Ting Ho Dung Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 I've had this amp for a few years, maybe three, and used it briefly. It came to me with a bad hummmm. Other than the hum it sounded decent so I kept it thinking I'd learn how to read a schematic again and possibly mod the circuitry. It's all point to point circuitry. No turret boards and only 3 or 4 posts. But I quickly decided I'd rather relearn how to play guitar and shelved this jewel. Then I met Brewmaster Dan on the forum from another post and he said he'd be glad to look at the amp for me. That was the smartest thing I've done in a long time. Brewmaster went through the circuit and found problems. He also replaced some components. Had it back inside 2 weeks and now this thing is awesome. It's a homebrew amp with ideas taken from both the JTM 45 and Bassman. I really didn't know what that was before but am now learning. I can actually hear things in my playing that weren't there before. It is absolutely articulate. And get this:My wife actually walked in my room while I was playing and asked if I had been practicing!! She said I sounded wonderful. The only thing that had changed was the amp. We saw Brandon the next day and she even mentioned to him how good I sounded. Duh.....Whad did he just say, you ask? Yes, read it again, the wife actually complimented my playing. I told her it was the amp and she said it sure sounds good. So now I'm going to tackle some Eric Gales with the Strat turned the way I normally play. I don't feel adventurous enough to learn to play upside down and backwards. I've found some guitars that really fit me and make me feel good when I play them. Now I've finally found an amp that makes me feel the same way. This combination is truly remarkable. It's making me reach for things I've never thought I'd try. It's almost like it's telling me, "You can do it." Brewmaster can chime in on what he did to the amp since I barely know. What ever it was it is wonderful and at an HFC approved price at that.Thanks go out to my new HFC friend, Brewmaster Dan!
gorch Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 Sounds great! Has any one seen it yet, except for Brewmaster Dan?
velorush Posted October 12, 2015 Posted October 12, 2015 My wife actually walked in my room while I was playing and asked if I had been practicing!! She said I sounded wonderful.Yep, that's what happens at my house... almost... actually, it's more like, "My wife actually walked in my room again while I was playing and asked if I could turn it down more." Great news on the amp! Always incredible to be inspired again!
Disturber Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 No pics? No proof the amp even exists... Congrats!!
Brewmaster Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I was happy to be able to help with this.For those who were/are curious: On the original thead there was a lot of speculation as to what the problem could have been and, as I discovered, there were multiple issues as is the case with many homemade amps. A bad filter cap, bad cap in the PI, bad grounding, and several poor solder joints were the main culprits. I tweaked the phase inverter values as well. I could have done more but there is a certain level of homebrew magic these amp projects attain for no logical reason and I didn't want to mess with it.Electronic mojo, one of the great mysteries of life. When you get it, don't mess with it.
Ting Ho Dung Posted October 13, 2015 Author Posted October 13, 2015 Sounds great! Has any one seen it yet, except for Brewmaster Dan? Not yet. Next time the Tampa Cod Fish Club gets together I'll be sure to take it with me along with my favorite strat. No pics? No proof the amp even exists... Congrats!! Many things exist only in my mind. But this is not one of them. Here's a link to some pics. https://www.flickr.com/photos/27205954@N07/sets/72157622322917544
Brewmaster Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 I wanted to mention that the OT is old. I think that is why it sounds as good as it does. I couldn't trace the manufacturer based on the code. I found a batch of transformers about 10 years ago that came from God only knows where. They turned out to be perfect for my 18 watt projects and gave the amp an absolutley kick ass sound that buried everything else I tried including the most venerable cork-sniffer name out there. On the normal channel it had the early Billy Gibbons tone ready to go with the tone and volume around 2:00. The MV channel had a lot of Plexi/JMP tone going on. I had somebody come into Legends Music and A/B it to a Maz 18 and his Marshall 18. Guess who won that shootout? I ended up sending one of the remaining OT's to somebody to duplicate and they did a great job. Oh well, too bad those original trannies are gone, as is Legends, but I'm not building any longer so I guess the point is moot. Just babbling....
polara Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 Local guy here in Atlanta, Goodsell, has a lot to say about old iron being where it's at more than anything else. He somehow sourced a load of ancient transformers for his first run of amps.And that blue Strat should be EVERYONE's favorite Strat. Looks comfy and well-loved.
Disturber Posted October 13, 2015 Posted October 13, 2015 My band mate has a 90's Bluesbreaker combo with a replaced output transformer. It has a German http://www.shinrock.comI think that might be the reason this amps just kills. It is one of the best Marshall's I've heard.
Boomerang~Junkie Posted October 25, 2015 Posted October 25, 2015 Holy cow is Michael ecstatic over this amp now! When I called him today he pulled the, "Dude you gotta hear this amp!". He promptly tore through a few minutes of BOC / DFTR. Sounded awesome over the phone - for whatever that's worth (even without the cowbell).I know Michael's pretty picky about tone and quality. Brewmaster must have worked some magic on this one!Nice job!
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