B-52 At-100 Transformer

[ltibb003]

My b-52 at-100 died completely.I was in the middle of playing it and it just died. It would not turn on. I took it to a small local music shop so they could diagnose and fix it. They charged me $80 just for a diagnoses. Found out it was the transformer and had to order a new one. So, they order it from B-52, and two months later it still has not arrived. I asked the guy who ordered it for the shipping number or whatever so i could complain to B-52, because i know its not the repairman's fault, but he said he couldn't give it to me. Is any of this normal?

[Enzo]

Normal? Transformers fail, yours may have failed. That would be normal enough.

Two months to get the part? beats me, call B-52 and ask if their transformers are back ordered. They could have a supply glitch, or not.

They SAY they ordered the part, but that doesn't mean they did.

SHipping number? In most cases, I call a supplier and order a part. No numbers are given. Some places do issue an order number, but many don;t. In any case, that number would be considered internal information at the dealer. Most companies are not going to share their internal information.

Likewise, while B-52 might tell you if there is a supply problem with certain parts, it would be a breach to tell YOU, a private individual, what was happening with the account of one of their customers. That is they shouldn;t discuss a company's orders with anyone but the company that placed the order. That is confidential business information.

And in this case, they probably would get your part from B-52, but in many cases parts do not come direct from the OEM. Wouldn;t do any good to call Fender to see if I had ordered volume controls for your amp if I had in fact ordered the Fender parts from CEDist, for example.

[ltibb003]

Thanks. So, is there anything I can do? Or do I just have to suck it up and wait til the transformer gets shipped to the store?

[Enzo]

You can call B52 and ask if there are any supply problems with their transformers. Even if they won;t comment on the particular dealer's orders, (and that would be my expectation) they still might tell you if they are back ordered. For all we know the guy is straight and he did order the parts two months ago. If B52 doesn;t have them, they can hardly ship any out.

You can talk to the store manager - I recommend politely - not to pitch a bitch, but to tell him you brought an amp in for service two months prior and have been told that parts are on order. That it seems like two months was time enough to have had a part come in, and that if the parts were back ordered at the factory, you should have been notified and given an expected ship date.

[ltibb003]

ok. Thanks a lot. I definately have no intentions of complaining to the store manager, he has been nothing but helpful to me. but i will give b-52 a call and ask if the transformers are backordered and if they have had problems shipping them to see if i can get some idea of when i might expect it. thank you!

[rf7]

When I've ordered parts from B-52 in the past, they had me order them through a place in Whittier, CA called Greg's Pro Audio. You might want to check in with them.

[JerryP]

I've heard of many shops that claim to have ordered parts that never do. In this day and age it doesn't usually take more than a week to get any part.

My bigger question would be is it actually bad? Quitting while playing sound like a blown fuse due to a power tubes shorting. The B52 uses a protection diode on the primary of the output transformer that can be damaged by a tube shorting also. If that diode fails the amp will continue to blow new fuses when new power tubes are installed making some "tech" think the output transformer is bad.

Output transformers do fail, but they are the first thing many people want to blame these days without proper diagnosis.
Jerry

[clintronics]

Inventory

In todays economy expensive parts are kept to a minimum. Suppliers are near zero with many parts. I just waited 2 months for OP transformer from CE dist.

[JerryP]

I've had no problems so far getting any parts. I go thru a fair amount of transformers.
Another thought on the B52, it's not like there aren't a pile of other transformers that will work on that amp. A shop should have no problem finding something that will work.
Jerry