trinityamps.com

Pics of my tube amp debut!

I took some pics today of the project which started waaaaaay back in March! First proper cabs builds too, upholstery is a dark chocolate vinyl. A little bit of noise on the normal channel, I will have a re-dress of the wiring, and probably eventually go metal films when I can be bothered... the carbon comps look cool but they're hidden anyway.

I'd like to say a special thanks to Stephen for proving the excellent kit and support, as well as the forum members here who chimed in with helpful advice

edit... Hum was a bad guitar lead... This amp is really quiet now, a credit to the design, cheers














Pictures all taken on my phone

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Corey

Very nice looking build!

What's the extra filter (with bleeder resistor?) between the PT and turret board? Is what pre/post filtering for the VRM?

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http://pdfelectronics.com

Hey kurtlives, thanks! Yes, as you guess it's filtering for the VRM, cured a zipper noise amp made when you turned the VRM knob too quickly. 2 parallel 22uFs and 200k worth of bleed resistor... I may pull one of the caps out next time it's open however, as it might be a tad overkill, possibly bad for the rectifier? What do you think? Thanks

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Corey

Yeah you defiantly don't need 44uF, 22uF would be fine. Is it pre or post VRM?

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http://pdfelectronics.com

Pre... between rectifier and VRM, interrupted by the standby switch... cheers, I'll go ahead next time it's open

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Corey

Nice job! I'm about to embark on my first tolexed cabinet next week hopefully.

Thanks dtp!

I used upholstery vinyl for this, it was definitely the most intense part of the project. Thankfully there are so many good youtoobs out there!
Good luck with your project!

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Corey

Yes i don't what I'd do without YouTube to show me how to do whatever I need to get done.

I was in JoAnn's Fabrics tonight looking at vinyl and stuff. It got me thinking I might want to go a different direction though... I wonder what laquered denim would look like... kinda tweed-ish maybe? Or just leave it natural and let it get dirty and age gracefully just like my favorite pair of comfortable old Levi's.

Cool... it depends, I suppose you could get quite creative!

I don't know about unlaquered fabric tho, my bandmates are always placing drinks on my amps (I've given up trying to stop it), can't imagine the smell of old beer soaked into plain denim would do much for me tho...

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Corey

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Corey

Very neat build Corey. Nicely done, it will provide years of good tone!!

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Stephen
Web: www.trinityamps.com. Facebook: facebook.com/trinityamps. Twitter: @trinityamps

Thanks Stephen... love it, just love it. An added bonus is the envious friends I have now too

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Corey

I have been looking though the 18 watt sites and had come to the conclusion that a trinty amp kit was the way to go. After looking at your complete build I am in ahhh of your work. I was going to ask which kit but read the link to your review and low and beholed is is the one i was leaning towards getting. i will use your build as a reference I am sure. VERY NICE JOB. One question. are you completly happy with your speaker choose?

Hey stetterhawk, thanks for your kind words!

OK well here is a disclaimer, my experience with these amps is limited, I am not an expert... but I am very fussy about tone, and have been playing over 20 years now. Like you, I did a lot of research and asking around prior to making the choice on kits and speakers. I am very happy with both the quality of the Trinity kit and the Scumback speaker. Your question is timely, as it happens I have had a loan of a G12M Celestion Greenback 25W from a friends AC15 for the last 2 weeks! Honest opinion? It sounds terrible!

Oh sorry, maybe not terrible... lets just say it sounds 'meh'... though I must say friends who've heard it with the greenback have told me they really like the sound... but definitely not me. That greenback sounds fine in my friends AC15... but in the 18w... it's just lifeless when compared to what I'm now used to. The H75 is louder for one, has pleasant & more dynamic cleans, a more present high end (without being harsh), better defined low end with an un-mistakeable 'pre-rola'/late 60s tone... Seriously, wind up the plexi channel, with neck humbucker pickup and the lead tone is simply electrifying.

When I was making the decision on speakers, an amp guru near where I live recommended the Celestion G12H30 if I was looking for a single speaker to match the 18w... So I checked out demos comparing the G12H30 to the H75 which I had also heard about... and decided to take a punt with the H75 as I preferred its sounds in the demos. Look, I'm absolutely sure there are many other fine speakers to try with this amp, but I'm personally not interested in looking any further now... Trying the Greenback only highlighted how good the H75 is with my amp... Scumback H75, recommended with no hesitation. Of course, this is only my 2c, others may have differing opinions.

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Corey

Wich wood did you use for the cabinet?

I used some imported laminate pine... looks kinda like solid pine, but made from laminated pieces instead...cheaper to buy here than either solid or ply.

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Corey

Scumbacks are very popular choices for 18w amps. Another very popular choice is the WGS Reaper and Veteran.

Good luck on your build!

thanks for the reply, your descrption of the sound of the speaker sounds like what I am looking for.