68 Deluxe Reverb Woes!

jacklawtey

So, I bought a 68 DRRI today. Got it home, sounded great if a little hissy. I thought hm, wonder if it’s my cheap multi plug thing, let’s move to the wall. 

Nothing. Won’t turn on. No light, no sound, nothing. 

Gentleman I bought it from (who is being fantastic, by the way) is as stumped as I am. 

Any ideas? I guess fuses should be my first port of call. Agh. What a shit new amp day!

ICBM

If there’s no panel light and the valves don’t glow, it will have probably blown the mains fuse on the back of the amp. If so the question is why... they very rarely blow for no reason.

Check the fuse first.

jacklawtey

Without a multimeter is there any way I can check? Thanks for the reply.

jacklawtey

Also I had to cart it on and off trains, into a taxi, all this stuff. Is there a chance a power tube could’ve slightly loosened and that caused a fuse to blow?

uncledick

Before I went as far as checking the fuse there are a couple of other things I'd check first:  Mains lead - have you tried another one?  13A socket - plug in something else to test?  New amp day - have you hit the standby switch instead of the power switch - or some similar blonde moment?  Finally, you should be able to visually check the fuse.

jacklawtey

Mains lead is hard wired, can’t check another.

Tried it in 5 sockets.

Unfortunately not mixing up my standby and on. No light at all. 

Fuse at the back is glass, clear as day, no sign of anything untoward?

Thanks for your reply

ICBM

jacklawtey said:

Fuse at the back is glass, clear as day, no sign of anything untoward?

Can you see a fine wire inside it? If not then it's blown - sometimes they do, usually if there's a spike/surge in the mains voltage but sometimes for no obvious reason. If so the fuse will usually *just* melt, so there's no real sign of a burn mark inside.

Assuming you don't have a multimeter or other test gear, do you have another amp? If so you can test the fuse with it - plug a cable into the amp so you get the usual buzz if you touch the loose end. Now hold the fuse by one end and touch the other end to the tip of the cable. If it also buzzes the fuse is OK.

It's worth testing the fuse even if there does appear to be a wire inside - although rare, it's sometimes possible for one to be broken inside and not look like it.

If this fuse is OK the next possibility is the one in the mains plug.

If both of them are OK you probably need to take it to a tech.

jellybelly

Hope you get it sorted fella - @icbm and others were very helpful when I had a similar issue not too long back!

out of interest, how good is the build on these 68s considered to be, great techs of the fretboard? I’ve heard lots about hiss...

Telejester

the hiss on the 68 is a lot more obvious than on the 65

ICBM

jellybelly said:

out of interest, how good is the build on these 68s considered to be, great techs of the fretboard? I’ve heard lots about hiss...

Telejester said:

the hiss on the 68 is a lot more obvious than on the 65

They do hiss a bit, because they have reduced negative feedback compared to the '65 Reissue. It's the trade-off for earlier breakup, which is the exact opposite of what Fender were trying to achieve with the original.

Build quality is good overall - it's a PCB amp, but well-made and with the valve sockets and other main components chassis-mounted, and the pots and jacks on a separate board, so they're not too hard to work on either.

jacklawtey

ICBM said:

jacklawtey said:

Fuse at the back is glass, clear as day, no sign of anything untoward?

Can you see a fine wire inside it? If not then it's blown - sometimes they do, usually if there's a spike/surge in the mains voltage but sometimes for no obvious reason. If so the fuse will usually *just* melt, so there's no real sign of a burn mark inside.

Assuming you don't have a multimeter or other test gear, do you have another amp? If so you can test the fuse with it - plug a cable into the amp so you get the usual buzz if you touch the loose end. Now hold the fuse by one end and touch the other end to the tip of the cable. If it also buzzes the fuse is OK.

It's worth testing the fuse even if there does appear to be a wire inside - although rare, it's sometimes possible for one to be broken inside and not look like it.

If this fuse is OK the next possibility is the one in the mains plug.

If both of them are OK you probably need to take it to a tech.

I really appreciate all your help, honestly it’s been a nightmare and having someone guide you is a godsend. I don’t have another amp but I do have an audio interface I can test it with, assume it’ll do the same job as long as I can test for that buzz? And yes, there’s literally nothing inside the fuse - no wire to mention. Clear glass. 

Thanks again!

jacklawtey

Oh and also, where the heck would I buy another? Maplin?

ICBM

jacklawtey said:

I don’t have another amp but I do have an audio interface I can test it with, assume it’ll do the same job as long as I can test for that buzz?

Yes, anything that just shows whether there's continuity through the fuse will work.

jacklawtey said:

Oh and also, where the heck would I buy another? Maplin?

Yes, if you don't have a cheaper source.

It should be a F1A 20mm fuse. Don't use any other type, and you don't need to bother with more than one really - I can't remember if they sell them individually though. If it blows again there's something more seriously wrong.

One thing that could cause random fuse blowing is that Fender ship these amps set to 230V, to comply with EU rules. The UK voltage is still 240V really, so the amp is getting a bit more than it really wants. It's possible to set the amp to 240V by swapping two wires inside, but this is a job for a tech if you don't know what you're doing.

jacklawtey

You’re a saint, thank you so much. Last but not least, I do have an operational fuse from a 70’s Traynor YGM-3. Can’t seem to find any information online if they’re the same! That’d be a nice way to check since it’s.. in my house!

ICBM

jacklawtey said:

You’re a saint, thank you so much. Last but not least, I do have an operational fuse from a 70’s Traynor YGM-3. Can’t seem to find any information online if they’re the same! That’d be a nice way to check since it’s.. in my house!

No, the Traynor fuse is both a different size (1-1/4", unless the fuseholder has been changed) and a much higher rating - 3A, from memory.

jacklawtey

To Maplin I go. Thank you!