AAARGH!! UPS strikes against the Superstar

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Just took delivery of a Superstar amp...wow, bigger than I pictured it.

superstar%201.jpg


Unfortunately, with perfect aim, UPS poked a 1" hole through the box, the grille cloth and the SPEAKER! :shock:

superstar%202.jpg


Speaker damage doesn't hurt too bad...but I cry at the damage to that cool-man two tone grill!

More pics as the drama unfolds...
 

matsickma

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You can probably still salvage it with a repair using a small piece of plastic screen door material. Remove the speaker and then reshape the grill cloth into position. Buy a thin test of fishing leader and thread that on to a sewing needle. Then carefully stitch the two together. If your careful you can make look to be a minor blem. (note maybe black thread will be less obvious. I have only done this with clear fishing leader. The speaker can be salvaged with some JBL black mastic which some times appears on ebay. What typer of speaker is it? Stock Eminence or EV SRO? If it is the stock Eminence you probably want to change it out for guitar use.

That is exactly the reason when I ship an amp I install a minumum of TWO extra pieces or corrugated cardboard in front of the grill cloth. When buying an amp I always request double extra cardboard on the front but rarely do sellers adhere to my request.

M
 

coastie99

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mojo2001 said:
Just took delivery of a Superstar amp...wow, bigger than I pictured it.

superstar%201.jpg


Unfortunately, with perfect aim, UPS poked a 1" hole through the box, the grille cloth and the SPEAKER! :shock:

superstar%202.jpg


Speaker damage doesn't hurt too bad...but I cry at the damage to that cool-man two tone grill!

More pics as the drama unfolds...

Ooh Mo ......... serious anger-making stuff; I feel for you.

Here's what the pillocks managed to do to my Thunder 1 ...........

IMG_0902.jpg


IMG_0907.jpg


NEVER again will I accept shipment by UPS !! :evil: :evil: :evil:
 
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Well, at least it was only an Eminence...cone seemed nice and tight though. I should look for an EV perhaps...

superstar%203.jpg


Unit is two chassis with an umbilical cord from preamp module to lower power amp chassis.

superstar%203a.jpg



Former owner replaced fuse with a doobie rolled out of aluminum foil. Replacing that fuse holder is first order of business.

superstar%204.jpg


Don't you hate when you buy an amp and it comes loaded with old, foreign tubes...like Telefunkens and Mullards :wink:

superstar%205.jpg


Could use a new pair of 6L6s though--two different kinds in there now.
 

capnjuan

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Hi MJ: everybody has their favorite whipping boy for what's wrong with the shipping/delivery biz .... UPS is tied to my post ... has been for some time. Coastie's amp was likely hit by a fork of a forklift truck .... your's looks run through by an unwrapped #10 bar of reinforcing steel ... :evil: Too bad the amp shipped with those stinky old Euro preamp and reverb tubes ... oh well ... what's a boy to do? :wink: Sorry about your amp ... filed a claim yet? Might could get the carrier to pay for a new speaker. John
 

john_kidder

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Pissed off, I'll bet. I received a UPS-shipped Thunderbird in even worse shape, but that was the fault of the seller, not the shipper. This looks like claimable damage, for sure - you'll have pics of the box and the interior, and a pretty solid case.

But you must be especially sad about those tubes. Just out of the goodness of my heart, I'll trade you a replacement set of brand new Sovteks so you can get some satisfaction out of this.
 

jp

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Bummer mojo2001 :(

Fortunately, it's not too traumatic. If you're a stickler for condition, you could also try to find a similar grill cloth for the punctured side, cut off the old and sew on the new. Or, mock up a similar new one with two new cloths and put away the original for safe-keeping.

matsickma said:
That is exactly the reason when I ship an amp I install a minumum of TWO extra pieces or corrugated cardboard in front of the grill cloth. When buying an amp I always request double extra cardboard on the front but rarely do sellers adhere to my request.
john_kidder said:
I received a UPS-shipped Thunderbird in even worse shape, but that was the fault of the seller, not the shipper. . .
With the freight business being what it is today, I think sellers need to pack responsibly and buyers should be willing to pay for it--plain and simple. Although a package being rammed with a forklift, as in coastie's case, is undoubtedly the shipper's fault, all sellers need to pack defensively, expecting rough treatment a la Amercan Tourister--okay, maybe not that bad :mrgreen: This has been the case with all the shipping disasters I've had.

Regarding an amplifier, I'd never ship chassis and cabinet together, unless it's small and portable like a Princeton Reverb or Champ size. The chassis should always be shipped separately bubble-wrapped, and double-boxed, with tubes individually wrapped in a small box, which is taped down. The cabinet should be shipped separately with extra protection in front of the grill as described by matsickma. I'd demand and pay no less for any amp handled with proper care.
 

jcwu

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Just chiming in - last year I had a Vox AC30CC2 delivered by DHL. Well, "delivered" wasn't quite the right word. The guy tried twice to deliver, but never left a note (so I had been wondering where my package was). Third time, he happened to catch my wife at home - he yelled at her for not having been home the last two tries.

So he goes to the truck, gets the package, brings it up the driveway, and instead of bringing it to the front door, he yells at her from the driveway, "Well, aren't you going to open the garage??" She was a bit stunned, but opened the garage, at which point he dropped the box on the floor, wheeled about, and left.

Surprise, surprise, when I got home, plugged in the amp, power came on but no sound. Tried replacing a rectifier tube, nothing. So I contact the seller, who is willing to take it back, but I had to ship the damn thing on my dime.

So in the end, no amp, out $80 (that thing was HEAVY), and I'll never use DHL again (which I won't be able to, even if I wanted to, since they're pulling out of the US domestic shipping business).
 
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I was a supervisor at UPS twenty years ago. Many hubs denied 100% of damage claims, regardless of evidence. The shipper made a good faith effort at packing but didn't understand the challenge. Each tube was wrapped in its own bubble envelope, for example, but "Nobody ever envisioned UPS spearing the box with a length of rebar."

Since dealing with Brown is such a buzz-killer, I'll just eat the damage, replace the speaker with something better, and try to mend the grill cloth carefully. I have to say the plywood cabinet on this amp is rock solid. If it was mere particle board, that would probably be broken too.

Overall build/parts quality in the power amp chassis seems quite high. Transformers are Schumacher, like Fenders of the era. Logical and compact point to point layout.

Chassis is on the bench, so will take more pics and replace the power cord, fuse holder, and a few caps tonight. I believe there is enough room underneath to replace the twistlok caps with singles (two 250uf, two 80uf sections in three cans) or I can use JJ cans, but never really trusted those JJ caps for some reason. I'd go with 105 degrees C Nichicon or similar instead.

In any case, this is one impressive and substantial machine. Totally pro grade construction.
 

capnjuan

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Hi MJ; I respectfully disagree with you on the insurance claim. Your shipper is the insured but you paid for the coverage ... eh ... right? I mean there is coverage, isn't there? As between the grillcloth and the speaker, the sadder but harder to repair is the grillcloth but the speaker; its damage - caused by UPS - renders your amp unfit for the use intended even though of the two hits, it's the easier problem to fix.

Several pics, a letter or an email without screaming ... strike me as low energy but equitable yield; I mean for not putting too much into it, you might get $100 or so out of them. Btw: unless you buy over-the-counter, you're going to have to have the speaker shipped to you ... maybe UPS? :wink: Anyway, you get points for being a smooth guy about it but you might be leaving some money on the table ... especially when the effort to recover isn't that great. My $.02 avoire dupois ... John
 
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Alright...filed a claim, mainly as an experiment, but I'm starting to like the idea of UPS buying me an EV or JBL for the injured Superstar.

Anyway, back to work!! Here are a couple gut shots of the power amp.

superstar%206.jpg


The bias section with the brown tubular cap will need to be redone. Plenty of room underneath to use modern caps in place of twistlocks.

Noted the bias measurement resistors (6.8 ohm on schematic, 7.5 ohm labeling) actually measure 8.6 ohms...important to know for proper bias measurement.

I disconnected the bumblebee death cap and left it in place connected to an unused terminal. This one is tricky to spot because the AC wiring runs up to the front panel switch then back to the power trans and the cap is on the return leg...but a death cap nonetheless!

superstar%207.jpg



Nice PTP wiring and layout overall. Most caps are those funky light blue mylars. No idea who made them but they usually sound pretty good.

New fuse, AC cord, and bias caps then I will fire it up for a quickie test before Mr. United Parcel Smashers comes to inspect the damage.
 

capnjuan

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Hi MJ; an insurance claim with UPS - a naysayer if there ever was one - is a little like asking a girl to dance; all she can do is say no. Yes; the space is helpful ... Antique Electronics still has a 3X40uf unit: C-EC40X3-525, your amp takes a 4X, no? Not certain but believe the caps are polyester ... common in many/most of the later '60s Guild amps. Keep the pics coming and good luck with YouPeeS. John
 

capnjuan

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capnjuan said:
... Not certain but believe the caps are polyester ...
Make that polycarbonate. J

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Brad Little

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I've bought several guitars over the last few years and have had no problems with UPS shipped instruments. I've been lucky, I guess. I have had problems with FedEx. No damage, fortunately, but no thanks to our delivery man. One guitar he just dropped over the chainlink fence at the end of our driveway, with "This Side Up" facing down, a second he wedged between the screen door handle and the porch step so that when my wife opened the door it went tumbling down three steps to the sidewalk below. Both times my wife was home and could have just as easily been notified. If a seller now wants FedEx, I ask that they specify signature required, although even then one package from Musicians Friend was just left on the front steps (just an effects pedal, but still...).

Brad
 

taabru45

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What size speaker. I have a Vox -Wharfdale 12" speaker 16 ohm, 30 watt job that I won't be needing.
.....and where are you located? Steffan
 

capnjuan

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Hi Steffan; the baffle in that amp is cut for a 12" speaker but the schematic doesn't indicate anything other than primary 8 ohm taps with an aux out in parallel. The V/W is a legendary speaker and Mr. MJ here knows his beans; if he can figure a way to make it work ... like having another 16 ohm load in parallel ... don't happen to have another one hanging around, do ya? :shock: :wink: Best, John
 

taabru45

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Sorry, just the one, but you've almost talked me into keeping it. :lol: How crucial would the 8-16 ohm difference make, and what about running a resistor in parallel....can you tell I'm mostly an acoustic guy these days? What is a GSH-1230-16 cost/worth these days. :wink: Steffan
 
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Hey Steffan...thanks for the kind offer. This amp takes an 8 ohm 15" though. Like I said above, this is a big @$$ amp.

Plus CJ is drooling on your speaker and the cone is getting soggy :lol:

I'd go low on the speaker Z before I'd go higher for guitar. A 16 ohm unit on an 8 ohm tap theoretically would yield lower distortion and less power out and a 4 ohm would be the other way around. This is due to the greater or lesser loading of the power tube when the speaker impedance is changed.

In my hifi experience, a low Z speaker sounds fatter and a high Z speaker sounds cleaner and more open on the same tap. All in all, it makes little difference.

I went ahead and bought a nice Altec 418B for $75 shipped. When I load this speaker in, I will need a crane to hoist the Superstar. Shipping weight was 81 lbs with the Eminence and the Altec is a much chunkier, cast frame unit.

After filing a claim, I decided to cancel it. I will be traveling three of the next five weeks, including a trip to Germany for an audio show. UPS wanted to take the amp in for evaluation and couldn't give me an answer when they would return it. I had visions of the poor thing sitting outside while I'm gone. My wife can't move it, that's for sure. Also, another round trip through the parcel smasher and who knows what would be left!

Ordered some replacement filter caps but in the meantime, I'm gonna fire this thing up. Hopefully tonight.
 

capnjuan

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taabru45 said:
How crucial would the 8-16 ohm difference make, and what about running a resistor in parallel....
Well; ... MJ has spoken. The rule of thumb (commonly misunderstood to be: "Not more than two") is Half or Double; the impedance load can be as little has half or not more than double the rated load of the OT. The combination will still work but only in the manner MJ has outlined and can pose risk if the impedance gets as low as 2 ohms ... that's not very much resistance between a health OT and a dead short. :shock:

I tried a non-inductive 8 ohm resistor across a 16 ohm speaker but without realizing that the speaker had voice coil issues that ... <ahem> ... an eBay vendor forgot to mention. I had the vc replaced and down-rated to 8 ohms and the resistor experiment was moot. J
 

capnjuan

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mojo2001 said:
Hey Steffan...thanks for the kind offer. This amp takes an 8 ohm 15" though. Like I said above, this is a big @$$ amp. Plus CJ is drooling on your speaker and the cone is getting soggy ...
:lol: Well, that's an oops for me on the size but the fact is that only Jensen / Weber spoken here at JuanzAmpz and, with one C12Q exception, alnico at that. Ya know MJ, I hate to mention this but studies indicate that guys who wimp out on insurance claims suffer from low self-esteem ... :wink: ... but I can understand just not wanting to mess with it; wait around while the amp is exposed to yet more risk.

Got a solution on the rip yet? I was thinking about Matsickma's fix and it sounds like a good one although I wonder how you might make out taking the entire baffleboard, before the speaker is mounted, to a seamstress; a needle and thread fix by somebody who knows what they are doing?

Interesting rust patterns in the amp pics ... Good luck; hope it turns on, and out, well! J
 
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