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Post subject: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 10:38 pm
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So this evening when I went to plug in the USB cable on the amp, the USB connector came loose and disappeared inside the amp. :x I wasn't exerting undue force or anything! I'm more than a little steamed at the moment...I've only had the amp since Wednesday!!

I ordered the amp from Musician's Friend, so I've contacted them...though I'm not sure if that's right or if I should contact Fender...guess they'll let me know.

I've gotten some great tones out of the amp and was very happy with it in that sense, but this raises some concerns as to how robustly the amp is built!


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 12:30 am
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Aspiring Musician
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Had the same thing happen to me on the headphone jack. They are both ridiculous. Tiny, wimpy, delicate little connectors on perfectly well-made robust amps. Huge mistake by Fender. They should have gone 1/4" on the phone jack, and standard full size on the USB.

That said, bring your amp to any authorized Fender repair center and Fender will ship a new amp back to them. Then you'll pick it up there. Mustangs are under a "DO NOT REPAIR" code meaning they simply replace the amp with a new one.


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 5:04 am
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I totally agree that this is a very poor design and in the end will cost them more than they would have saved using "mini" plugs.

But the real problem is putting the USB in FRONT of the headphone jack. The headphone chord will almost always be going FORWARD toward the front of the amp. That means it rubs and stresses the USB plug (which is delicate to start with) and will quickly break the USB connection.

I highly recommend putting a "C" or "U" type chord retainer on the back of the amp and always run the headphone chord through it toward the BACK of the amp to prevent this.

I am certain as customers move forward with these amps this will become the number 1 repair issue.

That said . . . this is a great performing amp ( mine is a V head) and the support has been great.

I'm thinking of retrofitting the USB and headphone but will wait until the warranty wears out. At that point I will most likely put the headphone on the top and the USB on the back where it belongs.

Any new product has a learning curve to it - I think Fender will correct this as this model moves forward.

Bo


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 10:22 am
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Gary Baker wrote:
I totally agree that this is a very poor design and in the end will cost them more than they would have saved using "mini" plugs.

But the real problem is putting the USB in FRONT of the headphone jack. The headphone chord will almost always be going FORWARD toward the front of the amp. That means it rubs and stresses the USB plug (which is delicate to start with) and will quickly break the USB connection.

I highly recommend putting a "C" or "U" type chord retainer on the back of the amp and always run the headphone chord through it toward the BACK of the amp to prevent this.

I am certain as customers move forward with these amps this will become the number 1 repair issue.

That said . . . this is a great performing amp ( mine is a V head) and the support has been great.

I'm thinking of retrofitting the USB and headphone but will wait until the warranty wears out. At that point I will most likely put the headphone on the top and the USB on the back where it belongs.

Any new product has a learning curve to it - I think Fender will correct this as this model moves forward.

Bo


Agree 100% with the suggestions. I also added a short extension for the headphone jack which I hope will separate cleanly before the 3.5mm jack suffers any damage (already did that once inadvertently :oops: ), but the headphone jack is really not the best quality, I can sometimes hear a crackle when I touch it, which indicates a sloppy fit (loose contacts) on a brand new out of the box replacement amp.
:(

I still love the amp for all it can do, but it still chaps my butt a little each time I notice that (and in fact the bulk of my intended usage really is after-hours, kid in bed, household chores done, ...)

Too bad a firmware update can't fix this...

PITA


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 8:03 am
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Location: East of Texas, West of the Atlantic
Musicmaster2 wrote:
Had the same thing happen to me on the headphone jack. They are both ridiculous. Tiny, wimpy, delicate little connectors on perfectly well-made robust amps. Huge mistake by Fender. They should have gone 1/4" on the phone jack, and standard full size on the USB.

That said, bring your amp to any authorized Fender repair center and Fender will ship a new amp back to them. Then you'll pick it up there. Mustangs are under a "DO NOT REPAIR" code meaning they simply replace the amp with a new one.

How long does it take for the Fender repair center to replace your amp with a new one?


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 9:31 am
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Fender has a great 5 year warranty, they replaced my amp with no problems.


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 11:03 am
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Aspiring Musician
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Soon as my repair guy got around to checking it out (a few days) they just called Fender and they sent a new amp out to him right away, and he sent the old one in to them. Took inside of a week for him to get the amp and call me to pick it up.

You don't get a new amp in a box. The technician hands you a new amp with the new cardboard tag on it, but no cord, no doc, no accessories no plastic cover, nothing. Just the amp.


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 11:08 am
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I'm sorry you guys are experiencing problems with the USB and headphone jacks. These amps do have a 5 year warranty but most dealers have a 30 day exchange policy. If you just purchased the amp Wednesday, you shouldn't be discussing a warranty exchange. You should be dealing with a general exchange of a product that is less than a week old.

If your dealer has a replacement amp in stock, they will most likely exchange it for you on the spot.

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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 1:47 pm
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I ordered from Musicians Friend, and have been in touch with them. The amp has already been dropped off at UPS to be shipped back to them. They said to call once the amp is showing up in UPS tracking, and at that point they will ship a new one out to me.

I do love the tones I was getting, so I'll just try to be really careful with these jacks on the one that's coming!!

I was actually tempted to try to fix it myself...I'm pretty comfortable with a soldering iron and electronic circuits. But I was afraid that would void my warranty, which I don't want to do!


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 8:59 pm
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Loren Howard - Fender wrote:
I'm sorry you guys are experiencing problems with the USB and headphone jacks.


Me too!

Quote:
These amps do have a 5 year warranty but most dealers have a 30 day exchange policy. If you just purchased the amp Wednesday, you shouldn't be discussing a warranty exchange. You should be dealing with a general exchange of a product that is less than a week old.

If your dealer has a replacement amp in stock, they will most likely exchange it for you on the spot.


What he said.

I brought my amp back to GC, and the person there who helped me out said I was lucky that they just got new inventory that day, and I did walk out with a new, boxed amp. I forgot to bring the DVD back, so we opened the box there and I left that behind since I already had a copy, but otherwise a brand new replacement.

Muleya wrote:
I was actually tempted to try to fix it myself...I'm pretty comfortable with a soldering iron and electronic circuits. But I was afraid that would void my warranty, which I don't want to do!


I was actually going to do this, and I started taking the amp apart (the screws were all in really tightly--and at some slightly strange angles in a couple of cases). I finally got them all out (all the ones I could see, anyway), but still couldn't remove the amp/circuitry from the cabinet, so I gave up and buttoned it back up and called GC instead.

PITA


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Mon Mar 14, 2011 9:26 pm
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Aspiring Musician
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Of course any amp can be exchanged or returned within 30 days no questions asked most anywheres, some places give you 45 days.


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Post subject: Re: USB Connector came loose!!
Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2011 7:32 pm
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PITA wrote:
I was actually going to do this, and I started taking the amp apart (the screws were all in really tightly--and at some slightly strange angles in a couple of cases). I finally got them all out (all the ones I could see, anyway), but still couldn't remove the amp/circuitry from the cabinet, so I gave up and buttoned it back up and called GC instead.

PITA


Yeah, there is a ground wire or something that runs from the chassis to the speaker that is so short, you can't really get the chassis out without disconnecting it!

MF shipped the replacement out yesterday, it's supposed to be here on Friday. I tell you what, I'm glad I had saved my presets to my computer...at least I don't have to start over from scratch!!


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