Hi,
I have decent (maybe) theoretical understanding of electronics from high school etc. I have never put it to practical use other then building a couple of simple kits. I have reasonable wood working skills and access to most tools.
My 13 year old son has been playing guitar for over a year now and has demonstrated that he is keen to continue. I would like to upgrade his amp for him. He is currently using the Squire SP-10 that came with his guitar.
I have done a bit of reading (including the "Solid State Guitar amps worthwhile??" thread and a lot of stuff referenced from it) and it seems that amps are a very personal choice. He does not yet have enough experience to make a very informed choice
He will also almost certainly want to upgrade his guitar soon as well so I don't want to spend a lot on an amp.
Here is my plan...
- Build a head and 2x12 box. 2 pieces for easier carrying. 2x12 because I have some old 12" drivers that should be OK for starters.
- Build 2 x LM1875 power amps using the schematic from the data sheet.
- Build a TL082 based pre-amp using the schematic from the data sheet.
- Build 1 or 2 effects from runoffgroove.com to put in front of the pre-amp with appropriate switch capability - 1, both or neither in the path.
My rationale is that this is modular and can be incrementally improved as he "grows". It is also not a huge investment so I can abandon it if the whole thing is a flop. I'd love to build him something tube based but with his lack of experience (to know what he wants) and my lack of knowledge/experience it is just not an option. Maybe next time...
I'll need some help from "you" though...
1. Does this sound like a reasonable plan?
2. Is the the schematic on the TL082 data sheet even a pre-amp??
3. I know that most of the circuits on runoffgroove.com are intended for use in stomp boxes. Can you suggest some that might be good general "basic" effects that could be easily modified to wire into the cabinet? I am concerned about matching sensitivity between the various devices, but as they seem to be designed to chain together I'm not sure if I need to be - does it depend on the ones I choose? Should I just build a simple, "clean" amp and keep the stomp boxes external?? (I think he would want at least 1 distortion built-in...)
I've got a few more questions, but they are not worth asking yet...
Thanks,
Brian
I have decent (maybe) theoretical understanding of electronics from high school etc. I have never put it to practical use other then building a couple of simple kits. I have reasonable wood working skills and access to most tools.
My 13 year old son has been playing guitar for over a year now and has demonstrated that he is keen to continue. I would like to upgrade his amp for him. He is currently using the Squire SP-10 that came with his guitar.
I have done a bit of reading (including the "Solid State Guitar amps worthwhile??" thread and a lot of stuff referenced from it) and it seems that amps are a very personal choice. He does not yet have enough experience to make a very informed choice
Here is my plan...
- Build a head and 2x12 box. 2 pieces for easier carrying. 2x12 because I have some old 12" drivers that should be OK for starters.
- Build 2 x LM1875 power amps using the schematic from the data sheet.
- Build a TL082 based pre-amp using the schematic from the data sheet.
- Build 1 or 2 effects from runoffgroove.com to put in front of the pre-amp with appropriate switch capability - 1, both or neither in the path.
My rationale is that this is modular and can be incrementally improved as he "grows". It is also not a huge investment so I can abandon it if the whole thing is a flop. I'd love to build him something tube based but with his lack of experience (to know what he wants) and my lack of knowledge/experience it is just not an option. Maybe next time...
I'll need some help from "you" though...
1. Does this sound like a reasonable plan?
2. Is the the schematic on the TL082 data sheet even a pre-amp??
3. I know that most of the circuits on runoffgroove.com are intended for use in stomp boxes. Can you suggest some that might be good general "basic" effects that could be easily modified to wire into the cabinet? I am concerned about matching sensitivity between the various devices, but as they seem to be designed to chain together I'm not sure if I need to be - does it depend on the ones I choose? Should I just build a simple, "clean" amp and keep the stomp boxes external?? (I think he would want at least 1 distortion built-in...)
I've got a few more questions, but they are not worth asking yet...
Thanks,
Brian