Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread: Monoprice Tube Amp w/ Faulty Reverb?

  1. #1
    Forum Member OldStrummer's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    Northern Virginia, USA
    Posts
    3,928

    Monoprice Tube Amp w/ Faulty Reverb?

    I read the posts in this section but I never add anything, because I know less about amps than I do about women. So, with that in mind, here goes.

    A few years ago I bought a Monoprice 15-watt combo tube amp with a 12" Celestion speaker in it and spring reverb (it even offers a 1-watt option, but at the level I play, there's really no difference). It was the basis for me running clean, and adding pedals to enhance the sound. Well, I never became the next Keef or Eddie, but it was fun.

    Then it wasn't. All of a sudden it started to sound like crap. I couldn't figure it out. So, I put it away, and in its place I put either a Fender Champion 40 or a Fender Mustang II v2. As modeling amps, they are terrific, but since they have all the controls built-in, and solid state, I felt like pedals were superfluous.

    Nowdays, I rarely play amplified, and if I want a quick practice session, I use either my Line6 AMPLIFi 30 or my new Positive Grid Spark MINI. They weigh less, take up less room and pretty much have all the features of the larger modeling amps (did I say I was inherently lazy?).

    But over the years, I've read a lot of posts mentioning replacing the reverb tank; maybe they wear out, or go bad, or something, but I was wondering: Could this be the problem with the Monoprice? For the curious, I've been told this could be a "house-branded" Laney Cub, which goes for a lot more $$$.

    Here's the web site for Monoprice's amp:
    https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=611815


    Striving to be ordinary

    Proud to be a TFF Dumbass!

  2. #2
    Forum Member
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    SW New Mexico, USA
    Posts
    1,658

    Re: Monoprice Tube Amp w/ Faulty Reverb?

    If it has a traditional reverb tank, you can disconnect the rca connectors, and see if that makes any difference.
    In my area the usual tank failure is broken wiring due to rough handling. (I used to carry a soldering iron when traveling to gigs, the wires from the rca to the transducer are tiny!) From other forums I learned that folks that live in high humidity/wet climate often get poor connections and need cleaning.

  3. #3
    Forum Member Michael Smith's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2021
    Location
    Southeast Texas
    Posts
    692

    Re: Monoprice Tube Amp w/ Faulty Reverb?

    What are the symptoms, besides sounding like crap? Plug your guitar into the effects return and play it. If the sound is good, then the problem could lie in the preamp section of the amp. As mentioned above, the plugs on the reverb cables can become corroded. With the amp powered on, tap on each tube with a wooden stick or pencil to see if any of them are microphonic. I haven't studied the schematic for that amp, but with the tube compliment it has, it's probably similar to my Carvin Vintage 16. PCB amps are not that easy to repair, and the cost would probably exceed the value of the amp, unless it's something like dirty pots, jacks or a bad tube. At a minimum, you could take it to a friend who knows a little about amps and he could remove the chassis and poke around a bit. If it were mine I'd start by measuring plate, grid and cathode voltages on the power tubes, but it sounds like you aren't really an "amp guy", and poking around inside the chassis can be very dangerous (high voltages, potentially even if the amp is powered off).
    "When You're Riding Down the Highway at Night, And You're Feeling that Wild Turkey's Bite" ZZ Top

  4. #4
    Forum Member Offshore Angler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    New York Finger Lakes Area
    Posts
    8,462

    Re: Monoprice Tube Amp w/ Faulty Reverb?

    Quote Originally Posted by Bill Moore View Post
    If it has a traditional reverb tank, you can disconnect the rca connectors, and see if that makes any difference.
    In my area the usual tank failure is broken wiring due to rough handling. (I used to carry a soldering iron when traveling to gigs, the wires from the rca to the transducer are tiny!) From other forums I learned that folks that live in high humidity/wet climate often get poor connections and need cleaning.
    Bingo. I rarely use reverb and almost always disable the spring reverbs in my amps.
    "No harmonic knowledge, no sense of time, a ghastly tone, unskilled vibrato, and so on. Chuck is one of the worst guitar players I know" -Gravity Jim

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •