Fender Amp Woes:

[Inspector #20]

Affects the '64 hand wired Princetons too.

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

Affects the '64 hand wired Princetons too.

You might see this fine white dust all over the circuit board....
It's really that the white dust particles is spewing out of the capacitors vent when the power is turned on.
And this is a problem with several Fender amps that use "Illinois" capacitors.
We been changing them all to F&T caps for the last many years.

 

[Inspector #20]

Failed amp returns....



Chinese generic transformer in a hand-wired Fender amp.



More returns...

 

[Inspector #20]

 

[67plexi]

Chinese amp parts are crap Chinese auto parts are crap Chinese tool steel is crap
After 9/11 China started producing tool steel for US company's it does not harden properly
The last good capacitors and resistors are made in Germany.

 

[Inspector #20]

Chinese amp parts are crap Chinese auto parts are crap Chinese tool steel is crap
After 9/11 China started producing tool steel for US company's it does not harden properly
The last good capacitors and resistors are made in Germany.

Absolutely!

Here's what's being used in your $2,000 Hand-Wired Princeton Reverb...

 

[Inspector #20]

The failure rate on amps, when i was there in 2022, was over 75% and rather than fix the problem, they just kept cranking them out.

 

[67plexi]

Fender buys a insurance policy for the warranty period. consumer contacts dealer, dealer contacts OEM, OEM contacts insurance
do you think Fender is going to hire skilled labor troubleshoot and repair or pay the insurance premium latter of the two
it's all factored in on the retail price.

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

The failure rate on amps, when i was there in 2022, was over 75% and rather than fix the problem, they just kept cranking them out.

They used crappy tube sockets too But replace the caps, and put in sockets...
it's still one of the better tube amps...compared to the average trash.

 

[Inspector #20]

They used crappy tube sockets too But replace the caps, and put in sockets...
it's still one of the better tube amps...compared to the average trash.

I hated working on them.

 

[jtcnj]

Wow, that is a really sucky business model.

Do they all go in the dumpster?
If so, where is this dumpster?

 

[Inspector #20]

Wow, that is a really sucky business model.

Do they all go in the dumpster?
If so, where is this dumpster?

Tubes are collected and reused in repaired amps.

The amp's internals are beaten with hammers and chisels to destroy them. Speakers are sliced with a razor knife.

Everything is secured and picked up by a recycling facility in Garden Grove, CA - California Electronics Recyclers.

 

[smitty_p]

I don’t even worry about amps anymore. I haven’t touched one in months.

Everything runs from my processor into the mix and I get a foldback to a monitor or my in-ears.

I keep playin’ and the crowd keeps jumpin’.

 

[Inspector #20]

I don’t even worry about amps anymore. I haven’t touched one in months.

Everything runs from my processor into the mix and I get a foldback to a monitor or my in-ears.

I keep playin’ and the crowd keeps jumpin’.

I prefer an amp.

I drive only manual gearboxes.

I like records.

 

[Inspector #20]

And i adore craftsmanship...you'll never match this with anything digital.

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

I hated working on them.

View attachment 87956

I told people for years that the Illinois caps were garbage...
and nobody listened or believed it.
Sadly:
Most long life capacitors have disappeared from the marketplace.
Usually I would use 10,000 hour caps minimum to replace the stock 2000 hour caps.

Now, about the best I can do is 5000 hour F&T caps....if I can get them.

But basically it appears that manufacturers have stopped making long life caps.
To increase orders and profits?

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

Chinese amp parts are crap Chinese auto parts are crap Chinese tool steel is crap
After 9/11 China started producing tool steel for US company's it does not harden properly
The last good capacitors and resistors are made in Germany.

I concur.
I think China has a quality control problem, in general.

 

[Inspector #20]

@Session 5

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

And i adore craftsmanship...you'll never match this with anything digital.

View attachment 87971

What is "digital?" Never heard of it.

 

[Amp Mad Scientist]

Wow, that is a really sucky business model.

Do they all go in the dumpster?
If so, where is this dumpster?

Fender destroys some stuff...