnofski · #5 06-15-2010, 04:09 PM

Thanks Guys - it's great to hear from you, I've checked the speakers, cables etc & they are fine. The F1 was connected to a single 8ohm speaker cab & has worked fine up until now - but thanks again anyway.

All the best,

Tim

jnuts1 · #6 06-15-2010, 04:15 PM

i don't know about that model but i gig every weekend of & practice with different bands about 5 nights a week wth my 2-10 combo & i only had one problem & that was after my drummer set it on top of a bunch of road cases & it came crashing down hard. & it still didn't go out for a few weeks.

Bass_Pounder · #7 06-15-2010, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dodgnofski

Thanks Guys - it's great to hear from you, I've checked the speakers, cables etc & they are fine. The F1 was connected to a single 8ohm speaker cab & has worked fine up until now - but thanks again anyway.

All the best,

Tim

Active bass ? - Check battery ?

Only other "easy" possibility I can think of is running a jumper instrument cable in the send/return of the FX loop to see if there is a problem there.

PolkaHero · #8 06-15-2010, 09:22 PM

Has the cooling fan been working? I just discovered that the fan on my Markbass LMII was never plugged in on the circuit board! I always wondered why the thing got so hot when I didn't even push it hard the past year. Hopefully it will last for a while. . .

lo-freq · #9 06-15-2010, 09:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PolkaHero

Has the cooling fan been working? I just discovered that the fan on my Markbass LMII was never plugged in on the circuit board! I always wondered why the thing got so hot when I didn't even push it hard the past year. Hopefully it will last for a while. . .

Pretty sure the F1 doesn't have or need a fan -- Class D.
I guess some Class D's do still use fans, though.

Jimmy Stump · #10 06-15-2010, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lo-freq

Pretty sure the F1 doesn't have or need a fan -- Class D.
I guess some Class D's do still use fans, though.

The F1's do have a fan on the side.

lo-freq · #11 06-15-2010, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimmy Stump

The F1's do have a fan on the side.

...my bad...

I thought they were so small, there wouldn't be room for one.

Brad Johnson · #12 06-16-2010, 12:10 AM

I've had around three trouble-free years of frequent gigging with mine under all sorts of circumstances.

Things can break... including any bass amp built by humans. Did you rule everything else out (bass, cables, power, speaker)?

IronLung1986 · #13 06-16-2010, 06:51 AM

sadly i've been hearing about more and more issues like this with markbass. i myself will be returning my little mark tube 800 this afternoon for a similar problem. too bad, this seemed like such a promising new brand.

dodgnofski · #14 06-16-2010, 08:04 AM

Thanks Guys,

Sorry to hear of another MB problem - good luck with it, I feel exactly the same way

They are my size of amp with loads of power & clarity - but it all means nothing if I can't be certain of it's reliability!

I'm fully aware that 'anything' can go wrong, but having said that - my Ampeg, Acoustic, Orange, Hiwatt, Marshall Super Bass & even Super Lead, Trace Elliot, Roland, Randall, Sunn & even my trusty old Selmer Treble & Bass that I've owned over the past 30+ years - never let me down once!

It's such a shame, I really thought I'd found my ideal 'forever amp'!

Hoping to get it fixed in the not to distant future - depending on the cost - so I'll keep you posted.

Thanks again Guys,

All the best,

Tim

dmusic148 · #15 06-16-2010, 08:11 AM

Have you tried inserting/removing a cable from the Effects Send/Return jacks? Sometimes jack contacts get dirty and produce problems like this.

HMZ · #16 06-16-2010, 08:39 AM

I think you might have just got a lemon. I would say it seems most people are very happy with their Markbass equipment. I have a Markbass Little mark II that I bought when they first came out and its still going strong years later with no problems.

Brad Johnson · #17 06-16-2010, 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IronLung1986

sadly i've been hearing about more and more issues like this with markbass. i myself will be returning my little mark tube 800 this afternoon for a similar problem. too bad, this seemed like such a promising new brand.

Considering the sheer number of them in use, it's not surprising that you'd hear about a propblem. They certainly aren't rampant and these remain some of the most reliable gear I and many others have seen.

So yes, you can look at failures outside of the number that have been sold or take them in context. As far as the cost, I know it's been a few years since they hit the market but back then they were remarkably priced against their direct competition IMO.

Whitbass · #18 06-16-2010, 09:14 AM

Markbass gear is typically very solid stuff. You're saying you checked the speakers, cables, etc. Assuming you can substitute the head only, using the same bass, cables, power, cabs, same input/output, everything else being the same....then something is likely wrong the the MB...just be sure to rule out everything else in the chain if possible.....and yes, see if the fan works.....
could be a simple connection issue....maybe even internal to the MB

sorry to hear about the bad experience.......MB has been one of the most solid pieces I've used.....

good luck to you

electracoyote · #19 06-16-2010, 09:14 AM

I just upgraded my old Jeff Berlin CMD151P combo to the new version with the DI volume control. I've hauled this combo all over the place to rehearsals and gigs with two bands. No troubles whatsoever, just pure, clean power and output and the ability to pin my drummer's ears back, all at 42 lbs.

EVERY manufacturer has the occasional lemon. I know that doesn't help OP, but an overall indictment of the brand is not a reasonable conclusion either.

IronLung1986 · #20 06-16-2010, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brad Johnson

Considering the sheer number of them in use, it's not surprising that you'd hear about a propblem. They certainly aren't rampant and these remain some of the most reliable gear I and many others have seen.

So yes, you can look at failures outside of the number that have been sold or take them in context. As far as the cost, I know it's been a few years since they hit the market but back then they were remarkably priced against their direct competition IMO.

yea, but i haven't heard about just one problem. a lot of guys i know who have owned a markbass amp have had to exchange it for a new one at least once. i'm not trying to knock the brand, i just feel like there's a disproportionate amount of defect-related complaints about their products.

i bought a well-used ampeg svt-3pro back in high school and basically had the james jamerson mentality for years, meaning i did virtually nothing to maintain it. just plugged it in, turned it on, and played. i wasn't careless or abusive with it, i just didn't have to think about it. now i buy a brand new markbass, it immediately gives me problems, and i find myself having to worry about all sorts of technical things like circuit paths, voltages, currents, and everything else. i mean that stuff is all good to know, but i feel like i need to be some kind of electrical engineer just to use my amp. i think there's something wrong with that.