Damage to Output Transformer?

[NPB_EST.1979]

I had somebody plug a Marshall 4x12 into my Rivera 55 watt tube combo with a guitar cable instead of an speaker cable. When I came downstairs I could smell how hot my amp was. I immediately shut it off after it had been playing for probably 45 minutes.

It could be placebo, but it doesn't seem my amp has the balls or the "giddee up" is used to, and I keep going back to when that cab was connected to amp with a guitar cable. Could the OT be worn out, or anything else possibly be damaged because of this?

[pdf64]

The output tubes will certainly wear out, and the fact that the amp was very hot indicates that they would have been working hard.
Replacement (output) tubes should be the first step, make sure that the amp bias is adjusted to suit them.
The main fault mode of guitar instrument cable used for speaker cable would be a short, due to the heat caused by overcurrent melting the insulation.

[NPB_EST.1979]

The output tubes will certainly wear out, and the fact that the amp was very hot indicates that they would have been working hard.
Replacement (output) tubes should be the first step, make sure that the amp bias is adjusted to suit them.
The main fault mode of guitar instrument cable used for speaker cable would be a short, due to the heat caused by overcurrent melting the insulation.

thanks for the tips. What if the tubes had less than four hours of normal use on them? Should I still replace them?

[pdf64]

It's helpful to have good spare tubes for times like these - the tubes are a lot cheaper, prone to wear/failure and easily replacecable than OT.
So even if it's not the tubes, then at least you'll have a spare pair.
Was the bias on the amp adjusted to suit them when the current pair was fitted?

[NPB_EST.1979]

yes it was biased and done correctly. it's pretty easy on the Rivera.

The JJ tubes ran a little hotter than my winged C tubes, so there's no problems putting the old Winged C tubes back in. I'm starting to think I like the Winged C tubes better and I don't know why. Less saturated or something. it also had Groove tube preamp tubes I replaced with high gain JJ tubes as well.
I replaced the G12-85 with an Eminence Governor speaker too and while doing this all at once it's hard to figure out what to tweak.

[txstrat]

I usually change one thing at a time.
I'd say the most significant change in tone would be the swapping of the speaker. Followed by the preamp tubes and the power tubes (provided you stay with the same type of tubes).