Yet another Markbass question

[reubart]

My Markbass CMD121P quit mid-gig last night. It powers up fine, but nothing comes out, not even a hum when I ground my cord with my thumb. It quit suddenly, but after having rested overnight, it still won't emit a sound. Thoughts? Successful repairs? Many thanks, folks.

 

[StyleOverShow]

Oops! I have one so I’m watching this thread….

How did you finish your gig?

 

[SJan3]

My Markbass CMD121P quit mid-gig last night. It powers up fine, but nothing comes out, not even a hum when I ground my cord with my thumb. It quit suddenly, but after having rested overnight, it still won't emit a sound. Thoughts? Successful repairs? Many thanks, folks.

This is not uncommon in older MarkBass LittleMark amps. If it's an older unit you'd likely be better off sliding a new one into the combo as repairs typically approach $375-400 on average. You can usually get a new one for $549 +/- ON SALE. YMMV

 

[reubart]

Thank you. Pretty much what I’ve feared. I’d love to keep it out of the waste stream…. but it might go that way. Thanks.

 

[SJan3]

There's a

Thank you. Pretty much what I’ve feared. I’d love to keep it out of the waste stream…. but it might go that way. Thanks.

BIG MarkBass SALE on M.F. 25% off a LittleMark IV takes the price down to $486.75. That's the least expensive I've ever seen one.

 

[MtManiac]

Have you checked its fuses? Honestly sounds like a blown fuse. Has happened to me with small combos before.

Edit: I’m wrong, ignore this comment.

 

[SJan3]

Have you checked its fuses? Honestly sounds like a blown fuse. Has happened to me with small combos before.

He said it powers up.

 

[REV]

Supposedly these folks do repairs on Markbass amps. Davidson Electronics | Pro Audio Service and more, Plainview NY

 

[agedhorse]

He said it powers up.

Thanks for the accurate information! Good answer.

 

[agedhorse]

Since you are located in Canada, contact the distributor for your country and ask who the factory warranty service representative is. They will have the best and most accurate information.

In the US, it’s VST (Virtual Sound Technologies) in So. CA.

 

[agedhorse]

Have you checked its fuses? Honestly sounds like a blown fuse. Has happened to me with small combos before.

It sounds nothing like a blown fuse, it powers up which means the housekeeping power supply is operational.

When the internal or external fuse opens on these amps, this indicates a gross fault. Internal fuses should never be replaced without powering up on a current limited and protected source, and proper safety precautions because powering up with a fault still present can cause spectacular damage and a hazard to the tech working on it.

 

[SJan3]

Thanks for the accurate information! Good answer.

 

[Norm Nelson]

Thank you. Pretty much what I’ve feared. I’d love to keep it out of the waste stream…. but it might go that way. Thanks.

I got my Little Mark repaired ... here's a thread about it. Your impressions are correct! OH and VST has a long list of service centers for MarkBass non-warranty repairs on their website, so something close to you may be there.

 

[jeffbassguy]

There are plenty of amps that don’t fail mid gig. Time to try some other brands. I used a markbass amp that was at our practice space and all of the sudden the volume knob just stopped working. A little google told me never to buy Mark as repairs are common unfortunately

 

[Alper Yilmaz]

This might sound very idiotic; but have you checked the speaker cable? It is a simple 1/4” jack which is plugged into the amp. Chances are slim but it might have come out…

 

[oren]

A couple of years back my CMD-121P Ihad the same symptoms. I took it to Inner Sound, in Clackamas, OR (near Portland) (an authorized MarkBass service center) and they diagnosed it as a faulty main circuit board, which had to be replaced. That cost me very close to what I paid for the amp, used. If it happened again I would likely buy a newer MB head and install it in the same chassis. I’ve read that all of the MiniMark heads will fit in that space,though they require some new mounting holes. I should note that there might be other causes for the same symptoms, so don’t just assume that’s your problem.

 

[Alphabass 89]

This is not the first time hearing of reliability trouble with Markbass. But I have heard from techs that they are not easy to work on. Troubleshooting first, since it went silent, test the speaker with something that works. After that, if you have effects loop and not using it, put a patch between send and return. If you get sound, then there is trouble with the jack on effects send. These jacks are made to close the circuit to the power amp. When a quarter inch is plugged into send the jack opens the circuit to the power amp. The jack can fail and stay open thus no signal to power amp but a patch to the return will work. Worth a try before spending money at a repair shop. After that get help from your guitar player. Run effects send of your amp to his or her return. If you get sound your preamp is working and the trouble is in the power amp. This could be worth telling your tech and may save some cash.

 

[MtManiac]

It sounds nothing like a blown fuse, it powers up which means the housekeeping power supply is operational.

When the internal or external fuse opens on these amps, this indicates a gross fault. Internal fuses should never be replaced without powering up on a current limited and protected source, and proper safety precautions because powering up with a fault still present can cause spectacular damage and a hazard to the tech working on it.

Yeah, I missed that - obligatory Canadian “sorry”.