How Much Does Amp Repair Cost

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How much should this amp repair cost?

• Thread starter TomH8
• Start date April 25, 2022

• #one

its a 67 bandmaster that has been sitting for years. All original, including tubes, except for the 3 prong chord. I brought it to a place I've never been to get looked at. They said it needs two new 6l6s and a cap job. The judge is $328. Seems kinda steep to me, what do you lot guys think?

Also, in the other thread I posted when I got it someone said the original rca 6l6s are valuable. Are they still valuable even if they demand to be replaced? Not sure if that is a dumb question.

• #2

That price seems off-white. Not everyone knows vintage amps, so you're paying for the guys knowledge, as much equally his time.
But be certain the tech you lot cull knows his concern, or yous may cease up with a very cool vintage paperweight.

Last edited: Apr 25, 2022

• #3

The guy I've taken my amp to charges a $90 bench fee + actress for labor and parts so that approximate doesnt seem that far off the mark in one case you cistron in the labor and a new set up of tubes. Id' rather pay a premium fee to have it washed right than take a chance and have some "tech" at guitar heart mess with it. Brand sure he is a authorized Fender repair center get-go and then encounter if he has any yelp reviews.

• #4

seems to be in the ball park..

• #five

It's probably a 2 hour bench charge so:

180 bucks labor.
150 in parts.
Approx. 330 bucks

Yep it'south in the ballpark.

• #6

If you get the old tubes back yeah, it's a reasonable price. The cap job (presuming we're talking about the filter caps) is the biggy.

You exercise want to confirm that that caps they're installing are proficient quality capacitors and not some junk from who knows where.

• #7

Agree that is a fair price. Once you offset playing it y'all may feel guilty you didn't pay more. ;-)

• #8

its a 67 bandmaster that has been sitting for years. All original, including tubes, except for the 3 prong chord. I brought it to a place I've never been to become looked at. They said it needs two new 6l6s and a cap chore. The estimate is $328. Seems kinda steep to me, what practice you guys think?

Also, in the other thread I posted when I got information technology someone said the original rca 6l6s are valuable. Are they still valuable even if they need to be replaced? Not sure if that is a impaired question.

Exercise y'all know for sure information technology isn't working? if it works fine then there's no demand to worry. The toll is fair, parts and labor is well worth it. The dead RCAs are pretty much junk, simply the live ones depending on type could get perchance a hundred or and then. Make certain they are actually expressionless by buying a cheap tube tester off eBay. Not all amp techs know what they should. Likewise bank check to meet if the filter caps really demand work. Play through the amp, and if the sound comes in all crackly and indistinct, he's correct.
cracking amp troubleshooting source-
http://www.geofex.com/ampdbug/ampdebug.htm

• #xi

I repair electronic equipment to the component level and have been doing information technology for a living for 50 years. If the ability tubes really do need replacing, in that location's no reason to save spent tubes even if they are RCA, and its extremely likely that the filter caps and possibly some of the other electrolytics demand to be replaced. Resistors seldom demand replacing, although the screen filigree resistors on the power tubes often do burn up when the ability tubes fail. 470k ohms and 1/2 watt if I remember right. I know I have some here, merely I haven't seen the inside of a Fender tube amp since the mid 1970's. I worked on a boatload of them in those days however. Personally, I wouldn't care if he were factory certified or not, perchance on their newer gear, merely everything in those one-time amps is generic and available from multiple sources.

Practiced luck, it sounds like a fair cost to me and it'due south an amp worth fixing.

• #12

Thanks guys. I told him to go along. I just wanted to make sure it was a fair price. I know information technology needed some piece of work. And he isn't a certified fender tech, just he has a lot of bang-up reviews and references on some vintage gear. I'1000 comfortable he volition do skilful work.

• #13

Does information technology include a bias? What make parts are they using for caps and tubes?

• #14

Exist interesting if you could pull some of the pot and transformer codes off to get a feel for how 67 information technology really is...

All the pots and transformers in both of my 67's (a Deluxe and Super Reverbs ) date mid to late 66. They're still 67's considering the T numbers say and then but I become a kick near thinking them just another year older. Funny, spouse doesn't become a kick out of being older than me, but I get kicked if I remind her of it.

Information technology's a sweet amplifier and it is worth getting back into shape.

It's a skilful habit to inquire for old parts back merely equally as matter of routine. I once had an quondam Pro Reverb that I took in for just a tune up and the tech, non being a player himself, went to town replacing pretty much every old function he saw, completely changing the amp'due south tone...and not in a good style. We had some words and I insisted he put the old stuff dorsum in. He wasn't very happy with me. Even less so as I likewise refused to pay for piece of work I didn't qualify.

• #15

its a 67 bandmaster that has been sitting for years. All original, including tubes, except for the 3 prong chord. I brought it to a place I've never been to get looked at. They said it needs 2 new 6l6s and a cap task. The estimate is $328. Seems kinda steep to me, what exercise you guys retrieve?

Also, in the other thread I posted when I got it someone said the original rca 6l6s are valuable. Are they nevertheless valuable fifty-fifty if they need to be replaced? Not sure if that is a dumb question.

Seems kinda steep to me just yous're in jersey not the southern u.s. so perchance. Only for comparison, my tech charged me $155 or then to recap, bias, three prong, and AB163 my '69 Twin final November. The tubes price me $80 for a gear up of 4 JJ'southward. So $235 total. He cleans and adjusts all the pin receptacles in each tube socket so the tube fits in just correct and tests but about every component in there to make certain values are all in spec when you bring him an amp for service. A very thorough dude.

In my experience a skillful tech volition give you the parts he removed without being asked and besides often carry on about this and that even when you don't care; they are into the amp. All my amp/organ techs take been older 50+ dudes that really enjoyed seeing old gear rise again so they just wanted to share all their tech-head knowledge with anyone, even when I don't understand most of information technology.

RCA 6L6's are valuable. He could easily say "they test bad" and so get flip them someplace else. At present he made even more off yous. A lot of the scum bums on ebay are selling RCA'southward that are at the end of their life. Course most guys don't realize it until the tech with the tube tester tells them they are bad or close to it. And the seller tin can always say "must've been damaged in aircraft". I would enquire for them back regardless what he says. He's charging you lot a premium for the work IMO.

• #16

Become those old output tubes back from the guy, as they may still exist good and are worth bucks!

these amps original output tubes where GE make, not RCA !

I would as well ostend that he is installing something other than Sovtec or EH make ( Sovtec relabeled ) output tubes equally the suck, even the China fabricated ones audio meliorate when pushed hard.
JJ brand, or the Groovetubes 6L6S version in a number 2 rating for dejection playing , or a number 5 to seven rating for proficient clean power above Noon on the volume control.
These amps tin can easily top in that location 35 watt RMS rating to the tune of 42 watts with these tubes!

• #17

I am getting all of the parts dorsum and he is putting jj tubes in. He said information technology should exist done in some other day, I tin can't wait.

Miotch

Most Honored Senior Member

• #18

Every fourth dimension I used to take my Super in, information technology was $90 plus tubes, if needed. Even the epitomize was $90 and included the new caps. But, that was 15 years ago .....

• #19

I got my start as an electronics tech. So moved in a 35 year career first as a Data Communications Tech, and then a Data Comm Engineer. Ended up designing and building custom fiber Optic Networks Gigabit, and 10 Gigabit Infrastructure Connections to the Internet Backbone.

And then, I think that the charges you describe are reasonable and fair. Actually pretty inexpensive considering what was described.

Time plus Labor plus Parts ....not certain how accessible the Bandmaster guts are...
Keep in mind that the tech company has overhead - diagnostic equipment, rent, electricity, labor salaries...

- does the electronics bench need to be removed from enclosure to work on information technology? ....Probably
- Power up and eyeball the tubes - Are the filaments all lit up?
- Hook up a signal generator and inject the simulated guitar signal. Signal Gens cost them coin
- Trace betoken all the manner through all the amp'due south stages with oscilloscope.
Skilful O-scopes cost a scrap almost $2K up to $5K
- Come across what component(s) is/are degenerating or has failed. Sometimes it's more than than simply 1 component.
e.g. a bad resistor or capacitor can cause a tube failure. Simply replacing the tube is a N.G. fix
- Contact customer with estimate and approval
- Buy Parts
- In the case of tubes, the swap is fairly piece of cake. other components such as capacitors demand to exist removed and resoldered in. Big electrolytics such as what's done after long term utilize are more $.
- Test Unit of measurement
- Call customer to pickup ( or deliver to customer which costs them - & is passed on to y'all )

And so the cost sounds OK to me

• #20

I would practice that for less money just then I am in Germany.
That would be effectually $330 equally well, shipping included xD.

Life is good,
Robin

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