Hey all,
I'm thinking about buying one of these amps off of a kid cheap since he says it's "broken" and doesn't use it anymore. It has an issue which I am hoping can be fixed easily. Any ideas what to look for would be appreciated.

Symptom: The speaker has a moderately loud hum when nothing is plugged into the amp and all of the knobs are turned off (or on 1). (it also makes a very loud pop every time I turn it off)

Symptom: Any instrument plugged in produces sound, but it has a horrible static sound that changes in speed/modulation as the pitch goes up or down.

Any ideas?

Thanks!
Innrgeek!

I know of several Ultimate Chorus Amps that are side-lined and dead-lined due to the non-availability of parts (this model hasn't be manufactured in over a decade). Likely the hum is caused by a bad cap (readily available and easily replaceable) but the modulated static you hear is probably the effects module going south -- and I'm doubtful that a replacement can be found.

I'd pass this deal by on that basis alone. YMMV

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Thanks for the heads up! I appreciate it!

I own an Ultimate Chorus amp. I've had a few minor issues with it, but nothing rendering it unplayable. As for the POP, my amp has done that for as long as I can remember, and I've owned it since 1995. The one and only time I left my amp at the bass players house, I came back and it sounded like crap. It sounded weak and buzzy. I took it to the shop and something in the power supply had went. HMMM? I never left it there before, and the bass player CLAIMED he never touched it. That was the last time I ever left my amp there.
Right now it kind of has a buzz/vibration sound when the bass is increased. I'm not talking on 10, but 3. Had it looked at, and had all the contacts cleaned. Sounded great at the shop, sounded buzzy at home. I even played it through my own guitar at the shop. Took it back, sounded great, brought it home, sounded buzzy. I ended up buying a new amp.

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