tweed deluxe kit

[griehund]

Thinking about a winter project. Anybody have any experience with tubedepot kits?
http://tubedepot.com/kit-tweeddeluxe.html
Is this doable for a novice? Happy with results?

 

[Default]

Thinking about a winter project. Anybody have any experience with tubedepot kits?
http://tubedepot.com/kit-tweeddeluxe.html
Is this doable for a novice? Happy with results?

Don't know about that particular kit, but Deluxes are supposed to be one of the most recorded amps in history. It's certainly doable for a novice if you take your time and be patient. Don't work when you are tired or distracted and you should be fine. Have you done any soldering before? If not, I would build a kit fuzzbox or phase shifter first, but that wasn't the way I started either, lol.
Think about building a head version - that way, you can use different cabinets. Variety is the spice of something or another...

 

[capnjuan]

Hi Grey Doggie; I don't have any direct experience with TubeDepot's kits or anybody else's for that matter. I am the proud possessor of a Weber 6G15 reverb kit done by our default but he was far from a novice when he built it.

I don't know how strong you are technically but almost anybody can drill holes in the cabinet and the chassis ... but it will be stuffing that printed circuit board that will make or break your project.

I spent quite some time looking at their assembly manual and suggest that before biting off on one of these ... you do the same. You'll need time and physical isolation so you can concentrate ... this isn't something you leave out on a dining room table for a week at a time.

You'd need to make a coy of the instructions and every time you do anything, you check off what you did. After a while, you'll have to go back and double check everything again. Provided you have the tools and good work habits, you might can get through but ... in the words of a member on the Hoffman Board: "No plan survives contact with the amp".

I mean you could get done, have no parts left over, have it looking great and when you turn it on, you could have no sound, bad sound, shrieks, squeals, and, God forbid ... hum. Most amps including kits can be pretty unforgiving; one little innocent boob-boo and your project will be dead. Do you have a tech friend/neighbor who could bail you out?

 

[Jeff Haddad]

My first amp build (I've only done 2) was a 5e3 kit from Mission amps. It had to go back there for some problems I had with ground connections (poor soldering on my part), but otherwise worked well. Before I sent it back, he was helpful with some troubleshooting over the phone.

I'm surprised to see an amp kit like the TubeDepot deluxe using a PCB - just never considered somebody would do that. Not that there's anything wrong with it...

On that TD kit, I wondered about the 2 traces that zig-zag on the right side of the board (off the inputs) and noticed them labeled "RF suppression". There's similar labeling on other sections of the board, too. Kinda gives it a paint-by-numbers feel.

 

[Default]

Stranded wire is good. I had issues with the weber solid wire where, if you nicked it, the wire would snap very easily.

 

[griehund]

Hi Grey Doggie; I don't have any direct experience with TubeDepot's kits or anybody else's for that matter. I am the proud possessor of a Weber 6G15 reverb kit done by our default but he was far from a novice when he built it.

I mean you could get done, have no parts left over, have it looking great and when you turn it on, you could have no sound, bad sound, shrieks, squeals, and, God forbid ... hum. Most amps including kits can be pretty unforgiving; one little innocent boob-boo and your project will be dead. Do you have a tech friend/neighbor who could bail you out?

I have a nephew who is an electronics engineer with a hi-tech firm near Boston. He invents and creates all kinds of stuff. Just rebuilt his Harley from ass end to light switches and completely rewired his Porche. If I go balls up I can leave it in his garage and pick it up in a few days. Plus i've got you guys.

Fear and ignorance never stopped me from making a fool of myself :lol:

 

[capnjuan]

Hi Grey Doggie; accepting risk is easier when you have some downside coverage ... like a clever nephew

Good luck with your project!

 

[Default]

If you want to go small first, make a champ clone. Small, cheap, easy, simple. Make it a head, so you can run it through a 2X10 cab with some high efficiency speakers and you'll be surprisingly loud.

 

[coastie99]

If you want to go small first, make a champ clone. Small, cheap, easy, simple. Make it a head, so you can run it through a 2X10 cab with some high efficiency speakers and you'll be surprisingly loud.

Thoroughly good advice from M. de Faux !

 

[Default]

If you want to go small first, make a champ clone. Small, cheap, easy, simple. Make it a head, so you can run it through a 2X10 cab with some high efficiency speakers and you'll be surprisingly loud.

Surprisingly good advice from M. de Faux !

Fixed.

 

[beinhard]

Hi, griehund

Good advice in the other posts here, now let me add my 2 cents worth.
I'm not trying to discourage you. Amp building can be a lot of fun, even more if your idea of fun includes watching your work go up in smoke.

Understand the danger! Putting your fingers in the wrong place inside a tube amp can kill you.

Know how to solder! If you don't have that skill, practice on scrap until you do. Bad solder joints can cause very tricky failures.

Ask questions! The only stupid questions are the ones you didn't ask.

Visit the Weber amp building forum!
There are friendly and helpful people there, and they even have a forum section for discussing non-Weber amps.
Look around in the tweed section and check out threads about the 5E3, that will give you an idea of what people have struggled with when building this type of amp.

Sorry, no experience with tube depot kits.
As Jeff noted, using a PCB is unusual for this type of amp. That should make it a little easier for a first time build, but also a little less convenient for experimenting with modifications.

Good luck! Have fun, and let us know how it goes.


beinhard

 

[griehund]

Hi, griehund

Ask questions! The only stupid questions are the ones you didn't ask.

beinhard

Started a new job in Mich back in the 70s and asked my new boss if I could ask a dumb question. He responded with the quote above. After I asked the question he said "that's the dumbest question I ever heard". It went down hill from there.

Thanks for all the help. I think I'll do the smart thing and start with the champ. :lol:

 

[coastie99]

Thanks for all the help. I think I'll do the smart thing and start with the champ. :lol:

Good on you GH. That's a very wise decision.

 

[coastie99]

I've been thinking ( always a dangerous thing ! ) and mulling over a suggestion, and encouragement, from Capnjuan.

While not technically savvy, and certainly not trained in electronics, I've managed a few builds now, beginning with a Champ clone, just as you apparently are.

I've learned a great deal along the way and become familiar with some best practices. I also enlisted the help of a professional amp. builder here in Newsyland who came up with a beat-the-hum revised layout for the Champ.

And, I've learned a lot about what-to-buy-where.

The thought occurs to me that there may well be others here who'd like to take a shot at an amp. build but, for whatever reason, have not.

So, what say you all to my starting a kind of Amp. Build for Beginner's kind of thing ? Non-technical and chatty, with others perfectly at liberty to chime in with advice, tips, and anything technical which needs explanation ?

 

[fronobulax]

I've been thinking ( always a dangerous thing ! ) and mulling over a suggestion, and encouragement, from Capnjuan.

While not technically savvy, and certainly not trained in electronics, I've managed a few builds now, beginning with a Champ clone, just as you apparently are.

I've learned a great deal along the way and become familiar with some best practices. I also enlisted the help of a professional amp. builder here in Newsyland who came up with a beat-the-hum revised layout for the Champ.

And, I've learned a lot about what-to-buy-where.

The thought occurs to me that there may well be others here who'd like to take a shot at an amp. build but, for whatever reason, have not.

So, what say you all to my starting a kind of Amp. Build for Beginner's kind of thing ? Non-technical and chatty, with others perfectly at liberty to chime in with advice, tips, and anything technical which needs explanation ?

Sounds like a good idea. You could start a topic and if is stays reasonably on track it could be stickied.

I find the amp building comments very interesting. I assembled several Heathkits "back in the day" but the only tube involved was a CRT for a computer display. I'd actually consider trying a bass amp except that the Google searches I have done suggest that tube bass amps are either not very good as bass amps or not very good projects for beginners.

 

[Default]

Hey greihund!
Got your email and spent some time surfing the web looking for a ready made head cab for a tweed champ and had about the same luck as you did. Anybody will make one on special order, but only Weber has them in stock. When I built the reverb kit, I also ordered the cab from Weber. I thought it was pretty high quality and I wouldn't hesitate ordering another.

 

[Default]

Oh, and Gary?

That's a great idea! A stickied amp buiding thread I'd brilliant!

 

[capnjuan]

... I'd actually consider trying a bass amp except that the Google searches I have done suggest that tube bass amps are either not very good as bass amps or not very good projects for beginners.

Hi Frono; there are '59 Bassman kits but for reasons known mostly to real (excludes me) guitar and bass players, the Bassman is maybe more revered by guitar than bass players. I guess I'm not sure that there are iconic bass amps like there are guitar amps that somebody would dupe into kit form.

And ... they'd get pretty expensive tube amp transformers increasing exponentially in size/weight/cost with power output. It's just a guess but buying the transformers to dupe one of Guild's pretty successful Thunderbass line of heads would run $200-$300. Without some agreement among kit-makers on 'what's a good bass amp design' ....

 

[coastie99]

Oh, and Gary?

That's a great idea! A stickied amp buiding thread I'd brilliant!

Thanks de Faux.

Yes, just a simple, chatty, none too technical "Primer" as it were. I figure that there are members out there, with time on their hands who could be encouraged to "have a go".

Keep it low key and hopefully get plenty of input from blokes like yourself. I may do the intro. this afternoon if I have sufficient time after work.

 

[chazmo]

Gary, got your PM and I have no objection and only good thoughts about you embarking on a build thread. I'm sure everyone would be interested. I don't know whether that would belong in this section (Amps & Effects) or in the Tech Shop. Probably the latter.

Best wishes.