jmsjabb Posted October 26, 2009 Share Posted October 26, 2009 I have an Ashdown ABM C100 300 EVO bass amp which has a small fan in the back to cool the heat sink on the power supply. This is on all the time and I only use the amp at up to 1/4 power, and I don't ever overdrive it. I am finding the fan noisy and want to try and hide it. If I bought another of the same fan and wired it in series, would this mean both would run at half speed, half noise but the same air movement? Ant other suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary mac Posted October 26, 2009 Share Posted October 26, 2009 Don't know about that, but someone is bound to be along soon who does know. My last trace combo had a fan that I thought was loud, it used to really irritate when using at home for practice, but was never an issue when gigging, not even between numbers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdgrsr400 Posted October 26, 2009 Share Posted October 26, 2009 I have quite a powerful amp and the fan was a little obtrusive for home practice. As it was rack mountable, I fitted it in one of these: ([url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/thon_studiomoebel_desktoprack_5003g.htm"]link[/url]) with some sound insulation materials stuck on the inner surfaces and the front blanked off. Now the noise level is very acceptable in all conditions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6stringbassist Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Check the fan to make sure it's clean, they pick up loads of dust very quickly. Give it a spray with some WD40. Change it for a better quality one, they're pretty cheap from Maplins. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike257 Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 [quote name='gary mac' post='637475' date='Oct 26 2009, 10:57 PM']My last trace combo had a fan that I thought was loud, it used to really irritate when using at home for practice, but was never an issue when gigging, not even between numbers.[/quote] Sadly, I've never had fan noise between numbers at gigs either. +1 on the cleaning it out, you'd be amazed how much crap can get in there over time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fraktal Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 Buy a [url="http://www.noctua.at/"]Noctua[/url] fan and replace yours, they are the quietest fans available in the market. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 I used to have that amp in a combo and as a stand alone head. Yes the fan is audible when you turn it on, but at the levels you're playing at it should disappear as soon as you start playing, you certainly wouldn't notice it in a band situation or a large room/hall. If it really bothers you that much, before doing your twin fan idea (not sure about this as although you'll move the same amount of air, it will still be moving at half the speed, I'm thinking about how windchill works here, i.e. speed=cooling, I could well be wrong), just swap the fan out as it may be just a noisy fan. I used to be an office equipment engineer and we often had to swap out fans because they were noisy. They are after all just cheap and nasty bits of plastic with a tiny motor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 the fan noise from my soundtech power amp was so bad i bought a cheap samson 100W power amp and now use that instead. fine for live of course...but in a spare room... fan noise drives me round the bend ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6stringbassist Posted October 27, 2009 Share Posted October 27, 2009 These replacement fans are all 12V, whereas the fans in amps are usually 24V......does it matter ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6stringbassist Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 Just ordered one of these as a replacement for the fan in my HD350 [url="http://uk.farnell.com/jsp/search/productdetail.jsp?sku=9600027"]http://uk.farnell.com/jsp/search/productde...jsp?sku=9600027[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peted Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 The fan in my Hartke 3500 is crazy loud, plus I think it's the transformer that really hums when it's on. Fortunately I don't use it for quiet rehearsals at home as I have a little combo for that, and the noise soon gets drowned out behind a full band. It's definitely an amp for live use. I wouldn't use it in a recording studio either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4 Strings Posted October 28, 2009 Share Posted October 28, 2009 [quote name='jmsjabb' post='637311' date='Oct 26 2009, 08:36 PM']I have an Ashdown ABM C100 300 EVO bass amp which has a small fan in the back to cool the heat sink on the power supply. This is on all the time and I only use the amp at up to 1/4 power, and I don't ever overdrive it. I am finding the fan noisy and want to try and hide it. If I bought another of the same fan and wired it in series, would this mean both would run at half speed, half noise but the same air movement? Ant other suggestions?[/quote] No. The fan is designed to shift a certain amount of air at a certain speed. Halving the speed is likley to knock the air movement down by much more than half as the fan approaches its stall point. You'll reduce the noise though! The propellor type fans are the least efficient and most noisy. Scroll or centrifugal fans are much better for noise and air movement but are more expensive. Unless the bearings are noisy, replacihng with another propellor fan will solve little. If you're feeling really clever you could wire a thermostat in line with the fan so it only comes on when needed (ie never when practicing at home!) or even put it on a manual switch. The issue will be finding out the temperature it should kick in at (or remebering to switch the fan on for gigs!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stompbox Posted November 15, 2009 Share Posted November 15, 2009 Well here we are - I thought t was just me that got annoyed with fan noises! I've got an Ashdown MAG400 combo - the fan runs all the time - it's not really noisy, but drives me mad for hom use/practice. Fine at Gig levels. I've fitted a manual fan swith and just hope to remember to switch it on at gigs! Stompbox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.gif.9ad672bb8b84505709f76b39c8c256ec.gif)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.