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What amp isn't reliable?

Bassist4Life

Bassist4Life

Dec 17, 2004
3,581
50
52
Buffalo, NY
#1
I often hear people say that their amp is "reliable". Aren't amps reliable in general?

I've heard people in these forums saying they won't buy an Eden amp until their service department gets their act together. Are there reliability issues with Eden?

What kind of reliability issues are people experiencing with their amps? I'm just curious. I've never had a problem with any of my amps. A couple of times I though that my amp was cutting out. The first time it was my instrument cable. The other time the battery in my bass was on its way out.

Is there a type of amp or brand that tends to be less reliable than others?

I'm considering a new amp in the near future and I want to get your take on the issue of reliability.

Thanks in advance.

Joe
 
#4
I knew I would hear the name Behringer. Can anyone be more specific? What are some of the reliability issues?

Our keyboard player has a Behringer. No issues. He's had it a little over 1-year and he gigs a lot. He uses it for home practice, jazz trio gigs, and the for the Grateful Dead band he's in (higher volumes). No issues.

Is Behringer an easy target because they're affordable?

Joe
 
#6
It's not that, it's that they're made pretty poorly, and most of them will die within the year you buy them. (Some will even die right after the warranty expires!) Of course there are still ones that do last a while, but as far as quality control goes, Behringer is the lowest of the low.
 
#7
Regardless of the Behringer debate, there are definitely amps with greater or lesser build quality. Even within a given brand, one model or line may be built better/worse than others. It especially becomes a problem when the company goes through a big transition like a change of ownership, change of production plant, change of sales management, change of technology format, etc. Also, obviously, an "entry level" line from a given brand may not be built as robustly as their "pro level" line.

Even something as simple as having a good quality control department can make all the difference. Humans and machines are both capable of flawed work with soldering etc., but a good human QC department brings up the reliability level of both.

Buying something specifically designed for cheapness is not a good road to reliability, although some people will have good luck.
 
#8
I have had poor reliability with Carvin amps, as well as Ampeg, Aguilar, EBS, and Eden. The only amp that hasn't failed on me is Ashdown...yet plenty around here have had poor results with them as well. IMO, any amp has the potential to be unreliable, just bring a backup and hope for the best. ;)
 
#15
^thanks mom :smug:

It may not always be true that you get what you pay for but more often then not if you end up spending the extra buck now it will pay off in the long run, tonewise, quality wise, and for resale value after you have no use for it. Speaking from experience I bought a behringer amp and cab and it died within 3 months (your milage may vary I'm just stating what happened to me) then I purchased a GK 700RB and cab and have had great succsess.
 
#18
Jazzman said:
I have had poor reliability with Carvin amps, as well as Ampeg, Aguilar, EBS, and Eden. The only amp that hasn't failed on me is Ashdown...yet plenty around here have had poor results with them as well. IMO, any amp has the potential to be unreliable, just bring a backup and hope for the best. ;)
Click to expand...

I own Eden, Aguilar, Glockenklang, Walter Woods and SWR amplifiers. I've never had a problem with any of them. I take very good care of my amps, both in transit and in use.
 
#19
Jazzman said:
I have had poor reliability with Carvin amps, as well as Ampeg, Aguilar, EBS, and Eden. The only amp that hasn't failed on me is Ashdown...yet plenty around here have had poor results with them as well. IMO, any amp has the potential to be unreliable, just bring a backup and hope for the best. ;)
Click to expand...

Okay. Now my question is what was wrong with them? What specifically contributed to poor reliability?

When you say "failed" you, do you mean that you plugged it in, turned it on, and then nothing...

What are the poor results some people are having with Ashdown? Is the "poor result" that they just didn't like the product, or did a knobs fall off of it? Did it make a huge fart sound and smoke poured out of the back?

What are these reliability issues?

Joe
 
#20
I'm beginning to wondering if "reliability issues" are more rumor than they are a reality.

If someone takes out an amp and it burns out on the 1st show, I would suspect that there was some abuse/misuse.

If someone spills a beer on their amp, and it won't work on the next gig, I wouldn't call that a reliability issue.

If someone puts an amp in a situation where it could get way too hot and damage occurs, that's not a reliability issue.

Right?

Under normal and careful use, how many of you experience problems with your amp where it needs to go out for repair?

Joe
 

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