DIY Homemade tube amplifier from scratch +++pics

[danubilo]

i like it man!

[SPEKERDUDE]

how much does one of those black tubes at 2:51 cost does anyone know and also ware you could get on i think its 6j5?

[tipetu]

@SPEKERDUDE Hi, it`s a 6SC7. Try Ebay, they have a couple

[Irideallamawithtoast]

Very nice tone, and your playing hints a little Hendrix-ish. Having said that, you kick all kinds of ass.

[TechLaine]

and my room went full of smoke, and i did smoke...

[tipetu]

@TechLaine oh, not good!

[TechLaine]

hey, u know heck of amplifiers?

im trying to make one by myself, seems to be easy...

first i went to look for main item... tda kind of thing and i found tda8174...

now i cant find any circuit for it, but it defenantly is similar to tda8374

so i hooked it up as it should be and turned the whole thing on...

then i was freakied out cuz i also needed diode transformer ac-dc

so i took 4 pin chip its like 4 diodes 2x ac input and 2x dc, to i added caplicator to - and + to get stabile dc voltage...

[tipetu]

@TechLaine yeah you need a stabile DC supply. this amp uses a diode bridge chip. Maby I`ll swap it out with 4 diodes. But it has decent caps

[khaled6100]

amazing :D

[88segovia]

12 in speaker?

[tipetu]

@88segovia Yes, Celestion 100W from a scrapped Marshall

[Buzz135]

Very nice job !

[remurdereht]

i spy fuzz face!

[tipetu]

@remurdereht Correct! Hendrix with germanium transistors

[remurdereht]

@tipetu oh damn, it says in the title sequence that its a fuzz face. i don't feel like god anymore...

[tipetu]

@remurdereht haha, glad you noticed it in the first place.

[hytlerson]

Dude, this is cool!

[tipetu]

@manfromregina haha, cool. Mine`s a 04 model

[manfromregina]

@tipetu Hi. Mies a 2010

I bought last Sept. The best guitar on the planet.

Cheers.

[Ericclapton325]

Did you right this song your self it sounds awesome. I want to know how to play it.

[tipetu]

@Ericclapton325 This is me playing but it`s called "Hear my train a comin`" by Jimi Hendrix. You`ll find many tutorials out there.

[Ericclapton325]

@tipetu How did i not recognize that? Thanks!

[manfromregina]

@tipetu Hi From Canada. Nice Video,nice amp. Today is my faded cherry's SG birthday. Cheers.

[zackypooofillinois]

nice looking amp

[jamesincharlotte]

how did u wire in the pre amp? thanks

[tipetu]

@jamesincharlotte In series with the other amp. Guitar --> Preamp --> Power amp --> speaker.

[kcin1004]

how much did all that cost you? im interested in making one myself.

[tipetu]

@kcin1004 around 600$, but that`s in norway. I bet you could build it waaaay cheaper. You dont have all the shipping charges on each part. Good luck!

[ossopalatino]

Can you tell me how you made those writings on the faceplate? Did you use the stencil technique? Thanks

[tipetu]

@ossopalatino I got this universal stamp where you can put any letters or symbols. Then a coat of clear on top.

[borisyeltsin100]

great amp. I love the s5 electronics kits. not very expensive and sound great as long as you route and twist the HV wiring correctly.

[bradlom80]

great job man!!



[parek142536]

This is awesome. Great job.

[GameLevelEditor]

Cute little tube amp build! The fact that you played "Hear my Train a Comin" really adds to the experience of enjoying it.

[tipetu]

@GameLevelEditor awesome song

[edidepedi]

LOL

It is no big deal, what you built is close enough to scratchbuild compared to someone buying a factory build amp ;=)) (we need both wolrds)

[edidepedi]

With respect but this is no building from scratch, this is filling up a board nice job though

[tipetu]

@edidepedi I will have to agree with you on that one.. Back then when I made this amp I was a noob and for me it was from scratch.. At least the cabinet was made from scratch :P

[frostseer]

Very nice amp .Good job.I have an idea for that amp. You can make an equalizer for the amp

[tipetu]

@frostseer yeah, I was thinking of that. Been looking around for a decent schematic

[niallh2]

Very cool playing

[MichaelJHuman]

Nice work. I did wonder about the cabinet material. Don't they usually use MDF to minimize cabinet resonance?

[tipetu]

@MichaelJHuman yes, but waaaaay back they also used "real" wood. Like this,

It is an open cabinet so resonanse is no problem.

[Ibringthetruth1]

Did you have to learn electrical schematics?

Complex and unreadable. hate them.

[tipetu]

@Ibringthetruth1 I know how to read them, but this kit came with detailed instructions on how to assemble it.

[Ibringthetruth1]

@tipetu

thats awesome. I wish most of these websites would show parts with better diagrams so most could figure them out.

[TheRoknemec]

Very nice amp, not to mention the quality of the design! One tiny litle thing about the mounting of the tubes: dont place the PCB upside down without the spring retainers for the tube, othervise when you will transport the amp, they might fall out! It hapened on my diy design homemade PCL805 bass preamp. Keep on play'n, (or should I say "rock'n")

Cheers,

Rok

[tipetu]

@TheRoknemec yeah good idea! I`ll see if I can find some retainers for some el84`s. My tubes are about half the size but it`ll do the trick!

[RobRokken]

ok, I need a link to more tunes man!!

[tipetu]

@RobRokken Thanks! I dont have anything uploaded othen than the vids I upload here on youtube, Some music, some videos. Check it out

[ady7204]

beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

goooooood!!!!!!!!!!!



[tipetu]

@Sixalienasa This was just a video for inspiration. As you can see I didn`t make this tube amp (it`s a kit). Neither can I design a tube amp from scratch. All in all this video shows how you build a simple cabinet for it. So there you go!

[Sixalienasa]

@tipetu Dude, cabinets are a doddle for me. Its the electronic part I am a bit vague on. I have a couple of large Dia speakers from an electric organ which I dont use and I was hoping I could make an Amp out of them. Well its a start! I have been looking at Kits but they are really expensive for something I have to spend days putting together. Hey I just remembered; I have an old 100 watt Amp upstairs somewhere I may be able to cannibalise.

[tipetu]

@Sixalienasa wonderful, go for it

[hydrolisk1792]

I still say this is amazing, :)

[tipetu]

@hydrolisk1792 appreciate it! Sure fun buildig it!

[hydrolisk1792]

Very nice job, thumbs up :)

[a1993h]

That amp sounds amazing. WELL DONE!

[tipetu]

@megagamer8455 From tubedepot. It`s the 16W mono amp kit

[haxbox7]

How did you cut round and round the wood to place the speaker?

[Sixalienasa]

@haxbox7 With a round saw.

[duner16]

awesome job that looks like it came from a custom amp shop

[shango02005]

Great job,man!! You are an inspiration!!!

[tipetu]

@shango02005 Well thank you!

[urbex2007]

OMFG that is lovely ! I ill give that site a visit as I want a valve amp.

Love the colour of the case now, deep and rich.

[tipetu]

@urbex2007 I`m glad you liked it! btw, I`ve sent a link to you PM. It shows the building prosess. You may not understand the text, but take a look at the pics!

[bricar2]

Fun project. I've been thinking about building one myself. Would be lots of fun, time consuming and educational at the same time.

A guitar player can never have enough tube amps.

[tipetu]

@bricar2 absolutely correct. That`s why I have 4 now

[bricar2]

@tipetu Peavey 3120 half stack, Bugera V5 and Bugera V55HD w/their 2x12 cab. Tube preamps = Universal Audio Twin Finity 710 (x2), ART Voice Channel, ART MPA Gold, ART Pro VLA (leveling amp), Behringer T1953 and an old Bellari MP105. Throw in my Zoom G9.2tt...two 12AX7 tubes in that as well. Home studio can get expensive.

The Kustom Defender 5H looks mighty tempting. $100 for five tube watts? I may be ordering that one today.

I saw the website to order that kit. Pretty cool.

[heavymetalman2]

tipetu, i want to start making some homemade amps myself one day, where did u learn to make these?

[Abukodonozo]

Did I actually see something like SRV on that black guitar at 0:22? Man! I like it...

[tipetu]

@Abukodonozo correct! got bored and painted it many years ago

[LeviMan2001]

Great tone, very hendrix sounding, especially the hammer-ons, they sound much like his.

[SoumyaSumitra]

Please for 30 watts woofer

[tesladude19]

Very nice, I love the quality of your work 5 stars!!!

[mark3229]

how much did it cost to build?

[tipetu]

@mark3229 400$ +++

[Henzzman]

@tipetu As i can see,you have the preamp in a separate box? All in all,professional work.Nothing bad can be said.

[tipetu]

@Henzzman thanks! Yeah it`s a GE phono-preamp form the 50s.

[hunpingvin]

Uhh this was very good!

Congratulate you work very skillfully and you made fair work!

+++++

[hunpingvin]

Uhh this was very good!

Congratulate you work very skillfully and you made fair work!

+++++

[DVShredder]

Nice sound!

I would've had the tubes facing up instead of down though to reduce the amount of heat transfering onto my curcuit board, but thats just me

[neilmacmusic]

Hey is that IKEAwood?? really nice job and great playing

[tipetu]

@neilmacmusic. Didn`t buy it at ikea, but I believe they have something quite similar!

[Patriot1962]

That's impressive, you must have got a great deal of satisfaction and joy from this project. The finished product looks totally unique and sounds unique too (in a good way)! I wonder if you will experiment with other speakers? like a 30 watt driver might get some cone 'break up' to add to the tone. I'm wondering what the amp sounds like without the fuzz face.

[tipetu]

@Patriot1962 absolutely true! I would like to try out a celestion grren back (20-30w) it would definitely be a change. I`m currently working on a tube preamp, signal booster for the input signal. Since the amp originally needs an active signal my thinking is this might reduce the hum. thanks for wathcing

[forbyn]

nice work mister! Nice playing too.

[pdog283]

This is one of the sweetist versions of Hear My Train A Comin' I've ever heard! What key is your guitar tuned to?

[tipetu]

dont know exactly, maby a bit lower I think?

[MyManDan]

hey man, nice playing. i really dig the lick at 0:48

[Redmeddle]

Sounds quite sexy. Looks really good as well.

[Henzzman]

Celestion driver? Nice!

[tipetu]

indeed, 100W

[chesshirecat2]

rockinn

[wofling]

Wow, nice Amp :-)

[ICEMAN1502824]

Nice job!!!

[moucon]

Very cool. Nice work !

Suggestions - box joint or dovetail the cabinet, and take your grill out b4 you finish it ;-) . Way easier to apply finish when you're not fighting to keep it off the fabric.

[bdubblenut]

looks and sounds awesome. very nice

[neilyoungster]

Very sweet sound. Nicely done.

[kosec321]

it doesnt sound unuseful, i know that a good signal is as important to a good sound sistem as a good amplifier and good speakers :D

[tipetu]

well, the fact that you cant connect any speakers to a pre amp makes it unuseful as a "pure" amplifier :P it`s just line in, and line out. anyway, good luck with the future build

[kosec321]

thanks, do you have a schematic that i could work by ?

[kosec321]

a preamp is basicly what...i never understood that :/

[tipetu]

it might sound unuseful but in some cases you need it. First of all, it gains the signal right? Most old turntables are "passive" components, which means the needle in the pickup generates a tiiiiiiiiny tiiiiiiny electrical signal from "bouncing" up and down in the grooves in the record . this pulse is so small it would have to be amplified in order to be useful. The preamp gains this signal and feeds it into the input on the power amplifier, or standard amp for that matter.

[tipetu]

Same deal with the guitar pickup. the pickup is a magnetic coil which can generate a tiiiiiny electrical pulse from the strings vibrating. This would also need to be amplified. CD players / mp3 players produce a decent signal which do not need to be amplified.

So there you go, some basic info ;)

[kosec321]

do you have an idea how could i make a mono amp 100w ?

[tipetu]

Got no specific idea, but 100w is damn much! You would need some serious power trannys and some amp with several 6V6s.. If I were you I`d search ebay for vintage tube amps. And to finish it off, see if you can find a tiny phono preamp to gain the signal.

[kosec321]

thanks for the idea, and your help

[tipetu]

just checked through ebay and there are a couple of tiny GE preamps and stuff.. lots of potential

[linlithgowpalace]

Looks pretty decent,,I could make one of them easily,,just dont want to haha..J/K..Looks great

[xengxue]

nice work man...

[Countryboy72885]

Not bad dude. not bad...

[3mankind]

Awesome your work is really good

[gutterrat01]

kickass!!!!!!!

[madtho]

Nice setup.

Did you alter the GE preamp?

doesn't that have the RIAA EQ curve?

[tipetu]

I did not mod the GE beside recapping it. And yes the eq is not 100% suited for guitar-use. but that makes it sound special!

[madtho]

Awesome. It sounds very cool.

[MrStroked351]

5* thanks for the tabs man killer work on the amp will probably build one myself after i finish my guitar

[driverdarwin]

sounds pretty good, man. 5 /5

[Natalie1234able]

sooooo cool!

[AkaFreestyle1]

Damn Nicely done!!!!5*****

[Bigsbeee]

really nice..cool as you like..

welldonebro

[brop7999]

Realy Nice Man. What song is this?

[tipetu]

I played Jimi Hendrix`s hear my train a comin` and on the end it faded toward blues aka howlin` Wolf ;)

[mateosanjuan]

Excellent job on the amp bro!!

[PAOps]

First rate.

5/5

[wildchile1234]

definitely a 5 star.

[thedores1]

NIIIIIICEEEEE!!!!!

[More350Power]

Awesome work on the amp and the music!

[deepsofhell]

I would use a POD Line 6 in that beautyful amp.

[Nza420]

beautiful stain on the thing! nice work and love the guitar-playing as well!

[pabletelli]

well done !!!! cool impro bro!!