Tourmaster Reverb acting weird

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rgprestige1570

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Just an hour ago I fired up the Tourmaster after a show last night. The amp worked flawlessly at the show and today when I turned it on the reverb sounds quite different. In the past the reverb was fairly subtle even if cranked all the way up, but now the reverb has a HUGE, much more intesne effect. Its like the amp now has "super reverb" or something. If I barely turn up the reverb knob it sounds like it did when I used to have it cranked all the way up! I can hear any notes or chords I play ring out/echo MUCH MORE intensely than usual. Also when using the distortion channels there is a distinct change in the tone. When I click on the reverb it sounds like it thins out the lower end when using the 2 overdrive channels. Can I chalk this up to a bad pre-amp tube or something? Any help is much appreciated!


Thanks,
RG
 
Hi rgprestige1570,

I'll take a shot. :scared: It seems unlikely that a failure of any sort would result in a better sound, but possible I guess. It sounds to me as if the reverb wasn't working correctly to begin with, but is working now. Possibly you had a loose connection, and moving the amp this one time might have vibrated the connection or wire. Are you comfortable working inside the amp, and aware of the lethal voltages inside? Check this thread, the connections for the reverb transformer were loose in that case (to begin with). At least worth a look.

http://www.rig-talk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=91619
 
shimmilou":mmevhmgg said:
Hi rgprestige1570,

I'll take a shot. :scared: It seems unlikely that a failure of any sort would result in a better sound, but possible I guess. It sounds to me as if the reverb wasn't working correctly to begin with, but is working now. Possibly you had a loose connection, and moving the amp this one time might have vibrated the connection or wire. Are you comfortable working inside the amp, and aware of the lethal voltages inside? Check this thread, the connections for the reverb transformer were loose in that case (to begin with). At least worth a look.

http://www.rig-talk.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=91619
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply! I wouldn't say that it sounds better because of the dramatic tone loss (mostly noticeable in the OD channels). Its hard to describe with words but my gut tells me something is messed up. At first I was thinking that maybe it was indeed broken before and now is somehow working again until I clicked over to the OD channels. Something just doesn't sound right. I am going to check out those connections when I get some free time.
 
bruce egnater":m15r1exc said:
Try removing the reverb tube and report back.
Click to expand...

Bruce, what should I look for upon removal of the reverb tube? I can go pull it right now but I do not have a replacement on hand at the moment. I've also inspected all of the connections from the transformer to the board and they look solid. The tank is also intact with no visible issues.
 
Update...I pulled the amp out and checked the connections and the condition of the reverb tank and then put it all back together again. Lo and behold the reverb issue seems to be gone. I have NO idea what I did, but it no longer sucks all the tone out of my OD channels anymore. What on earth could have cause this? :confused:
 
Could it possibly have been some kind of loose/dirty connection that got rectified when you put the amp back together?
 
Len Rabinowitz":1xpw68e9 said:
Could it possibly have been some kind of loose/dirty connection that got rectified when you put the amp back together?
Click to expand...

Thats excatly what I am assuming. I am constantly transporting this amp back and fourth from practice to gigs so I imagine something came loose then somehow managed to reconnect itself.
 
Don't kid yourself, it didn't "fix itself", it just happens to be working now. Unless you found and corrected a loose connection (if that's what it is), then you still have the same problem, only now it's waiting for the worst possible time to reappear. You should go over all of the connections thoroughly and try to locate an actual problem. With intermittent problems, it is sometimes difficult to find the cause, but due diligence can uncover them. Typically, when something works intermittently, it is because of a bad connection, and bad connections don't typically heal themselves, but rather they show up at inopportune times. You may have to physically check/wiggle all connection points associated with the reverb circuit (transformer connections, reverb cables, tube and socket, etc) and even make sure that the solder joints are good also.

Can't state this enough: Be aware of lethal voltages in the amp, even when unplugged from electricity. Be safe!
 
shimmilou":34ravaze said:
Don't kid yourself, it didn't "fix itself", it just happens to be working now. Unless you found and corrected a loose connection (if that's what it is), then you still have the same problem, only now it's waiting for the worst possible time to reappear. You should go over all of the connections thoroughly and try to locate an actual problem. With intermittent problems, it is sometimes difficult to find the cause, but due diligence can uncover them. Typically, when something works intermittently, it is because of a bad connection, and bad connections don't typically heal themselves, but rather they show up at inopportune times. You may have to physically check/wiggle all connection points associated with the reverb circuit (transformer connections, reverb cables, tube and socket, etc) and even make sure that the solder joints are good also.

Can't state this enough: Be aware of lethal voltages in the amp, even when unplugged from electricity. Be safe!
Click to expand...


Oh trust me I was not excited when it resolved itself because I know for a fact it will happen again. The fact that it is working now would also lead me to think that there is indeed a bad connection and not something wrong with the reverb transformer itself. In my limited experience when a tranny goes, it goes with no intermittent function. What do you guys think about that? I will post back with updates when I get around to tinkering with it again.
 
That's been my experience, usually they're good or bad but not intermittent. Not impossible, though unlikely. In the thread that I linked to earlier, the OP thought that his reverb worked for a short while after he repaired his loose connections. When the reverb stopped working a second second time, he found his reverb transformer primary was open. But he definitely found the transformer connectors on the circuit board were loose. In that particular case, the trans failure could be related to the loose connections.
 
yeah, mine was working, then stopped working, then i fixed it (the green and black loose connection spades in my pics on that other thread), then it was working great.
my power transformer shit the bed.....i replaced it, and, now again, my reverb doesn't work.

so, shimm kindly walked me through the troubleshoot, which wasn't too bad at all, and we narrowed it down to the reverb transformer being bad. so, now i need a new one. dont' know where to get one, but when i do, i'll fix it myself.
 
Yeti thats just bizarre. Have you poked around on mercury magnetics for a replacement? They might have something with the right specs.

All my connections to the circuit board looked pretty solid when I had the amp apart. There was nothing visibly questionable. I also made sure the RCAs from the amp to the tank were solidly in place. I also rigged the tank up more solidly...it was simply hanging from that bag which was sandwiched between small pieces of broken particle board and the inside of the amp.
 
At this point, you could wait for it to fail, if it ever does, and start as Bruce suggested by pulling the reverb tube. Or, poke around and try to get it to act up again and do a little troubleshooting. It could well be just a tube problem, or any number of other things. It certainly wouldn't hurt to try a new reverb tube, as faulty tubes are likely the majority of problems in tube amps. We're at a disadvantage though without schematics.....and with the reverb working, not much trouble to shoot.

I don't know if it matters or is related, but does your amp have the upgrades? Power transformer?
 
exactly.

no schematics, or even specs on the reverb tranny...kinda hard to troubleshoot.
 
Oh boy I just had a reverb issue on my 4212 sent in the transformer and now waiting on the new one under warranty to come back from Egnater. Hope the issue was the transformer..... :confused:
 
as per alex@egnateramps.com , they are currently out of stock on this part.

seems like it's also a part that's come up questionable in these amps, like the power trannies
 
Got my reverb transformer back and in. UUUUGHH WEAKEST REVERB I've ever had in an amp still. I gotta turn up the verb nearly max to get a noticable verb. Hmmm love the sounds of this amp but some of the neg comments are coming true for me unfortunatley....... :scared: :cry:
 
where did you get it?
i was told they were out and wouldnt be in for a while. yay. maybe they're in and i can get one?

what kind of tube do you have in there? my reverb was nice and strong...actually, one of the best reverbs i've ever had. i use and electroharmonix 12ax7, it's a bit brighter sounding to me.

make sure your wiring is correct, check your reverb pan wires. nothing weak about this reverb at all, unless you got another bunk transformer.
 
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