Double Bass Markbass Woes

[oren]

A couple of weeks ago I was playing a gig and my Markbass CMD-121P combo started cutting out. It would come on fine on powering up the amp and then a couple of minutes later there would be a click like a relay switching and then no sound, though the pilot light remained on. I got this amp used from the classifieds, and I've used it as my main amp for about the last eight years, mostly for upright, sometimes doubling. As I've often said here I've enjoyed the sound and light weight of the amp and the convenience of a combo. Luckily, I had brought another amp along to plug a mic into for announcements, so I was able to switch to that - it's the only time in my life I've had a spare amp on hand at a gig!

Inner Sound near Portland is an authorised Markbass repair facility, so I took the amp in. The result is that the main amplifier board needs to be replaced, at a cost of over $500. And to add insult to injury, Markbass USA is waiting on parts from Italy, so there's no ETA on the repair.

I don't know whether this is common to amps these days, or if it's common to Markbass products. They only warranty the repair and parts for 90 days, and I'm at least a little worried that it will happen again. But maybe I should just be glad I got a good number of years and expect that this will be good for at least that long again. I guess I shouldn't expect things to last forever without some repairs over time (I say, staring at my 1967 Ampeg flip top, which has certainly had its share of time in the shop), but I can't say that I'm not disappointed.

I gave some thought to getting a new amp. There are lots of intriguing choices these days, like the Gollihur-Genzler combo, or the GR Acoustic Cube, but they're all quite pricey, so I've decided to just go ahead with the repair.

 

[Francois Blais]

Seems something is overheating and a temperature sensor does its job at protecting the amplifier integrity.
Is there a fan in your amp?
Maybe it's the fan that died, just an idea...
Replacing the whole mainboard just for a dead fan would be outrageous from the company.
But I'm just speculating.
I had an Ampeg solid-state amp a few years ago that had this behaviour, and the culprit was the fan.
I replaced it and all went back to normal.

 

[Earl]

A couple of weeks ago I was playing a gig and my Markbass CMD-121P combo started cutting out. It would come on fine on powering up the amp and then a couple of minutes later there would be a click like a relay switching and then no sound, though the pilot light remained on. I got this amp used from the classifieds, and I've used it as my main amp for about the last eight years, mostly for upright, sometimes doubling. As I've often said here I've enjoyed the sound and light weight of the amp and the convenience of a combo. Luckily, I had brought another amp along to plug a mic into for announcements, so I was able to switch to that - it's the only time in my life I've had a spare amp on hand at a gig!

Inner Sound near Portland is an authorised Markbass repair facility, so I took the amp in. The result is that the main amplifier board needs to be replaced, at a cost of over $500. And to add insult to injury, Markbass USA is waiting on parts from Italy, so there's no ETA on the repair.

I don't know whether this is common to amps these days, or if it's common to Markbass products. They only warranty the repair and parts for 90 days, and I'm at least a little worried that it will happen again. But maybe I should just be glad I got a good number of years and expect that this will be good for at least that long again. I guess I shouldn't expect things to last forever without some repairs over time (I say, staring at my 1967 Ampeg flip top, which has certainly had its share of time in the shop), but I can't say that I'm not disappointed.

I gave some thought to getting a new amp. There are lots of intriguing choices these days, like the Gollihur-Genzler combo, or the GR Acoustic Cube, but they're all quite pricey, so I've decided to just go ahead with the repair.

I would use that $500 to move on to another amp.

 

[theduke1]

I ran into the same problem with a Ampeg B115 combo. With about the same prognosis lol
My solution was to remove the amp section from the cab. I purchased a Behringer BXD 300 2 channel head.
The cab is 4ohm so I have a 300watt bass rig that now is in our practice room only because my gig rig is a Fender Rumble light weight combo. Cost to repair $149.99.
with the Calss D micro heads available today there are many choices for your needs.
Just my $0.02 worth of what I would do.
Let me know what you decide.
Good luck
Duke

 

[bherman]

For $200 more you could replace it with a Traynor SB112. I currently use the same amp (SMALL BLOCK 200H) as a separate amp head into a EA 110 Wizzy that I just picked up here on TB and its a great combination. My total investment (both used but mint condition) was $650. Not all of the capable combos or amp/cab combinations out there are $1K plus. SO if I were in your position, I'd consider options (unless you really love the MB), but thats alot of money to put into an 8 yr old amp.

Photo below of my current mini rig - total weight is about 20 lbs. very compact footprint. For comparison, the Traynor combo is 25 lbs.

 

[oren]

Seems something is overheating and a temperature sensor does its job at protecting the amplifier integrity.
Is there a fan in your amp?
Maybe it's the fan that died, just an idea...
Replacing the whole mainboard just for a dead fan would be outrageous from the company.
But I'm just speculating.
I had an Ampeg solid-state amp a few years ago that had this behaviour, and the culprit was the fan.
I replaced it and all went back to normal.

It wasn't a fan problem, but something on the circuit board that failed, and of course the components can't be individually replaced. Guess that's the way of the world these days - keeps the manufacturing costs down and the repair costs up. Sounds like the current cars too.

 

[CallMeAl]

Yup, I had similar issues, and have read them here in TB. All of them ended the same- repair was nearly as much as a new head.

I guess the upside of the CMD is you can replace the head with any Little Mark head, and you don’t have a completely dead combo on your hands. Mine was 13 years old when it died. I considered changing brands at the time, but I like the CMD so much I went for a Little Mark III and kept on a rockin.

 

[-Stingray]

I have the CMD along with the Ninja head and a couple of 2x10 cabs. The beauty of the CMD is that many of the little Mark heads will slide right in and you are good to go.

 

[Nebadon2000]

A couple of weeks ago I was playing a gig and my Markbass CMD-121P combo started cutting out. It would come on fine on powering up the amp and then a couple of minutes later there would be a click like a relay switching and then no sound, though the pilot light remained on. I got this amp used from the classifieds, and I've used it as my main amp for about the last eight years, mostly for upright, sometimes doubling. As I've often said here I've enjoyed the sound and light weight of the amp and the convenience of a combo. Luckily, I had brought another amp along to plug a mic into for announcements, so I was able to switch to that - it's the only time in my life I've had a spare amp on hand at a gig!

Inner Sound near Portland is an authorised Markbass repair facility, so I took the amp in. The result is that the main amplifier board needs to be replaced, at a cost of over $500. And to add insult to injury, Markbass USA is waiting on parts from Italy, so there's no ETA on the repair.

I don't know whether this is common to amps these days, or if it's common to Markbass products. They only warranty the repair and parts for 90 days, and I'm at least a little worried that it will happen again. But maybe I should just be glad I got a good number of years and expect that this will be good for at least that long again. I guess I shouldn't expect things to last forever without some repairs over time (I say, staring at my 1967 Ampeg flip top, which has certainly had its share of time in the shop), but I can't say that I'm not disappointed.

I gave some thought to getting a new amp. There are lots of intriguing choices these days, like the Gollihur-Genzler combo, or the GR Acoustic Cube, but they're all quite pricey, so I've decided to just go ahead with the repair.

You might be able to get used LM III[or any little mark amp] for less which will fit into combo just take top off or used 121 Combo for same as repair and have bonus speaker

Others that were told needed new board VST service in CA. [markbass warranty and service] about $300 but that was a couple years ago

 

[Ric Vice]

It wasn't a fan problem, but something on the circuit board that failed, and of course the components can't be individually replaced. Guess that's the way of the world these days - keeps the manufacturing costs down and the repair costs up. Sounds like the current cars too.

That's what I miss about newer amplifiers vs the "discreet" component designs of past amps (that could be repaired). There's going to be a whole slew of modern amplifiers clogging up landfills in the very near future. Ecologically or Economically
it doesn't make sense to me.

 

[BassDaddy11]

Exact same problem with my cmd-121p. It was working fine for a few years and then one day quit completely. The power light is on but nothing at all comes out of the speaker. Very frustrating to say the least. I posted for help but got no advice or replies. Is it destined for the scrap heap?

 

[brianrost]

It wasn't a fan problem, but something on the circuit board that failed, and of course the components can't be individually replaced.

The components can be replaced it’s just that Markbass doesn’t support repairs to that level.

Board replacement is a common repair strategy that goes back decades now. It’s not just surface mount components, because even in the through hole days some companies did not release full schematics to service centers, everything was board replacements.

 

[Biggbass]

I had a Markbass amp with a similar issue. Had to replace the entire board to repair it. I spent a bit over $200 to get it repaired then it failed again. So I sold it on Ebay for parts and moved on to another amp. Needing a small Class D unit I opted for a GK MB200 and it's been a solid workhorse for 6 years.
It bothers me that some things are made to be thrown away when they fail and are not so repairable. But building things that last a lifetime is no longer a good business model.

 

[Fat bob]

8 years is a pretty good run, did you buy it new or used? I can’t even remember the year I got mine! I think it was 2012. It’s been my main amp ever since. She’s seen others added to the fleet, bigger and smaller and more expensive, takes a couple weeks off and then goes right back to my #1. I unplugged the tweeter about 2 years ago. Electric + 121ny, upright with or without preamp. Lives in the back of my car. If she stopped working I think I’d have to put a little money into it because of how reliable it’s been!

 

[BassDaddy11]

Does anyone want to buy mine for a great price? It’s in great shape overall (if it only worked

 

[Ric Vice]

8 years is a pretty good run, did you buy it new or used? I can’t even remember the year I got mine! I think it was 2012. It’s been my main amp ever since. She’s seen others added to the fleet, bigger and smaller and more expensive, takes a couple weeks off and then goes right back to my #1. I unplugged the tweeter about 2 years ago. Electric + 121ny, upright with or without preamp. Lives in the back of my car. If she stopped working I think I’d have to put a little money into it because of how reliable it’s been!

While I'll agree with you there are "exceptions" to this rule. Provided you can get the components older Gallien Krueger and Walter Woods amplifiers that are easily over 20 years old can be repaired. It's actually easier to repair
a Ampeg B-15N than it is to repair the Markbass. I realize they aren't "equivalent" in performance.

 

[PBandJazzBass]

Last year, I had my Markbass in and out of the repair shop 3 times and got fed up with it. There’s only one shop in my area that will even look at them. A few other amp repair techs passed.

Eventually sold it “as-is” and currently use either an old Eden Time Traveler or GK MB150. Though, I’d like to get my hands on an MB-200 II at some point.

 

[brianrost]

8 years is a pretty good run

Compare 8 years to amps that have been running multiple decades…like your typical Peavey

Vintage tube amps (I have one that’s about 65 years old) are very easy to repair and keep running, although I've never needed to do more than swap tubes.

I have two A.M.P. heads that are about 35 years old and there’s plenty of 1980s GK RB heads still out there rocking.

My Walter Woods is over 20 years old, I did have Walter repair it once in that time…when I spoke to him on the phone he told me he knew what the problem was and only asked for $20 to cover FedEx back to me. BTW, he knew I was not the original owner and still fixed it for free.

Acoustic Image (RIP) is well known for repairing stuff for free. I bought my Coda 16 years ago used, and it’s been my gig amp for DB-only gigs since then.

 

[oren]

Compare 8 years to amps that have been running multiple decades…like your typical Peavey

Vintage tube amps (I have one that’s about 65 years old) are very easy to repair and keep running, although I've never needed to do more than swap tubes.

I have two A.M.P. heads that are about 35 years old and there’s plenty of 1980s GK RB heads still out there rocking.

My Walter Woods is over 20 years old, I did have Walter repair it once in that time…when I spoke to him on the phone he told me he knew what the problem was and only asked for $20 to cover FedEx back to me. BTW, he knew I was not the original owner and still fixed it for free.

Acoustic Image (RIP) is well known for repairing stuff for free. I bought my Coda 16 years ago used, and it’s been my gig amp for DB-only gigs since then.

I hear that. I have a ‘67 Ampeg SB-12 Portaflex that is easy to repair, though I’m no longer willing to schlep the weight around most of the time. And my Genz-Benz Suttle head has never given me any trouble, and serves these days as a reliable backup.

 

[oren]

Just a final (I hope) update on this one. As noted in the original post, the shop was waiting on a replacement circuit board (“amplifier / switch-mode power supply PC board”) to arrive from Italy to Markbass US. That finally arrived last week and I got the amp back yesterday, having brought it in on February 7! Total cost of repair was $595. It sounds great, and I’m glad to have it back, but if I had to do it over again I probably wouldn’t. No slight on the fine folks at Inner Sound in Clackamas, who kept me informed all along during the interminable wait. Once I saw the board in question it was obvious that they’re not built to be repaired - the parts on the boats are foamed over. I guess that’s just the way things are built these days. Thankfully I have a good backup amp, which is a lesson learned again. Hopefully, this repair will see the amp working fine for another decade, at which point I’ll be 80 - if I’m still playing by then I’ll buy a new amp!