Tweed deluxe-from a kit?

[Ben Jones]

Im gonna take the plunge and build my first amp from a kit. I am looking at mojo and mission kits for a tweed deluxe 5E3. I THINK thats the amp i want to build.

I wanted to ask if anyone here actually owned a real fender tweed deluxe? or had built one from a kit?
If so could you tell me a little about the amp? love it? wheres the breakup start/ how is it?
just to be clear, this amp would be inteded for guitar not steel guitar. I WANT the breakup.
If youve done a kit any tips would be much appreciated. I can solder reasonably well and have built many pedals, but nothing with more than 9 volts dc.

I also wanted to ask if there was a standard book or source on amp building? anythign good online? I am especially interested in learning how to do this safely.
thanks!
-Ben

edit: forgot to add...i cannot read a schematic. Is it necessary to be able to do so for kit built amps? Should i get "schematics for dummies" or semothing from library?

[Jon Light]

Also check out Weber kits. https://taweber.powweb.com/store/kits.htm
You can make your choice of source based on price, component quality, instructions and tech support (I think Weber does not provide instructions and only provides a kit-builder's forum for support). Personally, I have considered building an amp and decided that it is beyond my capabilities---IMO good schematic chops and some degree of trouble-shooting chops are essential......the ability, in the event of problems, to respond to questions on a builder's forum such as 'what kind of readings are you getting on the grids? what are you B+ readings at point A....etc.'
Read some of the caveats on that Weber cover page.

My deficiencies caused me to abort any plans to build an amp that I might never actually hear making any musical sound.
OTOH I might change my mind and build something really basic like a 5F1 to see if I can. The problem is, for the money and effort, it's not an amp that I particularly want or need, compared with some of the larger, more complex kits.

Sorry--can't answer your question re: books or online info.

[Marc Jenkins]

Ben, the Weber kit Forum is a pretty great resource, and almost fill the gaps between the schematic (layout too) and the non-existent instructions... A bit of reading is essential. There is a booklist thread there as well, pretty recently added.

I'm building a 5F2A right now, and got a 5E3 on deck, both from Weber. So far, so good!

[Brick Spieth]

The 5E3 is a classic tweed circuit, and there are many nice kits available. You do not need to read schematics, as there are many resources for layout diagrams. I believe Mission and perhaps Mojo have step by step directions, and any one with good soldering skills should be able to do this. I built a 5E1 champ from an STF electronics kit with no instructions, and converted a Hi Fi amp to a 5E3 with the help of a friend.

Weber kits are cheaper, but don't come with directions and many replace pots and switches with higher quality parts.

The 5E3 has very little headroom. The circuit is really nice for controlling breakup from your guitar volume knob.

You MUST learn about draining caps before you do anything. You won't believe the shock a cap can give you.

[Mike Schwartzman]

I have a 5E3 that I built from scratch, Ben. I didn't use a kit because I had some parts (Sprague caps, Switchcraft Jacks, and Carbon Comp. Resistors etc.) here already and I wanted to use some upgraded transformers that I had bought from Mike Clark (Clark Amplification). I used a Weber Blue Dog 12" and a Mojo tweed cab that I lacquered myself.

The circuit is great for early break up depending on which kind of guitar (humbuckers/ single coils) that you plug into it. Sounds much bigger than 12-14 watts. If I didn't have any parts here already, I think I would have gone with the Mission Kit since it seemed to have good quality components, good support and info.
I had lots of experience on working on Fender tube amp circuits prior to building the 5E3 a few years ago. I don't think it would be terribly difficult if you have good soldering skills and have the knowledge to work SAFELY.

My advice if you decide to build it...don't scimp on the trannies, or the speaker. Get good quality components and a finger jointed pine cabinet. Some good info here:

http://www.ampage.org/homebrew.cgi?cat= ... 358x6c9aml

[Steve Feldman]

I thought about building a 5E3 a while back and would have gone with the Mission amp. A bit more expensive, but the support is supposed to be unparalleled. Here are a couple of resources for you:

Jack Darr's book online:
http://www.pacificrecone.com/JackDarrBook.html

And Dave Hunter's book is very good, too (IMO...). Good luck and let us know how it turns out.
http://www.amazon.com/Guitar-Amplifier- ... 087930863X

[Jerry Erickson]

Ben, If you go to Ted Weber's website and look at the 5E3 info, you should be able to print out the schematic and layout for the 5E3. From that you'll be able to compare the schematic to the layout and see what goes where.

[Jim Sliff]

Ben - as far as the amp itself - I have a late 5D3 wide-panel that just kills. A wonderful amp. I like it better than the higher-gain 5E3 myself, but the 5E3 is no slouch!

As a kit it's a good starting point if you have basic electronics knowledge and good soldering skills. If not, I would not suggest ANY kit. I'd suggest a lot of education first, and then start by doing small modification/service on existing amps. Jumping into an amp kit with no experience is a bad idea from both a financial and safety standpoint.

If you go with a kit, I would suggest Weber. You can get plenty of support, they back up everything they sell and are very helpful. The idea that you need to buy a kit with instructions is to me really bad advice - because if you NEED instructions and not just the proper parts you shouldn't be building an amp. For example - without instructions and with no now-how, many will start with the preamp and work their way through....which is totally wrong. #1 is the power supply, and making sure it's working perfectly before anything else is done. You should not need instructions to tell you that.

email me if you want and we can talk about it.

[Bert ten Hove]

+1 for Weber.

Just finished a 6A20 (posted before)
http://www.xs4all.nl/~amphora/index12.htm

The Weber Forum is a great source for any question about building amps.
http://www.weberorders.com/forum/

[Lee Warren]

Hey Bert,
Fantastic job on the amp -- congratulations!
Also a great job documenting the build.
I'm a big fan of 2x10's for a combo amp -- my old BF Vibrolux is a favourite.
Lee

[Lee Warren]

Hi Ben,
Here are a couple of links with great information that you might want to read:

http://www.drifteramps.com/safety.html

http://www.paulrubyamps.com/info.html#FirstPowerUp

Great safety tips and lots of usable information there for beginners and old timers alike!

Good luck and work safely.

Lee

[John Groover McDuffie]

Allen amplification also looks like they have some nice kits. http://www.allenamps.com/index.php

[John Billings]

"You won't believe the shock a cap can give you."

This is VERY IMPORTANT! I once worked for a Disco Equipment company. Neon dance floors, strobe lights, etc.. I was building a run of 10 strobes, that used the landing strobes from 747s. They'd light up a few city blocks. I forgot the bleeder wire in one of them. I tested it, then grabbed the chassis by the can caps, as they were a handy handle. I discharged two 660 volt, oil-filled caps through my body! I threw the steel chassis into the wall when my muscles freaked out, so hard that it destroyed the chassis. Had a headache for two days! Learn how to discharge all the caps before you start building an amp! I'm not sure why I lived, other than, the discharge must not have crossed my heart. I'm pretty much immune to shocks, to some extant now. I can touch a wire and tell you if it's 120 volts. But I don't do dat no mo! It's kinda all about how the shock travels through your body. Don't take chances!

[Ben Jones]

Great info! Thanks everyone.
I am stoked. I have a friend who builds amps that is going to give me some guidance and will do some studying before I order the kit.

I hope i can stop at just one

[Lee Warren]

"... I hope i can stop at just one ..."

Hey Ben, good luck with that too.
It's quite addictive!
Lee

[Brad Sarno]

Here's one I built.


http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... 5e3+deluxe




Brad

[Jim Newberry]

Ben,
I built one by looking at the schematic and sourcing parts. It's a great guitar amp and/but very midrange-heavy. I've messed with mine to take a little of the low-end response out with a different selection of coupling capacitors.

The 5E3 has millions of fans and builders out there, so information is very available.

If you haven't built a Fender-style amp, I'd highly recommend a kit (I built a tweed Princeton from a kit) and I've only heard great things about the Mission kits and the documentation that goes with them. Bruce (the owner) has a pretty active web presence and seems to be a good guy. All top-shelf components for the best reliability.

I've built three Fender reproductions (5F2-A Princeton, 5E3 Deluxe and 5F4 Super) and I couldn't be happier. Learning about how these things work has been one of the most rewarding endeavors of my adult life.

http://www.nwlink.com/~jtn/Tweeds.html