The Poweramp

[Stratzrus]

My take is that when Fryette stuff works, it works fine, but I'm not particularly impressed with the support and some particularities in their products.

I know some people have had issues with their support, both around NAMM and as a result of Covid but I've found their support to be excellent and timely, both in regard to troubleshooting what turned out to be a bad fuse in my PS-1, getting the "Fat Mod" for my Sig:X, and having an effects loop and relay for the Less/More mode installed in my Deliverance 120.

I just contact Dave at Support@fryette.com and if I didn't hear back right away I'd call and they always got back to me within 48 hours. Repairs were done with a one week turn around from them receiving my amp.

 

[Orvillain]

Their support is dogshit to be frank. Years and years ago they invalidated my warranty because I tried out a 12AY7 preamp tube in V1 to see if it would help calm a distortion issue down with the clean channel. They claimed that trying out alternative tubes voided my warranty, even though this is something that is commonly tried with amplifiers all across the world.

I wouldn't have minded, but I read about it on their support/users forum.

I also wouldn't have minded, but in the very same thread where I read about it, Dave the Fryette support guy was involved, and NOT ONCE did he tell any of the people in that thread that if they tried this it would invalidate their warranty.

The UK distributor was a sack of shit over the issue too.


As it turns out, my issue was caused by a dodgy rectifier tube. Once I replace it, my distortion issue went away.

Every single amp tech I've told this story to in the 10 years since it happened, has looked at me with amazement and astonishment.

Love Fryette amps. Hate their support. Don't trust them as far as I could throw them.

 

[Stratzrus]

Years and years ago they invalidated my warranty because I tried out a 12AY7 preamp tube in V1 to see if it would help calm a distortion issue down with the clean channel. They claimed that trying out alternative tubes voided my warranty, even though this is something that is commonly tried with amplifiers all across the world.

In all fairness, if you had read the warranty you would have known this. They don't want people swapping tubes in and out that they haven't supplied while under warranty because bad tubes can cause problems that they would then be responsible for fixing and sometimes people who don't know what they're doing try different tubes that they shouldn't i.e. KT66 vs KT88.

Clearly your opinions are strongly held but I'm sure you'd agree that the support issues that you had doesn't mean that they categorically have bad support. As I said, my experiences with Dave and their support have been exemplary over the years with several pieces of gear.

 

[laxu]

I know some people have had issues with their support, both around NAMM and as a result of Covid but I've found their support to be excellent and timely, both in regard to troubleshooting what turned out to be a bad fuse in my PS-1, getting the "Fat Mod" for my Sig:X, and having an effects loop and relay for the Less/More mode installed in my Deliverance 120.

I just contact Dave at Support@fryette.com and if I didn't hear back right away I'd call and they always got back to me within 48 hours. Repairs were done with a one week turn around from them receiving my amp.

I would assume it's better if you live in the US and can work with the company directly. I have had to email multiple times to get a response at all.

 

[Orvillain]

In all fairness, if you had read the warranty you would have known this. They don't want people swapping tubes in and out that they haven't supplied while under warranty because bad tubes can cause problems that they would then be responsible for fixing and sometimes people who don't know what they're doing try different tubes that they shouldn't i.e. KT66 vs KT88.

The manual says:

Warning! Substituting other tube types is not recommended.

That does not mean prohibited, and swapping out a 12AX7 tube for a 12AY7 tube is basic 101 electronics. Nothing to do with power tubes, which obviously are more risky and should not be swapped with unsupported tubes. Again, basic 101 electronics.

I swapped a preamp tube. Not a poweramp tube. There's nothing in the warranty or the manual explicitly stating you cannot swap out a preamp tube with a different type, which is something that people have been doing with tube amps since the 60's.

So no, not in all fairness. That is a particularly wrong-headed, historically illiterate, and biased reading.

 

[JT]

Yeah tube swaps should not void a warranty. Though I would assume a case by case would apply for an idiot trying to swap tubes with incompatible tube types.

 

[Elric]

I had the Power Station. I couldn't get on with the high-frequency rolloff that they built into it, and which you cannot disable.

The original PS had an LPF filter on the output but Fryette pretty quickly added a switch to enable/disable and then eventually removed the filter entirely, so the only ones where that is necessarily baked in would be if someone was buying a very early version on the used market. I would not class that as a general problem with the PS, only those specific models... pretty certain a strong majority of units in the wild do not have it as it was early in the product life cycle when the switch was added.

 

[Stratzrus]

As it turns out, my issue was caused by a dodgy rectifier tube. Once I replace it, my distortion issue went away.

And despite something simple like this you got your panties all twisted in a knot.

Anyone beyond a novice level of experience troubleshooting tube gear knows the first thing you do is test each tube to make sure it's functioning properly.

Also, if you have any sense and your product is under warranty, you contact the manufacturer first before opening the thing up and start changing parts in and out to make sure it won't void the warranty.

 

[Orvillain]

And despite something simple like this you got your panties all twisted in a knot.

Anyone beyond a novice level of experience troubleshooting tube gear knows the first thing you do is test each tube to make sure it's functioning properly.

Also, if you have any sense and your product is under warranty, you contact the manufacturer first before opening the thing up and start changing parts in and out to make sure it won't void the warranty.

I didn't get my panties twisted in a knot at all. I was frustrated and offended that the warranty for my entire amp was revoked by the US manufacturer, over something that is so simple and so commonly performed, that it really did feel like they just didn't want to support me because I was in the UK and I was more hassle than I was worth to them.

And for your information the reason I didn't check the rectifier tube is because Fryette told me it couldn't possibly be that, and to replace my preamp tubes. Which I started to do.

The symptoms were - high amounts of distortion on the clean channel, a lot of noise on the clean channel, with the gain channels seeming to be unaffected.

At the same time there was a large and popular thread on the Fryette users forum about the Sig:X clean channel being noisy, and what people could do about it. In that thread, various users were saying you can use a 12AY7 tube in V1 position in order to reduce the gain and therefore the noise throughout the amp. Some users reported success, and some reported no difference. Dave was posting in that very thread too, and not once did he warn anyone about warranty restrictions.

You would think that the official support guy posting on the official users forum, in a thread where people were recommending different preamp tubes.... you would think he would say something, no??? Or are you THAT blinded by your fandom of the company and their products??

Anyway, once I took it to my local tech, he switched out the power tubes one by one. No difference. Then he switched out the rectifer tube. All the symptoms went away. Unfortunately this happened after Fryette went Nagasaki on my warranty - again, for doing something very simple, very commonly performed, and for a maximum of 2minutes.

You don't know the story, you don't know the intracacies of the situation, and you don't know the history. So don't presume to cast aspersions from your comfy armchair. Cheers.

 

[Mongillo19]

What have I done with the thread revive

 

[Orvillain]

S'all good. People can express themselves. All I would say is, they make decent enough products, but I don't trust them and their support, and their warranty isn't worth toilet paper.

 

[JT]

I think if you don't need the reamping functionality; the form factor makes almost no sense over just getting a 5150iii 50 watter and calling it a day. The PS still feels like a heavy brick and unless rack mounted, really doesn't offer any form factor advantages.

 

[Mongillo19]

I think if you don't need the reamping functionality; the form factor makes almost no sense over just getting a 5150iii 50 watter and calling it a day. The PS still feels like a heavy brick and unless rack mounted, really doesn't offer any form factor advantages.

I'm leaning the quilter tbh. I've really enjoyed them in limited settings.

 

[JT]

I'm leaning the quilter tbh. I've really enjoyed them in limited settings.

I haven't tried the 202. For awhile there; I was OBSESSED with the "FRFR" settings and traditional 3 band eq it offered over the 200 and 201. Then I got a couple of Mesa Boogies and that thought process was forgotten about rather quickly

 

[Mongillo19]

I haven't tried the 202. For awhile there; I was OBSESSED with the "FRFR" settings and traditional 3 band eq it offered over the 200 and 201. Then I got a couple of Mesa Boogies and that thought process was forgotten about rather quickly

Definitely! I realized how much I liked the power amp and cab option when I was able to crank it

 

[JT]

Definitely! I realized how much I liked the power amp and cab option when I was able to crank it

For me; it came down to 200 and 201s for $250-300 and the 202 being $550 to where I was like "Nah; I'm not interested enough in the upgrade over the $200 difference in price". If I could have found a 202 for even $400 I would have given it a go because I like Quilter stuff quite a bit.

 

[Mongillo19]

For me; it came down to 200 and 201s for $250-300 and the 202 being $550 to where I was like "Nah; I'm not interested enough in the upgrade over the $200 difference in price". If I could have found a 202 for even $400 I would have given it a go because I like Quilter stuff quite a bit.

The one I used was a little strange. I think it was the 100? I'm tempted by the 101 if I don't need much volume

 

[Orvillain]

I think if you don't need the reamping functionality; the form factor makes almost no sense over just getting a 5150iii 50 watter and calling it a day. The PS still feels like a heavy brick and unless rack mounted, really doesn't offer any form factor advantages.

This is true, but then... if you've got a 5150III 50-watter - particularly the new ones with the stacked gain and volumes - then why would you bother using a modeller in the first place??? *ducks*

 

[Mongillo19]

This is true, but then... if you've got a 5150III 50-watter - particularly the new ones with the stacked gain and volumes - then why would you bother using a modeller in the first place??? *ducks*

You aren't wrong. I had a good amount of boutique amps but the 5153 stealth 50w was absolutely hanging with them. Something to be said about "classics" (if we can consider the 5150 line a classic).

I do plan on getting another head at some point and I think it will be the stealth again

 

[JT]

This is true, but then... if you've got a 5150III 50-watter - particularly the new ones with the stacked gain and volumes - then why would you bother using a modeller in the first place??? *ducks*