How Long Do You Let Your Boobs Warm?

[Ting Ho Dung]

I mean "Tubes". My el-84 amps I give about 30 seconds on standby. My 6L6 Mesa instruction manual says 2 minutes on standby. el-84's are cheap, 6L6s not so much. Plus, they say you have to buy a matched quad. So if one goes you have to buy four. On my Vox NT I'd just replace the one tube probably.

Edit: Sorry for the typo in the headline.

[Bloozguy]

I thought this belonged in the Outer Circle for a moment there...

I usually kick the power on and let the tubes warm up for as long as it takes to mix the first martini...

[crunchee]

I let the tubes/valves (terminology dependent on where you're from) warm up for as long as it takes me to grab the guitar case, pull out the guitar and put it on, plug in a cable into the guitar, then plug the cable into the amp. In other words, about two minutes.

[gorch]

I've never spent a thought about that.

[veatch]

5 minutes, max. Like crunchee - i get the amp set up first and fire up the heaters, then set up everything else. Probably about 5 minutes. 30 minutes seems excessive to me, but it won't hurt anything...

[veatch]

Just to add - the big glass, which i don't gig with, is probably longer. I'll turn it on and walk out of the room and come back about 5 to 10 minutes later.

[dragan]

.

[Ting Ho Dung]

I let the tubes/valves (terminology dependent on where you're from) warm up for as long as it takes me to grab the guitar case, pull out the guitar and put it on, plug in a cable into the guitar, then plug the cable into the amp. In other words, about two minutes.

I couldn't find anything to rhyme with Valve.

[Ting Ho Dung]

I've never spent a thought about that.

They say it makes your tubes last longer to let them warm up. I'm a cheap bastard.

[dicky5150]

I use a Marshall EL 34 power amp in my ack, and my amp is the first and last thing I switch on & off each rehearsal/gig. The cooldown is as important as the warm up in my opinion. I normally hav the amp on for a minimum 5 minutes before taking out of standby mode.

Regards

Dicky

[Toadroller]

I thought this belonged in the Outer Circle for a moment there...

I usually kick the power on and let the tubes warm up for as long as it takes to mix the first martini...

One mixes a first martini, then simply adds to it through the evening.

Oh, I give my tubes 30-60 seconds. Flick on; go grab guitar, pick, plug in, ready to go. The tubes on my 6l6-based Peavey valveking lasted 4.5 years and I recently replaced them out of curiosity. None failed.

[sixesandsevens]

I use a Marshall EL 34 power amp in my ack, and my amp is the first and last thing I switch on & off each rehearsal/gig. The cooldown is as important as the warm up in my opinion. I normally hav the amp on for a minimum 5 minutes before taking out of standby mode.

Regards

Dicky

I've read that about cool down as well. Specifically that hot tubes are much more fragile, so they're more likely to get damaged by a bump.

Sadly, I don have a reference for that, but having recently lost a power tube in my Deliverance (first power tube to go bad on me in 15 years), I wouldn't be surprised if it was from how fast I'd moved it out to a cold car when we finished the jam.

[Bloozguy]

A cool down period is nearly as important as a warm up period but for different reasons.

The warm up period prevents what is referred to as "cathode stripping." This is a loss of the metallic coating on the cathode caused by introducing the high voltage before the tube is fully warmed up. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the length of time it takes to prepare a martini is probably enough even for big bottle tubes.

Ever seen a blacksmith shop? How do they bend the metal? They heat it to red hot, just like the filament in a tube. Letting the tubes cool down, even for a minute or so, will prevent damage caused by physical impact.

[BadgerDave]

Blacksmith shop? Jeez, Ray, you are old!

[dragan]

.

[gorch]

I've never spent a thought about that.

They say it makes your tubes last longer to let them warm up. I'm a cheap bastard.

I've heard of that saying. On the other hand, when there is no guitar signal then there is noise. Electronically speaking, what is the difference?

[Ting Ho Dung]

I've never spent a thought about that.

They say it makes your tubes last longer to let them warm up. I'm a cheap bastard.

I've heard of that saying. On the other hand, when there is no guitar signal then there is noise. Electronically speaking, what is the difference?

I don't know. I'm not smart enough to figure that sort of thing out. Which is why I ask you smart guys to figure it out for me.

[Ting Ho Dung]

A cool down period is nearly as important as a warm up period but for different reasons.

The warm up period prevents what is referred to as "cathode stripping." This is a loss of the metallic coating on the cathode caused by introducing the high voltage before the tube is fully warmed up. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the length of time it takes to prepare a martini is probably enough even for big bottle tubes.

Ever seen a blacksmith shop? How do they bend the metal? They heat it to red hot, just like the filament in a tube. Letting the tubes cool down, even for a minute or so, will prevent damage caused by physical impact.

Isn't a martini straight vodka and an olive? If so, making the drink probably takes less time than walking to and from the kitchen. So, minute-and-a-half to two?

As for the cool down, if I'm practicing in my room and not moving the amp when I'm done, is a one to two-minute stand by mode good before I turn it off?

[Bloozguy]

Blacksmith shop? Jeez, Ray, you are old!

I actually only saw one at the Renaissance Festival...

[ib2010]

?About the cool down-- the 65 amps Empire "manual" says to power off BEFORE putting amp back into stand by mode -they say it's good to let the power "drain out"(or something similar) by not having amp in standby when shut down. ??????? Opinions or ideas ??? I'm no expert by any means, just wondering about the different philosophies out there.

[Ting Ho Dung]

?About the cool down-- the 65 amps Empire "manual" says to power off BEFORE putting amp back into stand by mode -they say it's good to let the power "drain out"(or something similar) by not having amp in standby when shut down. ??????? Opinions or ideas ??? I'm no expert by any means, just wondering about the different philosophies out there.

That's interesting. I've always done it stand by first. Often because I put the amp on stand by to answer the phone or whatever and than decide to turn it off. Things that make you go Hmmmmmm......

[django49]

"Isn't a martini straight vodka and an olive? If so, making the drink probably takes less time than walking to and from the kitchen. So, minute-and-a-half to two?"

Well IF you do it right, it takes slightly longer. NEVER use vodka (IMHO). I highly recommend this.......Use Tanqueray Ten, which has been stored in the freezer. Pour a respectable amount (no less than 3 ounces) into a shaker with ice.....Yes, shaken not stirred! Strain into a martini glass (which has also just come out of the freezer!). Spear 2 (or 3) large martini olives (preferably NOT on wooden toothpicks).....But only after rinsing the olives and patting them dry to remove all but the slightest hint of vermouth. Serve immediately.

Take the first sip of that ice cold martini as you are prepared to go off standby and dip into your tastiest slow blues bag. Your amp is ready to ooze tone.......And all is right with the world.

Observe Dorothy Parker's admonition on moderation:

"I only drink a single martini

Two at the very most

With three I'm under the table

With four I'm under the host."

[anotherfreak]

I like to hit a chord and let it ring/fizzle out as I turn the power off

[Toadroller]

A good dry martini in my household:

Fill shaker with ice.

Take gin (your choice. I'm happy with Beefeater, Bombay, or Bombay Sapphire) and vermouth down from the shelf. Put vermouth back up on the shelf- that's close enough. Dangerously close, actually.

Add gin to the ice, cover and shake.

Pull martini glass from the freezer. Shake again.

Add three olives to the martini glass, plus olive brine to taste. Shake again.

Spin the olives with the gin.

Enjoy.

Top up.

Play guitar.

Only eat olives after the gin is gone. It's like desert.

[Bloozguy]

Isn't a martini straight vodka and an olive?

No. A real martini is made with gin.

Always remember the "martini rule": martinis are like breasts; one is not enough and three is too many!