Post by Jim D. on Sept 28, 2021 10:27:01 GMT -5
My original Blues Deluxe developed some crackling at all volumes and those cheapo plastic, board mounted input jacks were terribly susceptible to any cord movement. It languished in the corner of my music room for about four years. I finally took it to a good amp tech. This gentleman is a retired E.E. and I found him on Craigslist of all places. He replaced the plastic jacks with Switchcraft ones and replaced three very jumpy pots with Fender OEM ones he had in stock. He felt using a spray was a short term solution. In addition, he thoroughly went through the entire amp, signal tracing everything, and retentioned and cleaned the tube sockets. He also rerouted and twisted certain wires and now it is dead quiet. All this for $120 which I consider extremely fair. He had photos of his board work and it was immaculate. I had forgotten how good this amp can sound, especially with a SSS Strat. The amp, as typical, goes from a soft level to very loud quickly on the volume, but the volume pot trick in the effects loop really opens up a more usable pot sweep. (Old timers on the FDP Forum might remember Steve Dallman, as he is credited with this and he always shared his expert advice. I miss him.) Anyway, an old friend is back and alive and it was like a new amp day for me.
