/ Register

Fender BXR 200 amp problem!

Discussion in 'Amps and Cabs [BG]' started by neirdal, Jul 26, 2009.

  1. Jul 26, 2009 #1
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    Hi,
    I own a fender BXR 200 amp -200 watts and 540 W of nominal power- and it used to work perfectly fine until one day, for no apparent reason, as i turned it on, it completely saturated (as soon as it was on). The noise is absolutely unbearable and I thought it was dead for sure. Therefore I decided to get rid of it but some dude recuperated it and got back in touch with me to tell me it worked fine in his apartment. I was super skeptical about what he was saying (again unbearable saturated noise) but I went to his place and saw it work fine (as it used to do). The guy was nice and didn't really need it and gave it back to me, but unfortunately, I haven t found a place where it doesn t saturate.
    I asked around and people told me get rid of the third 'ground line' (using a little adapter usually used with 120V to 220V transformers) of the plug. It didn t work.
    I wonder if anyone has had this problem or knows anything about it. I d really like to fix my amp and see it work again.
    Thanks for you time!
    Adrien
     
  2. Jul 26, 2009 #2
    DWBass

    DWBass The Funkfather

    Jan 24, 2003
    Newport News, VA via NYC
    Are the outlets you're plugging it into grounded? Properly grounded? Tried it with a different bass? Where are you located? Please fill out your profile.
     
  3. Jul 26, 2009 #3
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    I m not sure they are grounded, I live in an small building with many student 'units'. It is possible that the ground lines are messed up,but I tried it at my friends and they live in a 3 story (with 3 apartments) building. I have tried it with different gear, with no positive result. I m located in montreal, canada.
    Thanks,
     
  4. Jul 26, 2009 #4
    John Webb

    John Webb Supporting Member

    Apr 20, 2006
    I would check that adapter. Can it handle the load?

    If the adapter is "little" as you state, it may not have a high enough kVA rating to run the amp and the adapter is just overloading and dropping the voltage.
    Doe the adapter get hot?
    It should not be too hot to touch.
    Did you try a different adapter?
     
  5. Jul 26, 2009 #5
    dog1

    dog1

    Dec 30, 2008
    Indiana
    I can't offer any advice, and I won't go through all the stuff that some have offered because you said that it worked fine for a long time and then stopped working properly. I am assuming that when it stopped working properly you were using the same set up (adapter, same building, etc) as when it worked properly.

    If all these things are true, have it checked out.
     
  6. Jul 26, 2009 #6
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    The adapter i m talking about is not even an adapter (sorry for my misuse of the word), its merely an AC power plug and socket (it s very small) that is normally used with adapters. I doesnt have time heat (I can t let the amp on for more than a few seconds).
     
  7. Jul 26, 2009 #7
    B-string

    B-string

    Nov 21, 2008
    Lake Havasu City, Az USA
    Take the amp to an amp tech! What do you mean by saturated? There are a lot of simple componet failures that can cause "major" sounding troubles. A good tech can save you a lot of greef and money.
     
  8. Jul 26, 2009 #8
    DWBass

    DWBass The Funkfather

    Jan 24, 2003
    Newport News, VA via NYC
    Did it previosly work at the same location? Or is this a different location?
     
  9. Jul 26, 2009 #9
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    I played it at my place and then it stopped working there. So some dude recuperated it and it worked perfectly at his place (a massive building). So I have seen it work after seeing it do that huge noise....so now i decided to try it at my friends place (big apartment on the 3rd floor) and it didn t there either.
    thanks again
    adrien
     
  10. Jul 26, 2009 #10
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    Yeah, I will take it to an amp tech eventually, but my student mind tells me I d rather ask for unbiased opinion before getting ripped off by montreal s monopoly of a music store.
     
  11. Jul 26, 2009 #11
    B-string

    B-string

    Nov 21, 2008
    Lake Havasu City, Az USA
    Try a patch cable from the effects send to effects return jack. All amp heads with series effects loops can be plagued by strange and intermittent problems. The effects return jack interupts the signal from preamp to power amp. The connection inside the jack can cause squealing, loss of low end, distortion, loss of power even a amp to "seem" dead.
     
  12. Jul 26, 2009 #12
    BassmanPaul

    BassmanPaul Inactive

    Aug 25, 2007
    Scarborough Ontario Canada
    Steve's perhaps?

    I too am confused by what you mean by saturated. You have a problem that is certain. I think that you should do the tech thing. I don't think you have the skills to go it alone.

    Please let us know how this ends up.

    Maybe you just need some good Ontario electricity! ;)

    Paul
     
  13. Jul 27, 2009 #13
    neirdal

    neirdal

    Jul 26, 2009
    Montreal Canada
    Thanks to all your replies, I mtaking it to an amp tech to see what is wrong.