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Post subject: '95 Blues Deluxe bites the dust...
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 3:32 pm
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Time for a facelift. How about a turret board BD.
http://www.tjadamowicz.com/amps/convert.html


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Post subject: Re: '95 Blues Deluxe bites the dust...
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 3:37 pm
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rjake wrote:
Time for a facelift. How about a turret board BD.
http://www.tjadamowicz.com/amps/convert.html


supro linked this before.....

Before someone else suggests you going to some other design in the same chassis..... the question is how about a turret board BD.

So long as all the same knobs and switches work as before.
No defacing a BD panel - I would love one. Hope you're a wizard and come up with something that meets my aforementioned specs.

I believe it can be done.
Might even add a tube rectifier while your at it. (That difference I can accept)
You wouldn't visually know the difference until you pulled the back panel off or peered around inside the cab.

IMHO, someone might do well to build one such amp so design.


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 4:06 pm
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Torres has this:
http://www.torresengineering.com/latmosasform.html

Little too expensive for me, since the transformers are being reused.

I'm gonna go with the 5E5-A circuit for now. (Parts on order) I'll keep the BD faceplate just in case I do feel the need to work on the point to point BD design. I can see adding tube driven reverb, but not the tube effects loop.


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Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 4:35 pm
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rjake wrote:
Torres has this:
http://www.torresengineering.com/latmosasform.html

Little too expensive for me, since the transformers are being reused.

I'm gonna go with the 5E5-A circuit for now. (Parts on order) I'll keep the BD faceplate just in case I do feel the need to work on the point to point BD design. I can see adding tube driven reverb, but not the tube effects loop.


Doggone, 945.00 for the Bassman mod.
I think at that price I'd just buy the real thing.
Someone tell me what I'm missing here.
And please don't say Bassman

How about a link to that specific 5E5-A circuit you went with??


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Post subject: Re: '95 Blues Deluxe bites the dust...
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 5:12 pm
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rjake wrote:
Time for a facelift. How about a turret board BD.
http://www.tjadamowicz.com/amps/convert.html


TJ is a master of his craft. He uses top notch components and salvages the HRDs iron. It's a work of art and well worth the money IMO. Sometimes he's at www.thefenderforum.com

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 5:33 pm
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I'm going to go with the layout below, probably with the TJ influenced Weber Copper Cap. I might go with the Copper Cap Module. I haven't ordered that part yet. A diode bridge rectifier might not be out of the question, which I already have. It depends on the voltages I get. The BD transformer doesn't have the 5 volt tap for a tube rectifier. I ordered the G10 board, turrets, etc. from Tube Depot. It's gonna be from scratch.

http://ceriatone.com/productSubPages/AC ... E5APro.htm


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 5:52 pm
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rjake wrote:
I'm going to go with the layout below, probably with the TJ influenced Weber Copper Cap. I might go with the Copper Cap Module. I haven't ordered that part yet. A diode bridge rectifier might not be out of the question, which I already have. It depends on the voltages I get. The BD transformer doesn't have the 5 volt tap for a tube rectifier. I ordered the G10 board, turrets, etc. from Tube Depot. It's gonna be from scratch.

http://ceriatone.com/productSubPages/AC ... E5APro.htm


Looks to me as though my concept of P2P BD has yet to be.


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 6:10 pm
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Sounds like a job for former Fender engineer Bruce Zinky. I would like to see the guts of the Torres point to point BD myself.


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 9:45 pm
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Rjake, seems like a great project ! Are you going to modify the original chassis or get another one ? The ground scenario would be my primary concern. The Ceriatone layout does a good job of grouping the circuits(except I'd ground the inputs seperately near the jacks). I've used TJ's ground buss approach for the controls and the preamp grounds at a seperate star, from the power supply. I guess it's just a matter of the groups being in a downstream scheme. Good luck ! Art

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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 10:12 pm
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aclempoppi wrote:
I've used TJ's ground buss approach for the controls and the preamp grounds at a seperate star, from the power supply.


I've had numerous conversations with T.J. regarding this issue and he opines that fully half of all problems with home-built tweed clones are the result of looping problems with the pots and/or the input jacks. He uses the common buss method on all of his "Green Eagle" conversions to isolate and eliminate this possibility thus minimizing the need to tweak once the amp is complete. It also makes for a neater looking build within the chassis -- his wiring jobs are truly a work of art.

Arjay (satisfied Green Eagle client)

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 6:59 am
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Art,

I've been gathering info from different sources, and have come to the conclusion that your suggestion is the way to go on the ground. Aiken has some good grounding tips on his site, and of course, Green Eagle is my primary influence on this project. What's going to be nice about this is the ability to tweek if needed. I'm using the existing Blues Deluxe chassis with minimal drilling. The amp is gutted. I'm going to mount the G10 turret board at the corners, and most likely go with the Weber Copper Cap in module form. The only drilling that I see at this stage of the project is for mounting the turret board and Weber CC. I'll be using the ground buss method and may use only 2 input jacks. My turret board template is ready to go, and parts will arrive in stages, so I don't rush it. Tube sockets and board making stuff will arrive Monday. I have Orange drops ready to go, and the rest will arrive later in the week. The chassis layout will resemble Green Eagles, because of the BD iron re-use. The board will resemble Ceriatone and the Fender original. I hope, that is.


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 7:18 am
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Sounds like the start of a great plan, rjake!

Are you keeping the 1 x 12 configuration or thinking of an alternative?

Post some pics as this conversion progresses.

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: '95 Blues Deluxe bites the dust...
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 7:34 am
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rjake wrote:
Time for a facelift. How about a turret board BD.
http://www.tjadamowicz.com/amps/convert.html


It might actually be worth going to all the work and expense to build a project like that ... IF .... you were starting with a great sounding amp that suffered only from a few physical ailments. To rebuild and beef up a cheap sounding amp seems like a waste of time and money to this guitarist.

(Visions of PeeWee Herman playing the role of Major Steve Austin, the bionic man.)

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 8:19 am
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So recycling otherwise usable components from a lackluster amp into something akin to this is a waste?

Image

Conversions like this address virtually all of the sonic and reliability issues by ditching the single-sided PCB in favor of a turreted eyelet board populated by premium components, attaching the tube sockets to the chassis where they belong, wiring the tone stacks to authentic tweed-era protocols, and dispensing with the fizz /more fizz channel switching feature.

Add a vintage Jensen P12N or a Weber 12A150 and such an amp is truly "ready for prime time" IMO.

Arjay

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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Oct 21, 2010 11:19 am
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Retroverbial wrote:
... wiring the tone stacks to authentic tweed-era protocols, and dispensing with the fizz /more fizz channel switching feature.



Perhaps I didn't read the article in as much depth as I should have. I didn't notice they were changing the nature of the amp's circuits. In that case it's not really rebuilding the amp more solidly because it's not really a Blues Deluxe anymore. It's more like a salvage job to build a kit amp based on a different curcuit design for a little less money. Actually given the cost of the donor amp and the cost of purchasing replacement components you have to wonder about the cost effectiveness of it all anyway. Is it really worth it? Does it really give you the best bang for the buck? Is the end product any better than building a kit amp? Is it even as good let alone better? I think I still wouldn't take on such a project as I would rather just build a proper kit from the ground up.


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