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I also replaced the fan on my DV Mark little amp, seduced by the tales of simplicity and five minute effort
Well, it took me a bit longer but it all worked out in the end. Purchased one of the recommended 40mm quiet fans on Amazon for $7, the Scythe Mini KAZE 40mm. Of course, several silly steps by me along the way added to the effort but it works. First, I did not realize the little black plugs on the very bottom are just that, plugs that cover two very convenient access holes that allow you to slide your allen key in to reach the two holding bolts on the main electronic mounted section. Duh......I spent ages fiddling with the short end of j-shaped allen key to get the bolts out....that took 30 mins alone given the limited turning and fitting space in that little opening.
Second, when I tried to remove the end connector on my new fan, I could not get the wires cleanly out no matter where I tried to press, no obvious release mechanism so, figuring I'd have the same problem with the installed fan, I went for a wire splice. The thinness of the new wires was such that I had a hard time getting a clean and secure merge so figuring I did not want to go back in again if the join failed, I decided to solder the connections and tape them up. Cue locate some solder which mysteriously was not where I left it a year ago....you get the idea....that whole job took me 70 mins to do, but missing the access holes for the allen key accounts for most of this. Once opened up the splice job was simple and it works. New fan is much quieter -- not completely silent but you have to bend your ear to the back of the amp to hear it, and far less intrusive than the original.
All this close work made me realize how my hands are not what they were -- the soldering iron trembled a little as I moved into the join, my fingers could not easily wrap two tiny wires together and I had to keep taking my glasses on and off to see what I was doing. It would all be too depressing to contemplate if it had not actually worked....I consider myself bonded to the amp now, even if my self-image took a bit of a pummeling along the way.
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04-09-2016 02:30 PM
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Guys I think that the sound you hear it's not a mechanical sound from the fun but it's the fluence of the air. So if you want to reduse that sound(as you see I don't call it noise) you must use a slower fan. Or just put a very THIN air filter in front of the fan 😏This keeps the dust away and as the fluence of the air is lower, you have less "air sound" and it's cheap ! However it doesn't bother me and why not....it's just like with women. If you like your woman love her as she is. Don't try to make her look perfect cause nobody is xixi
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odel - I read your account of replacing the fan and it sounds very similar to my experience! I used the same fan, but I had some slightly different problems when fitting it. My amp must be an earlier model because it doesn't have two plugs in the bottom, just x-cuts in the fabric where the holes are hiding (see pic). It took me a few minutes to discover them.
I managed to disconnect the fan plug from the circuit board, but it was a non-standard four-pin connector (see pic). I've no idea why; only two pins are used. I had nothing that would fit onto this, and I didn't want to cut the wires, so I had to figure out a way around it. With a bit of fiddling I removed the terminal spades from the plug on the new fan, and pushed them into the socket so they were jammed between the pins and the plastic casing. Not very elegant, but easily reversible and it worked.
The fan is much quieter now, but I don't use the amp much for practice because it is still annoyingly audible. I do use it a lot for gigs though. I like to extend the frequency range by adding a tweeter. It's a piezo type, so no crossover needed, and weighs very little. This vastly improves the sound when playing music via the mini-jack input.
Last edited by A440; 05-26-2016 at 06:43 PM.
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in case any of you are wondering . . .
my on/off switch solution to the fan noise issue is still working great a year & a half later
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I just sent an email to DV Mark asking if, given that they have now deleted the fan from the Little Jazz, I could deactivate or remove the fan from my Little Jazz without danger to the amplifier, as long as I don't modify any other component of the amp. I'll let you guys know what they say.
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OK, have already heard back! Here are the relevant excerpts:
Latest production of the DV Jazz series combos feature a minor change in the design, but they still have the fan for the cooling system... it was not deleted/removed but it's located inside instead of external.
* * * *
it's the same fan model... less noisy due the new design.
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hey guys
here is my little Jazz in room volume... with my es335
take a look if you want.
after 3 months i already have this amp, i can say that i love it's solid state tone when i want to play jazz.
It's sounds almost acoustic to me
For other kinds of music,,,i prefer my tube amps ,but this is normal i guessLast edited by jkstigma; 06-13-2016 at 01:31 AM.
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Hey, i am owner of Little Jazz since yesterday and its my first amp with reverb tho, when i turn reverb knob up to 12 or more i can hear some kind of noise or "hum", when its turned to max its pretty loud, when turn off the speaker and plug my headphones its the same, noise is getting louder only with reverb knob, is this common thing or the issue? Maybe i should send it back?
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All little jazz amp ha ve issue with lcoolimg fan
The fan is too noise and level of noise became bigger also with youbturn middle non to his Max asvyou see.
I se e t his in three ampli in three shop
Then attention before buy
Considerino price cube 60 o 80 seems better llike Aldo old little jazz chorus
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I dont think so if fan makes this, mid knob doesnt make any noise, i can hear it even on headphones, its fine untill reverb is under 12, on max i almost cant hear clean guitar...
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The noise problems is less, but remain e little.
I have also notice, as I had tell time ago, that strange "rumor" when you increase the mid to max
If try this amp do this to verify if it was solved.
Over all the sound of this amp la too dark , and less flexible.
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Sounds like a good buy but note that this is the first generation model with the noisy fan that we have been discussing here. The later version has the fan located further indside the cabinet and reportedly is totally quiet.
Last edited by blackcat; 11-14-2016 at 11:33 AM. Reason: spelling!
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Well, it's not totally quiet, but not very loud. I recently bought one of these from GC, and it was the second generation version. I would be surprised to find that GC is still selling the older version, but then I'm often and easily surprised. Pictures posted by GC are usually just stock photos someone digs up, and may not really represent the actual product being sold. That is a good price, and is barely above their cost.
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I have question.I play a eastman 403 thru a Polytone 4 1980 15 inch speaker and when i play with flesh of fingers, my preference, its muddy but when i use a pick or nails i get a nice tone.If i got the DV 12 could i dial in a nice tone with the flesh of fingers i donnot use nails or pick just flesh and
joepass style?Or would it be cheaper to change out the speaker?
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Originally Posted by EarlBrother
Sorry, I don't know about DV but I have been surprised how un-boomy the 15” speaker is in my Polytone IV (~1979). Sensitive and sounds great even in low volumes.
But then I got bored in its sized and started a ’old guts to a new combo’ project. Bought a Faital 10” speaker in 4 ohms and cut some pine I found from my cellar.
Now I have tested that the guts really goes into the cab. And everything works too! Now I’ll cover it with tweed and then lacquer it black. I’ll let You know how this proceeds!
Faital is cheap, wood is cheap and tweed is quite cheap. Only thing is that getting a DV from a store is faster!
(Sorry for the direction of the pics... Scales shows kilos, 10,84 kg.)
Last edited by Herbie; 11-15-2016 at 04:54 AM.
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First sorry if i got off point to all.Second thanks Herbie ! Cool project!!Hope to hear it sometime.Wow!
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I am hoping that smooth jazz sound that is all over YouTube is not all it's got hence the question. I have heard Rotem Sivan get some great sounds but from the 2 by 12 model.
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If you want distortion and rock sound, look elsewhere. It's called the Little Jazz for a reason.
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My Little Jazz was shipped to my local Guit Center yesterday. It was shipped from a store outside of Chicago.
It is the first generation - with the fan outlet visible on the back. Fan noise is not bad at all, though I can hear it when not playing the guitar.
I like the amp a lot. Very small and light. Perhaps some pronounce mids, but not in a bad way. Quirky EQ knobs. Will take some getting used to. Very responsive, notes fly from string to speaker.
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The same thing happened to me when I ordered one last week to be shipped to my local Guitar Center: UPS tracking indicated that it was shipped from Colorado, near where there's a Guitar Center store. I called customer service, and they told me it was an open box amp that was, indeed, shipped from another Guitar Center store. The customer service rep didn't understand why that had happened, since their system indicated that there were 20-30 or so brand-new unopened ones sitting in their warehouse in Kansas City. I told her that I didn't want an open-box product, and that I wanted to ensure that I was getting the newer design. She ordered another one for me specifying that it should be an unopened one from the Kansas City distribution center and not a store, and--at my request--that it be one of the latest ones they've received. So yesterday, I went to my local Guitar Center and picked up the one from the Kansas City distribution center, and told them to send the open-box one back. And sure enough, the one I took home IS the newer design with the quieter recessed fan. You might want to do the same thing, since nowhere on the website does it indicate that the clearance price is for either (1) open-box models or (2) old stock with the earlier design. Originally Posted by rjturek
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Bit the bullet this morning..........................
Apologies for less than good photo but serves to sho location of on/off toggle switch. Took awhile - very cramped in there but got there in the end. Donc, ON for gigs and OFF for practice, other than short coffee breaks. Much happier now.
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Hey Blackcat, nice job on the switch! Looks like exactly the same spot I chose for mine -- works great IMO ! Originally Posted by blackcat
Bit the bullet this morning..........................
I do have a question for you Little Jazz users -- favorite tone setting?
Mostly I've just enjoyed everything set close to noon until tonight. I'm practicing for a gig Sunday & I am planning to use the Little Jazz with my Gibson ES 135. I haven't played either much recently, so I set about tweaking the knobs and so forth and stumbled across a great sound I never had before.
My new settings on the Little Jazz are treble at zero, Mid turned way up -- almost to the max, and bass near 2 O'clock on the dial. I'd never done this setting before, but I'm loving it!
I'd love to hear about some of your favorite settings on this amp . . .
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It depends on the guitar, and also on the amp position. Sitting flat, it has way too much bass at mid settings, and I roll it down to around 2. Tilted back the bass is fine near nominal settings. I put the treble at about 10 or 11. I'm not a fan of rolling the treble all the way off, but some people prefer it. I keep the mids at about 12. I really don't change anything a lot except the bass, which gets lowered to whatever is acceptable depending on the location and tilt. Since the bass ports are in the rear, whatever is behind the amp makes a big difference, whether it's a wall, nothing at all, or something else. To me, that's mostly what affects the necessary bass control adjustments.
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I am nearly ready to pull the trigger on one of these, but it seems there is a second generation where they did a fix on the fan issue. Since the fan is about the only thing holding me back, I would want to get a 2nd gen if possible. However, all the sales outlets online still picture the 1st gen in the photos. The actual DV Mark site shows the 2nd gen. I would assume that whoever I get on the phone at GC or Musicians Friend or wherever would probably have no idea. Anyone ordered one recently and gotten the 2nd gen?
Edit: I apologize if this is addressed in more detail somewhere in this mega-thread. I gave up reading everything.
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Yep, I recently got a 2nd-gen one from GC when they had them on clearance for $239. But I had to specify when ordering (for delivery to my local GC) that I wanted one from the warehouse, because the first one they shipped was an open-box one from a GC store in Colorado (I'm on the east coast), and I had my local store send it back without even accepting it (assuming it was probably a 1st-gen amp) when I picked up the one shipped from the warehouse. It could have been that they had intended to use the clearance price to get rid of the 1st-gen ones that had been in stock (and perhaps used as display models) at various GCs around the country, but that had not been specified in the clearance listing, and they had no problem having a new one shipped to me from the warehouse for the same price. Originally Posted by pants
Last edited by Wes Fan; 12-31-2016 at 01:12 PM.
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