That makes sense. There is a 10 volt, 11 amp transformer on the "death board."
Can I just say I'd never really considered the origin of 'Breadboard' in electronics. But this has explained it was, once, literally, a board that someone had used to cut bread on...
In the era shortly after WWI, my grandfather made his old "crystal sets" (single galena crystal diode radio) on boards intended for cutting and serving freshly baked bread. Some were shaped like a large paddle with a handle, all cut from a single piece of Georgia Pine (he lived near Atlanta). His were meticulously crafted and looked as good as some of the commercial stuff of the day.
In the early 60's my DIY vacuum tube experiments used pine board scraps from the woodworker that lived next door to mount parts that had been removed from old radios and TV sets. They did look a bit like the mess discussed in this thread, but I could actually play my guitar through some of them.
Start with a working SSE amp, pull out the tubes and add a BIG handful of clip leads. Stir well, add a pair of 6LR8's on a turret board and feed it some electricity. Yes, this furball actually worked. Then simmer and distill down to the bare minimum, best served on a PC board. The SPUD is born. Also comes in a smaller package for speakers that are not so hungry.
