Has anyone ever smoked their Buttkicker amp?

I had been having issues with my two BKs hooked up in my riser the past few weeks and finally had some time to play around with it tonight to make sure the wiring hadn't come loose. Everything appeared to check out fine with the BKs, the wiring and the quick connect kit. So, I moved over to the BK amplifier and decided to unplug it and plug it back in. That resulted in a nice puff of smoke and some sparks that certainly took me by surprise!

So, I guess it's safe to say it's toast now - sad after just under 2 years of moderate use (never driven at more than about 2/3 gain.

Anyone else had this happen, or had to deal with Guitammer for warranty work?

I have heard good things about Guitammer as far as customer service/support is concerned. I know someone else on AVS had a buttkicker amp go bad but they were quick to replace it.

I had a new amp start smoking after I installed it. I contacted customer service and they sent a replacement, no questions aksed.

I was happy with the customer service other than having to go through the hassle of getting a replacement.

Ron

while it's certainly an indicator of something that is not right, there is probably a bunch of fuses that you can replace if you crack it open.

I had a BK amp go out on me. I called customer service, and they replaced them with no hassle. I believe there was a bad batch made.

I make it a habit of turning the Amp off when I am not using it.

Thanks for the replies. I called them this morning and it's being replaced without any sort of hassle -- they're even advance shipping me the new amp with the return label for the old one. Impressive customer service. :)

Thanks for the replies. I called them this morning and it's being replaced without any sort of hassle -- they're even advance shipping me the new amp with the return label for the old one. Impressive customer service. :)
Yeah, I had one go (nothing so dramatic, just stopped working) and received the same great service.

Hmmm, lotsa bad BK amps going bad..

Was there really a bad batch or is it just poor quality?

There was a bad batch, the info was even made public on the Guitammer website. They gave a specific S/N range. Can't find it now, since the Guitammer website has been updated.

Okay good.

I was planning on buying one in the spring.

I had a new amp start smoking after I installed it. I contacted customer service and they sent a replacement, no questions aksed.

I was happy with the customer service other than having to go through the hassle of getting a replacement.

Ron

My bad luck I guess, since I responded to this thread a couple of days ago and now I noticed my other BK amp has gone bad. I replaced the fuse and it blows. I just sent an e-mail to Buttkicker to see what they can do. I'll update this thread when I get a response.

Ron

My amp smoked but it was a big cap. You can tell cap went kaboom by looking at it. Like the other posters, Guitammer support was fantastic in replacing the amp. I know there was a rash of bad caps throughout many industries including the PC business.

I was just searching for buttkicker amp after going into my theatre tonight and smelling an acrid smell like electronic components on fire. My buttkicker amp had, at some point during the day, smoked itself. I'm glad I found this thread.

Cheers!