elvis
Well-known member
I was too lazy to do a search on this to see if it's been covered, so I will just post it.
Short version for the attention-span impaired:
Have your amplifier checked every few years for SOLDER WHISKERS (or "tin whiskers"). These may grow over time and short across terminals in your amplifier and cause damage and possibly be a reliability or safety hazard.
pics/details: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisker_%28metallurgy%29
IMPORTANT NOTE: This takes a LONG time. Your 5-year-old amp is not having problems because of whiskers. Your amp may have whisker problems in the year 2025.
Full story:
There is a metallurgical effect in solder joints that causes many long "whiskers" to form over long periods of use. Most products are affected, but very few actually remain in service for long enough to have problems, as it is a quite slow process. Over decades, these whiskers may be 1cm or more in length, long enough to short across components or to short one component to another. Vacuum tube amplifiers are routinely used for long periods of time, so guitar amps are one of the few places I would expect to see them.
Historically, lead (Pb) was added to tin solder as a way to stop whiskers, in much the same way as it was added to plastic garden hoses as a way to improve stability over time. It worked quite well. Unfortunately, manufacturers are no longer allowed to use lead due to health and environmental concerns. There is a real concern in the electronics industry that the use of lead-free solder will cause a new generation of reliability problems. Manufacturers are at the mercy of government standards such as ROHS, so they have no choice but to comply. Other non-Pb materials may be added to solder to mitigate the effect, but these are expensive and rare.
While problems are unlikely, it is certainly possible that poor reliability, severe damage, and even exposure to dangerous voltages or fires, may result from whisker growth. Depending on usage, a simple visual inspection every few years would be a very good idea. Repair would involve cleaning and resoldering the problem areas.
If you're not getting whiskers, you're not playing often enough :twisted:
Short version for the attention-span impaired:
Have your amplifier checked every few years for SOLDER WHISKERS (or "tin whiskers"). These may grow over time and short across terminals in your amplifier and cause damage and possibly be a reliability or safety hazard.
pics/details: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whisker_%28metallurgy%29
IMPORTANT NOTE: This takes a LONG time. Your 5-year-old amp is not having problems because of whiskers. Your amp may have whisker problems in the year 2025.
Full story:
There is a metallurgical effect in solder joints that causes many long "whiskers" to form over long periods of use. Most products are affected, but very few actually remain in service for long enough to have problems, as it is a quite slow process. Over decades, these whiskers may be 1cm or more in length, long enough to short across components or to short one component to another. Vacuum tube amplifiers are routinely used for long periods of time, so guitar amps are one of the few places I would expect to see them.
Historically, lead (Pb) was added to tin solder as a way to stop whiskers, in much the same way as it was added to plastic garden hoses as a way to improve stability over time. It worked quite well. Unfortunately, manufacturers are no longer allowed to use lead due to health and environmental concerns. There is a real concern in the electronics industry that the use of lead-free solder will cause a new generation of reliability problems. Manufacturers are at the mercy of government standards such as ROHS, so they have no choice but to comply. Other non-Pb materials may be added to solder to mitigate the effect, but these are expensive and rare.
While problems are unlikely, it is certainly possible that poor reliability, severe damage, and even exposure to dangerous voltages or fires, may result from whisker growth. Depending on usage, a simple visual inspection every few years would be a very good idea. Repair would involve cleaning and resoldering the problem areas.
If you're not getting whiskers, you're not playing often enough :twisted:
