possible amp problem? need help diagnosing

[Rhust]

ok, I may have developed a problem... idk yet...

I notice this more on my clean channel, but turned up a bit, say about 10:00 if I strike a chord, (easily reproducible on the A chord) I get a strange kind of artifact/static thing, right after.. almost on a delay. it's not like a normal breakup.. it might be speaker breakup, because it does sound a little farty, but it happens with both the v30 and T75, and I wouldn't think a 5w amp at under 1/2 volume would be breaking up the speaker... it sounds almost like a dirty pot sound even though I'm not turning the pots... my first thought was the T75 I just switched to was bad... but first I tried taking all pedals out of the chain, no help, changed guitars, no help, except it was harder to reproduce(lower output pups, my guess) changed the cab back to the v30... same thing... swapped both tubes(putting back in the stock TAD 12BH7) still there.

I hadn't noticed this before, it just started happening recently. I notice it more on the clean channel because I usually play on high gain... but I switched the OD back on and listened for it.. it's still there...


any ideas?

list of troubleshooting to make it clear...
changed guitars - still there
took all effects out, just guitar - cable - head - cabint ... still there
changed cable - still there
changed both tubes, still there
changed speaker back to the v30 - still there


like a dirty crackle/static like a bad pot being turned somewhere... also tried turning the amp up and turning both the speaker cable and the instrument cable to see if that could reproduce it...

the only thing I couldn't change was the cabinet itself... that could be a bad solder at the jack, going to the speaker, I suppose.

 

[David Corrales]

Hey man,

Can you post a sound sample to help in the diagnosis?

Have you tried moving the cab around? In case it's resonating against something in that particular frequency.

I just had my HT5 serviced because I was getting crackling noises and volume loss. Seems like a transformer had to be rewound

 

[Rhust]

good idea, I'll try moving the cab around... it's been on this amp stand for a while, but I took it off to replace the speaker earlier, and it was still happening after.

I'll try that first but it really seems like it's coming from the speaker... I initially thought the speaker had a ****ing hole in it...

if it's still happening I'll try to get a clip... it will be a cell clip but better than nothing, right?

I've been playing the piss out of it lately, and only just noticed the issue yesterday... I had just put in a new pedal, so I thought damn, I wonder if that pedal has a pot going wonky

 

[Rhust]

moving the cab did nothing... it could be a bad solder on the jack in the cab(switchcraft jack, but my soldering 'skills' )

it's a George L's speaker cable, I don't have another laying around to test that...

moving the cab did nothing...

here's the 'clip'

basically I just hit the E and/or A string and let it ring some, but you hear the crackle right after the note... it might be nothing, but I noticed it and now I hear it every damn time


[SC]https://soundcloud.com/wayne-fry/crackle-sound-on-ht5[/SC]

 

[randelli]

I have a demo video somewhere that on certain notes/chords the fireplace screen rattles. Could it be something in the room that is reacting to sympathetic vibrations?

 

[Rhust]

I have a demo video somewhere that on certain notes/chords the fireplace screen rattles. Could it be something in the room that is reacting to sympathetic vibrations?

when I moved the amp, I set it on the futon, to eliminate that... it doesn't sound like that anyway, tbh... my old tremolux was bad about that, 2x12 cab sitting on the floor would rattle the pictures on the wall everything...


this is a 1x12 on an amp stand with rubber feet... and only a 5w amp, not a 35w behemoth

posted the clip.. I'd appreciate any feedback.. another user suggested pickup height could be a factor, I'll certainly test that immediately

 

[randelli]

Might be a slight fret buzz? have you change strings recently? I could be way off; but I have a guitar that the action is so low it will do that. I like what it does to solos above the 12th so I keep it there.

 

[Rhust]

it could be that... I just lowered the pickups WAY DOWN and it didn't seem to do it AS bad... until I turned it up a little more... still not as pronounced... and that clip doesn't seem to capture it the same as I'm hearing...

part of it could be fret buzz... I tend to set my action pretty low.. (so when I do play a lead type lick the bends don't go to pot. ) maybe it is just happening as a combination of fret buzz, high, hotter pickups...

it's been a month or more since I changed strings on either of these guitars. I'll try raising the action, too...


the odd thing is.. if it was pickups, fret buzz etc... why has this not happened in the last year or so I've had this amp? or hell, maybe it has and I just didn't notice.. I don't usually turn it up loud, esp on the clean channel... I tend to play on the OD channel mostly.... and there's it's certainly not as noticable, especially when strung together... I noticed it more on accident hitting an A chord that kinda rings out. once I heard it, I started trying to figure it out..

if it's just me and my low action, fine... I just didn't want to do any real damage to the amp.

 

[randelli]

It doesn't sound like anything to worry about at this point.

 

[Rhust]

good to hear, thanks... I'll keep playing it until I see smoke

 

[Rhust]

first off I want to say thanks to everyone...

second, I'm a doof and this was all my bad...

a week or so ago, I was getting sick of the v30 it had no bass to chug to so to try and remedy that, I raised the JB pickup, and the top 2 pole pieces... when that didn't work, I switch to the SG and raised that pickup too... once I lowered both back where I had them before... problem pretty much ceased... I can still kinda hear it if I turn the amp way up... but at that point it's louder than I ever play in the house.. (about 3/4 volume)

I had just about forgotten that I raised the pole pieces until classicplayer mentioned it last night