Messages

Nice build and graphic
what about the compressor? did you like it? do you feel any distortion at higher levels?
cheers

Nice first build. The most important thing you have already written : your learnings!
good job!

Hi There,
Thanks, i´ve just finished it and tested this weekend! It works fantastic. First time i really heard the real sound of my amp. Cranked on the 11

looks fantastic! Sti want to build one myself,
Lets see!
What about the blue letters, seems like vinyl, what are they? Amazing!

Nice psychadelic look!
How does it sound?
Cheers

Is your rotary switch OK? Looking at my copy of the AmpGarage Airbrake PDF, everything seems to be okay, wire-wise, except that your rotary seems to have 4 poles in the centre?

Alan, I've replaced the switch and used three different wiring diagrams.Final C, Final C140(are the same apparently), and the standard one which behaves the same way just the other way around.
I need some help to see if my readings are al right since in position 0 and 1 I have the exact same readings:
«I connected one probe to input jack and another probe to output jack.»
Position 0= 00.6 ohms
Position 1= 00.6 ohms
Position 2= 07.4 ohms
Position 3= 13.0 ohms
Position 4= 18.1 ohms
Bedroom Level at zero = 24.1 ohms
Bedroom Level full = 174 ohms

Hey Nuno, did you manage to have the correct measurements for your build?
i´m building one and im interested in how to set up and measure the resistors positions.
thanks mate!

Have a search through CPC/Farnell, RS Components and Conrad.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

Maaan, the RS  its like Moser, quite good. Im not having luck by Conrad, difficult to find the things online.
look,i#ve got almost all components, only rotary switch is not exactly the same but i found another one, also2 poles, 6 positions, 150mA. Just not sure if can substitute. its from the same brand (lorlin). i have no experience with such switches and no idea if i can use subs..
thanks for helping
http://de.rs-online.com/web/p/drehschalter/0320720/

Im pretty sure its this one
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7EnzxavIi5_WS10VmFKQXpfak0/edit?usp=sharing

Cody

Hi Cody. Thanks for the updated version. the one i've got was a different version.
im getting troubles in finding the parts in Germany. Ordering from Mouser is quite annoying due to the customs in Germany. Any idea where to buy those componenents in europe?
Cheers

I'm building my Trainwreck attenuator.I haven't tested yet since I broke the rottary switch and now I'm in doubt about the type of switch to reorder.
I made my shopping on Mouser but to order only a switch is very expensive(20€ just for transportation).Now my doubt is, does it matter if the switch is "make before break" or "normal"; I know it should be 2 x 6.
On Banzai I saw one that is 1x2x6;it looks very tough and sturdy. Will this one do the trick, or does it have to be 2x6???
Here's the link http://www.banzaimusic.com/Rotary-Switch-1-level-1x2x6.html
(For anyone else building this project make sure that the big open resistor isn't in contact with the chassis, that will change the resistance of the resistor.)

hey mate.
im just navigating around trying to find as much info as possible and found your old post.
could you share more detailed information about this build?
thanks a lot

Somehow, i started to experiment and after long 6 hours i managed to reduce the volume by adjusting the volume of my pedals.
i reduced a lot the volume of the pedals and then, increased the volume of the Amp (clean channel). it sounds ok (just ok).

Have you tried tossing something in the effects loop to cut your volume?  If you toss a volume pedal or something like an OD set to clean with the volume turned down you should be able to still push your front end but tame it before moving on to your power amp and speaker.

And yes you'll be missing out on any breakup from your power tubes and speaker, but since I imagine you have at least one pedal on hand that can be set clean and has a volume knob, it's free to try and just might be good 'nuff.

yesss! we are just discussing this on the other thread (where we are discussing what would be more suitable). you are right and i will definatly try it. However i've seen some videos of people using attenuators and it sounds quite nice with the power tube cranked up

What sort of sound are you after?  Switching to EL84/yellow jackets might rein in the volume a bit but will affect the tone as well.  Use the OD channel to warm up the amp a bit?  I think you'll find the acrylic shield can help at gigs slightly but in a smaller practice space won't do much good.

hey,
im looking for the full power tube distortion from my Marshall, like 70's kind of low gain overdriven sound.  im looking now into build some attenuator
thanks

Does anyone tried Lars idea? changing the tubes for those yellow jacket tubes?

i might build a attenuator to give it a try. I opened a separate thread for that.
cheers

It's going to depend on what type of distortion you are looking for from your amp and also the topology of the amp.

The good distortion, at least to my ears, is from the power tubes. That means you've got to drive the power tubes hard and any attenuation before the power amp section is bad. That's where the attenuators that come between the power tubes and the speakers shine. You can get full cranked power tube distortion and still set the volume levels to where you want them.

There are various ways to do it, L-pad attenuators, dummy speaker loads, etc. I have a Marshall Class 5 for practice. That 5 watts is way too loud to use in my neighborhood -- seriously too loud. The amp also has an attenuator built in that looks like a frequency compensated π pad that takes it below a tenth of a watt -- still way too loud for practicing at night.

I built a little bridged-T attenuator that takes the signal to line level and then I buffer it and run it into my computer to do digital simulation of the cabs. It works really well.

The attenuator I made is limited to about 15W (the main power resistor is a 25W resistor), but you can do most any output level with the right resistors.

For your situation, you could do something like this kind of attenuator and then into an H&K Redbox sort of deal and then either to a PA or to a powered monitor. The volume levels would be really controllable at any level of power amp saturation.

Great info man!
i totally agree with you and i want to get the power tubes distortion. I've seen different kinds of builds (with tone control, etc.). I need something quite simple and most important, that will be safe for the tubes.
Those L-pads attenuators seem to be quite easy to build, isnt it?
could you help with some schematic, or a link to something you think is good?
thanks a lot!

You might want to check this site out. It looks like you can adapt your current setup for lower-power tubes, which could allow you to drive the amp into that "sweet" territory without blowing everybody out the window:
http://www.tonetronix.com/c/THD-Yellow-Jacket-EL84-Power-Tube-Converters.html

Ohhhhh! this looks great! But to be honest i have to read more about it. im quite scared of fooling around with the valves :S
thanks a lot man, really apreciated!

Hey guys,
this is a sort of contiuation of my last post (sorry for that).
I was reading about attenuators and it seems to be an option for my Volume problem on a Marshall Haze 40w.
I also found that some people add a "attenuator" which is basically a Volume know on the effects loop. I understood the differences between both ways of reducing overall volume but still have some doubts:
with the volume pot on the effects loop would be possible to crunk it up the amp volume and still be possible to reduce the volume keeping the tone?
What are your thoughts ?: build an attenuator (any good layout for a 40w amp) or a Master volume control?
My main target is to keep a nice tone (doesnt need to be perfect) with a relatively low volume for rehearsals.
thanks a lot for any suggestion!