Received Randall Thrasher 120 - issues out of the box??

[napalmdeath]

When I got it, I had no sound, whatsoever. The tubes were barely even lighting up. I started checking several things, and behold, the issue was the voltage switch was set to 240V! Ok, odd....Box says 120V, but obviously somebody goofed at the factory, or Sam Ash had it out of the box plugged in, and mucked with it as a demo..

So, now I have tone.. I can go up past noon on the Master volume, and Channel volume, it should be deafening, but, it's anything but. It's about like my Splawn on like 2. Based on my experience with the 50, this doesn't seem normal.

So, would running it at 240V for a short period damage anything? I think I'm just going to send it back. Something seems off. I even checked the bias, and while doing so, it was popping, (which made the power tubes surge), just by inserting leads into the test points. Definitely, also not normal.

 

[technomancer]

Given you basically ran the amp at half voltage meaning half heater voltage on the tubes the tubes could easily be screwed. It's been a while but IIRC there is also a boost switch or something on there that has a big impact on the volume.

 

[napalmdeath]

Given you basically ran the amp at half voltage meaning half heater voltage on the tubes the tubes could easily be screwed. It's been a while but IIRC there is also a boost switch or something on there that has a big impact on the volume.

Would it effect the preamp tubes as well?

I've got it dialed in pretty good. I went through the power tube sockets, and cleaned them, and re-seated them all, and popping is gone. I also noticed the speaker outs a little scratchy, and cleaned them as well.

The taper on the volume knob is pretty extreme. It jumps quite a bit from noon to 1:00. As far as I can tell, it's functioning 100%. I just don't know if the 240V issue didn't shave some life/volume off the power tubes. Still seems like it should be louder.

Another thing to note, is the loop stays engaged without a pedal to switch it off. I'm going to try a jumper to see if bypassing it brings the volume up. Maybe the loop itself is a volume suck.

 

[Shask]

Yeah, I was wondering if the loop was cutting the volume somehow. Maybe the return level is set really low or something.

 

[fearhk213]

Does the channel volume possibly need to be higher? I mention it because the Thrasher is based on the Natas and with the Natas you want to keep the channel volume between 3:00-4:00. That sounds really high, but that’s just the way it’s designed. Having the channel volume too low makes a huge difference in the volume and makes the tone sound a bit off. I’m sure somethings in the design are different between these amps and having never played a Thrasher I don’t know if this is one, but I figured I’d mention it.

 

[napalmdeath]

Does the channel volume possibly need to be higher? I mention it because the Thrasher is based on the Natas and with the Natas you want to keep the channel volume between 3:00-4:00. That sounds really high, but that’s just the way it’s designed. Having the channel volume too low makes a huge difference in the volume and makes the tone sound a bit off. I’m sure somethings in the design are different between these amps and having never played a Thrasher I don’t know if this is one, but I figured I’d mention it.

I know the channel volume is tied to the effects send level as well. It's a balancing act between the send level and channel volume to get it dialed in, (I am using multiFX in the loop). It sounds damn good. But it still bothers me about how much volume it lacks, and the possible effects that the amp arriving set at 240V had on the power tubes.

My Splawn Competition, overall sounds way louder. Could be the Iron in it, (and should be, honestly).

Overall, the Thrasher, once I've gotten it dialed in, sounds pretty damn good! Of course I've always been a big fan of the 50 watt. The volume is going to bug the piss out of me. I don't have any quads of tubes to try, but have a pair of EL34's, and Tungsol 6L6's I can load in to see if those stock tubes were compromised. They could just be shit to begin with, which knows.

 

[panhead]

It would be the equivalent of 60 volts on a variac at 120. Surprised you got any sound more than a mouse fart. Messed up the tubes IDK? I wouldn't think so if it was not for a long period. Good luck with it.

 

[napalmdeath]

It would be the equivalent of 60 volts on a variac at 120. Surprised you got any sound more than a mouse fart. Messed up the tubes IDK? I wouldn't think so if it was not for a long period. Good luck with it.

I didn't even get a mouse fart when it was on 240V.

Seems ok. Sounds good. But, I'll be calling Sam Ash tomorrow, and probably just return it. I'm not taking chances.

Must be a sign from above, "Keep the Splawn, you dumbass". I'm sure glad I took it off the classifieds and Reverb a few days ago. I plugged it in a bit ago, and everything was quite clear!