Tube Rattle / Peavey Classic 30

My little amp has developed a 'good' amount of tube rattle... just enough to make it very frustrating to play. I did a fair amount of internet searching to help me determine it was indeed the tubes, and not the cabinet that was rattling.

It seems fairly common on the Classic 30, and the Delta Blues. There's a fix available on eBay from a Gent who has developed a 'Tube Tamer', and it looks like it should do the trick.

My amp was purchased new, and is less than a year old and hasn't left the house since I purchased it. I've emailed Peavey's Customer Service detailing my problem. I'll wait for them to respond before I try any home or aftermarket fixes.

I had a Delta Blues for a while and was appalled at the lack of protection and/or support for the tubes. I see the new models come with a metal cage. Tom's Tube Tamer gets a lot of mentions as a fix for this.

That is the tube tamer I have on mine. Mine does not rattle at this time. It did at one time, even with the tube tamer installed, but I checked how the tubes were set and it stopped. It has not since. My amph goes in and out of the house, and is the previous "body style", and I purchased it used. The rattle I did have was annoying, but like I said, it seemed pretty easy to fix.

Thanks for the reply Gents... I'm sure it's not a big deal to fix, just thought I'd give Peavey a shout first to see what they had to say or do.

Mine is the newer design, and is fitted with tube retainers and a tube grill (guard). The tube retainers are a just a simple wire that slips over the tube to keep it seated. I'd like to see if there some type of heat resistant grommet that could be held in place at the tip of the tube by the retainer... this extra pressure on the tube might do the same trick as the 'Tube Tamer'

Tube rattle is a plague in combo amps. I had a few (different makes & models) one after the other that developed it.

I couldn't take it. I sold them off & got a head & 1x12 speaker cab setup. A little extra hassle to luf around, but I don't have anything rattling now.

My C30 and Delta both have that tube rattle. It's not noticeable at gig levels but around the house it has me thinking everything in the place is coming loose. I haven't tried the Tube Tamer yet. SVL seems to be without rattle so maybe it's worth looking into.

Eurotubes.com had a set of JJ power tubes (6L6s) for Hot Rod Deluxes that were either specially made or hand selected from their stock to eliminate tube rattle. HRDs are notorious for tube rattle. I put them in mine and it cleared the problem right up. If you need 6L6s, these might do the trick. I think I had to specify that they were for an HRD. If nothing else, you could contact these guys and see if they have a fix for your Peavey.

I was a bit hesitant at first to post this thread as I didn't want to come across as someone who was determined to rip a specific manufacturer... not in the least! I've posted many times on this forum that I've been very pleased with my Classic 30, so to start ripping it at the first sign of weakness would really make me out as a fair weather friend... and that's not cool. The rattle I'm experiencing is more pronounced when clean over driven, but that is a concern for me. I will retube this amp at some time in the future, and Eurotubes will likely get my business, but I'm not expecting them to fix my problem. I believe what many have stated here as in other threads that combos are more subject to rattle. If anybody else has had a rattle issue that they were able to cure, or curb... I'd be grateful to listen to it!

Cheers :beer:
David

David,
Almost every combo I've had has developed a rattle, which I usually attributed to tubes, at some time or another. So far (knock on wood), the Traynor hasn't, nor the SuperChampXD, but it's practically brand new.

I'm not trying to second guess you, 'cause I don't know what you've tried so far, but if it were me, first I would ever so gently remove each tube and then re-insert it (with the amph shut off and cool, of course). I had a Deluxe Reverb once, and this would stop it for awhile, dunno why. You could give the tube sockets a tiny shot of cleaner while you're at it if you're so inclined.
Second, you could have a tube getting a little too microphonic, and in that case either a tube tamer or new tube is probably in order. When I say "a little too microphonic" I simply mean all tubes are inherently microphonic, and as they age and become moreso you often get the dreaded rattles.
I used to swap a couple of the 12ax7's around in my old Fender Super when it started rattling. I'd just pull two at a time, swap 'em, and hope for the best, if it didn't stop, try two more. (I was young and poor) As a last resort I'd break down and buy a couple new ones, when I could afford them.
I've had really good luck with Eurotubes myself, I think you'll like the way they do business if you go that route and retube......... if you call and ask for Bob (Pletka), the owner, he'll be happy to talk shop if he's not too busy..........tell him what you've got going on and he'll most likely give you some recommendations right over the phone. Very nice guy, and sharp.
AAMOF, you might want to visit his site and just do some reading, his thoughts on tube rattle, his favorite amphs, etc.

http://www.eurotubes.com/

Hope this helps, the C-30 is a great amph, one of Peavey's many great tube creations.

New tubes + tube tamer should take care of it.

I love the Classic 30. Get yerself a Tele-type guitar, a Boss Blues Driver, and have at it (that was a rig I used in a jam once. I was impressed).