[SOLVED!] Tube Amp Troubleshooting no Sound

Have you ever seen a concert where guitarists were rocking the stage? Well, if it is a YES, then you must have noticed another instrument which tends to make the sound louder. Well, this is known as the amplifier and it is mostly used by the guitarists to amplify their sound so that each and every note reaches their audience. There are different types of amplifiers, but, let us discuss the tube type amplifiers and Tube Amp Troubleshooting no Sound in this article.

 

Basically, a tube-type amplifier is one which tends to utilise the vacuum type valves or tubes in order to amplify the incoming electrical transmission signals, which are generated by a musical instrument, mostly guitars.

Speaking about leas guitars and bass guitars, these electronic signals are generated by the strings and pickups of the guitar, which are of electromagnetic in nature. These electromagnetic signals tend to penetrate through the vacuum tubes of the amplifier as well as the power tubes, before coming out from the speaker of the amp.

Tube Amp Troubleshooting no Sound

Now that you have learnt significantly about the types of tube amplifiers and the different types of power tubes which are used, you should learn a bit of tube amp troubleshoot of no sound.

During the regular usage of the amplifier, one problem which always arises is that of no sound coming from the amplifier. Well, let us get to know how can we troubleshoot this issue:

• Most often, such a situation happens due to the defective wiring of all junctions. Hence, it is advised to remove all the wires and reconnect all of them after checking if all the wires are in good condition. If the situation does not get better, we will have to move to the second step.

• It is also advised that one should buy a speaker with a higher ampere and wattage rating than the amplifier itself. This is because if the wattage of the amplifier is higher than the speakers, the sound will be too feeble and sometimes, there might not be any sound at all.

• Last, but not the least, you will also have to you try and reroute all the input and output cables in order to make sure that there is no short circuit in the complete line.

So, by following such simple steps, you can guess the actual problem and troubleshoot any kinds of no sound problem in your tube-type amplifier. Apart from this, it is also suggested that all the wirings of the tube type amplifier should be checked at regular intervals so that there is no probability of short circuits or any other kinds of wiring issues.

Types of Tube-Type Amplifiers

Let us go through the two different types of tube-type amplifiers, which are known as the class AB and class A amplifiers.

Truly speaking, all the types of tube-type amplifiers can be categorised into two different classes, the class A as well as the class AB tube-type amplifiers. Most of the Class A amplifiers include the popular Vox AC 30 and compared to this, the most famous class AB amplifiers include the Marshall, Fender as well as various other high-end products.

One of the most critical differences between the class A amplifiers as well as the class AB amplifiers is that most of the class A amplifiers have been seen to get distorted more often and promptly if you keep on increasing the volume. Although some of the popular celebrities and artists appreciated the technique, yet, many are angered thinking of these unwanted distortions.

Apart from this, if you put volume to the maximum, most of the class A tube-type amplifiers tend to generate various overdrive cascades, which sometimes become very irritating.

On the other hand, the AB type of tube amplifiers is used by the artists who do not feel so positively about the vocal distortions and need some room. Apart from this, the class AB type of tube amplifiers has the ability to create a bass effect which is more intense and easy as compared to ones by the Class A tube amplifier.

Although both of these are completely different types of amplifiers, yet, it has been seen that many artists and musicians prefer to own both of them. This is because each and every project is different and such different projects require a various amalgam of sounds. 

Types of Tubes 

Let us now learn about the different types of tubes which are present in a tube-type amplifier.

To be true, most of the differentiation of tube-type amplifiers are based on the type of the tubes which are being used in the amplifier. The vacuum tubes which we discussed earlier, are not much popular among the music enthusiasts and it is mostly found in various other speakers. On the other hand, the power tubes are quite effective as they are very popular among the masses and produce much better sounds.

Following are some of the types of tubes which are being most commonly used:

• 6L6:

Basically, these are the special class AB amplifier tubes which provide good headroom and less distortion in the sound. Although these types of tubes are being installed majorly in the class AB amplifier, yet, there are many class A amplifiers which also own such tubes.

Some of the famous devices which use the 6L6 as their power tube include Fenders, Marshalls and some other brands. 

• 6V6:

If you consider the 6L6 as an American-made, then the 6V6 power tube is a British one. One aspect which makes these types of power tubes stand apart from their counterparts is that unlike the other power tubes which start to distort the music at higher volumes, these types of tubes will not distort ever. This quality makes this type of power tube an ideal option for the lead guitarist of a band.

Although there are various tubes available in the market, yet, these above-mentioned ones are the most popular and most widely accepted.