What should I make from this?

[sonicmojo]

I was given a really old "Voice of Music" 8809 hifi mono amp. The enclosure had a bird nest in it but it actually still worked pretty well. I pulled the amp module out of it and I want to make into something different. I'm thinking of gutting it and making an amp or maybe tweaking the existing circuit a little bit just to see if I can get something interesting out of it. I'm thinking Champ 5F1, Supro 6606, or something from the AX84 site. Does anyone have any other suggestions? I'd like something with some hair on it. Also should I gut it for the transformers or mod? Maybe someone sees a simple tweak based on the schematic. I'd want at a minimum to move the volume control to post V1 and maybe tweak the tonestack values so it responds better to guitar.

[xtian]

Salvage the iron and build a Champ.

[lord preset]

You can play around with modding the front end but every time I have messed with stuff that old all of the crumbly crusty components make me nervous and I end up gutting it anyway.

[tubeswell]

what xtian said

[sonicmojo]

I spent some time playing guitar through a speaker cab today and I have to admit that it doesn't sound completely terrible, especially with a boost/overdrive pedal in front. Playing around with the volume control, which in this beast limits the input signal, I can find a sweet spot that doesn't sound half bad. It is LOUDER than you would think too.

[Structo]

That kind of amp can be a good test bed for tweaks.

Sure, the old components are probably fragile but on such a simple amp,
you can play with caps and resistors in the preamp to learn how such changes sound.

[Gibsonman63]

With the 8 Ohm output impedance, you have a lot of choices for speakers. This is a natural fit for a champ variant.

[Firestorm]

It's already a Champ (minus the tone shaping parts). 5F1 is the logical place to go. The schematics show V1 cathode unbypassed. Don't do that. Fender didn't (none I've ever seen).

[Phil_S]

What Firestorm says ^^

I find that reworking a rats nest like that is too much trouble. Something like a 5F1 or even a later Champ doesn't have many parts and it is much simpler to gut and rebuilt. You can probably figure out how to squeeze a board in there, which will make it seem better organized, and will allow you to tweak it more easily should you feel the urge.

I'd put the tubes and transformers on the outside.

[sonicmojo]

Thanks for the replies. It is on my bench as an iPhone amp at the moment. I'll gut it once I find a new chassis I like. I'll make it a small head, probably a 5F1, possibly with a tone control.