Hey guys.
My long overdue first tube amp was finished this morning, to include the cab and circuitry. It can use a little more odds and ends like a pilot light and a headphone jack as well as a little more re-routing of the power cable, but for all practical purposes, it's finished, usable and I'll be toting it to the deltaslim slide clinic on saturday. Like I said it was my practice before going the route of a more organized build. It was the AX84 P1 (old version). Sounded good and vintagey when it was already in its cab (soundclips or videoclips to follow) and is voiced for Marshall. Yes, I "cheated" early on...after hearing that it sounded like carboard at first, I inserted a metalcore scalarizer at the master volume control. Now it sounds like an honest to goodness tube amp, notwithstanding the cheapo output tranny and almost used up and aging 6L6 and 12ax7 tubes that I used.
I learned a lot of stuff while putting it together, to include the expensive and painful ones. A hot bias blew out one of my 6550's. It took some time before I was able to zero in on a ground loop that caused a very bad hum and etc etc etc. There is indeed more art to making a tube amp than having a schematic.
Which now brings me to the goal of this thread. I know there are electronics DIY'ers out here who, like me, have not yet made the leap to tube amps for fear of certain things (expensive mistakes, electric shock etc etc) or inavailability of parts. So I now issue the call, let's band together and make for ourselves, and eventually for the Filipino masses, these tube amps and democratize tone all the more. Now is the time to learn from each other.
As threadstarter, let me start the ball rolling, and I will leave no punches pulled nor secrets kept.
Part 1 - Materials sourcesHere are the sources of my materials. Add those you know of as we go along :
1. Tubes - if single-ended (no need for matching tubes) I go to Deeco. If I need matching pairs or quads, I go to Eleshop in Ronquillo.
2. Tube turrets - You can get octal tube turrets at AMCO Electronics in Raon and Nonal tube turrets at Watsons electronics which is near Sta. Cruz church.
3. Output and voltage transformers - There are many. If I want some real high-quality ones I go to the following websites :
a.
www.cedist.com - this is where I get lots of my electronics supplies from 3pdt switches to silvered mica caps to tolex etc. A must visit site for every DIY'er. Their transformer line includes OEM's for Marshall, Fender and VOX. If you need other amp-related stuff such as reverb tanks, you can also get it from here. Unfortunately they don't sell retail and will only sell to companies. I got around this anyway, I'm sure you can too.
b. Mercury Magnetics- I have one of their trannies courtesy of Embot. They say these are " as good as it gets". I'm saving that tranny for a big one, say a Bassman 50 head a Mig50, or a Hi-watt 50.
c. JV Electronics- this is a tranny winding shop found in the innards of Main street in Paco. Mang JV is a tube audiophile and it appears he has been doing this for many years. They are friends with Mang Raul as well. You can find this shop in Lanorio st. at Paco. If you don't want to look for them and pass your order on through me, expect me to mark up on your order to compensate for my time. To get there, from the corner of Pedro Gil and main, enter through main street(side of 7-11) turn left at the first corner then turn right immediately at the first corner again. JV Electronics is a shop with a high amateur radio antenna atop it. You can't miss once you're in Lanorio.
d. Tony Tecson, 245 mh del pilar street,Palatiw, Pasig city tel no:628-2996. Leoman53 on Philmusic. You can also have your Power Trannies, Output Trannies and filter chokes wound by hi.
e. Just found this.
www.analogmetric.com. Torroidal Power trannies ! Get a load of this !
http://www.analogmetric.com/goods.php?id=1025
You can get voltage trannies and output trannies here. Just specify your desired AC voltage and for the output tranny, just specify if you need push-pull or Single ended, and the type of tubes you intend to use. Mang JV will make one based on the output impedance of the tubes you want to use. Or you can specify the output impedance per se and the tranny will be made for you.
The trannies on my first tube amp all came from Mang JV. The output tranny for my 5 watter is very inexpensive, it was the variable ac voltage tranny that was kinda expensive. I think it cost me more than a thousand for that set of 2 trannies. But that's still inexpensive as things go.
4. Chassis - for 15 or 30 watt amps, perhaps even up to 50 watts there are chassis available at Deeco for P700 or so. There is another shop just in front of watsons where you can buy heavy-duty chassis. Alternatively, you can go to Soler street, near the corner of T. Alonzo and have chassis made to your specifications at the metalshops there. Surprisingly they are quite reasonable, about 700-800 will buy you a thick-gauge chassis, even better than the ready-to assemble ones. Only downside is you have to come back for it.
5. All other components such as caps and resistors and other semiconductors, I go to Alexan and Deeco, with Deeco being my more favored store (cheapo as I am). For some reason, electronics at Deeco are a lot cheaper than when you get them at Alexan. I've heard it before that Deeco sells "fake" parts and Alexan sells "original" parts but c'mon for my purposes I have not found any difference between allegedly fake and allegedly original semiconductors.
6. Speakers- If you go to CEDist, you can get OEM Jensen Speakers as well as Celestions. I'm not sure about the others, only those two brands stuck to my mind. If you're on a budget, you can buy Dai-ichi or Crown or what not you can get your hands on at Raon. Just make sure they are all-range instrument speakers and not woofers.
7. Cabinet- for this project of course I used the chassis of my old rage amp. Actually I already have a head cab ready for 100 watters, courtesy of my great finishing carpenter Mang Efren. I think I'll need something smaller made. Anyway, any finishing carpenter can meet your needs for a cabinet. Yung carpenter ko, kahit pakita mo lang picture, he can copy it. Seyet...if it's made out of wood, he can make it. He can even become a luthier if he wanted to. Anyway, not to plug my own carpenter...just look for a good one where you are if you need custom cabs and enclosures made.
8. Copper nails used in quick and dirty tagboards- Get them from the Fishing Supply stores in Divisoria.
9.
www.turretboards.com - another source for tube amp DIY
Thats practically all of the materials you'll need.
yeah when can you build clones for sale?
nice info sir bamf! thats the best part is always the learning curve!
add lang ako ng other local source for future reference
for tubes:
phasetron at parksquare
silver strings
architectural audio
audio den
listening in style
for sockets
silver strings
for audio and power transformer
thlaudio
hammond chassis for your amp
rs components or farnell.com (both online)
or just get aluminum sheets at your nearest aluminum and glass supplier
miscellaneous and other high quality components
silver strings - Black Gate, Audio Professor, F&T, Jensen, riken resistors, ALPS pots,
architectural audio - auricaps
audio amplified - mundorf caps
silver strings
Unit 901 Westrade Center, 132 West Ave Quezon City. tel: 4126652 / 3741710 look for Vilma or Alma
architectural audio
New World Hotel, Shop #7 (corner of Esperanza St. and Makati Ave. - just across Greenbelt 3). 811-6715
audio den
Unit-C, G/F Megastate Bldg. G., Araneta Ave Cor. Agno Ext., Quezon City 1113.
Tel : +02 7325173. Fax : +02 7433238
listening in style
5th Floor Shangri-La Plaza Mall,
EDSA Mandaluyong City
Philippines 1550
Tel: (632) 632-9785 • (632) 632-9345
audio amplified
2nd Flr., Madison Square,
Libis, Quezon City
Tel Nos: 395.5115; 637.0250
add for later reorg: low voltage tube amps
http://www.sophtamps.ca/mambo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=25&Itemid=37
