Fender Deville Amp Repair HELP!

Sword in Hand · 20th May 2009

I have a '98-99ish (I know it is the American made version, checked serial number on inside) Fender Deville 2x12, which I bought used a couple months ago, from what seemed to be a reputable person. I played it a bit before I bought it and went home and opened it up, just to check the components (the inside looked very clean, but I'm not an electrical engineer). After that, I didn't play it for a while.

Recently, I've been playing with it in a band. We play somewhat loudly, with the Clean channel volume at 12 o clock and the Overdrive channel at around 9 o clock. The first practice the amp performed well and sounded fine. But the last two practices I've noticed the amp buzzing (sounding kind of like an electricity arc mixed with buzzing and distortion). I also noticed that it would exhibit this on certain low notes and not higher ones. Then at one point, the buzzing just wouldn't stop. I turned off the amp and when it came back on the buzzing had stopped. After that, I figured it was best to stop playing and unplug it.

I'm not really sure what the problem is. Could it be the tubes (the seller said that the tubes were originals, I believe)? Or is it a bad fuse? Or both? I hope that it's not anything too terrible.

Please gearslutz help me.

Sword in Hand · 20th May 2009

Bump

Sword in Hand · 21st May 2009

Come on guys. At the very least, what is a good repair shop near Ventura County, Santa Barbara or LA (LA is a bit far though)?

Lee Cardan · 23rd May 2009

I had one of those amps a while back
They are mosty definitely problematic, but I can't relate my problem to yours

Eitherway, one thing you should definitely do is re-solder every joint on the circuit board that has the valves on it. The problem with mass manufacturer incorporating wave soldering is that most of these joints have very little solder on them. You can wiggle any of those big caps and see the legs poking through the solder wiggle too. Over time, the head makes the small amount of solder brittle, and can develop hairline cracks leading to all kinds of weird behavior (mind just cut out all together).

When I resoldered all joints it worked perfectly again

Sword in Hand · 26th May 2009

Thanks Coschi,

I don't know much about soldering. Is there a particular soldering iron you recommend? Or should I take it to a tech? My amp was made in 97 (mistake made about 98-99 earlier), were they wave soldered then? I know for sure they were made in America then, not Mexico like today.

I bought new tubes, but haven't received them. I kind of think the problem is not the tubes, though.

Anybody know symptoms of bad power tubes?

Any good techs in Ventura County or Santa Barbara?

20th May 2009	#1
Sword in Hand Gear addict Joined: Apr 2004 Location: Ventura/Ojai, CA Posts: 323 Thread Starter 2 Reviews written	Fender Deville Amp Repair HELP! I have a '98-99ish (I know it is the American made version, checked serial number on inside) Fender Deville 2x12, which I bought used a couple months ago, from what seemed to be a reputable person. I played it a bit before I bought it and went home and opened it up, just to check the components (the inside looked very clean, but I'm not an electrical engineer). After that, I didn't play it for a while. Recently, I've been playing with it in a band. We play somewhat loudly, with the Clean channel volume at 12 o clock and the Overdrive channel at around 9 o clock. The first practice the amp performed well and sounded fine. But the last two practices I've noticed the amp buzzing (sounding kind of like an electricity arc mixed with buzzing and distortion). I also noticed that it would exhibit this on certain low notes and not higher ones. Then at one point, the buzzing just wouldn't stop. I turned off the amp and when it came back on the buzzing had stopped. After that, I figured it was best to stop playing and unplug it. I'm not really sure what the problem is. Could it be the tubes (the seller said that the tubes were originals, I believe)? Or is it a bad fuse? Or both? I hope that it's not anything too terrible. Please gearslutz help me. __________________ modernhumanmusic.com

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21st May 2009	#3
Sword in Hand Gear addict Joined: Apr 2004 Location: Ventura/Ojai, CA Posts: 323 Thread Starter 2 Reviews written	Come on guys. At the very least, what is a good repair shop near Ventura County, Santa Barbara or LA (LA is a bit far though)?

23rd May 2009	#4
Lee Cardan Lives for gear Joined: Apr 2009 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 1,462	I had one of those amps a while back They are mosty definitely problematic, but I can't relate my problem to yours Eitherway, one thing you should definitely do is re-solder every joint on the circuit board that has the valves on it. The problem with mass manufacturer incorporating wave soldering is that most of these joints have very little solder on them. You can wiggle any of those big caps and see the legs poking through the solder wiggle too. Over time, the head makes the small amount of solder brittle, and can develop hairline cracks leading to all kinds of weird behavior (mind just cut out all together). When I resoldered all joints it worked perfectly again

26th May 2009	#5
Sword in Hand Gear addict Joined: Apr 2004 Location: Ventura/Ojai, CA Posts: 323 Thread Starter 2 Reviews written	Thanks Coschi, I don't know much about soldering. Is there a particular soldering iron you recommend? Or should I take it to a tech? My amp was made in 97 (mistake made about 98-99 earlier), were they wave soldered then? I know for sure they were made in America then, not Mexico like today. I bought new tubes, but haven't received them. I kind of think the problem is not the tubes, though. Anybody know symptoms of bad power tubes? Any good techs in Ventura County or Santa Barbara?