Small Recording Amp

Express, Liverpool, Rocket, Dirty Little Monster, etc.

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mrtommyp
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Location: Chicago. IL

Small Recording Amp

Post by mrtommyp »

Does anyone have any advice on a recording tube amp?

Has anyone played a Mahaffay 3350LT?
mahaffayamps.com/little-lanilei-3350lt.htm
passfan
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Re: Small Recording Amp

Post by passfan »

I think their full of crap, and their sales page seems full of hype. If I read correctly their using a transistor in the power stage (perhaps there goes all your benefits of tube distortion) Their so called power soak circuit is active and not passive ( which makes it another gain stage). Five years of expected life out of a preamp tube isn't much (i regularly pull used vintage tubes out of older gear that are still working after 50 years.
That being said perhaps it would be possible to use the cold sounding sudden shut off odd harmonic distortion of a transistor to offset an overly dark sounding even ordered tube circuit? Maybe, but I'm suspect of anything that remotely sounds like transistor voodoo.
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LeeMo
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Re: Small Recording Amp

Post by LeeMo »

The Trinity Tramp should prove to be a worthy candidate.
http://www.trinityamps.com/phpbb/viewto ... f=6&t=2047

LeeMo
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RJ Guitars
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Re: Small Recording Amp

Post by RJ Guitars »

Mr. Tommy,

Since you have posted this question in the Trainwreck Forum section, I'll suggest a few Trainwreck builds that fit the bill for small recording amps.

There have been some single ended Trainwreck builds and also some triode output Trainwrecks inspired builds. I don't have any links for you but if you use the search tool you'll score several good threads.

There are also a few ways to take the full sized Trainwreck and bring the volume down. The most popular of these are probably the attenuator and VVR. Some find these to work well and others don't - YMMV.

My personal favorites are the subminiature tube Trainwreck builds. My own version of the Rocket if you like that flavor and then the High Gain Express version brought to us by UR12 here on the AmpGarage forum.

https://tubeamparchive.com/viewtopic.php?t=9816

https://tubeamparchive.com/viewtopic.php?t=6159

These two score high on big sound and small packaging and also get top marks for coolness. There are a few clips within the threads and more than enough testimony to their studio worthiness. These both retain the Trainwreck circuits while using the small scale subminiature tubes.

These are pure tube amps and running full tilt put out a few watts of Trainwreck flavored sound.

Let us know what else you find.

rj
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