Beginners Guide???

[soloist4hire]

Hello everyone, this website was referred to me by groovetubin, so I know its got to be the best. By the way, if you havent heard any of his amps, then you really dont know what your missing. Anyways, I have had quite a bit of electronics experience in my life, different college courses, and hands on. My problem is that it has litterly been years since Ive even had to read a schematic. Is there anyone that knows of like a "Beginners Guide to Tube amps" available on the web to read? I wish i had the money to go out and buy a ton of books like "Inside Tube Amps" which offer step by step walkthrough of what is what, and how it affects the sound, but unfortunatly i dont have that kind of money. so can anyone direct me to a website or forum that might offer help at a true beginners level? Not a site that goes through 100 pages of math formulas? lol. thanks for taking to time to read this. Hope you all have a great night!

[Deric]

www.ax84.com

[soloist4hire]

Hey man, thanks for the quick reply. I checked out ax84, and although it does seem like a good source for info, it doesnt seem like a great place for beginners, unless your buying one of there kits. I can get my chassis built and punched for free, and my cab built for free. so im really not trying to drop a few hundred bucks on a kit, when i could buy a carvin legacy for 500...lol. na, i really want to order my parts, build my circuit, and use my own chassis. i didnt really see anything on ax84 as far as like beginners guides and whatnot, unless, i were to buy there kit. lol. any more websites you might know of?

[labb]

I don't think that you looked far enough over on the AX84 forum. Go back, under "projects overview" open "classic amp projects" then open AX84 P1, then under "primary documents" down load the "P1 Theory Document". you will not find much better than that for free. and it has nothing to do with the kits that he sells. There is also a builders guid. Don't remember just where it is. You will have to look for it.

[sliberty]

Welcome to the wonderful world of amp building. Since you are new to the craft, you probably need to build something simple as your first build. AX84 has some very appropriate projects, like the P1, for a first build. Other good choices would be a Fender Tweed like a Champ, Princeton, or Deluxe (5e3). An Express or Liverpool or Rocket is probably too much amp for a first build.

Once you get started, be sure to come here for guidance, as there are some very smart people here that can help a lot.

Good luck.

[Tubetwang]

Tino Zottola's book walked me through...

Torres would be my second recommendation.

[gearhead]

If you want a good understanding of how tubes work, and basic biasing principles, would highly recommend NEETS Module 6, chapter 1:

http://www.phy.davidson.edu/instrumentation/NEETS.htm

[fishy]

Another link you might find useful.

http://www.freewebs.com/valvewizard/index.html

[Firetone]

This one is somewhat helpful:
http://www.pentodepress.com/index.html

[Phil_S]

For more advanced stuff, Google for Randall Aiken and R. G. Keen. Both have posted on-line libraries chock full of great articles. If you find comprehension is difficult on some of it, don't be surprised, but with some experience you can get there more quickly than you imagine. I must have read Aiken's paper on star grounding 10 times before it just clicked. A lot had to do with where I was in the learning curve.

There is a selection of good books at www.guytronix.com and because he should have them in stock, you'll get them quickly. (Ask Rich, if in doubt.) If you order esoterica from the likes of Amazon or B&N, there is often a considerably delay due to "backorder", which is a simple excuse for not keeping slow moving merchandise in stock.

The other suggestions here are also worth checking in to. One thing about on-line materials is that they really aren't as free as they appear. For example, I was very happy to be able to download a full set of the NEETS manuals, but I found that reading on the computer isn't for me. The cost of printing (toner, paper, wear and tear) just the relevant sections would be about as much as buying printed copy that is already bound and lap-friendly. I mention this so you don't get too drawn in. Maybe it will be different for you.

[skipm45]

Here's a good beginners guide

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Gu ... 0879308636


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