Members gnolivos Posted November 30, 2009 Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 LOL, not what I wanted to hear! Interestingly if I touch the Volume pot shaft with my finger (plastic knob has been pulled off for now) the hum disappears completely. It must be a grounding issue. Touching the other pots has zero effect... , Originally Posted by Verne Andru If you're getting hum that probably means the chip still isn't soldered properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SciHi Posted November 30, 2009 Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 Originally Posted by Verne Andru ...I have not tried them, but for the price I'm ordering 2 and will take my chances. We were thinking about the 4 for $50 deal but when Rock Mumbles contacted the seller he said they were real early breakup speakers, maybe more suited for harp. So we didn't order any, but I would love to hear how they work for you, they may be just what you need for a low volume, bedroom tube amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted November 30, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 Originally Posted by SciHi We were thinking about the 4 for $50 deal but when Rock Mumbles contacted the seller he said they were real early breakup speakers, maybe more suited for harp. So we didn't order any, but I would love to hear how they work for you, they may be just what you need for a low volume, bedroom tube amp. I did not know that. Thanks for the post. I'll take a pass as well - the V8 has enough breakup on it's own and I'm looking for a speaker that'll hold together for cleans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dcindc Posted November 30, 2009 Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 It kills me that you guys are looking for cleans from such a small amp. I'd be chasing tone generator traits. I'm about to hit those THD speakers. I'll let ya know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted November 30, 2009 Author Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 Originally Posted by dcindc It kills me that you guys are looking for cleans from such a small amp. I'd be chasing tone generator traits. I'm about to hit those THD speakers. I'll let ya know. You'd have to play one to understand. I know you've looked at the V8 schematic - remember the opamp? It gooses the living {censored} out of the first 1/2 of the 12AX7 unlike what you get out of your V16.The V8 has balls to spare, but it's nice to be able to roll back for some quasi-clean rhythm and for that I like a speaker that doesn't fall apart easily.But, I'm interested in your opinion on the speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted November 30, 2009 Members Share Posted November 30, 2009 Yeah, my main gripe on the V8 is that the only way I can achieve cleans, are at very very low volumes.With gain, the amp sounds awesome, and very loud. For my Telecaster, with cleans, I am still forced to go to my Hughes & Kettner solid state amp. Which I do love by the way, despite it being a SS!Now, if I could mod this thing to achieve loud cleans, I'd be in heaven. Worst case, it becomes my go-to rock'n'roll machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SciHi Posted December 1, 2009 Members Share Posted December 1, 2009 Originally Posted by dcindc ...I'm about to hit those THD speakers. I'll let ya know. Mixed reviews, http://www.thegearpage.net/board/sho...d.php?t=633467But I may still pick up a pair, I have a new 5e3 build that they might work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted December 1, 2009 Members Share Posted December 1, 2009 Verne: I looked at your Tone Stack. Are you sure the Bass Wiper shouldn't be jumpered to the other 'free' leg? At least that's the typical Marshall Tone Stack configuration. Also the Fender one is like that iirc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted December 1, 2009 Author Members Share Posted December 1, 2009 Originally Posted by gnolivos Verne:I looked at your Tone Stack. Are you sure the Bass Wiper shouldn't be jumpered to the other 'free' leg? At least that's the typical Marshall Tone Stack configuration. Also the Fender one is like that iirc... Mine is based on the Trainwreck Express which is close to the Marshall/Fender but different. That diagram is, IIRC, how I've wired my amp and I know it works. OTOH I could have screwed up something translating it from wiring to paper. Try it and if I notated it incorrectly, let me know and I'll change the schematic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted December 2, 2009 Members Share Posted December 2, 2009 Nope, it looks fine as is, very similar to Marshall stack, except for the jumper I described. Values are pretty much spot on too.I already have parts on order for the typical Marshall stack specification, and will take it from there on bench testing... may tweak a few values.I think I will make the current tone knob work the same as your Treble Roll-off, and then will add 3 new knobs next to the gain knob (Bass, Mid, Treble), with the mini switch as well to eliminate the stack entirely from the chain.I will likely have the front of my head cabinet re-designed slightly to accomodate for all this. Originally Posted by Verne Andru Mine is based on the Trainwreck Express which is close to the Marshall/Fender but different. That diagram is, IIRC, how I've wired my amp and I know it works. OTOH I could have screwed up something translating it from wiring to paper. Try it and if I notated it incorrectly, let me know and I'll change the schematic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted December 3, 2009 Members Share Posted December 3, 2009 Woops, just noticed something... your original Tone Stack Plans (posted here) has the Bass pot wired differently than what you posted on your PDF. Which one is the one you finally ended up with? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted December 3, 2009 Author Members Share Posted December 3, 2009 The schematic is the most current. If you A/B them you'll see a few other things have changed as well. Tweakage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dsafhsdas Posted December 3, 2009 Members Share Posted December 3, 2009 The toggle switch on Marshall heads like the JTM45 are actually ON in the Down position, just like I set it here. Matter of fact, you cannot easily rotate the switch anyway, because it is notched for a single orientation! Lucky me, huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted December 3, 2009 Members Share Posted December 3, 2009 What the hell is this spammer? That line is my quote from earlier post... crazy... The toggle switch on Marshall heads like the JTM45 are actually ON in the Down position, just like I set it here. Matter of fact, you cannot easily rotate the switch anyway, because it is notched for a single orientation! Lucky me, huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Posted December 5, 2009 Members Share Posted December 5, 2009 So Verne, now that you've documented everything on a schematic I think the mods should get their own name. When I tell people of these mods I'm calling them the "Verne Andru mods" - unless you prefer something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted December 5, 2009 Author Members Share Posted December 5, 2009 When I tell people of these mods I'm calling them the "Verne Andru mods" - unless you prefer something else. That works as well as anything. Glad you're finding them to be of value. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wayne2 Posted February 16, 2010 Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 Originally Posted by Verne Andru As mentioned above, preamp distortion tends to be lean. What you want for real ballsy distortion is to get it from the EL84 power tube, or a combo of the two. The easiest way to do this [and not muck with the amp] is:Guitar ->Input->FX Send->Clean Booster->FX ReturnThis lets you dial in the gain and volume on the amp for a nice clean tone and when you want tube distortion just kick on your clean booster. It turns the V8 into a great little 2-channel all valve monster. Thank you for posting all this fascinating stuff. I've had this amp a few years and been happy with it.I'm interested in what you said about the clean booster. I think I'd like to try this, as a confidence builder if anything. Is there any particular booster that you recommend? I just plug it into the FX loop and turn up the boost?Quickly looking for something online I found the "Mod Tone Clean Boost". Would that work well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Matter-Eater Lad Posted February 16, 2010 Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 I gave up on my V58's internal preamp. It's horrid, really. I tried a couple of the mods, the very easiest ones and heard next to no difference and backed away from that, returning it to stock. I now plug into the Line In and am using an S.I.B. Fatdrive as the preamp, which gives me more options (Drive, Low, Mid, High and Volume). I plug 3 or 4 pedals before the S.I.B. to get my distortions, and other sounds. (edit) - I've fiddled around with it some more over the months. This thing is probably my favorite amp. Using the SIB as a preamp made the difference. The 8" speaker is fine with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted February 16, 2010 Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 I recommend BBE Green Screamer as a booster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted February 16, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 Originally Posted by Matter-Eater Lad I gave up on my V58's internal preamp. It's horrid, really. I tried a couple of the mods, the very easiest ones and heard next to no difference and backed away from that, returning it to stock. I now plug into the Line In and am using an S.I.B. Fatdrive as the preamp, which gives me more options (Drive, Low, Mid, High and Volume). I plug 3 or 4 pedals before the S.I.B. to get my distortions, and other sounds. IIRC the V58 has an 8" speaker. While others may argue the point, I've not found an 8" that I like, so that may be part of your issue.My mods basically gut and rebuild the internal preamp. It does sound great once modded properly.As mentioned above, I did pick up another V8 a while ago for a backup. It actually sounds quite good compared to how my original one came, so there appears to be variations between them - some better than others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted February 16, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 Originally Posted by Wayne2 Thank you for posting all this fascinating stuff. I've had this amp a few years and been happy with it.I'm interested in what you said about the clean booster. I think I'd like to try this, as a confidence builder if anything. Is there any particular booster that you recommend? I just plug it into the FX loop and turn up the boost?Quickly looking for something online I found the "Mod Tone Clean Boost". Would that work well? Just about anything that boosts the volume without adding unwanted distortion or colour will work. As you can see from Matter-Eater Lad's post, you can get quite creative with how you drive the power section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted February 16, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 In case some of you missed it in the EG forum, I'm in the March 2010 issue of Guitar Player magazine! The current issue with George Benson on the cover. Bottom of page 28. It's great little write-up on a tune of mine - DV8. If you recall from way back to the beginning of this thread, I recorded DV8 as a way to test how the amp records. It's in the key of D, hence the D and the V8 is an obvious reference to the amp. The "deviate" pun was a nice happenstance. It's always nice to get some little recognition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Verne Andru Posted February 16, 2010 Author Members Share Posted February 16, 2010 And while I'm posting, I should mention that gnolivos was kind enough to sell me his empty V8 cabinet. I've since picked up an Eminence Lil Buddy hemp cone speaker and turned it into a matching extension cabinet. So my rig is now a 2x10 - the Lil Buddy and a Weber Alinico Silver Bell. The speakers compliment each other really well. The Lil Buddy is a bit darker and each has it's own sweet spot. I have them separated and it's neat to listen to an almost "stereo" spread as the sound seems to wash back and forth as the individual speakers enhance their particular frequency ranges. The magnet on the back of the Lil Buddy is huge. I've not yet checked to see if it would fit along with the electronics, but my hunch is that if it does, it's going to be really tight. Great sounding speaker though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wayne2 Posted February 20, 2010 Members Share Posted February 20, 2010 Well I double-checked with both ModTone and Crate, and neither said that plugging a clean boost into the FX loop was a bad idea. However, neither told me that they'd done it themselves either, and Crate said to make sure I had good tubes because the voltage on the EL84 might be increased and make it work a little harder. I went ahead and ordered the ModTone Clean Boost pedal. I'm a little confused about the signal path: input->opamp 1 for first preamplification->opamp2 connected to the gain knob for increasing the signal to the->first 1/2 of the 12AX/T7->through the tone stack->volume control->fx send->fx return->second 1/2 of the 12AX/T7->EL84->output transformer->speaker I was under the impression that the clean boost would send a strong signal through the FX return straight to the EL84, but rereading this, it appears to go back to the 12AX7. So then I'd be getting more distortion from both the 12AX7 and the EL84? I'm confused. (electronics novice here - please feel free to ignore my question if it's not worth your time) Also if you're feeling generous could you clarify where the gain, volume, clean boost, and L-pad knobs would make their changes in the signal path? Just curious. Any book recommendations on basic amp electronics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gnolivos Posted February 20, 2010 Members Share Posted February 20, 2010 Wayne: I actually have the signal path as follows: Guitar > BoostPedal > Amp Input > etc... Works great like this for me, and I have the FL loop in use with some other effects. Normally, Boosts are used this way at the front end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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