Allen Amps circuit drawings?

I was just looking at Allen Amps web-site. That stuff looks real nice - but a bit steep price-wise! They seem to do some interesting variations on the old Fender ideas and not just clones. Does anyone know where I can look over a circuit diagram for any of their products? Maybe I can pick up some ideas for my own home-built hopeless muddling...

I imagine David Allen doesn't circulate his circuit designs for obvious reasons. But hey, if you're into DIY, why not build a kit? When you take into account all the time spent hunting down parts to build an amp from scratch, an Allen kit is a pretty good bargain. (I just built an Old Flame and it was a great experience!)

sure you're right, he doesn't circulate the designs because that's his bread and butter. I can understand that and appreciate it. On the other hand, I can state categorically that I will never buy an Allen amp (or any other boutique amp) simply because I will never be able to spare that much money on a frivolous purchase. Fender, Marshall, Allen - they all just cost too much for me! I'm sure they are worth the cost, if you have a high-paying job and disposable income. I have worked my whole life but still have to consider my purchases carefully. Anything over $50 for a hobby item is frivolous, no matter how much I wish I could buy it.

I have built several amps from scratch (even the kits are incredibly expensive, to me). I built a great Vox AC-15-type amp w/ enclosed 15" JBL. Total cost for the amp and cab: under $25; the speaker set me back $50.

Now I'm trying to mod my old Princeton Reverb II - the last amp I bought new, back in '83 - and I'm copping ideas. I admit that it's intellectual-property theft, but it's strictly for non-commercial personal use! I don't even play out any more, it's just a hobby now.

I admire anyone who can build something like that from scratch. As far as I know, the Allen designs are pretty faithful to the original Fender circuits, witha post PI master and a "Raw" control to dial out the tone stack.

Well, coming from someone who builds amps... the cost of building these things isn't cheap. You have to consider promotion/advertising (pricey), overhead, insurance, equipment, some R & D, your time in meeting with suppliers, potential clients and businesses and last but most importantly ...your labor.

I have spoke with some businesses (in selling my stuff) and they want huge margins on your product if they sell them in the stores. Well, in order to maintain you have to raise prices. Sometimes, suppliers crank up the price in parts and you have to pass it along to the consumer.

If you sell direct, the consumer can save some money but you don't want to sell-out your dealer. So, it's a very thin line to walk. Anything of quality IMO isn't necessarily expensive but it sure ain't cheap.

I've found that building any amp kit is pretty pricey, unless someone either gives you the old parts you need, or you already just have some spare parts laying around.

Start pricing transformers, components (i.e. resistors, caps, etc.), jacks, pots, tube sockets .... well it all really adds up!

But, if you're just looking to build a Fender or Marshall clone, there are plenty of schematics out on the web to use. Just do a Google search.

Jhunt, if you can build a quality handwired quality Vox A-15 replica for $75, plus your time, you could sell them for about 5x-6x your investment and make a hobby business out of it. I'll be your first customer! Thats probably how some of the boutique builders out there got started.

Thats probably how some of the boutique builders out there got started.

Uhhhh....nope.

I built all my amps cheap because I used parts that I found on discarded tube hi-fi amps, PA amps, etc. The Vox-copy was based on a chassis and transformers that a friend found in the mud by a lake, believe it or not! The cabinet was pine shelf boards discarded by the Oakland PD. All my caps and resistors etc. came from local surplus shops.

After building 2 amps I thought "gee, this is fun! could I do it for money?" The answer was - no! I put a whole lot of hours into an amp, lucky for me my employer paid me for my time (without knowing it, of course...) If I had to buy new stuff each amp would have cost a whole lot more, like boutique amps today.

Actually, I couldn't even find transformers to buy back then.

I think the boutique guys are doing a great job tweaking and developing new designs, and building quality stuff. It costs a lot because good stuff costs a lot in this world. If I could, I would buy a nice well-built amp like an Allen. It's just that I can't afford one, and probably never will in this life.

CancerLeoCam - you are in the business of building 'boutique' amps? What is the name of your amps? I'm impressed, back then I didn't see any way to make amp-building profitable, so you are doing good! I am envious, it's gotta be more fun than painting houses!

CancerLeoCam - you are in the business of building 'boutique' amps? What is the name of your amps? I'm impressed, back then I didn't see any way to make amp-building profitable, so you are doing good! I am envious, it's gotta be more fun than painting houses!

They are called the "G Reverb-Amp." It's an improved Princeton Reverb -both in aesthetics, materials build and electronic circuit design. Kind of a cool thought that I had that finally got fleshed out and I saw an opportunity to offer that to the public.

I did repair work for years and saw what the sum total for tuning the older Fenders up to a reasonable playing level and I thought "people probably would like to have an amp similar to these ones but ready to go with no headaches-such as recapping, retubing, cab's in good shape, good speaker, etc."

Specifically, it's a 12W amp, a 15" speaker, Fender reverb circuit and a thick lush tremolo. As for being profitable that remains to be seen. I just started last November so we'll see if the demand is there. If not, the amps will be "limited edition" and I'll find something else more profitable to undertake.

Advertising, meeting with suppliers, trying to get sound clips for the site from really good guitarists, finishing up builds has kept me super busy lately.

In addition, trying to get the website schnazzed up from what it is now. I hired someone to do the work and so far it's looking pretty good. I'm not too adept nor do I have the patience with computers to go at doing this myself considering I'm building at the same time. I figure I'd do what I do best and left the rest to a pro. I'll have the new, fresh website up in a week to a few weeks. Thanks for the supportive comments.

www.gomezamps.com

It wouldn't be fair to David Allen to go scanning and sharing his schematics and lay-outs. That's not even an opinion, that's a fact. His lay-outs, particularly on his "full" kits with complete instruction packets, are works of art and he told me they take a good amount of time to create.

I originally bought an Old Flame kit because I wanted a Fender type amp, and I wanted something brand new. I'm always trying to save a buck, but I'm really not an electrical genious that can make a transmogrifier (a little Calvin and Hobbes reference) from a bunch of old radios and TV's. I bought a head and cab separate which jacked the price up even more. I thought then and still think the prices are pretty fair. I've built one of the cheaper kits offered by a different company and many of the parts are of inferior quality to Allen's.

David's a really cool guy. A couple of years ago we had a little mishap with a V-18 kit that disappeared. (I found out later that UPS had a substitute driver that week..hmmmmmmm). He was really cool about getting me another amp ASAP.

I didn't really want to scam David Allen's circuits. I just looked at his site and it looked like he's got some good things going. I thought maybe I could cop an idea or 2 - but I don't want to be a criminal!

Lots of circuits are available on the net - let's face it, any circuit can be reverse-engineered. I'm not sure about the ethics.... if I was trying to build a commercial product that would be wrong. But I'm just messing around at home.

I guess it's similar to the music down-load quagmire. I'd love to buy an Allen Amp but can't afford to. Is it wrong to try to understand his circuits and how they work? Didn't he do the same to Fender's circuits? And then use them for commercial purposes? Where do we draw the line?

that's what I put in my old junker Vox copy - a 15" JBL in a closed-back box. I think that's a big part of the sound. Closed-back does things way different than open-back; man ,when I put that cab on a wood stage you could feel the bass through your legs!

Yeah,
You do feel the bass but I have to tell you I just received a Celstion Neodymium 15" and installed it in one of my units and I felt the bass much more than I ever did before. Articulate, punchy and clean. The highs were really rolled off so you have to punch up the treble knob into the 8-10 region to get it going-more than when using a P15N Jensen Re'ish. The Jensen gives you more of a classic sound that's why they're the stock speaker.

As far as the Dave Allen schematic thing, anyone can reverse engineer his amps as well as my own. Problem is, why would you do it? Yeah, you know what's happening there and think you could upgrade your own amp that may be similar but you still have to do the work.

With Dave's amps and my own you get a fresh amp from the get-go. Not only that, premium parts are incorporated. You get a quality package too. It's not just one or two things we improve on. You're paying for someone's labor, method of building, choice of parts and time. It's more involved. The way I see it, there's a trade-off to ripping off.

CancerLeoCam, I agree about your statement concerning quality, choice of parts and design, etc. If I was a professional performing artist and needed a top-quality rig for my work (and it was a business expense and tax-deductible) I would call you tonight and place my order! Just checked out your site and that amp looks like a beauty. It's just a matter of what I can afford.

You said: " As far as the Dave Allen schematic thing, anyone can reverse engineer his amps as well as my own. Problem is, why would you do it? Yeah, you know what's happening there and think you could upgrade your own amp that may be similar but you still have to do the work."

But doing the work is where the fun is. It's a hobby. It keeps me busy and out of trouble. I'm old enough to remember building crystal radio sets!

But doing the work is where the fun is. It's a hobby. It keeps me busy and out of trouble. I'm old enough to remember building crystal radio sets!

Ok, you win. :D

...thanks for the comments on the amp. Every time I see the amp I feel the same way. Most people I have shown the amp too are really wow'd when they first see it ....so it makes me real proud. For my next trick, I'll be working on coaxing them to let loose the purse strings to buy some.

It's just beautiful to look at and to play. I really enjoy playing through them and that is a telling fact.

If a chef doesn't eat his own food or is real skinny-you might not want to eat his food.

David Allen's kits are not that pricey really. Consider the cost of the parts, the cabinet, chassis and speakers--those really add up. Then, his instructions are incredible--step by step. If you can solder, read and check off the steps, you can build one. You will have a point to point wired amp that will last for years. I'm going on six years with my Old Flame and that amp has been a true workhorse with no issues.

I have all his diagrams and instructions, but it would be plain wrong to give away his knowledge and plans. I considered it part of what I paid for when I bought the amp.

If you want to build a particular amp, the schematics for all the popular Fender's and Marshall's are out there. Unfortunately, the parts are relatively expensive--but it can be done.

if you like that amp and feel that his circuits/layout deserve to be protected I'll accept that 100%. Very honorable of you!

I have a Deluxe Reverb that I built (well, sort of built using another amp as a starting point). It sounds real nice so maybe I'll just let it be and start saving up for a kit.