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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2013 11:41 am
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Rock Star
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63supro wrote:
Nice Bill, real nice.


Thanks. :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Tue Apr 02, 2013 2:44 pm
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My surgeon gave me a new cast today for my birthday (59th). This is his take on my requested "Red, White, and Blue". :D Ok. He's a better doctor than artist. :lol:

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The foot is healing nicely. Next checkup is in another 2 weeks. It will still be several weeks before I can walk on it again, though. :cry:

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Tue Apr 02, 2013 3:19 pm
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Bill...Looks like he is a better surgeon than artist with color! Glad it is healing well! Oh and the amp is coming along nicely too! :mrgreen:

T2

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Tue Apr 02, 2013 3:48 pm
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T2Stratman wrote:
Bill...Looks like he is a better surgeon than artist with color! Glad it is healing well! Oh and the amp is coming along nicely too! :mrgreen:

T2


Working on the amp now. Just taking a break to check the tone stack configuration I want to use. :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Tue Apr 02, 2013 5:54 pm
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Rock Star
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Did just a little bit on the amp today. Since today was my birthday, I took the day off. We went to see my doctor and got the new cast and then went to Uno's Chicago Pizzaria for lunch. I had a coupon for a free entree (I always get the regular size deep dish Supreme with double anchovies) plus they gave us free desserts (apple cobbler with ice cream). Then came home to work on the amp.

So basically today I prepped the control panel. From left to right are the presence control (using the "modern" cap and resistor configuration to prevent DC noise when the pot is turned), treble, middle, bass, and volume. Single input jack with 1 meg grid resistor, bright switch (with two caps) and gain switch. Ground wires have been attached also.

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Here's a close up of the bright switch: a mini DPDT with center off. One 100 pf silver mica cap and one 500 pf silver mica cap. Center will be flat position.

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This coming weekend I should be ready to mount the control panel and completed eyelet board and start wiring things together. Should be interesting. :mrgreen:

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sat Apr 06, 2013 10:54 pm
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Ok. Lot's of progress today. Things are getting close. :D

Today I started doing the final chassis wiring and installation of the control panel, switches, and circuit board. Here is a shot of the main chassis wiring before the circuit board is installed.

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Here is the control panel, input jack, bright switch, and gain switch installed. I still have to connect the gain switch to the V1 cathode bypass cap as well as wire the controls to the circuit board.

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Closeup of the volume control and bright switch wiring, gain switch, and input jack. I'm using a shielded cable to connect the input jack to the 68K input resistor of V1 to help reduce noise.

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Here is a shot with the circuit board loosely mounted in the chassis to start wiring things to it.

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Close up of the power supply connections.

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Closer shot showing the relationship between the control panel and circuit board.

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Finally, a (not very good) shot of the bias pot wiring (red wires).

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I still have a few more power wires to connect under the circuit board as well as connecting the control panel pots to the circuit board and the preamp sockets to the circuit board. Power tubes connections to the circuit board are done, they just don't show up very well.

We're in the home stretch! :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 4:39 am
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Good work there Bill!

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 5:58 am
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Rock Star
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Bluesky...happy belated Birthday! Pizza and getting to work on your amp, sounds like a great way to spend a b-day!

The amp is beginning to take shape and looking good. Nice solder work there and the photography is clear as a bell! Nice.

T2

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 8:37 am
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Thanks guys. Building my 5F6A clone taught me a lot. :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 10:37 am
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I have to admit, following this build is a lot more meaningful and comprehensible to me. I think building your 5F6A clone taught me a lot too. :lol:

Thanks.

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 10:48 am
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Rock Star
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modwiz wrote:
I have to admit, following this build is a lot more meaningful and comprehensible to me. I think building your 5F6A clone taught me a lot too. :lol:

Thanks.


This is actually a much simpler amp than the 5F6A. :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 5:26 pm
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Location: Natural Bridge, Virginia
Big day today. With the exception of the pilot light wiring (can't install the light until the front panel is installed), all wiring has been completed. I have checked continuity of all wires to the circuit board and after correcting a few errors, everything looks good.

Here is an overall view of the wired chassis.

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Closer view of the preamp/PI and impedance switch (showing the feedback connection) wiring.

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Closeup of V1 wiring.

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Closeup of V2 wiring.

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Closeup of V3 wiring.

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Closeup of the impedance switch with the feedback wire connected (yellow wire).

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Overall view of the (from left to right) treble, middle, bass, and volume controls.

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Closeup of presence control. The two solder blobs on the brass plate on either side of the presence pot are where two ground wires were mounted for the power supply caps. I decided to remove the wires and tie the grounds together, routing them directly to studs on the chassis and away from the preamp grounds. Hopefully this will help keep things a little quieter.

]Image

Finally, here is a closeup of the input jack with the shielded cable, the bright switch (with the two caps) and the gain switch attached to the cathode bypass cap of V1. With the switch up, the cap is grounded resulting in a higher gain setting for V1. With the switch down, the cap is disconnected which results in lower gain for V1 and a different tone. Normally I would have used a black wire since I am connecting to ground, but I couldn't find the remaining section of black wire. Maybe I used it up, don't know. :lol:

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Next week I'll do a double check of all the wiring and then power the amp up with no tubes to check for proper DC voltages and smoke. If all goes well, I'll install the tubes and see if the amp makes a pleasing noise as opposed to just noise or (hopefully not) silence. Finally I'll letter the front panel (Weber sent the correct front panel but the wrong color, gold instead of black, and after two tries, I gave up. I buffed up the black back side of the panel and will letter it with dry transfer lettering. I have to drill the holes for the bright and gain switches also.). Oh, I have to order my nameplates also.

Stay tuned and keep your fingers crossed with me. :D

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 8:32 pm
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Looking good Bill. Quick question, just wondering what method you subscribe to when wiring the heaters. Do you wire them in phase or do you do every other out of phase, or maybe you don't even take it into consideration? Ive read that its supposed to help with hum. Just wondering what your take is on that subject.
I have two bandmasters, one of them wired in phase and the other has every other heater out of phase. I can't tell whether it really makes a difference or not. They both have a minimal amount of hum.
Thanks.

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 9:49 pm
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socal323 wrote:
Looking good Bill. Quick question, just wondering what method you subscribe to when wiring the heaters. Do you wire them in phase or do you do every other out of phase, or maybe you don't even take it into consideration? Ive read that its supposed to help with hum. Just wondering what your take is on that subject.
I have two bandmasters, one of them wired in phase and the other has every other heater out of phase. I can't tell whether it really makes a difference or not. They both have a minimal amount of hum.
Thanks.


Ya know, I have no idea. :lol:

I start at whichever end of the tube chain is most convenient (in this case I started with V1 and wired through to V5). I twist the wires together and connect to the first tube. Whatever way the wires end at the next socket that is easiest to solder, I do so. Then I continue on to the next socket until finished.

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Post subject: Re: New Amp Build - Trainwreck Express Clone
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 11:22 pm
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Bill,

Great job! Also, great way to heal the foot. Time flies by much faster -- -when the mind is occupied. :D

Snubber caps on the switches is a very good idea. Also, works well on solid-state rectifier diodes hash. Though, I've been using ultra-fast puppies for the lat ten years. And old US made ones. Such as NOS Fairchild or General Semiconductors are pretty darn quiet without the snubbers.

I get teh strong feeling you are going to have one very nice tone-master.

Keep up the nice work! :mrgreen:


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