phase linear 400

please....share some of your war stories...i wish to learn more about you guys!!!
i will be 72 in october...born/raised in louisiana....graduated lsu in 72 with a degree in pure mathematics....
had a flooring company for the first 15 years and a computer business the last 25 years...
 
Gene, just don't stop brother. Some of us are just like you. We want to fix the old one period. I work mostly on really old stuff, well 60's 70's and early 80's and no the board quality aint great and the joints crack and shit but finding the culprit is worth the headache. The PL 400 to me stock is a pain to work on period. One has to be very very careful. Time you move the board to find a problem, find it and fix it moving the board pulled one of the other old parts loose. I think it takes a hard head like me (and looks like you too) to fix one. The one I did up with a stock board and new caps and all was in 2017. It still works perfectly. The guy that bought it from me loves it and would not take anything for it. If I had not come here and had all the help I had to fix it from here I would not still be here at Phoenix. I won. "Keep On Trucking".
 
I'm in my early 30s and unironically listen to 8 track tapes, I have a small engine and lawn tractor fetish, everything at my house uses vacuum tubes for some reason. I'm in central New Mexico and am reluctant to go anywhere.

My stock PL 400 sounded like crap (it had problems), The other stock 400 I sold was all original and sounded fine through the cheapo speakers I tested it with. I don't hook anything to the Altecs that isn't transformer coupled or lacks DC protection.

If anyone needs me I'll be in the hot tub with a cold snack......
 
Gene, so with all the outputs taken out, check for DC on those speaker output wires to the DCP. If all is good, populate the bottom row and recheck, then the next row, etc. At what point does the DC appear?
This amp is wired quasi-complementary. Make sure you are using the correct graphic representation for installing the output transistors and the newer outputs are compatible.
A little about myself. I'm a retired Air Force vet, live in the NE OH rust belt near Cleveland. Currently I truck 53' rail road containers back and forth across OH with a little PA, MI, and KY. Today I'm taking a container into Cleveland, then picking up a container at a chemical plant on the OH river by Pittsburgh. That container goes to the rail near Toledo OH, then onto Mexico. Time to roll!
 
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mr_rye89 said:
I'm in my early 30s and unironically listen to 8 track tapes, I have a small engine and lawn tractor fetish, everything at my house uses vacuum tubes for some reason. I'm in central New Mexico and am reluctant to go anywhere.

My stock PL 400 sounded like crap (it had problems), The other stock 400 I sold was all original and sounded fine through the cheapo speakers I tested it with. I don't hook anything to the Altecs that isn't transformer coupled or lacks DC protection.

If anyone needs me I'll be in the hot tub with a cold snack......
Click to expand...
J!m said:
I’ve never seen a lawn mower or tractor with vacuum tubes… please post pics!
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wow...i bet he has a hoyt tubewell...i read about those...never seen one!!!
 
good morning!!!
George S. said:
Gene, so with all the outputs taken out, check for DC on those speaker output wires to the DCP. If all is good, populate the bottom row and recheck, then the next row, etc. At what point does the DC appear?
This amp is wired quasi-complementary. Make sure you are using the correct graphic representation for installing the output transistors and the newer outputs are compatible.
A little about myself. I'm a retired Air Force vet, live in the NE OH rust belt near Cleveland. Currently I truck 53' rail road containers back and forth across OH with a little PA, MI, and KY. Today I'm taking a container into Cleveland, then picking up a container at a chemical plant on the OH river by Pittsburgh. That container goes to the rail near Toledo OH, then onto Mexico. Time to roll!
Click to expand...
i only did that once...a buddy let me bring his mack back from natchez ms with a load of lumbet...had a 5 speed maxidyne...probably couldnt shift fuller 13...got to play on the cb radio too!!!lol
we have ourselves a convoy!!!
be careful...
 
gene french said:
good morning!!!

i only did that once...a buddy let me bring his mack back from natchez ms with a load of lumbet...had a 5 speed maxidyne...probably couldnt shift fuller 13...got to play on the cb radio too!!!lol
we have ourselves a convoy!!!
be careful...
Click to expand...
i remember his cb handle was gold dog...named after his hood ornament...lol
 
Staring at a bulldogs arse all day.:( Silver bulldogs signify a build with a mix of other manufacturers components, gold bulldogs signify all Mack. Never drove one commercially, but we had some Mack built trucks in the Services. Later.
 
George S. said:
Staring at a bulldogs arse all day.:( Silver bulldogs signify a build with a mix of other manufacturers components, gold bulldogs signify all Mack. Never drove one commercially, but we had some Mack built trucks in the Services. Later.
Click to expand...
didnt know that....now i do!!!
 
seems i need to regroup....
i lost the outputs on the left side and one driver,...not sure why...
so go ahead and gloat....lol
kinda at a loss now...
gotta take maria to the bus...gonna go to grandaughters, daughter in laws, and her birthday celebration...and to visit her 96 year old mother...
i will be batching it the whole week....
take care guys...
i think i am gonna cry...lol
 
If we're doing bio's... I'm 42 and have lived on the same street in the western suburbs of Chicago for the past 30 years. I bought my childhood home ten years ago when my mother wanted to downsize to a townhouse. I have 50/50 custody of my two kids - a 12 year old son and a 15 year old daughter. I'm divorced, but my ex and I get along fine. She lives across town. My girlfriend technically lives in Atlanta, but she works from home, so she is at my place more often than not - probably 10 months out of the year.
I got my degree in Electronics Engineering from DeVry 20 years ago. I spent 10 years doing field service/bench repair/technical support on dynamometers and then transitioned into Project Management for automation/production equipment. I've worked in the pharma, food and beverage, consumer products, and automotive industries. I'm currently working on a project for multiple antilock braking assembly production lines. I'll be in El Marques, Queretaro, Mexico installing and running them off for most of October through December later this year.
 
It sucks Gene, but maybe it's time to take Sniff's advice and just shotgun it. Bite the bullet and go the full comp WOPL route with new back plane, new control board, and new output transistors. You could stop troubleshooting and start building.

Don't quote me on this, but I think you would be into it for $420 plus tax and shipping:
Backplane $130.00
BP Wire Kit $16.00
Control Board $160.00
Transistors $104.00
Sil Pads $5.60
 
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you are probably right....seems i am caught in a vicious cycle...lol
wont be the first....nor the last...
but, it happens....
i have 2 biological kids...born in 72 and 76...the oldest was killed in a freak accident in 83....kinda destroyed everything....there were times i did not get out of bed for weeks at a time...thank god i had good employees that kept the ship afloat...
we divorced a while later...was very hard...would not ever want to do that again....lol

before i came here....i adopted 2 boys that had it pretty rough....one was with 6 families in state care in a year...the other 5...i was the last step before being shipped to an institution....a boys home....
but, i dont give up easily....and i raised them both...they are good boys...and i am proud of them...
one is still with me....jerry....who works the cattle....cody went back to his mother....and he has since moved to houston....where he works and lives ....
then after regrouping i moved here....with my boys...
enclosed is an early pic of us exploring in the jungle....jerry did not want his picture taken....but, i said he would unless he wanted to live in the jungle alone....lol....he took the pic....cody was guarding the camera bag....lol
so many twists and turns....like joe said....life is like a box of chocolates!!!!
anyway....here we are...here and now....head down...plowing forward!!!!
lol...
joe, sniff...you aint gonna pass up this opportunity???
lol
again...take care guys...
gonna work on a new game plan....
 

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All in, my Valerie cost me $870 and probably 60 hours of my time.

WOPL 400 (Valerie) $225.00
Light board $ 62.00
Capacitors $ 63.00
Backplane $130.00
BP Wire Kit $ 16.00
Control Board $160.00
Transistors $104.00
Sil Pads $ 5.60
Tax/Ship $103.43
All in Total: $ 869.03
 
ABebar said:
It sucks Gene, but maybe it's time to take Sniff's advice and just shotgun it. Bite the bullet and go the full comp WOPL route with new back plane, new control board, and new output transistors. You could stop troubleshooting and start building.

Don't quote me on this, but I think you would be into it for $420 plus tax and shipping:
Backplane $130.00
BP Wire Kit $16.00
Control Board $160.00
Transistors $104.00
Sil Pads $5.60
Click to expand...

i will have import duties and air freight on top of that....probably closer to 700 total to get into my hands....
maybe i can live without the new back plane....and stay with the point to point one....
should help a little...

or maybe a macintosh .... lol
 
ABebar said:
All in, my Valerie cost me $870 and probably 60 hours of my time.

WOPL 400 (Valerie) $225.00
Light board $ 62.00
Capacitors $ 63.00
Backplane $130.00
BP Wire Kit $ 16.00
Control Board $160.00
Transistors $104.00
Sil Pads $ 5.60
Tax/Ship $103.43
All in Total: $ 869.03
Click to expand...

valerie...gotta think of a name for mine...lol
i name my animals (that we dont eat) after oldie goldie songs...
we have a lola, gloria, suzi q, and a suzi 2...
i will see what i can come up with...
i have written to white oak...gonna pull the trigger this weekend...once i have a question or two answered....and
while the iron is still hot!!!
i have another set of matched outputs...all i need is a driver...but, do the drivers need to be matched....
only the left side was damaged....
is it better to get 4 matched drivers or just replace those on the left side???
might as well have 2 irons in the fire!!!!
never boring...
lol
 
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