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i have access to a laser cutter so i plan to laser cut the slots after a little experimentation with laser power on the wood. even if the slot height comes out uneven i can touch it up with a mitre saw.

check out this piece of cocobolo i found at the local hardwood store. i think i should be able to get 3 fingerboards out of it

the amp works! and by works i mean sounds like a jcm 800! so here were the issues i was talking about after some troubleshooting: -one of my three diodes was backwards -a few places were not grounded properly because i forgot to attach a string of grounds in my last step -one misplaced wire i was playing it for about an hour today with the chassis wide open on the operating table and with the gain cranked there was minimal noise, so once it is enclosed it will be great. once i put it back into the chassis and into the cab i was having some shorting out issues with wire ends and shielded cables touching, so i tried to solve that by wrapping key areas with electrical tape. im still having a problem with it, but thats no big deal. i'll get it solved later this week when i finish the cab completely. i'll do my best to get some sound clips within a week or so, i just have too much on my plate right now to get it done this moment.

hmmm i will have to check into that

for everyone who wanted to know about the transformers: the output tranny is a Hammond 1650F and the power tranny is a Hammond 272FX. both of these you can order through angela.com for a really fair price compared to other transformers out there. we figured out the issues with the amps. Our negative feedback loops were wiring incorrectly, and we need to change a resistor value in order to bias the tubes correctly. that should be done over the weekend!!

Xanthus, I bought the parts from a lot of different vendors. Check into Mouser.com, mojomusicalsupply.com, hoffmanamps.com, angela.com, metroamps.com, and a few others that i cant remember. otzelpeitz, i cant remember exactly which transformers we used, but i can get that info once i am back in my room with the amp

xanthus and otzelpeitz, i will get you that info later today

im just going to clear coat it with as many coats as possible and polish it to a nice mirror finish

here are some more pictures pic 3 pic 4 pic 5 pic 6

ive been neglecting to finish my two current builds for a while now due to amp building and school work, but starting a week from today its all guitar business for a while

update: the set up worked perfectly, i never got around to posting the pictures.

ive been neglecting to finish my two current builds for a while now due to amp building and school work, but starting a week from today its all guitar business for a while

it works out because shes really into everything im doing, so its all good

LOL! Let me guess: No girlfriend, right? WRONG! i have a girlfriend too, so thats even less time on top of all that haha

If you can build a guitar, you can definitely build an amp. It's mostly electronics knowledge, which you can pick up with some reading etc.... agreed completely. i've taken a few electronics courses at school, but i would still consider myself clueless as far as electronics go. i can understand the basic principles, but most of what i learned i picked up as i went. most popular amps have schematics drawn, and a bunch have layouts that literally show you where everything connects, which is way less confusing than a schematic. 18watt.com has some great information, but there are countless websites like it as well. if anyone is on the fence about making an amp, just take the plunge and do it, but before you do, READ UP ON IT! its even more rewarding than building a guitar for me. a lot of people are into making these fancy DIY boutique amps but i really like the homemade look. granted ours look somewhat fancy you can definitely tell they were done by some dude in his dorm room as something to do to kill time between his engineering courses (thats a lie, i dont have time, i dont even know how i can build guitars and amps and still keep my grades at a reasonable level).

bancika, looks like we used the same font for out faceplate amp branding. i like your style

the amp looks great, check out mojomusicalsupply for tweed/tolex. they have great prices and a huge selection.

Wow, I would have guessed double or triple that figure, especially with such a nice case! I always figured tube amps would be pricey projects with the cost of tubes and transformers. Care to share any details on the acrylic faceplate? We bought Hammond transformers which allowed us to keep the costs down a bit. Otherwise most other brands were way too pricey. Tubes were roughly $55 for the two matched power tubes and 3 preamp tubes. The faceplate was done with a lasercutter. I drew it out in SolidWorks, converted it into a .DWG file, uploaded it into AutoCAD, then we loaded it into one of our school's lasercutters. The words and numbers on the front were etched, as in the laser only penetrates a small distance into the plastic. Hope that helps

Its very possible, but it should be negligible. If it becomes a problem I can always make an aluminum plate to go on the front for where the board and pots are.

total cost is around $350USD thanks for the compliments

This is the website we used for this http://www.dreamtone.org/JCM.htm

I probably should have taken more in progress pictures, but here is my JCM 800 2204 clone about 95% done. My friend and I are both doing one, his looks almost identical in fact...I just didn't get a chance to get a picture of it. Should be done by next weekend. We fired up his today but ran into some issues and unfortunately won't have time until Saturday to get back into it again Detail Some more details: -Plexi option toggle switch -Lasercut 0.220" acrylic faceplate -Three 16 ohm outputs -Sandblasted chassis -Burgandy snakeskin tolex This thing was 100% DIY, including the faceplate, cab/covering, chassis, and wiring. Everything. You can see two guitars that I have been neglecting to finish because of this and an 18 Watt TMB...

are you saying it looks fine after finish is sprayed onto it, or before?

Seems reasonable. I will have to experiment before I go ahead and do it. Thanks

I just finished up a few laser cut padauk inlays to put into my purpleheart headstock. I've done this sort of thing with ebony before, as in filling the gaps between the inlay and the wood with wood dust and epoxy and it worked wonders with the ebony. My question is how well can this be done, as in inlaying into purpleheart? Will the results be as good? Will the boarders between the inlay and wood show?