Modulus Amps Princetown Kit Build

spev11

robinbowes said:

spev11 said:

And its fully working at last, thank you to all that commented, sent me luck , those that helped, @RiftAmps and @ICBM on my other thread about the reverb. i'll post more pics once I finalise a name for it and maybe if I either build a better headshell or a combo box for it.
Again, ta

Well done!

I'm curious - what was the reverb noise caused by?

R.

As pointed out by @RiftAmps the reverb sockets probably weren’t grounded, to illustrate it he copied one of my pics with the bloody insulating washers clearly visible. I think I was guilty of stupidity and overcomplicating what was wrong  . I’d convinced myself I’d checked everything, it’s all good, next build I’ll be more aware ( yes there will be more)

robinbowes

spev11 said:

robinbowes said:

spev11 said:

And its fully working at last, thank you to all that commented, sent me luck , those that helped, @RiftAmps and @ICBM on my other thread about the reverb. i'll post more pics once I finalise a name for it and maybe if I either build a better headshell or a combo box for it.
Again, ta

Well done!

I'm curious - what was the reverb noise caused by?

R.

As pointed out by @RiftAmps the reverb sockets probably weren’t grounded, to illustrate it he copied one of my pics with the bloody insulating washers clearly visible. I think I was guilty of stupidity and overcomplicating what was wrong  . I’d convinced myself I’d checked everything, it’s all good, next build I’ll be more aware ( yes there will be more)

Ah, I missed that there was another thread - I'll go and find it!

Thanks, and congrats!

R.

gdculley

Excellent work, glad you got it sorted! That must be a pretty rewarding build, definitely a dream amp for a lot of folk, and very reassuring knowing you will be able to service or modify it at your will. Thanks for the very thorough thread, I really enjoyed it! 

Modulus_Amps

Well Done @spev11 Good example of methodical working and doing the work to learn as you go and not being afraid to ask questions.
Last one of these I built was whisper quiet. so much so the customer didn't think it was working when they turned it on. It all comes down to grounding and good valves.

For those interested in building a PR, This is the only kit I don't provide a layout for (Other than the original layout) it is a parts kit that I put together as I was asked for it so often and have not had the chance to revisit it. Really if you intend to build one of these you should have built one or two amps before hand and taken the time to learn about the different parts in a valve amplifier or have someone knowledgeable to help you along the way. This is an easy one to get wrong and that is where experience comes in handy.

spev11

thank you @Modulus_Amps you helped me enormously throughout. I do agree that its probably not the best project to take on as a first build. I think part of my problem was too many build guilds,schematics and layouts, at one point I had 3 instruction manuals (StewMacs, Mojotones and TAD) open, 4 different layouts and schematics from RobRobinette.com , Fenders schematic, layouts from the three manuals. All had slightly different layouts, nothing major just different letters on the capcan, different colours for the transformers , different power switching, grounding differences. If I'd just stuck with one (probably Robs to be fair) i'd have probably been less confused.
 I thoroughly enjoyed it though, I treat everything as something to be learned, gained from and to enjoy no matter how difficult it may seem. I'm already planning another for the winter (once i've saved up enough).

spev11

Last update for a while I think, its finished, everything now works, its very quiet, even with the reverb up quite high, tremelo is a bit more subtle than I was expecting but its good nonetheless. I decided to put some cloth over the front panel as the big pine panel looked a bit blank. I need to name it but that's to be decided. 
 I have thought about fitting two 6" speakers to a panel so I can use it as a mini practice amp but that's not really a priority. will be sorting out a footswitch this week but i probably wont post pics of that.
 Sound wise I have nothing to compare it to so I don't know if it sounds like it should, its sounds better through the 10" VT Jr i have compared to the 12" g12s . I might take the Vaporizer home and run it into the two speakers in there to see what that sounds like. 

JonB

Looks great, well done.

Dave_Mc

That's just awesome, really glad you got it sorted 

BigMonka

That looks fantastic @spev11 and bet it sounds awesome!
Have you thought of coming up for a cool name for it to fill the faceplate space?