I'm continuing my trend of up-cycling old soild-state combos with this pair of latest builds ...
Firstly one I've had on the backburner for ages - I bought it as a broken solid-state SubZero branded amplifier. I loved the look of the blue tolex and the 6" speaker made it a great candidate for a champ-type build. Out came all the guts and in went valve loveliness.
I went a slightly different route and I've built it parallel single-ended, so the output stage uses both a 6v6 and EL84, balanced for even power output. So you get the warmth and bottom end of the 6v6, plus the crunch and earlier breakup of the EL84.
Simple controls of volume and tone, plus a switch to remove the tonestack (much more of a gainy, raw sound) and one to boost the preamp valve and fatten.
Scroll down past the pics for the next amp ... oh and I forgot to mention - I've had some logos laser-cut, I think they look ace
Next up is a tiny - and I mean TINY - HiWatt combo I found in a skip a couple of weeks back ... so I had to rise to the challenge of fitting a valve amp in there.
I've kept it low wattage using a ECC99 output tube, for around 3w total. Preamp has a switchable extra gain stage so it really roars. Sounds surprisingly good through the 5" speaker, and immense when plugged into a 1x12 cab. Perfect for noodling at home, or shoving in a rucksack and rocking out at rehearsal!
Oh, and I put a plexiglass panel on the back so you can see the insides. No idea why, just thought it looked cool ...
Comments
So much want. I approve of this up cycling in a massive way.
are you just using the stock speakers?
Very nice, do you mind me asking how you did the faceplate on the champ-style build? I'm sure I read in the past you have used printable foil but this one looks to be different?
Any chance I can order a nameplate to go on the Mini-Vibe?