From bruce@ashbysolutions.com Fri Apr 25 17:17:02 2003
Subject:Re: Re: Should i buy an old bx3/A100 chops

Hi David,

>Wow.... makes you really confident about the build quality of the NEW
>BX3's, doesn't it?

Actually, the two have almost nothing in common in this regard. The parts that were failing in that BX were all small electrolytic capacitors. It looked like they were breaking down with age. 1) The quality and reliability of these parts has improved tremendously in the last ten years, mostly because of the needs of the PC industry. 2) Being analog, the old BX needed dozens of them for all kinds of functions. Being digital, the new BX/CX needs many fewer of these components, and probably uses tantalum foil capacitors for many of the parts, which tend to be longer lasting.

Only time will tell, though. My point was that ANY solid-state electronics manufactured 20-30 years ago (and some tube gear, too) are likely to need a little TLC by now, and the BX's capacitors appear to be one of the weak points. Go to any guitar amp enthusiast's site, and you're likely to see an article on restoring/replacing the filter caps in older amps. They don't last forever. Even Hammonds need maintenance to be at their best: If I was looking to buy a B-3 and the owner told me, "It hasn't been played since 1979 when my dad died," I'd be at least a little leery about picking that one up. There's a good chance that something in it has frozen up, dried up, or given up! ;^)

Regards,

-BW
--
Bruce Wahler
Ashby Solutions™ http://music.ashbysolutions.com
978.386.7389 voice/fax
bruce@ashbysolutions.com