BUILD THREAD - Trinity Triwatt (22w Hiwatt DR103 clone)

I have this posted in the Amp Forum, but I think I'll get more technical input over here, so I'm going to double post. If mods don't like this, please advise me before banning me haha.

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Fellas, the day has come! The Triwatt showed up today! Took about a week after it shipped to get here from Canada. I have to say the shipping was impeccable. This thing was shipped very very well, and very very efficiently. Great job Stephen!

That said, let's check out some pictures of the unveiling

What could THIS be?

Nice chassis!! Protective tape is still on there.

Footswitch for the OD channel

Bags and bags of parts...still have to go through there to make sure I got everything I need. SOZO caps came in a separate shipment, they are not shown here, because I forgot.

EDIT: The two things on top of the white box are actually the relay circuits for the footswitch...I may wire it up without that for now to get the amp working, and add that later. To be determined...

Back panel, and front faceplate. You can also see the iron. Judging by the weight, these things are good. They are supposedly custom wound by Heyboar to vintage Partridge specs.

And finally, where this thing will reside while I'm getting my feet wet working on it. Handy contraption!!!

I'm really excited to get started on this thing, but I won't be able to start tonight. I won't be home, but will get started wiring the tube sockets and power stuff tomorrow if all goes well.

I will be updating this thread religiously so that our fellow amp builders and techs on here can point out any flaws they see as I go along.

Again this is my first amp build, and this is apparently a pretty wild build, so I'm really hoping with patience and taking my time that I can pull it off!

--Bryan

Got some wiring done. Wired up the heaters. Anyone who has done this before, does this look alright? I mean, it's my first time doing it, and it took awhile, but I was focusing on the solder joints a lot to make sure I had good connections. I realize the power tube wiring could have been done better, but those were the ones I started on Got better as I went along I'm sure

Like I said in a previous thread, I'm going to be posting a {censored}load of pictures, because I want people to tell me if they see something that stands out that needs to be fixed. So, that said...pictures!

Also, are there any connections shown that would benefit from heat shrink? Not sure when and where to use that stuff.

--Bryan

Woohoo, updates!

Spent the first part of the afternoon doing the bias circuit wiring for the power section. I hope everything looks good. After I finish soldering each connection, I check the connection with the continuity setting on my multimeter just to make sure the circuit is closed at the contacts. Just peace of mind for me really. If I'm soldering a resistor or capacitor, I'll check that the contacts are seeing that resistor/capacitor as well. Again, just insurance so I'm not missing a bad solder connection later when I need to troubleshoot.

Anyway, here are the pics.

That resistor on the can cap is just sitting there. Waiting on a couple other parts before I solder it in place.

Just a "progress" pic as I finished up the resistors before starting the bias circuit.

Not sure what happened to this picture, but I've had a couple pics that this has happened to...Oh well. Just a shot of me trying to be neat with the capacitor/resistor

Bright/Normal volume controls, and the Overdrive push/pull pot next to them

Not as neat as I would like, but with that many wires around there, it's a bear to keep tidy! The switch in the middle of the picture is the bias switch so you can go from 6V6/KT66

And one more from the top down

Next is to begin wiring the power transformer/can caps. Don't know if I'll do anymore today or not. I've inhaled enough solder fumes right now!

Great thread!

Can't believe I'm the first comment

I hope you are not using those terminal strip chassis ground lugs for "convenient" random grounding points.. I know its tempting though

I love your bias tester points though

Great thread! Can't believe I'm the first comment I hope you are not using those terminal strip chassis ground lugs for "convenient" random grounding points.. I know its tempting though I love your bias tester points though

Thanks Diaz!! I just figured if no one commented, I'd just have this thread for reference in the future No big deal!

As for the terminal strips, I'm not using those for grounds Just to free up some space on tubes and whatnot...

I think the bias test point design is pretty genius myself...Maybe it's a pretty common design, but since this is my first amp build, I'm not really sure! Definitely not my own design

Thanks for the comment man!

Got some more done today...Got the power side wired up and the controls wired. Now I'm going to build the board in a little while, and it seems like I'm beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel!

Controls all wired up!

And another shot of the controls

Shot of the center taps grounded...

And a shot of my power wiring...

Another shot of power wiring...

Those little terminal strips are certainly practical... I might just get a few.

They sure are man. Makes the wiring quite a bit neater. I never would have thought to use something like that if I was designing it myself. The first amp I design though will have those in mind for sure!

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I have way better pictures, but didn't feel like downloading them from the camera. I am missing a couple of caps that are on their way to me as we speak. Once those come in, I'll wire some leads to the board, and it's time to plop that thing into the chassis and do some final wiring and initial testing!

Wow !! Nice looking work and it looks like you are making really good progress.

Wow !! Nice looking work and it looks like you are making really good progress.

Thanks so much for the kind words. That means a lot coming from you, as you seem to be one of our resident experts around here! I truly appreciate it!

I'm just trying to be patient and take my time to make things right.

I think I'm going to go wire the leads to the board right now, and I'll just get everything ready for when my caps actually get here. I'm hoping and praying I don't have too many problems on initial power up, because that is where this will turn into "Oh no, what do I do now?" The Trinity Amps forum is a great resource though. Always one of the top dogs ready to help out if you need. It's a smaller operation so sometimes questions go unanswered for awhile, but you'll always get an answer.

Thanks again. I'll post some pics of the leads if I can make some headway tonight!

That really is great man! Nice and neat. If you can keep it up with the wiring you'll have a totally awesome looking build!

Thanks so much for the kind words. That means a lot coming from you, as you seem to be one of our resident experts around here! I truly appreciate it! I'm just trying to be patient and take my time to make things right. I think I'm going to go wire the leads to the board right now, and I'll just get everything ready for when my caps actually get here. I'm hoping and praying I don't have too many problems on initial power up, because that is where this will turn into "Oh no, what do I do now?" The Trinity Amps forum is a great resource though. Always one of the top dogs ready to help out if you need. It's a smaller operation so sometimes questions go unanswered for awhile, but you'll always get an answer. Thanks again. I'll post some pics of the leads if I can make some headway tonight!

I am certianly no expert, but more of a life long "electronics expierimenter"...

Do you have a link to that site for me?

That's how it should be!

Trinity's site is www.trinityamps.com

Good stuff, and they have several different models.

Indeed it is. Getting the wires to be just the right length is a dark art.

I'm still preparing the chassis for my build. The front was a little too beat up to work with so I'm going to spray it tomorrow.

And that's going to be the hard part Thanks though Zo! I'm watching your Dual Channel build too... That's how it should be! Trinity's site is www.trinityamps.com Good stuff, and they have several different models.

I had no idea that web site even existed. I remember Stephen from several years ago (pre 2005) but didn't immediatly put the two together. Small world HUh?

Here is a couple of other of my links that may help in the future when you strat scratch building. (and you will ) I din't post this at Trinity because it's about scratch building and I would think it's a conflict of intrest since he is a kit maker.

Setting up a scratch build chassis

http://www.guitarkitbuilder.com/content/how-layout-and-build-guitar-amplifier-chassis

Making your own turret boards

http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff243/Casey4s/Basic%20Turret%20Board%20Construction/?start=all&paginator=top

Making a chassis from scratch

http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff243/Casey4s/DIY%20fold%20your%20own%20chassis/

A very basic head cabinet construction

http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff243/Casey4s/Building%20%20a%20Basic%20Head%20Cabinet/

Thanks for the link it took me forever to get registered because I am partially color blind and that little box with the code in it took me 20+ tries...

I had no idea that web site even existed. I remember Stephen from several years ago (pre 2005) but didn't immediatly put the two together. Small world HUh? Here is a couple of other of my links that may help in the future when you strat scratch building. (and you will ) I din't post this at Trinity because it's about scratch building and I would think it's a conflict of intrest since he is a kit maker. http://www.guitarkitbuilder.com/content/how-layout-and-build-guitar-amplifier-chassis http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff243/Casey4s/Basic%20Turret%20Board%20Construction/?start=all&paginator=top http://s238.photobucket.com/albums/ff243/Casey4s/DIY%20fold%20your%20own%20chassis/ Thanks for the link it took me forever to get registered because I am partially color blind and that little box with the code in it took me 20+ tries...

You are very welcome for the link man! I enjoy that place over there. Lots of nice helpful people. Definitely a small world if you know Stephen!

I will DEFINITELY check out those links for scratch building...It's bad, because I've already started to toss ideas around in my head for an amp I'd like to design, and I haven't even finished this one yet! And I really think Stephen would be ok with your links, but probably a good idea to hold off for awhile.

I hate those boxes with the codes in them too. I imagine it would be a real pain in the arse if you had a color blind problem. Sheesh! Glad you got over there though. Seems like a lot of different people have a lot of respect for you, I can see why

Thanks...

It seems everyone who gets into building amps wants to design and scratch build eventually.

My first build was a 5E3 in '96 but my problem is that I start modifying things before I can get the thing finished so it wound up with a bright switch and a Blackface style Bass/Mid/Treb tone stack. I was planning my 5F6A before I even finished the Deluxe.

The only problem with amp building is that it is addicting.

Yes, you will never stop thinking about building amps. After this 20W amp I already have the ideas for another 2 amps.

Its going to be an expensive year

Yes, you will never stop thinking about building amps. After this 20W amp I already have the ideas for another 2 amps. Its going to be an expensive year

Yup, reality catches up with ambition at some point, you gotta PAY to PLAY.

Ok, so here are some picture updates!

Tonight I got the tube sockets wired up. I'm pretty happy with how the wiring turned out. Fairly neat. I think I could have done better on some of the wires, but at some point, for a first build, you've got to get over the OCD and just go LOL! Let me know if anyone sees any problems!!!

Yet to do:

1) Wire up bias switch

2) Wire up output/impedence jacks/switch

3) Finish control wiring...leads are in place and measured/dressed, just need to solder them to the pots.

4) Wire up power section

5) TEST CONNECTIONS/VOLTAGES

6) MOTHER EFFING RAWK OUT!

I SHOULD be able to get this thing done tomorrow! I'll shut up now...on with the pics.

This was right after I got the board completed. I just layed it on it's screws for a picture

Same thing...mmm, depth of field haha

Input jack wiring. This was a total pain in the arse. Even making a cardboard template to work on them out of the chassis. I hope I have these right...This is one of the few areas I'm actually concerned about at the moment.

Another shot after input jack wiring...

I got the tube sockets wired up tonight

Top shot of tube socket wiring.

I wanted to get a closeup of the wiring...V1 and V2

V3 and V4

V5 and V6

I have to say that to my untrained eye, your work looks very clean and meticulous.

Absoloutly neat to a fault Sir.

Absoloutly neat to a fault Sir.

You are far too kind man! Thank you so much! About to post pictures of the rest of the wiring, you may change your tune after seeing that

Fellas and Ladies...Wiring is DONE. I'm about to go over all of the connections with my continuity meter, then check the resistors and capacitors, and then it will be time to take some voltage measurements with tubes and whatnot.

The Primary voltage wires have not been wired up, as per the instructions.

Here are the final 3 pictures (of the initial build...may make changes later)

Got the impedance selector and output jacks wired up.

This is the bias switch wiring and some power wiring. This is a VERY tight space with lots of wires. I'm fairly happy with how the lead dress came out here, but as before, I could always do better.

And finally, the control wiring. Again, I could do better here as well. But I don't think it's too bad.

So that's that! Now onto initial testing. If all goes well I may even be able to have some clips today, but I'm not really counting on it. Being a first build, I'm sure I screwed something up without knowing it.

-Bryan