Question about fuses in Amp

[ChrisE]

Hello all;



I was playing a gig the other night and went to power on my amp (Carvin Stagemate S400D) and got no power. I checked the outlet and it was working, and besides, the unit has a battery that allows it to without being plugged into the wall.



I ended up playing the gig solo acoustic (that was interesting). I stopped on the way home to buy some fuses, since I figured that's probably the only thing that I could fix on my own. I popped out the old fuse when I got home and realized that I had gotten the wrong size. The fuse didn't look like it was damaged in any way, so I put the old fuse back in and somehow everything started working again!



Is it possible that was the fix, or is there something else wrong? Whatever it is, I thought it would be a good idea to have some spare fuses handy. The manual for the amp says "250V Slow Blow 5 x 20mm rated at 2A for 120V." I looked at the one that's in it already, and to me it looks like it has "3A" written on it. I bought the amp used a few years ago, so it's possible someone could have changed it.



Is it ok to use 3A (it's been in there for at least 3 years) or should I get the same one shown in the manual?



Here's a picture of what's in it now, but it's kind of blurry:







Here's what it looks like (the one on the right):





And here's the control panel of the amp if that helps in any way:









Also, is it possible the battery could have caused the problem? It's been in there for a few years and I've noticed it doesn't hold a charge like it used to.



Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

[ricdoug]

ChrisE, I own and have used that same Carvin PA system plus it's matching 810 extension speaker cabinet for over a decade. It's a work horse that is rugged and roadworthy. When I originally purchased mine, I also purchased the second battery kit. I get about 2 years of use out of as set of the batteries in mine, before they need to be replaced. The manual claims about 6 hours of run time with the second battery, but I get about half of that. It's the deep cycles that kill that. After recently replacing the batteries, I ordered this reverse pulse charger:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

to experiment with reviving dead batteries. I will post that here, after the charger arrives. It's supposed to arrive here by 7/1/2019.

As to the fuse size, stick to the manufacturer suggested fuse:

AC FUSE REPLACEMENT
To check or replace the fuse, always turn off the power switch. To examine the fuse, remove
the power cord & place a screwdriver under the “FUSE” cap and pull the fuse holder out.
The fuse type is a 250V Slow Blow SB 5 x 20mm rated at 2A for 120V. Only a SLOW BLOW
(SB) type fuse will work. The fuse holder has room to store a spare fuse.

[ricdoug]

ChrisE, looking at my reply, I see a flaw in that response. Since I use mine with the matching 8 ohm Carvin 810 extension cabinet which is connected in parallel, my system speaker impedance is 4 ohms.The Carvin S400D is a 60 watt PA system by itself, but it becomes a 100 watt PA system when the matching Carvin 810 extension speaker cabinet is plugged in. This extra load and power draw is the reason I observe shorter battery life.

[ChrisE]

Thanks for your replies. I'm not that technically savvy regarding watts, ohms, etc. but I too use the extension cabinet. I really love the unit and have never had any problems with it until last week.

I've been testing it at home all week and it seems to work fine, except the battery barely lasts an hour now. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to replace the battery soon.

I also ordered the fuses suggested in the owners manual so I'll have spares should the need arise.

[ricdoug]

ChrisE, do not throw away your old batteries, before my experiment with the reverse pulse charger I ordered on Amazon. It's just a little more than the cost of one replacement battery.