Check out my new amp project(amp builders needed)

Austin_Taunt · Post by **Austin_Taunt** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 12:38 am

This was my Christmas gift from the wife. She got me a Soldano SLO 100 clone kit. Its a Weber chassis but the rest was sourced myself. I made some PCB boards and they are ready for wiring but wanted your opinion. Should I sell these and make some handwired turret boards?? Im still new to this game and dont know if I should go with what I got or make it completely handwired....may just be preference.

Here are a few pics...spent about 3 hrs so far...will post as it progresses.

Silencio · Post by **Silencio** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:17 am

There's nothing wrong with the audio quality of a PCB amp: the only decent Fender in the mid-range of their line anymore (IMO, of course) is the '65 Deluxe Reverb Re-Issue, which is mostly a wave-soldered PCB, and it sounds great.

The biggest problem with PCB amps is:

Bad circuit design and/or tube sockets mounted on the PCB board. Look at Fender Hot Rod Deluxe/DeVille//DeLemon for perfect examples of boards that are born to die.

If the tube sockets on your kit are chassis-mounted (and I can see that they are), then it's probably fine.

My main studio tube amp is PTP wired, but if the same circuit was on a pCB and it used these NOS tubes, I think it would sound the same.

Oliver's Army · Post by **Oliver's Army** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:22 am

Heathkit

dofus hipster · Post by **dofus hipster** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:32 pm

Wow.. Most guys start with a Fender Deluxe clone or some other simple build. The SLO is not an easy amp at all. You MADE the PCB with traces and all? Nothing wrong with a good PCB amp, just needs to be well thought out, with serious support if the tubes are mounted direct. Mesa Boogie and Bogner are 2 companies that do pretty good. High gain amps need special attention as well. Layout is very important in the early gain stages.

Keep us up to date with it!

Austin_Taunt · Post by **Austin_Taunt** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 6:23 pm

Someone on the SLOclone boards recomended I sell the PCBs for a nice sized profit and it would actually fund my turret board and head cabinet. I was looking at the heather kit by weber and they did some things different(relays) than an actual SLO and IMO made it more like a 5150(which is peaveys take on slo)...however you can buy a 5150 used for $600 any day of the week so it would be pointless to spend the time making webers version.

This is actually my 2nd build...I did a Champ type amp first for my dad. I also ordered a HC-30 kit from ceriatone and that will be a major challenge. I opened up my matchless and there are ALOT of wires and is a bit more difficult to keep straight.

dofus hipster · Post by **dofus hipster** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 10:04 pm

Ya know.. The SLO is not as bad as some. Really a ch switching problem, and lead dress. Still a bigger amp like the SLO is way more involved than the Champ/Deluxe crowd. IMHO good iron is a big part of the high end mojo. The reason a DC30 is so freaking heavy is the massive iron they use.
I actually had a prototype Clubman, but did not know it was prototype. I sold it to someone that sent it in for a check-up, and they said "Hey, This was one of the very first ones".....DOH!! One of the greatest clean tones I ever had to pleasure of owning! Matchless is much closer to real PTP than say, old Marshall's. Looks like a rats nest, but it's actually very well done...