First t00b amp build

[balazs.bencs]

oh yeah, and they also have finished and unfinished wooden boxes for the head, they have lots of different tolexes, etc.. so you can really get everything what you need.

In this another topic you can see how i did it: http://guitar-fx-layouts.42897.x6.nabble.com/Building-my-first-tube-amp-td36241.html

[Travis]

Some more progress on the revibe cab. Right now it's just loosely put together because I'm going to take it back apart and do a few more coats of clear this weekend

[moda]

Looking nice mate.
My 15w build is still sitting unfinished although my little 2 watt version for a friend worked out well.
Must say that building a tube amp is a great learning experience and as long as you work on it with a clear head and take all the safety considerations its not that hard.

[balazs.bencs]

dude, that looks amazing!

[Marbles]

That looks amazing!

[Travis]

Thanks guys! Time to do the 5e3 cab next

moda I'd love to check out your 15 watter when it's done. And the 2 watter for that matter!

[Ravenswerld]

Hey Travis,
   Nice build!!!! I've built a 1 watt tube amp. I can see now why people charge so much for a handwired amp.
Thnx for sharing...

[Travis]

Thanks ravenswerld. No kidding. Since I obviously don't have an assembly line type thing going it is amazing how much work I have put into this project. Between building the electronic portion and building and finishing the cab from scratch this has been a major project. The finishing process is actually ongoing as well because I'm going to apply some UV protective clear coats to keep the color of the stain as stable as possible. My sample finish turned yellow out in the sun

Anyway have you posted any pics of your amp build before? I'd love to see it

[Ravenswerld]

Yep, amps take an immense amount of time and energy to build. Mine was only one watt. Couldn't imagine a dumble clone or something with reverb and trem. Anyways, no I haven't shared photos. Maybe I will. It's not that great!

[Travis]

Since your build is only one watt is it one of those 12AX7 push-pull output stages? I've seen some cool looking projects on the Robinette site that use a 12AX7 for a push-pull power amp. I'm curious about them but when I add up the cost for the transformers and everything I start to want something bigger

[Travis]

Oh yeah and definitely post it if you can dude sounds cool!

[Ravenswerld]

Yes, exactly. I built the deluxe micro he designed. It is a sweet little amp!

[Travis]

Super cool! You're the first person I've talked to that's built one of those. How loud is that thing? Apartment friendly?

[Ravenswerld]

     It gets pretty loud. If you use a 12" speaker or put it thru a 212 or 412. It's a little beast for sure. I've been using it for playin with acoustic guitars. Also, if you wanted to mic it at shows it's all you need. Yes, it is a very nice apartment amp. It also, takes pedals really well. I did all the mods on it to. If your looking for an apartment friendly amp. It's pretty cool amp. I'll post pics when things slow down for me a bit... cheers...

[balazs.bencs]

This topic inspired me so much lately, and since I got totally addicted after building my 18W Bluesbreaker head, I decided to build a JTM45 as well and I figured I'll share the process with you all with pictures and all.

[Travis]

Nice!! Looking forward to seeing more!!

Are you gonna do the cab DIY or buy one?

[balazs.bencs]

I'm still not sure about the woodworking part - I'm not sure that I'm capable of doing it. Most likely there will be test boxes to see if I can make it nice enough. But I want to do every other part (from building the electronics, to do the tolex, etc...) for sure. This is not going to be a kit, I'll try to get the parts from multiple sources.

Btw I'll be using the ceriatone layout, which I believe is pretty good.

[Travis]

Well naturally as a carpenter I gotta suggest that you build it!

Obviously I don't really know you, but I'm pretty confident that you can do it as long as you have access to (and can safely operate) a table saw, chop saw, and router.

If you're gonna tolex it that actually makes it easier because you don't have to worry about complicated joints and you can hide a lot of mistakes like router tear-out etc

I'm actually not sure what kind of joints Marshall traditionally used. It seems that they most likely used finger joints originally, but it is clear that they used Baltic birch plywood.

Of course since you're traditionally looking at using plywood and tolex, it doesn't do you much good to put in the extra effort to use finger joints/ box joints/ dovetail joints.

IMO you really might as well just do a butt joint with plenty of glue with a cleat also glued (and nailed or screwed) inside all 4 corners. As long as the cleats don't interfere with the chassis or another part of the cabinet, this is the easiest option and will give you a strong joint.

The best way to do that is with glue and clamps. You can use pin nails to hold it together while you clamp it, but I wouldn't recommend using screws as that will want to split the plywood and interfere with the roundover edge detail later.

Another cool option would be a locking miter joint, but if you don't already have the bit a good one is a little pricey

The good thing is even if you need to buy a bit or something like that, you will just be set up to make more cabinets in the future and you will save a ton of money and give yourself creative freedom

[balazs.bencs]

Thanks for the tips!

I actually thought that I'll try to build a box first with finger joints.
In the case of utter failure, the second plan is to do it with butt joint with dowels maybe and glue cleats in each inside corner.

Price is kind of irrelevant, cause I really want to try to get into woodworking anyway - I watched so much youtube channels lately (like Jimmy Diresta, Laura Kampf, etc...) that were truly inspiring.

The only problem is that there are only 24 hours in a day.

[Travis]

You're in Germany right? If you're willing to spend a bit on a nice setup, check out Festool. They are made in Germany.

If I lived in Germany and I wanted to build cabinets here's what I would buy

Bosch table saw
Bosch or Hitachi chop saw (the bigger sliding ones are ideal)
Festool track saw (with the necessary accessories)
Festool router (use with their dovetail jig!)
Festool sander
Festool vacuum
If you need a jigsaw I think the Bosch jigsaw is the best

Those tools are not cheap but they are as good as it gets. The vacuum system is amazing, no need to wear an uncomfortable dust mask for hours or waste time cleaning up

Of course you don't NEED that stuff but if you can afford it then it I highly recommend it.