brentrocks Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 How critical is warming up your tubes if you are only playing at a "in house" level? (2-3) I realize if you were at a gig, playing at 5-8 range, you need to let it warm up before you rock out w/ your c*** out!!!
chico Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 brent, always warm up those tubes a bit. the longer they are warmed up the warmer the tone. use the standby switch. this is no time to worry about your cabon footprint.
brentrocks Posted June 17, 2009 Author Posted June 17, 2009 i usually try to go and flip the power on 15-20 mins before i play...then i go down, plug in and flip the standby on but sometimes, i just go down and turn it on and got to it right away...(i try not to do that too often)
GuitArtMan Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 Sheesh, don't worry about it. Have the amp on standby when you power it on, let it warm up for a minute or so and then start rockin'! I've done it that way for years with no problems. Heck, I probably don't even wait a minute most of the time.
Steiner Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 Tubes, like a good woman, are best to warm up first and always.
Paul P Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 How critical is warming up your tubes if you are only playing at a "in house" level? (2-3) I realize if you were at a gig, playing at 5-8 range, you need to let it warm up before you rock out w/ your c*** out!!! As one of the high priests over at music-electronics-forum.com often points out, there are a lot of amps, like Fender Champs, Princetons, Tweed Deluxes, that don't have standby switches and aren't any worse for wear. " All a standby switch is there for is to silence the amp while letting the heaters stay warm. Then you can flip the switch and instantly play - no warm up time. Of course you can also just zero the volume control. You can put the standby switch anywhere you want in the circuit that does the job. There are no advantages, ther are just rationalizations from each builder as to why the way he did it is better than all the other ways. This amp simply does not need one. You install one because you want one. You will hear a lot of tallk of things like cathode stripping, but that doesn't happen at the low voltages and current in a Deluxe or a Princeton. Got a 50,000 watt radio transmitter? Then I'd worry. Your tubes are going to bust loose a screen grid winding and short out or something long before cathode stripping might occur." -- click for full thread While I believe the experts I can't help but wait a few seconds before going to "on".
Sparky Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 How critical is warming up your tubes if you are only playing at a "in house" level? (2-3) I realize if you were at a gig, playing at 5-8 range, you need to let it warm up before you rock out w/ your c*** out!!! Whats all this about cookouts now?
SouthpawGuy Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 Whats all this about cookouts now? Maybe practising for PSPII ?
Gitfiddler Posted June 17, 2009 Posted June 17, 2009 The Fender operating manuals typically suggest about a 30 second standby warm-up before and after. This is supposed to extend tube life. With the high price of aftermarket tubes these days, that makes sense to me.
smurph1 Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 So..Lemme see if I got this right..even though my Bues Junior has no standby switch, if I just turn it on with the volume down, all is well with the world? (Or at least with the amp?) That is pretty much what I've been doing all along..
MacDoggie Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 If not cranking it, I flip it on and let it sit for 3-5 minutes typically. When I play with others and will be pushing it, I'll let it warm up for 10-15 minutes. Same times on shut down for cooling...
Paul P Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 So..Lemme see if I got this right..even though my Bues Junior has no standby switch, if I just turn it on with the volume down, all is well with the world? (Or at least with the amp?) That is pretty much what I've been doing all along.. You should be fine. I just hunted down Fender's Blues Junior Operation Manual (what passes for one) and there's no mention of a startup procedure.
tulk1 Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 As a regular routine when gigging I have my amp on standby as soon as I can get it plugged in. The warmer the tubes, the better. Anyone else noticed that after an hour or two of playing a tube amp will get noticeably louder? And I don't mean the lead player turns up!! <lol> I have had this happen with every tube amp I've gigged with. Wonder if that is somehow connected to the tube temp.
smurph1 Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 As a regular routine when gigging I have my amp on standby as soon as I can get it plugged in. The warmer the tubes, the better. Anyone else noticed that after an hour or two of playing a tube amp will get noticeably louder? And I don't mean the lead player turns up!! <lol> I have had this happen with every tube amp I've gigged with. Wonder if that is somehow connected to the tube temp. Seems logical to me..But then again, I'm not a Vulcan..
big bob Posted June 19, 2009 Posted June 19, 2009 my dls needs at least two min on standby or the power will drop in half while I'm playing.. usualy only happens when it's cranked..
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