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WARP X - MANUAL
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ENGLISH
The WARP X™ ships with 6L6 and 12AX7/ECC83 tubes.
Once they’ve been burned in (initial continuous operation
under a load), these tubes undergo an in-depth selection
process where their electrical values and mechanical
status (microphonics) are checked. Then they’re installed
in a test amp and their sound is auditioned by ear.
One of the most important steps is power tube matching,
a process whereby tubes with the same characteristics
are selected and combined to make matched sets.
WHEN IS IT A GOOD IDEA TO REPLACE TUBES?
The tubes in the WARP X™ are exemplary in terms
of quality, workmanship and long service life. If you
encounter a problem, please run down the following
checklist before you swap your old tubes for new ones:
Was the fault or failure of the power tube caused by the
tube itself or a flawed peripheral device or component,
perhaps a defective speaker cable? (If you don’t get to
the bottom of the problem and remedy it, it may crop
up again even after you replace the tubes.)
Did the mains voltage fluctuate or spike while the amp
was on? In all-tube amps, over-voltage surges in the
mains net can certainly blow fuses or even the amps.
Over-voltages are often caused by generators or faulty
high-current power circuits.
Did a fuse blow even though none of the tubes is actually
defective? An old fuse, tube de-ionization or mains
voltage power surges could have caused it to blow. In
this case, replacing tubes is a waste of money and time.
Tubes definitely show signs of wear when their service
life nears its end, including increased microphonics,
noise, muddier tone through loss of high-end frequencies,
degraded performance, etc. Take these indications
seriously and replace old tubes. Not only do these
side effects take their toll on sound quality, they are
also a sure sign that the tube is about to fail.
NOTE
Though it may be tempting to find out what an amp
sounds like with different tubes, please refrain from
replacing tubes for experimentation purposes. This
can damage the amp and cost a small fortune to
repair.
WHAT SHOULD YOU KEEP IN MIND WHEN YOU’RE
REPLACING TUBES?
The golden rule: Replacing tubes is a job best left to
qualified professionals. Accordingly, these guidelines are
addressed to qualified technicians who earn their living
with a screwdriver:
Pull the mains plug of the WARP X™ and allow for a
discharge time of at least two minutes before removing
the sheet metal panel on the rear of the amp. Once the
panel is off, you can cautiously ease the tubes out of
their sockets. A single power tube may only be replaced
if the replacement tube precisely matches the original,
in other words, if it has exactly the same characteristics.
If you’re replacing power tubes, use matched sets only.
If you’re installing a new set of power tubes whose
characteristics are identical to those of the old set,
it is not absolutely necessary to re-bias the amp.
On the other hand, if you install a new set with different
characteristics, be sure to re-bias the amp. Again, biasing
an amp is not a DIY task. It requires experience and an
extensive working knowledge of measuring techniques,
which is why this job should be carried out only by
qualified technicians with tube amp tuning experience.
DARK DESIRE