How to restart tube amp and pre in boxes for 2yrs

Larryi..You're actually at an advantage having a tube rectifier. The tubes running off that rectifier (high voltage) have a nice soft start. No tube will conduct until the rectifier starts conducting and turns on, minimizing the inrush current. Tube units with solid state rectification are a different story. Voltage appears at the tubes before they have a chance to conduct. The inrush current is not minimized and there is no soft start. That makes it much harder for old capacitors to form up, and puts a strain on the power transformer. The flash you see on the rectifier is because there is no soft start for the rectifier. It provides a soft start for everything in the circuit it feeds.

Hifigeel1,

Yes, the rectifier does act as soft start for other tubes and for the power supply caps.

Perhaps you can help with the issue of using a variac for tube gear that use solid state rectification. A friend had such an amp that had problems with diodes in the bridge rectifier blowing up. The manufacturer stated that both over-voltage and under-voltage could be responsible for that happening. Since the use of a variac would create such under-voltage situation, I am wondering if that claim is really correct.

wow the last 2 comments are way over my head. But tonight after i come back from my dance class i will do what Elizabeth told me. tks to all and i hope to enjoy my records soon Daniel

For those of you with Plinius amps(the old one's anyway), a load is needed. Don't ask how I know.

Larryi..That sounds hard to believe. I would think the line fuse would blow before the diodes short out. Most manufacturers use rectifier diodes that are at least two times higher in current than are needed. That being said, as AC line voltage goes up current draw goes down and vice versa. So running your tube amp for a while at half voltage is not a good idea. This is partly the reason why I pull the output tubes before running an amp up on a variac and never exceed 110Vac on my variac and always on the advise of the manufacturer. I always set the voltage on my variac using an accurate DVM, note where that is on the variac dial as it varies with line voltage fluctuations, and then shut the variac off, and set the variac back to zero before I plug the amp into it. I carefully monitor the plate voltage at the output tube socket and compare it to the circuit diagram to make sure I'm not exceeding that voltage. I don't recommend doing this if you don't have expertise in measuring high voltage equipment. These voltages can be lethal. One other thing...If the amp has a start up relay and/or ramp up circuit at start up, that's a whole different kettle of fish and I would suggest contacting the manufacturer before attempting to power it up using a variac. Always make sure the amp is fused with the proper value. Apologies to anyone I may have bored.