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Ampeg v4b reissue problems.

#121
Well, I think I got a dud. I bought a brand new v4b reissue last September from Long & Mcquade. Practiced with it a handful of times at home and did one moderate volume gig with it. Then practicing at home one day it starts to smell like burning paint thinner so I shut it off and took it to get repaired at L&M. They said it was bad tubes and made me pay for replacements cause “they’re not covered under warranty.” Get the amp back played it once at home and it was fine. Next time I plug it in nothing but white noise, even with nothing plugged in to the input. So I took it in and said I want a replacement unit. They said they like to try and repair something twice before replacing it. So I sent it back for repair again and they say it’s tubes again and want to charge me. At this point I called the manager and had a somewhat heated conversation about how I’m a touring musician and I’ve never had a brand new amp with this many problems and I can’t trust taking it on the road and the warranty expires next month and I’m not convinced they’ve actually fixed the real problem. So he says I can trade it in and get something else (minus depreciation) and get something else if I don’t trust it.
To be honest I’m pretty pissed about the whole thing. I love the way it sounds and looks but really? It’s failed twice in a year? And it’s the most expensive head I’ve ever bought? That Traynor yba -200 is looking a lot more attractive.
I admit I’m new to tube bass amps. Am I overreacting? I don’t want to be saddled with a 45 pound paperweight.
 
#123
kurt said:
I love the way it sounds and looks but really? It’s failed twice in a year?
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They said it was a tube problem twice right? That to me says whatever happened the first time probably wasn't properly repaired and could have caused whatever happened the second time. Either that or the repair shop can't stock a quality set of power tubes.

The warranty on tubes from Ampeg is I think 90 days so they may not have been covered the first go around, but if repair techs at L&M stood by their work you shouldn't have had to shell out a second time when they couldn't correct the issue.

It doesn't sound to me like the amp is your problem here.
 
#124
coreyfyfe said:
They said it was a tube problem twice right? That to me says whatever happened the first time probably wasn't properly repaired and could have caused whatever happened the second time.
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That’s exactly what I said to the manager. I also said I’m concerned it’s still not properly repaired since all they did was change tubes the second time. I think he said they’d reimburse tube cost but not to look into the repair further. That still leaves me wondering if there’s a bigger problem with the amp that will surface after the warranty has expired. Whether the amp or the tech is the problem I still don’t want to end up with an expensive amp that doesn’t work that should have been repaired/replaces under warranty but wasn’t due to incompetence. Do the problems I describe such as white noise and no signal sound like problems that could be caused by bad tubes? If the unit needs to be replaced is it L&M’s responsibility or Ampeg?
 
#125
kurt said:
Do the problems I describe such as white noise and no signal sound like problems that could be caused by bad tubes? If the unit needs to be replaced is it L&M’s responsibility or Ampeg?
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Certainly could have been tube related, especially the first time, but when a tube fails other components can be damaged and if they missed an issue caused by a tube failing the first time it could have caused a problem with the new set. Or if the tube failing was a symptom of another issue which was not repaired you'd have an ongoing issue.

Not sure whose responsibility it would be in the long run, depends on if L&M/the tech was an authorized repair center at least in terms of warranty coverage/repairs. But either way it doesn't sound like they did a complete job repairing/testing your amp if it failed again so soon.
 
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#127
kurt said:
Well, I think I got a dud. I bought a brand new v4b reissue last September from Long & Mcquade. Practiced with it a handful of times at home and did one moderate volume gig with it. Then practicing at home one day it starts to smell like burning paint thinner so I shut it off and took it to get repaired at L&M. They said it was bad tubes and made me pay for replacements cause “they’re not covered under warranty.” Get the amp back played it once at home and it was fine. Next time I plug it in nothing but white noise, even with nothing plugged in to the input. So I took it in and said I want a replacement unit. They said they like to try and repair something twice before replacing it. So I sent it back for repair again and they say it’s tubes again and want to charge me. At this point I called the manager and had a somewhat heated conversation about how I’m a touring musician and I’ve never had a brand new amp with this many problems and I can’t trust taking it on the road and the warranty expires next month and I’m not convinced they’ve actually fixed the real problem. So he says I can trade it in and get something else (minus depreciation) and get something else if I don’t trust it.
To be honest I’m pretty pissed about the whole thing. I love the way it sounds and looks but really? It’s failed twice in a year? And it’s the most expensive head I’ve ever bought? That Traynor yba -200 is looking a lot more attractive.
I admit I’m new to tube bass amps. Am I overreacting? I don’t want to be saddled with a 45 pound paperweight.
Click to expand...
same thing kind of happened with mine and luckily I sent it back and got all my money back. one guy at a shop told me most of those units sat in a warehouse for many many months when the shipping companies went on strike. when I got mine it wouldn't stop crackling and popping. mine was also brand new and thank god I even had shipping paid back. I don't believe " all " units are bad but I have heard through some techs that there are quite a few out there that are boogus...I went back to the old Peavey mark IV and Mark VII and have no probs at all....those things could last through a nuclear bomb and they cost almost nothing these days online. I also found out from my tech with the V4B 's has Q.C. issues yes the new ones !! as for depreciation??? WTH??? it should be under "FULL" warranty. I would ask for "ALL" my money back and go something else or get a more reliable one with research and actual playing. I love ampeg but have strayed away from them last few years because ampeg keeps going to different countries every few years and it has me second guessing why they go to other countries as well as other companies like fender and etc just to make stuff cheaper and we all know what that means....they just went to another country past few months ago, ampeg told me a few on phone . I am not an ampeg hater I own a few ampeg amps but tweaked out by my tech to perform really well. good luck bro
 
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#128
AmericanFenderJazzMan said:
same thing kind of happened with mine and luckily I sent it back and got all my money back. one guy at a shop told me most of those units sat in a warehouse for many many months when the shipping companies went on strike. when I got mine it wouldn't stop crackling and popping. mine was also brand new and thank god I even had shipping paid back. I don't believe " all " units are bad but I have heard through some techs that there are quite a few out there that are boogus...I went back to the old Peavey mark IV and Mark VII and have no probs at all....those things could last through a nuclear bomb and they cost almost nothing these days online. I also found out from my tech with the V4B 's has Q.C. issues yes the new ones !! as for depreciation??? WTH??? it should be under "FULL" warranty. I would ask for "ALL" my money back and go something else or get a more reliable one with research and actual playing. I love ampeg but have strayed away from them last few years because ampeg keeps going to different countries every few years and it has me second guessing why they go to other countries as well as other companies like fender and etc just to make stuff cheaper and we all know what that means....they just went to another country past few months ago, ampeg told me a few on phone . I am not an ampeg hater I own a few ampeg amps but tweaked out by my tech to perform really well. good luck bro
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My V4B reissue is one of the very first ones, and it's not only worked flawlessly for 5 years, but I even dropped it from over 3 ft onto my garage floor, and the only thing that happened to it was a broken preamp tube and some torn tolex around the preamp. Most people I know who have one have experienced flawless performance out of theirs as well.
 
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#131
Bass 45 said:
I don't see how these amps being in storage for months could have caused any issues - unless the warehouse had a water leak or something.
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I was told that when they are shipped from over seas the tube connections are sprayed with a coating to counteract the salt air and if not checked or cleaned can cause some crackling issues. one has to sometimes keep amp on and burn out that crackle in it for a few hours a day. I am sure you have a good amp but in reality any mass produced amp is going to have duds here and there ...and I just happened to get one like the other guy in this thread..... sometimes stuff just happens...sadly for me it happened yes if thy sit anywhere for long periods they need to be cleaned and or burned out. i remember seeing or hearing of something that would clean the pins in the tubes.........but I have other ampeg amps that have no issues but were also made in america...
 
#132
JimmyM said:
My V4B reissue is one of the very first ones, and it's not only worked flawlessly for 5 years, but I even dropped it from over 3 ft onto my garage floor, and the only thing that happened to it was a broken preamp tube and some torn tolex around the preamp. Most people I know who have one have experienced flawless performance out of theirs as well.
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I remember that story ...cool one :) I have other ampeg amps with no issues, a few made in america. I only found out recently that when some of these ampegs made across sea that the tube connectors are sprayed with something to counteract the salt sea air and it could cause some tubes to crackle and should be burned out and or cleaned. sadly I got one ...but still have other ampeg stuff no issues. :)
 
#133
AmericanFenderJazzMan said:
I was told that when they are shipped from over seas the tube connections are sprayed with a coating to counteract the salt air and if not checked or cleaned can cause some crackling issues. one has to sometimes keep amp on and burn out that crackle in it for a few hours a day. I am sure you have a good amp but in reality any mass produced amp is going to have duds here and there ...and I just happened to get one like the other guy in this thread..... sometimes stuff just happens...sadly for me it happened yes if thy sit anywhere for long periods they need to be cleaned and or burned out. i remember seeing or hearing of something that would clean the pins in the tubes.........but I have other ampeg amps that have no issues but were also made in america...
Click to expand...

Yes - I have a V4B RI which has been worked perfect since I purchased it for 5 years ago. Sorry yours did not work out.

Deoxit is a spray which is a popular product for cleaning electrical contacts.

I would still consider anything a salesman tells me is for -entertainment purposes only ;)
 
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#135
Bass 45 said:
Yes - I have a V4B RI which has been worked perfect since I purchased it for 5 years ago. Sorry yours did not work out.

Deoxit is a spray which is a popular product for cleaning electrical contacts.

I would still consider anything a salesman tells me is for -entertainment purposes only ;)
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I think it was the year make in which i got mine , this was just last year so not sure but it could have been certain runs or QC issues or sea salt damage or from sitting in a warehouse for 8 months in warehouse dock ,etc as I was told...who knows . like i said i have other ampeg amps...no probs was just this certain one/year and if you look around on threads a few people got same issues...remember nothings perfect and anything mass produced will always have duds as well as companies jumping country to country to save a buck will also have different QC issues good or bad. I love the ampeg sound but am less trusting in ampeg and even fender these days....wish they would revamp and make a killer American Product
 
#136
AmericanFenderJazzMan said:
I think it was the year make in which i got mine , this was just last year so not sure but it could have been certain runs or QC issues or sea salt damage or from sitting in a warehouse for 8 months in warehouse dock ,etc as I was told...who knows . like i said i have other ampeg amps...no probs was just this certain one/year and if you look around on threads a few people got same issues...remember nothings perfect and anything mass produced will always have duds as well as companies jumping country to country to save a buck will also have different QC issues good or bad. I love the ampeg sound but am less trusting in ampeg and even fender these days....wish they would revamp and make a killer American Product
Click to expand...

Cool

You may have heard - Ampeg has recently been purchased by Yamaha who seems to have an excellent reputation for quality control.
 
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#139
Dp1363 said:
I have only had my V4B VR for only a few months but mine is flawless.

However, I have to disagree with the statement that the V4B and the SVT-CL are similar in tone. I A/B'd both heads for a week and found the V4B hands down had much better tone and tonal variations then the SVT-CL. I promptly returned the SVT-CL and kept the V4B.
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Are these US or Chinese made?
 

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