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Old vs New

There are lots of rumors, heresay, impressions and not a lot of hard tech data about why old gear may sound different or better or worse...

Tube Manufacturing Data

I am planning to scan materials I have on-hand and also provide links where possible to original sources to help the curious better...

Transformer Basics

Very nerdy stuff, but I am hoping I can de-mystify transformers a little bit for other casual music tech types. I am not an expert by any...

Prototyping

Not the only way, but my preferred cheap, quick and easy way (pick 3) Buy some Garolite. This is flame proof PCB material. It cuts...

1970 Marshall 1986 (gently tweaked)

An old pic, the filters were all renewed long ago. The chassis is dated 4-14-70 for "Test" The front panel is metal (not perspex/plexi)...

Troubleshooting your tube guitar amp

This Lisajous pattern means, "Your amp is angry!" In our little online world we run into folks who work with musical instrument amps in a...

Amp Building - Tools & Tips

As with any hobby, there are the parts you think you need to know, and then all the other stuff you learn along the way. The hard knocks,...

Load Boxes

What do we do when our amp is "too loud"? TL;DR Your amp makes some power, that power may easily be too much to play at home - or even...

Hanging tubes upside down? (DRAFT)

"In God we trust; all others bring data" - Mike Bloomberg I am speaking of course about tube guitar amps that hang their tubes upside...

Pedal Boards

A few salty thoughts about pedal boards Thought #1 - get a board with a power supply. Chasing dead batteries is for suckers. Constantly...

Saving a Hammond Organ

I bought this Hammond M3 with a Leslie 145 cabinet from a friend who was moving and needed to clear out his recording studio. They were...

JTM45 Build + OT Notes

Since I was building a 5F6-A Bassman, the amp that was copied to make the first Marshall, I thought it would be informative and fun to...

1965 JMI Vox AC30 TB

A Sept 1965 Super Twin Trapezoid head amp, rescued from eBay. [Updated for clarity] I had wanted an AC30TB for many years, but they were...

5F6-A Bassman Build

The mother of all guitar amps, originals still sell for north of $10,000 64 years later. So build vs buy is once again, a no brainer....

1952 Fender Pro Amp

The 5B5 Fender Pro was made from 1951 until 1954. They featured octal pre-amp tubes until roughly the summer of 1953 when they switched...

Princeton Reverb build

Another small amp whose pricing has gone bonkers since the pandemic. Build vs Buy is an easy one now. Same basic drill as the 5E3, board,...

Shellac tips for Fender Tweed amps

Pics and notes about getting good results You don't need much, just a warm dry day and a couple of basics: For a classic finish, we'll...

5E3 Build

Assembly hints here for the DIY crowd. The narrow panel Fender Deluxe Amp (circa 1957-59) is one of the all time greats. Used by too many...

OG Guitar Amp History

Not the last word, but a few hundred on the most popular & I'd argue important circuit topology of all time when it comes to rock and...

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