Gemm012 Posted February 17, 2006 Report Share Posted February 17, 2006 Hi, I wanted to know, first, if building a tube poweramp, like building a guitar, would be cheaper than buying one, second, if it would be really really difficult for someone with no tube electronics experiance to do with some help and guidence, and third, if there is anywhere where I could learn more about it. I'm looking at buying some preamps (Peavey Rockmaster and Digitech 2112) and The only other stuff I have is a solid state head, which I wouldn't really know how to run them through (I don't want to run them through the effects loop, cause then they're not being preamps, just effects sortof, right?) I'm sorry if this is a stupid question, but I am a bit of a beginner, anyway, thanks for any help. Galen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lovekraft Posted February 17, 2006 Report Share Posted February 17, 2006 Not a stupid question at all, and fairly easy to answer Not likely - unless you're going for a low-power amp (5-30 watts), you probably can't even buy the internal components for much less than an equivalent tube head, and making a rackmount amp is both expensive and fiddly, especially if you're not used to doing it. You could, however, easily add a preamp input to an existing tube amp, especially if it already has a master volume setup. Don't cannibalize a tweed Twin or a vintage Bluesbreaker, but lots of less desirable, less expensive amps would be prime candidates - two that spring to mind are the Electar Tube 30 and the Pignose G40V. Yes - you could probably make something that works, but most people don't really "get" the techniques until they've got a couple of builds under their belts - sometimes folks get lucky, but don't count on your first build being a stellar success. AX84, Ampage and 18watt.com are all great places to learn about tube amps, as well as a few builders sites, like Randall Aiken (my personal hero), Doug Hoffman and Randy Jamz (aka The Tone Lizard - my own unofficial spiritual adviser). A quick Google will find all these, along with countless others with more limited offerings. Be forewarned - there's some high voltage involved, with it's inherent risks, and a fairly steep learning curve if you choose to wade in hip deep, so be prepared to invest some time and mental effort.Of course, that's just my take on it - as always, YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fookgub Posted February 17, 2006 Report Share Posted February 17, 2006 (edited) lovekraft is right. Building a tube amp is tricky business for someone with no electronics background. If you've really got your heart set on building from scratch, there are tons of schematics out there for ~15W class A or AB amps that use one to two tubes. I wouldn't try anything more complicated than that. A better idea is to mod an existing tube amp. My roommate bought a junky old Peavey a while ago and sent it off to one of those modding companies. When he got it back, it was a monster of metal amp. Anyway, the point is that many cheap, junky sounding amps can be modified, and this is probably a good way to start off in the tube amp world. Edited February 17, 2006 by fookgub Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ansil Posted March 3, 2006 Report Share Posted March 3, 2006 theres a thing called the darwin awards. With tube amp voltages and no electronics background you have to be willing to except that you may be the recipient of one of these. however having said that you could also become a master builder. but i ahve to agree with lk that you need to get a few builds under your belt. try building a preamp tube based amp first gett used to the lower voltage then work your way up to the higher stuff. but having said that you can order boards for the tail ends of many larger amps. it all depends on what you want really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikhailgtrski Posted March 3, 2006 Report Share Posted March 3, 2006 +1 I'd be really, really cautious, especially since you have no electronics background. But if you are serious about it, a kit would be a good place to start. Torres Engineering has lots of them, and Metroamp sells some really awesome plexi kits, plus George maintains a nice amp builders forum, a lot like this one. BE CAREFUL - You need to understand exactly what you're doing before you tinker with live circuits. And don't be lulled into thinking that "lower voltages" aren't dangerous. Under the right circumstances 120 volts will put you down just as easily as 600 volts. It only takes one mistake with electricity to shut you down for good. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemm012 Posted March 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2006 Thanks for your suggestions guys, but hearing about electrocution and the likes, and after finding a pretty good deal at a local music store, I just picked up a hopefully pretty nice poweramp (The preamp hasn't gotten here yet, so I don't really know). Anyway, thanks for you help. Galen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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