New dual channel high gain amp build (1 Viewer)

[PaoloJM]

Here's some fresh new finished pics and videos of my new amp.
The sawdust from drilling the chassis bolt holes is still in the corners!!

Here's my new pedal board. The MXR and Carbon Copy are in the loop during the videos below.


This first one is using my strat and messing with the clean and dirty channel settings

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This one is the heavies using my EMG loaded RG, again messing with the OD settings on the dirty channel. I also using the feedback modes towards the end. The CC and MXR make appearance throughout both videos.

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Lemme know whatcha think

 

[Green Goblin]

:O

 

[mark]

looks great, sounds great. more info on the amp please.

 

[Tony Ramone]

that's fuckin' cool, man! How long have you spent at it? Is it based on any particular amp? As mark said - info please

 

[PaoloJM]

:O

looks great, sounds great. more info on the amp please.

that's fuckin' cool, man! How long have you spent at it? Is it based on any particular amp? As mark said - info please

It my own design.
I was looking for a Fendery clean and a cross of 5150/Dual Rec/SLO/JCM800 type OD.
Both channels have gain, bass, mid, treb and volume. Each has and american/brittish voicing switch and gain boost switches.
The channels are footswitchable as well as a panel for when you don't have the footswitch connected.
There's a master volume plus a footswitchable solo boost using an additional pot so that you can set the boost level.
The last two dials on the front panel are resonance and presence. There's also a negative feedback switch so that you can set the power amp to a "tight" or "loose" responce.
There's a series FX Loop with send and return level controls that can handle line or instrument level pedal/rack gear. It has a ground lift also to stop hum for pedals on a power supply.
It has a switch to allow swapping of 6L6 and EL34 type valves.
The power supply has a vintage and modern setting. Modern is tight and aggressive sounding, vintage is more loose and compressed sounding.
That's about it for features.

Pics of the build and some early schematics are here http://s645.photobucket.com/albums/uu179/paolojm/60%20Watt%20amp%20build/

There's more video clips on my uTube page of the in progress testing.

I'm happy to answer any questions you have.

I've a couple of properly recorded clips on my Netmusicians account, user paolojm, if you want a listen. I'll be making more quality ones later in the week.

 

[mark]

scary. how does the brit american voicing switch operate? is it like blackstars ISF?

 

[sparse]

That's amazing Paolo! Well done. Roughly how much did it cost you to put together and did you go for high quality components or more standard ones?

 

[PaoloJM]

scary. how does the brit american voicing switch operate? is it like blackstars ISF?

Nope. Blackstar ISF varies power valve control. My switch reconfigures the tone stack from a fenderish to marshallish type. It's not unique or anything, the tone shit button on a DSL does something similar, though hopefully mine sounds better!!

That's amazing Paolo! Well done. Roughly how much did it cost you to put together and did you go for high quality components or more standard ones?

Cheers. It cost me around €350-€400 all in.
I went for high grade Hammand transformers and a decent, spot-welded chassis.
IMO the output transformer is the most significant part of any valve amplifier, apart from speakers obviously.
I've never been able to hear the difference in capacitor brand, my ears are pretty good but I don't sniff the cork so I opted for the standard Mallory range. Resistors are mostly carbon film, though there's a few metal film and metal oxide doing certain tasks.

 

[ann post]

looks deadly paulo.

 

[Green Goblin]

The recordings miss out on most of the detail of the amp though without a proper mic. I have a spare USB Condenser I could give you if you answer my PMs :O

 

[shower another shower]

GG, would be curious to hear some of your recordings with your USB condenser mic.

 

[Green Goblin]

I'm shit at recording haha. I used to throw it over the grill of the amp which doesn't work as well for a condenser. I don't think I have any at the moment, not really of any amps worth micing. I used to use it with my AD30VT. It's not amazing but it's better than a camera or ordinary PC mic. I might try micing my AC4 or something later.

 

[JohnnyRaz]

deadly!!!!!

 

[shower another shower]

If you're so shit at recording, how is it that you have such an acute sense of intricate detail, recorded through a mic that isn't quite proper?
Throw it up there, Hobnobolin.
edit...and, identify the mic in PauloJM's videoes/pics.

 

[Green Goblin]

Where did I saw I was an audiophile? I just said it'd be better to hear it with a better mic(or maybe better interface, as that could be where the hiss is coming from).

It sounds fine on the lower gain settings, but the higher gain clip is a bit harder to make out. Still sounds great though.

I'm curious as to how much this amp relies on power tube saturation and how it sounds at different volumes. A lot of higher gain amps traditionally try to get their sound from the preamp(which can help cut down on sag if you're a shredder).

 

[PaoloJM]

The recordings miss out on most of the detail of the amp though without a proper mic. I have a spare USB Condenser I could give you if you answer my PMs :O

Where did I saw I was an audiophile? I just said it'd be better to hear it with a better mic(or maybe better interface, as that could be where the hiss is coming from).

It sounds fine on the lower gain settings, but the higher gain clip is a bit harder to make out. Still sounds great though.

I'm curious as to how much this amp relies on power tube saturation and how it sounds at different volumes. A lot of higher gain amps traditionally try to get their sound from the preamp(which can help cut down on sag if you're a shredder).

Just to clarify this.
The clips are recorded using my sh*tty casio digital camera, the mike is in the pictures as I have done some recording using my Beta 57 and SM57.
I'll post properly miked clips on my soundclick page later in the week later in the week.

For now here's the first attempts http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=1067692 done at the time the pics were taken.
The clips have a touch of reverb but no other post processing, the clips are not played to a click track and are made up on the spot in one take so no comments on my sloppy playing!!
I'm finding it difficult to get mike placement right as I'm playing, operating the DAW and moving the mike myself, which isn't a huge problem but my headphones have a short lead! I'll hopefully do a better job during the week.

 

[Green Goblin]

Hah, I never saw the mic in the picture actually. Setting up mics can be tough. I really need a mic stand. I have an Audio Technica AT2020. It's actually a condenser, but it takes high SPLs. Unfortunately it has no pad and neither does my audio interface, so it can only do that in theory. I have a dynamic as well; I think it's more of a vocal mic but I think it might be much easier to set up given how crap my room is. I've considered picking up an SM57 for simplicity, but I'm not sure how much better it would be. The guy who makes the Lunchbox says it works better with condensers, though I think the one I got was less than ideal.

I'd aslo try a plugin - Antares Microphone Modeler. It can be good at making "distant" recordings sound less distant. Generally I don't like processing stuff in post to make it sound better since you should generally start off with the clearest signal, but it can be handy to have.

What Audio interface are you using? I have a Mobilepre - it's mostly good but the ASIO can be awkward. Without the ASIO the recordings skip a load. I hate having to load up a DAW just to record gear demos etc., I can turn the latency all the way up and that helps a bit. My WLAN drivers cause a lot of audio stutter.

I find it really hard to mic my ZT Lunchbox so I get both speakers; so I just mic the one speaker now. It's a tiny 6.5", but if i'm correct adding a second one just helps the bass carry better rather than adding any.

 

[shower another shower]

You know, amplifiers are a lot like life.
There is no path to happiness, happiness is the path.
Less talk, more rock.

 

[Green Goblin]

Totally class amp IMO, sounds great at low volumes for an all-tube.

 

[PaoloJM]

Some of you may have seen my amp build thread.
Well I've driving myself nuts for the past couple of weeks tweaking this and that, it's becoming hard to see the woods from the trees at this stage!!

http://www.netmusicians.org/files/49-First amp demo classic rock.mp3


I'd really appreciate your opinion on this tone.
It's the OD channel set as follows:
Gain = 4
Bass = 5
Mid = 7
Treb = 5
Master = 2.5
Presence = 4
Res = .5
Mid boost = off
Fat/Tight switch = fat (listening back the clip seems to be right at the point where the tight should be engaged to prevent a flabby bottom but see what you think)

I'm using my Les Paul with the JB bridge pickup. The strings are months old, spent too much time in this goddam amp!!

A G12H is miked with a Beta 57, close and midway between cone and edge 'cos I don't know any better.

I added a touch of reverb afterwards and a touch of compression to squeeze a bit more volume (that also increase the noise a little but it's still not bad for a high gainer I think).
Other than that there are no other effects or pedals used in the making of this clip.

It's supposed to be a kind of hot rodded Marshall / Soldano type classic 80s rock type tone with my own flavour thrown in.
The OD now is nothing like the SLO circuit wise now, but I hope I haven't gone too far from the beaten track on this.

I'll make some more clips on the clean channel, some bluesy stuff and some proper high gain metal stuff later in the week.

Again I'd appreciate your input.