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Post subject: Blues Jr Icky Distortion
Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:10 pm
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Hi all fellow FenderFanatics, I have a Blues Jr. (cream board) and it just started making a nasty (but light) sounding distortion when playing at any level or setting. Tubes are newer JJ's from Eurotubes with 20 hours on them (both pre and power amps) other than a Jan Phillips 5751 which I run in V1. I swapped the tubes out with some other ones I had but it still sounded wrong. Speaker looks fine and no noticable issues on the board.

I do have the basic BillM mods on it which I did but that was a year ago.

I still think it may be tubes and I just missed something when I was checking them but if you have any advice I am ready to hear it. I cleaned all tube pins and pin slots with Deoxit.


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Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:30 pm
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I'd check the mods too. All the mid and lower end Fender amps can get flaky after you mod them. The boards aren't the best quality in the world. Neither are the caps. I'd start looking for leaking or bulging electrolytic caps. It could be a cold solder joint or a trace that lifted too. Look very carefully at all the components. It could possibly be a tube even though they have low hours. If you have any lying around, you could try swapping them.


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Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:53 pm
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I would check the ribbon cables and the tube sockets too.They arent the greatest.


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Posted: Wed Mar 31, 2010 3:56 pm
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I hate ribbon cables in tube amps. They should keep them in computers. Lets face it, nothing is really that great in any HRD series amp. They sound okay but are loaded with construction shortcuts.


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Posted: Thu Apr 01, 2010 9:11 am
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Thanks all I guess it was a bad tube or possible bad connection. I picked up a variety of NOS 12AT7's to test in V3 (phase inverter I believe) and I tightened up the socket spring connectors and now it is working fine. I need to replace the sockets with some ceramic ones I think.

FYI I run a 5751 in V1, 12AX7 in V2 and the 12AT7 in V3 and it gives the BJ and beautiful creamy sound. Of course the BillM mods made a big difference as well. I have the C12N Jensen speaker in mine also which seems to make a difference over the stock ones.

I agree completely about the ribbon cables, I have bent mine into the reccomended (by BillM) shapes to reduce noise and hot glued them where they meet the board to help reduce the chance ot them breaking. I hope to someday build a point to point wired amp, they seem so much more stable and easy to fix that I can't figure out why they would go to all this plastic crap. (Oh wait you need to buy a NEW amp instead of fixing them...Now I get it)

Thanks again for the help. I am going to be posting in the guitar section looking for some advice on lightweight guitar bodies (messed up my shoulder big time) and EMG S Series pickups for SSS strat so if you have some good advice I would appreciate your help.


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Posted: Thu Apr 01, 2010 9:42 am
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babystrummer wrote:
I am going to be posting in the guitar section looking for some advice on lightweight guitar bodies (messed up my shoulder big time) and EMG S Series pickups for SSS strat so if you have some good advice I would appreciate your help.


Not strats but 2 reasonable low cost, low weight guitars:

Yamaha RGX A2 - mine weighs well under 5lbs
Ibanez SA series

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Fender Highway & Classic 60s Strats, Fender Toronado, Telecaster, Gretsch Projet, Charvel 3, PRS SE Soapbar II & Custom 24, Burns Batwing and many others!


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Apr 01, 2010 10:15 am
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babystrummer wrote:
Thanks all I guess it was a bad tube or possible bad connection. I picked up a variety of NOS 12AT7's to test in V3 (phase inverter I believe) and I tightened up the socket spring connectors and now it is working fine. I need to replace the sockets with some ceramic ones I think.

FYI I run a 5751 in V1, 12AX7 in V2 and the 12AT7 in V3 and it gives the BJ and beautiful creamy sound. Of course the BillM mods made a big difference as well. I have the C12N Jensen speaker in mine also which seems to make a difference over the stock ones.

I agree completely about the ribbon cables, I have bent mine into the reccomended (by BillM) shapes to reduce noise and hot glued them where they meet the board to help reduce the chance ot them breaking. I hope to someday build a point to point wired amp, they seem so much more stable and easy to fix that I can't figure out why they would go to all this plastic crap. (Oh wait you need to buy a NEW amp instead of fixing them...Now I get it)

Thanks again for the help. I am going to be posting in the guitar section looking for some advice on lightweight guitar bodies (messed up my shoulder big time) and EMG S Series pickups for SSS strat so if you have some good advice I would appreciate your help.


Actually there's wrong with a PCB amp. Mesa, Egnater and many boutique manufacturers have been using PCB construction for 30 years.They've been around for tears with great results. It's all in the design, component quality and execution where Fender falls way short. The poor design of these amps did build a cottage industry for guys like Billm and Fagen.


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