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| Home | Forum | Resources | TeleShop | Gallery | Classifieds | Reviews | Register | FAQ | Search | Today's Posts | Mark Forums Read |
| Amp Central Station Amps, tubes, speakers & everything AMP related. |
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May 1st, 2006, 04:04 AM
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#1 (permalink) |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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Finished my Tweed "Evil Twin", the 5D8
It is closing in on midnight and I finished the build about 30 minutes ago, so I couldn't open the volume up for too long...
So far, HOLY CRAP! Tomorrow I'll be aiming the amp at neighborhood kittens to make them explode... I'll have a better review then. I did not do the cathode to fixed bias mode switch I was threatening... I may do that later... with the 35watt Hammond output transformer I have, I should be able to approach 40watts (those OTs seem to be pretty conservatively rated) in fixed bias mode, as opposed to the stock 25watts in "normal" cathode bias mode. SO FAR: It's much like a tweed Deluxe in grit, with volume levels a little louder than the old DRRI's (BF 60s Deluxe Reverbs)... and YES, I did pop her up to 12 for a second or two... I'm sure my neighbor thought it was just a nightmare :) Also bit more girth and bass response compared to the DRRIs... probably due to the 6L6's. The Tone controls are pretty old school, they actually affect volume a bit more than modern amps. Some might think it's a bad thing... I actually kind of like it on this amp. A primitive, mean, little Tweed amp... I like it a lot :) |
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May 1st, 2006, 04:27 AM
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#3 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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Quote:
gentbent, do you EVER sleep?! Right now she's nekkid... just a bare chassis with chickenhead knobs, a light, and a few switches... no chrome face plate with numbers or anything. Once I build her a cab and cover it with tweed I'll post some pics - by the way, she's a head unit, not a combo. Man, with all of them tubes it looks like a glass toaster oven... three 12AY7's, one 12AX7, two 6L6's, and two 5Y3's. Standing behind that thing will give you a tan! Also by the way, I finally got around finishing my standalone Reverb Unit's cab... it just needs tweed now. I was going to buy one from MojoMusicalSupply for like $200, but for about $10 of pine and $30 of tweed and oxblood grill cloth... and say, maybe, $20 of wood glue, pine putty, and 3M adhesive spray, I've got a SOLID fingerjoined cab - same quality or even better! Only took a few hours with a saw and a router (with a fingerjoint jig)... man, I don't think I'll ever buy an amp again! I'll just build what I want for a hella lot less :) |
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May 1st, 2006, 08:05 PM
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#4 (permalink) |
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Tele-Afflicted
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: SW CR IA US NA PE
Age: 28
Posts: 1,916
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Johnny, are you sure that cathode bias would drop the wattage so much? I thought the difference was more attributable to the transformers than the biasing method.
Note that the Bandmaster jumped a whole watt or two when they switched to fixed bias at the same time... ;) P.S. I plan never to buy a pre-made amp! 8) |
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May 1st, 2006, 08:35 PM
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#5 (permalink) |
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Friend of Leo's
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I have to admit, having finished my Champ, I'll never buy another amp from anyone else.
I may decide to build an AC-30. That's about the only other amp I want, but I don't know if anyone makes a cabinet for that. Anybody know? I don't want to make a head, not mah thang. I'd also use Eminence Legend 122s instead of other speakers for it. |
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May 1st, 2006, 09:07 PM
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#6 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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Quote:
For instance, look at the 5E8-A Twin... it's very similar (nearly identical) to the 5D8, at least circuit-wise... the chief difference is the method of biasing. The 5D8 is 25watts, the 5E8-A is 40watts. So that kind of gives you a picture of what the biasing AND output transformer can do for this little amp. I've got a 35 watt OT on mine now, and it's very obviously only running at 25watts. I'm sure to my neighbors it sounds like 250 watts though! HAHA |
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May 1st, 2006, 09:34 PM
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#7 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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Quote:
I got a cheap router, a fingerjoint jig, and a cheap jig saw and I've just wrapped up my first fingerjoined 3/4" pine cab... AND I'M TERRIBLE with working with my hands... I almos failed woodshop in school! HAHA I'm half done with putting a tweed skin on the cab too... the 3M adhesive is INSANE. Tweeding the cab is even more surprisingly easy than I thought. It's them damn Champs! After you build just one, all of the sudden you're like "I can build anything!". I love this Twin I just finished, I'm cabbing & tweeding my reverb, next my Champs and Twin... then I'll be building a JCM800 50watter and be using the fat birch ply instead of pine for that. |
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May 2nd, 2006, 03:36 AM
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#8 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: LIttle Rock, AR
Age: 52
Posts: 5,491
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Quote:
I'm not aware of any kits now, but there is enough interest that someone will fill the void eventually. WeberVST has a chassis and faceplate, although the faceplate apparently looks pretty shoddy. I've heard rumors that Anthony at www.reasonamps.com has built a couple of AC30 or AC15 cabinets for people, and maybe Jeff at www.swansoncabinets.com too. I saw a photo of a custom AC15 cabinet that Mojo made for a customer, so they've done at least one Vox style box. And for a price there's North Coast, who offer a line of replacement cabinets for vintage Vox amps: http://www.voxshowroom.com/northcoast/ , for a price. Interest in Vox construction projects is, in my opinion, reaching a critical mass and at some point the chassis and other special parts will become available. Transformer sets are available from Heyboer and Mercury Magnetics. Myself, I'm determined to make a proper AC15 replica sometime this year. And by "proper" I mean with the full circuit including vib/trem, and the weird 2-piece chassis. I have a set of dimensioned drawings of the chassis, and if one doesn't become commercially available in the next few months I'll just go to a sheet metal shop and have them bend and punch one up for me. If you're not hung up on authenticity, then an AC30 could be built in just about any chassis that will accomodate 4 EL84 outputs. Ceriatone has a Matchless DC30 clone chassis, not listed on their web site, that could just as easily host an AC30 type circuit. If you wish to eliminate the parts of the AC30 you won't be using, the circuit can be simplified quite a bit. |
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May 2nd, 2006, 03:43 AM
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#9 (permalink) |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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David, with as much as you've been talking about building a AC15 (or 30 for that matter) here and on 18watt.com, I'm gettin real tempted to build one myself!
You better stop that crazy talk! HAHA Eventually though, I'd like to build one as well... Building speaker cabs is really not too bad... I'll be posting pics soon on the three I'll have done this week (just finished one tonight). I'm good matching the tweed lines up, just still need practise at seams :) |
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May 2nd, 2006, 04:40 AM
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#10 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: LIttle Rock, AR
Age: 52
Posts: 5,491
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May 2nd, 2006, 10:30 AM
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#11 (permalink) |
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Tele-Meister
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: DC
Posts: 247
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Eagerly awaiting the tone report...
I've never looked at a 5D8 schematic before. Bizarro! Right up my alley. I've been needing a 6L6 amp project...
__________________
"A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man..." - Jebediah Springfield |
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May 2nd, 2006, 05:16 PM
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#12 (permalink) |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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It doesn't have that modern "sizzle-crunch", but it is very fat and full in it's overdrive.
Cranked I can get the most glorious feedback when wanted (even out of my Telecaster, but it's best with my Les Pauls). It sustains and SINGS like a violin. For country it's a bit gritty and slightly dirty, BUT it's got that big clang to it. Especially cool for country-rock. It's a perfect amp for dirty blues, rockabilly, or classic rock. It does '70s era Stones with ease. With an OD in front of her, she'll probably have that Crunch/sizzle thing down - otherwsie she's AWESOME for that meaty power tube overdrive... no fizzy preamp stuff here. |
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May 2nd, 2006, 05:18 PM
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#13 (permalink) | |
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Lost Angeles and Orange County
Posts: 7,128
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Quote:
When you get down to building that Vox, you gotta let me in on where you got your parts for it... I'd love an AC15 or AC30 clone myself. |
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May 2nd, 2006, 09:10 PM
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#14 (permalink) | ||
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Poster Extraordinaire
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: LIttle Rock, AR
Age: 52
Posts: 5,491
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May 2nd, 2006, 10:32 PM
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#15 (permalink) |
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Tele-Afflicted
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: SW CR IA US NA PE
Age: 28
Posts: 1,916
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I've noticed that trend too. Perhaps when I'm done with my current projects, I'll explore an AC30 or -15 clone. By then, there will be at least one full kit out there. It's not far off.
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May 3rd, 2006, 10:49 AM
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#17 (permalink) |
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Tele-Holic
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Johnny, did you try the Evil Twin with your reverb unit in front?
Jef
__________________
Amplification is not a social dinner, a literary event, a drawing or an embroidery; It cannot be done with elegance and courtesy. Amplification is an act of violence... (Mao Tse-Tube) |
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