HELP! My Archon Died
- Thread starter MarcWink
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MarcWink
New Member
Well, considering my lack of skill diagnosing electronics, and given the lack of anyone remotely resembling local to me that is able to do this type of diagnostic work, on top of the fact that the amp is within its factory warranty period, I don't think it's unreasonable for me to expect PRS to actually honor their manufacturer's warranty.
DreamTheaterRules
It's OUR time, Mr. Hand
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And there may be no recovering from that one! Unless of course, you sold it to a forum brother. Then, while still highly suspect, it's at least somewhat acceptable.
KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
"Amplifier tubes are warranted for 90 days"
Let us know how much the bill was
MarcWink
New Member
I don't care if I wind up having to pay PRS to get the amp back up and running, the problem I have is that they wanted me to incur expense before they even considered looking at it to determine if it is a warranty related fix or blown tube which is admittedly outside of the 90 day warranty period. PRS is definitely falling lower on my list of trusted brands.
KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
Quoting myself, to link this. Totally forgot about it. Im still recommending buying at least the most basic DMM
KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
I'm not trying to be hard on you, but its not only isolated to PRS. The vacuum valve short is super common and 9/10 is the reason for amp going dead silent
DreamTheaterRules
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KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
Yeah, no further advice though, if you dont have a phone or a DMM
This is not rocket science. The problem is you can't answer a basic question that will tell them whether it's a tube or warranty item.
No tools are required. You put in some tubes known to work, and see if the amp has any more issues. Your dealer should be able to provide a pair of tubes and a fuse to check with, even if you have none on hand.
PRS are being perfectly reasonable.
You're probably falling lower on their list of trusted customers; I'll call it a tie.
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DreamTheaterRules
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When I got my Egnater Tweaker, it had an intermittant loss of volume, preceded by a fizzing sound. When it did it, I turned it off and waited. It would work fine for a week and then do it again. I did basic trouble shooting, and all tubes looked good and were glowing evenly, etc. After talking to Bruce Egnater himself, he said I could send it in since I just bought it, but I told him I'd at least try rolling in known good tubes one at a time. When I got to V3, the tube was slightly tilted in the tube socket, so not fully seated. I removed it and coated the pins with DeOxit like I always do, put it back in and made sure it was fully seated. I had the amp for 4 years after that and never had the issue again.This is not rocket science. The problem is you can't answer a basic question that will tell them whether it's a tube or warranty item.
No tools are required. You put in some tubes known to work, and see if the amp has any more issues. Your dealer should be able to provide a pair of tubes and a fuse to check with, even if you have none on hand.
PRS are being perfectly reasonable.
You're probably falling lower on their list of trusted customers; I'll call it a tie.
Bruce said it could have been jarred in shipping and I agree that's possible, but, A) those tube sockets were good and tight, no tubes would be slipping out of them from a drop, and B) they had tube retainers on them. I figured it just wasn't pushed all the way in when it was built, and even a quick 15 minute test didn't show any issue. But in the end, it wasn't even a gad tube, it was just not fully seated.
Bruce is a super-nice guy; he's from my neck of the woods. By coincidence, my former law partner (back in the day) is his cousin. I had a chance to talk with him at a party she gave some time in the '90s after I got into the music biz.
The first amp with his name on it that I got to try out was in the early '90s; it was very cool, anodized aluminum in a bright color (might have been red or purple?), sounded killer. At some point (also in the '90s) he joined forces with Rocktron, another local company, and I had one of the amps that were built here. It was fantastic, a 1x12 combo with a beautiful, open tone.
Naturally, I traded it in on something I also no longer have.
I dunno about DeOxit. I used the red stuff for a while on patch bay plugs and jacks - no idea if that was the right formula, all of them are for different things - but it seemed to build up in a gloopy sticky way, so I started using isopropyl alcohol. I figured eventually dust would stick to the sticky surface and screw things up. I still clean the pins on tubes with isopropyl alcohol. Gets 'em clean and evaporates, no gloop.
Not that I have any idea what I'm doing with maintenance of electronic gear, by the way. I just don't like gloop.
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DreamTheaterRules
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Yes, Bruce was VERY cool and nice. Remember the Tweaker was a very cheap, overseas amp, but he was quite proud of the design (rightfully) and wanted to make sure things were right. He's definitely a legend in the field.Bruce is a super-nice guy; he's from my neck of the woods. By coincidence, my former law partner (back in the day) is his cousin. I had a chance to talk with him at a party she gave some time in the '90s after I got into the music biz.
The first amp with his name on it that I got to try out was in the early '90s; it was very cool, anodized aluminum in a bright color (might have been red or purple?), sounded killer. At some point (also in the '90s) he joined forces with Rocktron, another local company, and I had one of the amps that were built here. It was fantastic, a 1x12 combo with a beautiful, open tone.
Naturally, I traded it in on something I also no longer have.
I dunno about DeOxit. I used the red stuff for a while on patch bay plugs and jacks - no idea if that was the right formula, all of them are for different things - but it seemed to build up in a gloopy sticky way, so I started using isopropyl alcohol. I figured eventually dust would stick to the sticky surface and screw things up. I still clean the pins on tubes with isopropyl alcohol. Gets 'em clean and evaporates, no gloop.
Not that I have any idea what I'm doing with maintenance of electronic gear, by the way. I just don't like gloop.
DeOxit is a cleaner/contact enhancer. I've used it for many years on stereo equipment and guitar gear. In fact, started using it after using alcohol as it cleans better and does leave behind a contact enhancing/oxidation prohibiting layer, but definitely no gunk. It's pretty much the standard for pot cleaning. With all your gear and care of same, I'm surprised you aren't practically a paid endorser! It's good stuff.
I should have made clear, I did use DeOxit on my patchbay for a while, but had to stop using it in the '90s.
It's probably the oxidation-prohibiting chemical that caused some gunk buildup. Never had the problem with the patchbay after switching to isopropyl alcohol and simply covering it when not in use.
On the 64 input console that I had for 20 years I never had a single scratchy pot or fader - I had a cover made for it, and put the cover on when I wasn't using it. I've never had a scratchy pot on a piece of recording or hi fi equipment since the early '90s.
I've had some of it for over 30 years, including the 1994 Focusrite monitor controller I use daily.
I use HEPA air filters as well; they do a great job removing dust. Prevention is always the best cure!
No scratchy pots on any of my amps or guitars, either. So I haven't needed to clean anything but plugs and tube pins since the early '90s. I clean the plugs If they hit the floor when I'm cabling things.
I clean the tube pins because tubes I buy are always NOS. I probably don't need to, but it makes me feel better to make sure there isn't some kind of atmospheric buildup on them when they've been sitting around unused in boxes since the '70s.
Andy474x can confirm the condition of my equipment. It's perfect; he played through my amps, heard the audio gear, etc. The amps vary from 5-12 years old. He played my 11 year old McCarty Singlecut. I keep the guitars cased when not in use, the pots stay clean.
As per the above, my pots don't need cleaning. So I don't need the stuff.
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I should have mentioned that with a patchbay, you're plugging and unplugging connections constantly. Unless the bay is covered, each one is going to have 96 open jacks, and I had five bays. It's not like simply hooking up audio gear and leaving it alone for however long it's connected.
So DTR, I think my use probably differed from most.
I got the tip to use isopropyl alcohol from my tech.
So DTR, I think my use probably differed from most.
I got the tip to use isopropyl alcohol from my tech.
MarcWink
New Member
It's arrived back at PRS. Hopefully it gets sorted out, even if I wind up being out the cost of new tubes. I don't screw with electronic anything. I have a deep seated fear of electrocution after a not so fun childhood experience.
KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
Changing the tubes or testing fuses is as life threatening as playing electric guitar or turning the kettle on
RickP
Established 1960, Still Not Dead
I won’t be surprised if they fix it at no charge. One way or another, you’ll have a working amp again. That’s a good thing.
MarcWink
New Member
UPDATE! The Archon is headed back to me from PRS. The diagnosis was a bad input transformer that was replaced under warranty.
KentuckyBoiledChiccan
A good boy
Output transformer?
