The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons – Détails, épisodes et analyse

It's the 137th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps podcast, where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all-things-tube amps! This week, we talk to special guest, Steve Carr of Carr Amplifiers! 

Want to be a part of our show? Just email us a question or voice memo to [email protected].

Our sponsors: Emerald City Guitars, Amplified Parts, StewMac, and Grez Guitars.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. And come to the 2024 Fretboard Summit. 

Some of the topics discussed this time around:

2:22 Steve Carr (Carr Amplifiers) joins us for an enlightening talk about prototyping, speaker cabs, Solen caps, tone controls, and so much more. He even fields a few of your questions!

1:14:17 Big M speaker cabinets

1:16:08 Red Norvo "In a Mist"

1:17:49 Did a rubber tube amp mount just fix my microphonic amp? Easy Brussels sprouts

1:21:45 On the bench: An Epiphone Electar Zephyr

1:23:16 Pre-amps in front of amps that already have pre-amps; the WEM amps used at Live at Pompeii (link); Selmer reverb tanks; was this Philco amp made by Bogen?; pizza stones 

1:31:55 Out-of-range potentiometers

1:35:05 Ballast resistors in field coil amps

Plus Hurdy gurdys and more.

It's the 136th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps podcast, where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all-things-tube amps! 

Want to be a part of our show? Just email us a question or voice memo to [email protected].

Our sponsors: Emerald City Guitars, Amplified Parts, StewMac, and Grez Guitars.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. 

Some of the topics discussed this time around: 

1:11 A Big Boy locomotive chugs through CA

3:42 What's on Skip's Bench: A Valco/National/Airline amp-in-case; a single-ended Soundmaster PA; a Premier Twin 8

10:55 Another round of TAVA shirts? (coming soon)

13:06 Milkman to produce a JBL K120 replica speaker (link); re-coning by Hempopotamus (and Weber)

16:56 The 2024 Fretboard Summit, featuring Blake Mills, Josh Scott (JHS), Colin Hay and so much more https://fretboardsummit.org (Aug 23-25, 2024 in Chicago)

20:29 The Davis Guitar Scene

20:51 Is there a new speaker comparable to the JBL D130F? Artie Shaw

22:43 VHT amps, redux; homemade cheese

28:05 Why did Leo use RCA plugs for his speaker jacks?

32:20 I miss lo-fi Skip; help me isolate the hum on my Magnatone 410

39:45 Favorite solder; avocado toast

43:26 Recommended movie: 'All That Is Sacred' featuring Tom McGuane, Jim Harrison, Jimmy Buffett, and vintage Key West (link)

44:58 Help me ground my Pepco Riviera 725

48:15 Does the phase inverter tube contribute gain?

49:47 AIMS amplifiers, redux; Don Randall

53:59 Skip (almost) fixes a church organ

1:00:03 Should I wax pot these old output transformers?

1:04:55 Why is there chicken wire in my amplifier? finding the outside foil on a cap

Recorded July 25, 2024. 

We're closing out 2023 with special guest Bill Krinard of Two Rock! 

https://www.two-rock.com

I won't even attempt to annotate this episode but Bill joins us at 5:36 and fields a bunch of listener-submitted questions on transformers with dissimilar primary windings; Two-Rock's design process; how he uses oscilloscopes; Ampegs; Filmosound mods; potentiometers; harmonic content; and more. 

Want to be a part of our show? Submit your question or voice memo to [email protected].

Our sponsors: Emerald City Guitars, Amplified Parts, Stringjoy Strings, and Grez Guitars

Love the show? We have a Patreon where you can support us, get to the front of the line with questions, and get exclusive bonus content and surprises: 

https://www.patreon.com/vintageamps

The elusive, highly influential Steve Melkisethian of Angela Instruments joins us on this week’s episode for what is quite possibly our most entertaining episode to date. For decades, Angela has provided DIY tube amp and hi-fi enthusiasts with tubes, parts, and brutally honest advice. Melkisethian tells us about the history of the company, his love for music (from John Fahey to Roy Buchanan and Fugazi), and shares plenty of stories from the vacuum tube frontlines. 

Submit your tube amp questions to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

Some of the topics discussed:

0:00 Addendum: The tubes on Springsteen’s Mesa Boogie
3:25 Why Steve Melkisethian of Angela Instruments, this week’s guest, is important  
6:56 This week’s TAVA sponsor: Grez Guitars
7:58 The Danelectro DM-25 reverb trick, redux
13:41 What’s on Skip’s bench?
17:02 Jason buys a Garnet
18:50 Pronouncing Tony Chachere, again; El Pato and Herdez
23:05 Speaker driven reverb schematic
29:06 Special guest: Steve Melkisethian of Angela Instruments (www.angela.com)

 

Once again, Skip Simmons is quoting 'A Tale of Two Cities' and fielding tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

This episode is sponsored by Grez Guitars.

Some of the topics discussed in this episode: 

4:26 Carter Vintage's under $1000 amp shootout (YouTube link)
7:40 Satan & Adam
9:32 Tom Ball
11:44 Updates on Drew's Fender Tonemaster
17:54 We're doing a good job
19:48 Phil Lee
21:00 Tube condensation during cold weather
24:12 The Fender Bantam Bass amp
26:26 Eric Johnson's pilot light placement, redux
29:44 A 1973 Fender Princeton Reverb with a sticky speaker
32:52 Swapping out a phase inverter tube versus swapping out a pre-amp tube
35:17 Recommended tool: OXO turner for skillet cleaning (link) 
37:38 The gain stages of the Fender 5E8-A preamp
42:10 Replacing the handle on a '60s Gibson GA-5 Skylark
46:09 Footswitch 101 and an '80s Rivera-era Fender Princeton Reverb 2
50:29 Using EQ to lower the volume on a 50-watt Mesa Boogie Mark II
56:05 A 1968 Fender Vibro Champ with a hum that goes away
1:01:56 Power = Voltage × Current
1:03:38 A 5881 or a 6L6GC power tube in a 5F1
1:05:48 Speaker recommendations for a 1966 Ampeg Gemini II 

Once again, Skip Simmons is quoting 'A Tale of Two Cities' and fielding tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

Some of the topics discussed in this episode: 
4:41 One for the Tweakers: Putting a filament transformer in a HiWatt, backwards
7:38 Unfreezing pots with rubbing alcohol
11:53 Turning a Rogers Cadet hi-fi into a guitar amp
13:19 A 1953 Massie Woody on Reverb (link)
15:59 Red lacquer on solder joints
17:30 This week's sponsor: Grez Guitars (check out the video with Tim Lerch and Tommy Harkenrider here)
21:27 The stereo-to-mono conversion box project
31:56 The only thing you'll remember from this week's podcast: How to say "Tony Cachere's"
32:58 The Danelectro DM-25
35:56 Josh Yenne and the Gmail / Comcast guys
37:45 The hairy overdriven, brown sag sound for pedal steel (Charley Pride's "Cotton Fields")
44:45 RIP: Brian Dennehy (crooked cop in 'Gorky Park')
46:40 Lodge: The Blues Junior of cast iron pans?
49:00 Tips for repairing Tolex and tight-fitting chassis
50:35 The language of amp feel
54:47 Will this Kay 703 kill me?
59:59 Ry Cooder's Instagram page
1:00:18 The tone difference of PCB vs wired amps
11:04:25 A Victoria with a thumpy tremolo
1:08:04 An early '60s Fender Princeton with an extraneous noise
1:13:00 Different tone controls for a Gibson Falcon (link, link)
1:17:45 Getting rid of the bias resistor in a Vibroluxe clone; super-simple, homemade hot sauce
1:20:03 A Brown Box for an Aussie?
1:25:20 'How to Hot Rod Your Fender Amp' book, DLabs
1:29:40 Why Skip hates pentode triad switches

Amp tech Skip Simmons is once again fielding guitar tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

2:39: Special Guest: Bill Krinard (Two-Rock Amplifiers): Troubleshooting a Fender Tonemaster that pops when turned off; Bodega red potatoes; Bill's current projects; flipping the pilot light)
34:45 This week's sponsor: Grez Guitars (link, get a behind-the-scenes Grez shop tour here)
35:39 Tips on buying a tube tester (Skip’s fave: B&K 700)
45:05 Speaker recommendations for a Champ
47:58 Troubleshooting an early '70s Fender Bassman 50 with hum
1:00:57 Choke talk
1:05:31 Cast iron cleaning
1:10:55 Vacuum Tube Valley online (link)
1:13:53 RIP Art Dudley (FJ and Stereophile contributor)
1:14:10 Skip’s hi-fi setup
1:18:14 A Garnet Pro with built-in Stinger fuzz that sounds worse as it warms up
1:22:49 Skip's book tips

Amp tech Skip Simmons is once again fielding guitar tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

(Apologies for the Skype noise/buffering at the start of the podcast... our small town internet needs some WD-40.)

21:39 This week’s sponsor: Grez Guitars (link)
22:33 A Musicmaster Bass amp in a Vibro Champ cabinet (and vice versa)
25:19 The crest on a Gibson Crestline-era Skylark / the Gibson amp book (link)
27:49 A resistor to bias a tweed Vibrolux; power transformers in a 5F2A  
38:51 Using the speaker of a Deluxe Reverb with a Quilter head
42:34 A Silverface Vibro Champ with a weak tremolo; the Capacitor Wizard
47:55 This week’s quote: "The mind that is not baffled, is not employed" -Wendell Berry
49:19 The popping Fender Tonemaster update
55:01 A gridleak bias mindworm
1:02:06 In defense of Lodge cast iron; crisper potatoes
1:07:37 Pickups and how they interact with tube amps
1:11:59 Music recommendation: Skip James' Today!
1:13:01 Free video time killers for the DIY set: Camel Finds Water (link), Resurrection: Rescue of a 1955 VW panelvan (link), The Beast of Turin (link)
1:16:56 Rogue Hoe gardening tools (link); symptoms of a bad bias circuit
1:23:46 Dialing in your tone on a Mesa Boogie Mark IV
1:30:58 Tubes for a Fender reverb tank
1:34:33 "Chitlins Con Carne" rhythm revisited: Timmy Thomas’ "Why Can’t We Live Together," the Police's "Deathwish;" Gibson Falcon mods
1:39:12 Modifying a '60s hi-fi home kit amp, plus Vinnie’s mashed potato recipe (see below)
1:48:17 Movie pick: 'Pow Wow Highway'

Keep the questions coming and please leave us a review over on Apple Podcasts or share the podcast with friends.

Vinnie's Mash Potato Recipe

500gm Floury potatoes (in New Zealand I'd use Agria)
300ml single cream
200gm butter
salt
nutmeg
butter to finish

 

1. peel and cut the potato in 3cm dice
2. bring to the boil (just covered) in heavily salted water (slightly less than the sea)
3. strain as soon as you can easily poke a sharp knife through them 

(if they over cook and take on water they will be too salty)

1. once fully drained put them back in the pot on a low heat until the outside is fluffy and dry
2. meanwhile in another pot start reducing the cream and butter until it takes on the consistency of thermal mudpools bubbling. In NZ it would be quite yellow at this stage but our cows are grass feed.
3. while this is happening, force the potato through a sieve or ricer, working the potato as little as possible
4. Now whip the potato's in to the cream mixture, this should almost immediately come cleanly away from the sides of the pot and be ready to serve.
5. Spin the pot to make a ball, tip into a bowl, sprinkle with nutmeg and stick a 1cm knob of butter in the middle 

Maybe mash potato seems like a lame recipe, but this method produces the best results, I think.

p.s. water is the enemy of mash potato. Water out--Fat in

Amp tech Skip Simmons is once again fielding guitar tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

5:24 This week's sponsor: Grez Guitars (link)
6:01 Jimmy from the Deadlies and his 5D3 Tweed Deluxe
8:13 Rustic Kegger in the Woods origin
8:48 Recommended reading: 'White Bicycles' by Joe Boyd
9:42 A 1960 Gibson GA-6 Lancer with inputs that keep cutting out
15:34 What’s the deal with the 1954 Fender Super?
20:02 Who was Glen Quan?
21:56 Servicing a Sears Silvertone 1482
30:05 The Magnatone 280 owner’s manual
32:23 A Fender Tonemaster with a pop
41:30 The roots of tremolo with Hammond, DeArmond, etc.
44:13 A 1987 Marshall JCM-800 2210 picking up ham radio signals
52:40 Special guest: Sam Bolle (Dick Dale!)
1:09:10 A Hammond AO-35 amp conversion project
1:14:11 Seasoning cast iron pans
1:15:18 AmpRX BrownBox attenuator use
1:19:00 A steel player's pre-amp tube needs, spiral filament design
1:22:26 What’s on Skip's bookshelf (Trustee from the Toolroom; All Music Guide to the Blues)  
1:25:16 Cartoons that adults want to watch

Amp tech Skip Simmons is once again fielding guitar tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: [email protected] or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848. 

8:04: Good Goo: TR3, SiliKroil
11:53 Our new Facebook Group (link)  
13:13 Vacaville, CA's hardware store (Pacific Hardware)
15:32 This week’s sponsor: Grez Guitar
16:44 The Fretboard Journal's #FJFest (TAVA listeners will enjoy seeing DJLavalamp's Treble Booster operation or TJ Thompson's shop tour)
19:30 The lettered squares on an amp layout
21:05 Skip's starter kit for aspiring amp tinkerers: Solder iron, solder, needle nose pliers, wire cutters, a stainless steel brush (and the Jack Darr book, of course)
26:06 Modding a 5F2A from China / Reverse Feedback
29:52 Jim Campilongo's Silverface Princeton woes (NOS tube problems)
34:30 The Mullard Factory Tour on YouTube (link)
35:04 Damage from looping through a vintage amp?
41:40 Fixing a buzzy 1979 Musicmaster Bass amp
46:30 Skip's desert island amp
48:25 How did Skip and Jason meet?
52:21 Troubleshooting white noise on an amp
56:40 Running a dummy load on a stereo amp to go mono
1:00:00 1974 Fender Champ with a cat in the amp
1:05:48 A new Baffler! Ralph Shine & Sylvia Massy trivia!
1:07:38 NOS tubes recommendation: Fbenkor on eBay
1:08:26 Otis Amps
1:13:41 Skip makes a service call to Roman Coppola (Story & Clark "Storytone" Electric Piano)
1:18:35 Skip’s travel toolkit
1:20:30 Sticking reverb in a Vibrochamp (link and link)
1:21:19 A Premier 90 Reverberation with stretched-out springs
1:23:58 Groovy tunes: Skip Mahoney’s “Wherever You Go;” Grant Green's 'Street of Dreams;' William de Vaughn's "Be Thankful for What You Got;" Timmy Thomas' "Why Can't We Live Together"