A World Made by Hand
May|19|2008
I have long been an admirer of James Howard Kunstler’s writing style. His dry wit and cultural literacy make for entertaining as well as informative reading. His most recent book is a work of fiction titled “A World Made by Hand.” It tells the story of an America that is broken. There is little electricity, no cars, no communication, and very little government. Religion has become an organizing force in society once again, and medicine has reverted to the 19th century. At times this book is very dark, showing how people have difficulty Read the rest of this entry »
DIY Leslie Combo Pedal part 1
Douglas as Guitars and Amps
May|19|2008
In my never-ending quest for new projects. I am building a pedal to run keyboards, guitars and what ever else I can think of into my Leslie speaker. This is a smaller project but involves some new techniques I will be using on my next amp. Above you can see the tube I’m building the preamp around. A 12AU7 that I mounted on a piece of my old Xbox CD reader. Read the rest of this entry »
Two more from Voxy
Douglas as Guitars and Amps
May|7|2008
A couple of thoughts about the new amp.
There is a rattle in the EL84 tubes. You can hear it on these new example which were louder than the previous ones. Correction – you should always look behind your guitar cab to check if any mbiras are back there.- The first example, which were done very quickly, didn’t really capture the overdrive properly. So, here are a two more.
Both these use the same chain but with a Reverend Roundhouse. (single cutaway HB)
EF86 channel at 12 o’clock, tone on one.
Top Boost channel at 12 o’clock, tone flat.
Example 7
The Top Boost has more gain than the EF86? I guess that extra gain stage really put it over the top.
Meet Voxy Lady
Douglas as Guitars and Amps
May|6|2008
At last, over a year in the planning, my Vox clone is finished. The cosmetic details turned out better than I hoped and I recorded some quick samples to hear the amp. Read the rest of this entry »
A Cab a Day
Douglas as Guitars and Amps
May|5|2008
I worked a long day yesterday on the head cabinet for the AC15. Here are some of the results:
Up and running
Douglas as Guitars and Amps
May|2|2008
Last weekend I got the AC15 to work. I’ve been making some tweaks before I starting in on the cabinet for it. Read the rest of this entry »
Rush in Concert
Douglas as Guitars and Amps, Music
May|1|2008
I went and saw my first Rush show the other night. I admit I’ve always enjoyed songs like the Spirit of Radio, and Tom Sawyer but have never listened to a Rush album all the way through. To me there is an image of Rush fans being ADD drummers in marching bands bowing down to the font of Neil Peart. While most Rush fans now are boys who grew up in the 80’s, I was surprised to see as many women as I did.
As I expected, they were prompt, professional and unpresuming. The lights and pyrotechnics were cool, and the set list was pretty good. It did not blow my mind, but then again I didn’t expect it to. I was entertained, and for what I payed for the ticket, it was worth it.
Last night however, I finally got to test the bass amp out with a pounding drummer. This was with the 6SN7 tube in V1. It held up admirably. I actually turned down the bass on the amp because it was in a corner and was sounding muddy with the precision. It felt like culmination of why I spend so much time and energy building tube amps when I can let that thick tone drive a rhythm section.