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  • heat wave=bad tone?

    Ok, don't take this the wrong way....i am NOT assuming this is even possible. But i AM asking if it is. We've had a heat wave here thats one of the worse i have seen to date after a lifetime living here. Everyday has been around 105-110. The electrical grid is being taxed to the point there have been lots of power outages. And in the last few days my fender modeling amp doesn't seem to sound as good as usual. Yes, i understand how the human ear works and all that crap, but this seems different. It's consistent when my amp sounds great almost all the time. I checked the mains and they were about 5-6 volts less than usual if memory serves. Is that enough to screw with a modeler's tone? It DOES have an analog power section by the way so maybe that's whats being affected? But in any case, is this even possible? I only ask because it occurs to me that unlike a tube amp a SS amp probably runs off of very low voltages so a few volts would be a large percentage. On the other hand, would it not be affected because of voltage regulators? (how far off can it be before a VR can't supply the correct VDC)

  • #2
    The power grid isn't the problem.
    High temps increase the speed of sound, messing up room reverb.
    Also, all your plastic picks get softer/floppier.

    - Physics Guru Man

    PS: Worst hurricane damage in U.S. history, chemical plants exploding, and you're worried about a modeling amp?
    DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

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    • #3
      It's the germanium transistors that are heat sensitive don't you know.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by mozz View Post
        It's the germanium transistors that are heat sensitive don't you know.
        Oh, you mean the modeled germanium transistors?
        Sometimes those models can be a bit too accurate....
        DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

        Comment


        • #5
          Is there a model for "it sounds best right before it blows up"? I really don't think, well maybe, 20 volts less would affect the sound. Best way to find out is a variac, some do 0-140v.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by mozz View Post
            Is there a model for "it sounds best right before it blows up"?
            That would be the David Lindley emulator.
            DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

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            • #7
              paper speakers drastically change their tone with humidity changes.
              "Stand back, I'm holding a calculator." - chinrest

              "I happen to have an original 1955 Stratocaster! The neck and body have been replaced with top quality Warmoth parts, I upgraded the hardware and put in custom, hand wound pickups. It's fabulous. There's nothing like that vintage tone or owning an original." - Chuck H

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              • #8
                Originally posted by bob p View Post
                paper speakers drastically change their tone with humidity changes.
                I dunno, that sounds pretty far-fetched to me.
                DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

                Comment


                • #9
                  Originally posted by rjb View Post
                  The power grid isn't the problem.
                  High temps increase the speed of sound, messing up room reverb.
                  Also, all your plastic picks get softer/floppier.

                  - Physics Guru Man ...
                  I won't tell you what to do, but I would advise against calling yourself ANYTHING ending in "Guru Man" around here...

                  Justin
                  "Wow it's red! That doesn't look like the standard Marshall red. It's more like hooker lipstick/clown nose/poodle pecker red." - Chuck H. -
                  "Of course that means playing **LOUD** , best but useless solution to modern sissy snowflake players." - J.M. Fahey -
                  "All I ever managed to do with that amp was... kill small rodents within a 50 yard radius of my practice building." - Tone Meister -

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Originally posted by Justin Thomas View Post
                    I won't tell you what to do, but I would advise against calling yourself ANYTHING ending in "Guru Man" around here...
                    I know about SGM. That was part of the joke.
                    But thanks for the advice!
                    DON'T FEED THE TROLLS!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Originally posted by daz View Post
                      Ok, don't take this the wrong way....i am NOT assuming this is even possible. But i AM asking if it is. We've had a heat wave here thats one of the worse i have seen to date after a lifetime living here. Everyday has been around 105-110. The electrical grid is being taxed to the point there have been lots of power outages. And in the last few days my fender modeling amp doesn't seem to sound as good as usual. Yes, i understand how the human ear works and all that crap, but this seems different. It's consistent when my amp sounds great almost all the time. I checked the mains and they were about 5-6 volts less than usual if memory serves. Is that enough to screw with a modeler's tone? It DOES have an analog power section by the way so maybe that's whats being affected? But in any case, is this even possible? I only ask because it occurs to me that unlike a tube amp a SS amp probably runs off of very low voltages so a few volts would be a large percentage. On the other hand, would it not be affected because of voltage regulators? (how far off can it be before a VR can't supply the correct VDC)
                      SS amps stand lown mains better than tube amps, specifically because tubes besides needing HV to operate, also need to boil electrons from filaments, donīt know what law rules electron emission, but thermal radiation is proportional to the *fourth* power of temperature, so itīs *hugely* affected by tiny changes ... electron emission might also follow a similar very sensitive Law.
                      Juan Manuel Fahey

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                      • #12
                        With regard to voltages on modelling amps: Most of these are SMPS based and the primary form of regulation is via a feedback loop in the supply itself. This means that they are hugely tolerant of input voltages and it's not uncommon to see them where they can operate between 90v and 260v without any adjustment. Even when there's a nominal input voltage rating they will still hold the output voltage steady under load during a brownout or lower than usual input voltage.

                        This takes care of the main output used to supply the output devices in the power amp. There are also secondary supplies for opamps, processors, fans or whatever. These are usually taken care of with a number of linear regulators. Again, the input to these tracks the main output voltage and is relatively stable. The regulators need a higher voltage input than they output to enable them to regulate - the 'dropout voltage'. If the voltage difference between input and output is insufficient then the device will be unable to regulate the output.

                        With a conventional amp with a linear power supply (non-SMPS) the power amp is supplied via an unregulated DC feed, but the preamp side will usually have some form of regulation - resistor/zener, or 3-terminal linear regulators. It's usual for the input voltage to these to be high compared to the output and this gives protection against mains voltage variation. The power amp won't be troubled too much with a voltage drop. In an extreme case you may need to turn the amp up a little more than usual, but that would be exceptional. Power up a regular SS amp and see just how much you can drop the voltage on your variac before the volume drops. It's quite some way.

                        So, I don't think the voltage is the issue. Maybe the speaker suspension is less-stiff, maybe humidity change affecting the cone, maybe this, maybe that. It would be difficult to identify what's happening unless you had baseline detailed measurements for the regular amp compared to how it is now. I'm not saying there's no change - just that it would be difficult to identify all of the incremental things going on that would add up to an audible change.

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                        • #13
                          With increased HVAC consumption I'd put my bet on increased electromagnetic noise pollution all around, going through ground wire and air->pickup messing with the sound. That assuming we sort out the ear and brain component of the path that you may have hinted on. Fingers get thicker with heat too, more significantly than any value of a smps part...

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                          • #14
                            Don't forget after a big bad storm generators may be back feeding your line. I had a SS bass amp go nuts after the hurricane when it was at the customers house. It worked fine back at my shop and freaked out again when he brought it back home. In this case, the amp actually sounded like a generator with nothing plugged in but the speaker.
                            It's weird, because it WAS working fine.....

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