His voice is so freaking soothing. And the close up video shots are like amp building porn. Some of the cleanest and most “Zen” amp work I’ve seen. Love these videos.
When I saw the back wrench while twisting the wires, I said to myself; Another example of Man's need for not just three hands, But three arms as well ! Sir, Your content and wisdom is profoundly important! Well done and much appreciated, So I (we, I'm sure) Thank you for the numerous elements you employed in-too producing this extraordinarily well written and understandable definition of your own concept of the learning and teaching arena! Godspeed!
The final product of your filament windings was immaculate. Well done. Some builders do the filament windings up high out of the plain of the sockets and drop them down on the socket to prevent field issues.
This video was SO well done. I love your close up camera work and the attention to detail in your work. This was a masterful display of invaluable content, recording and editing. Who would have thought Kiwi's could be so talented? (LOL! Yes, I'm from across the ditch).
Thanks TGAT! Really appreciate it. Every now and then kiwis can come up with a few things ha ha. I lived in Melbourne for a good year, fantastic city. In good ol ANZAC tradition, I think aussies and kiwis get along pretty well, just as long as we are not watching the cricket..
Looks really nice. Just to share a bit, there are other ways that work very well also. For anyone who insists that the AC heater wires must be twisted, take a look inside a Soldano SLO100. Everything is run dead-straight from one tube socket to the next, perfectly parallel and I can't think of a better test for inherent induction noise than a super high-gain amp. Another twist option (the one I use when doing AC heaters) is to run the twisted pair UP high, ABOVE the sockets. This keeps the run away from the audio portions of the sockets and the floor of the chassis clear to run everything else with no chance of interaction between the heater run. Lastly, simply convert to rectified DC voltage and the whole problem is solved. Now, some say that this incites damage to the cathode. I can, if the voltages are WAY higher than ever gets used anywhere near an audio amplifier. 🙂 The only other downside is that if the rectifier fails, it could be a really bad day. But there are ways to back-stop the system to prevent damage inside the amp. So this is a nice demonstration of one good way. Just sharing other methods that also get the job done.
Jesus Christ. An amp-building buddy of mine sent me here "just to see how he twists his wires"-I'm a musician but I have no interest in amp-building . . . but I know a well-produced video when I see one. The extreme closeups here, the tight editing plus the subject matter all make a killer combination. Then you get the voice, which tops it all off. I get the feeling that this man is building the next FluxTube bomb, that will be able to play the sound of a hundred 1962 Sunburst Les Pauls with the flick of a switch.Then, with another switch, the sound of one hundred 707s just as they leave the ground at max power (the 1960s version, who made the best noise and that you could clearly hear from Dum Dum airport to downtown Calcutta). Then, on the Eleven Switch . . . no, best I don't tell you what the Eleven Switch does . . .
Amazing video's!!!! Ive watched the whole series....i can see your passion in building these amps. Thanks to your video's i want to pick up and finally start building my own tube amps. Keep up the good work! Your builds look like a work of art, absolutely beautifull.
This man has the power to keep you attached to the video from start to finish even if you don't care about what he's doing. And believe me I really couldn't care less about amp building 😂 Jokes apart: super informative and top filming quality as usual. Always a pleausure. Very inspiring
Great video! I've shied away from using solid core cable out of concern from breakage. I've been using pre-tinned stranded core. It gives you the ability to bend your wire shapes without the concerns of solid core (plus it's pre-tinned!) :-D
I've had a few cables snap on me if I've bent them a bit much, indeed stranded can be good if you get desired results. Bit less heat too I would imagine. Good stuff, cheers!
Thank you for posting this! I have a friend who was designing and building tube circuits back when they current! He did his filaments the same way you do and he taught me how. This may not be popular wisdom but the way Fender wired filaments up in the air may get the AC field away from the two sides of a preamp tube but put the wires directly in the way of all of the other connections. To repair those amps I have to remove some of the existing filament wires to avoid burning things up! Great work!
Thanks Ken! Indeed, my old man used to wire his filaments from the top, sort of floating a bit, and that worked to some extent. Love those school techniques and tricks as much to learn from the old school pros. I prefer to keep the filaments at chassis level as it serves my OCD neatness as well ha ha. All the best with your repairs, many thanks!
love building valve amps heaters circuit so much fun i use fender topology wire the above up in the air dive straight down to the pins never has any hum buzz
My old man was a fan of that top down wiring also. It too is a good choice. He also always insisted on output tubes with the plate at the top of the glass tube. Some great old school techniques still are worth while indeed, cheers!
Maybe not for the traditionalists, but filaments hum is sometimes the reason why I prefer to use 12Vac filaments/heaters. (less current means lowering the magnetic field), or even rebuild it to a DC filaments/heater. Great video btw!! :)
Great points! Some old school transformers here in NZ were made with 12v heaters and also they had an extra secondary winding for the output tubes screens. Fantastic transformers which I am in the process of recreating. Thanks for your input, cheers
@@elams1894 Thanks. Extra bonus is that many 12V tubes (like the 12V6) are much cheaper than the normal 6V version. Although hum is mostly an issue with the first couple of preamp stages. Building a 12V voltage multiplier is quite easy from the 6v3 winding.
Высшая математика! Поэтому и коментариев на русском языке не вижу. Такие методики и подход очень нравятся рыбакам из за бугра. А если бы поймали две рыбки и устроили кулинарное шоу, был бы вообще класс!
Great job. Looks cool. I always ran wires next to the chassis and then bent up and over and straight down but you gave a great new idea. I like the method of showing the magnetic field.
There are excellent thoughts and methods in this video. That said. Why not build a regulated DC filament supply. As long as all the tubes are indirectly heated, a single sided above ground or below ground supply would work very well.
Thank you for this video. Although I have has good luck with hum on my first two builds, (40W Fender, 20W Plexi) It was very revealing to see how the magnetic profile propegated and taught me better approaches for the next built, which is a stereo tube amp (Eico HF60 sorta). I also find your grounding techniques worth the watch in itself. Very nice, thanks again.
Thanks Philip! Glad the vids were of help. My father, an oldschool analogue guru, drilled neatness into me from a early age. He is still going strong and still gets sick and tired of me asking him endless questions ha ha, cheers!
Thats great to hear Dave. I played my first WISC the other day and I still love its tone and grunt. I've designed the S5 MarkII with an both footswitchable FX loop and channel toggle (complete bypass too). Just need to draw the layout. Should be quite versatile. Have agreat day and thanks for stopping by again, really appreciate it!
Another great video. In your examples of different ways to run the heater wires you didn't mention the Fender overhead method which seems to have worked well for many years.
It's largely unnecessary when twisting them like this. I've also always wired my filaments using what he shows as the "incorect" methods, and never had a hum issue... even in hi-fi amps. So YMMV.
Howdy. A piece of artwork. I have built some tube PA:s not twisting the filament wiring. And no virtual centre resistors. No hum or buzzing. Tube preamp.s would be another matter. There twisting and running the pair correctly most likely is mandatory. Hum and buzzing, I have found, likely stem from Eddy currents in the chassis. I never use the chassis as a return current conductor. I use a separate minus bus wire. The bus begins at the filter capacitors, runs from stage to stage in the order of the scematic backwards and connects to the cassis only at the input jack. I use wire gauge of 1,5 mm2 for the bus and avoid bends. Bends introduce inductance in the bus and may cause instability problems in high impedance circuits. Regards.
Thanks for input. We have to acknowledge that everything concerning electricity is speculative. For instance, current. Current does not exist as an entity. It is a relationship between voltage (magnetic field) and resistance, nothing more. There is zero flowing through a circuit. There is only the manifestation of a magnetic field, the manipulation of the magnetic field, and the elimination of the magnetic field. A return circuit for 'current' is purely speculative. Earthing (the coupling of unnecessary magnetic field with the Earth's magnetic field) likely occurs at the component rather than the chassis. However as I said, everything to do with magnetism (electricity) is speculative and nothing is set in stone. Electricity is given little critical thought. To conceive of electricity as an interaction between particles is lunacy in the extreme, yet here we are.
Great videos and I just subscribed. Where can I buy a pair of those wire nipper/stripper tools? They are perfect for amp and antique radio repair. Thanks JH
Nice but for a low watt amp this small I simply eliminate the power transformer with a DC power supply from a laptop and use cheap ($0.50) voltage dropping boards for 6.3V filaments and an SNMP Boost Board (around $6) for an easily adjustable HV source. No way to induce AC hum and the switching noise for the PS board is way above hearing levels. Simple, light, cheap and effective. ;^)
Good work around there, all great points. I do similar stuff for pedals however good info there on the HV, that's something I hadn't considered Thanks for the input, cheers
Beautiful wiring work! But i am really not following the choice of pin connections, the first tube shown seems to have black/red conected to pins 4 and 5, with 5 then going tstraight axross 9 but not connecting so this is as oer 12.6vac wiring, but the next tubes seems to have black going to 9 and red going to 4, with 5 not connected to any wire so sort of 6.3vac wiring but no pin 5 - that is something i haven't come across - Have I missed seeing something? 10:21
The first tube socket is for the EL84 power tube which has different filament pins to the 12AX7. Pins 4 and 5 of the 12AX7 are common, and require a small connector cable to join them together. I believe that might be shown in the next vid? Good question though, I see how that could be confusing, cheers.
Very nice work! I've got a question about running filament wire and connections on the 12ax7 tube. I've seen where one wire will go through pins 4 and 5 and the other wire through pin 9. Another wiring is using just pins 4 and 5. I'm confused of which is right or wrong.....
Beautiful workmanship! Makes me want to build and amp as well! Some say it's best to keep the AC lines high off the chassis and drop down at each socket. I that method ok, or are they wrong?
That method is also good. Bringing the magnetic field down in a different orientation means that magnetic coupling is more difficult so noise is also reduced using that method. Thanks for kind words!
Surely the whole point of a twisted pair is to minimise external coupling, so the routing of a twisted pair is of relatively low importance compared to routing of non-TP wiring?
The twisted pair still holds a significant magnetic field. Although reduced through twisting, the filament cables, where possible, should be kept away from both grid and plate nodes.
Twisted pair reduces interference pick-up in e.g. ethernet cables; but also reduces electromagnetic interference emission I think, which is what matters in this application since the wires are carrying 50Hz power. You don’t want to inadvertently coil a source of noise around your sensitive signal conductors.
Proximity, shielding, looping/coiling wires (like a transformer coupling one signal to another), and using twisted pairs all affect the amount of noise pick up & the strength of noise emissions AFAIK.
Hi Ron, they are little nipped type strippers, the ones with the diamond shaped cutting heads. I'm not sure where you would find them as I got mine in a second hand purchase of a bag of old tools. They are great for when you have no room, and need to get close to a component. cheers!
Superb job Mate. I was sweating, stressing just watching and I’m not the one wiring the heaters. I have a 6V6G Bottle SE stereo amp in the cradle and now I want to rewrire the heaters. You know the model on those pliers? I wore the ones I use and they are a tad to thick. Good to see you back
Thanks mate! Glad the vid was helpful. The pliers are Facom to brand, model 403. They are without doubt the best pliers I've used, and they are super strong too. Cheers and all the best with the rewire.
You certainly can. You just need need an effective rectifying circuit. Sometimes the extra components and circuitry warrant them to be out of the question. However, if you need to rectify other windings, say a 5v winding for switching, then designing a convenient rectifying circuit that also services the filaments is a great choice. I'm doing just that in a FX loop circuit at the mo. Great question, thanks for that.
I always hear that at least in tube preamp phone stages, passive tone networks are preferable. Do you know when a baxandall tone stack is just the right one. I have a Valco pushpull 6873 with 2 12AX7 gain stages with a long tail paraphrase 12AX7 and I believe the baxendall tone stack comes right before. Great subject and cheers for a great video..
Bax tone stacks are fantastic, however almost all Bax tone circuits were made for HiFi amps, and you can't just take a HiFi Bax circuit and drop it into a guitar amp as the bass will blow everything to bits and the mids will be nonexistent. I modelled my own Bax TMB circuit using LTSpice and then trial and error from there. Took months, but I think my one is just about bang on for a guitar amp and it works excellent, with heaps of cut and boost over entire frequency curve. Email me at elams1894 at gmail dot com and I'll send you one of my push pull schematics with the Bax TMB tone stack if you are interested. It requires an additional 12ax7 to run. Cheers
@@elams1894 as my would say once upon a time “sweet as”….I would love it. I have been at this a while now on my own for the most part trying to understand. A few books , and Skip Simmons ‘The Truth About Vintage Amps’ along with Uncle Doug. I haven’t encountered the Bax T much except with my own Valco…I believe my 65’ GS12R Reverberocket but it has a huge affect on the tone. The Valco’s tone knob pretty much stays dimed along with volume-better off controlling through the guitar.I thought your tube amp filaments windings vid was brilliant. I will reach out soon. Cheers-
The filaments can certainly be rectified to DC, however it requires additional circuitry and components, and although it can be advantageous in a big amp, it's probably easier to twist the filaments in a small to mid amp. Cheers
It’s low voltage, right? So it will take very little to make DC. Only a bridge rectifier or diode and a modern electrolytic capacitor (or two or three, etc. in parallel).
You can get them (PRP resistors and Kawami resistors)) online from Partsconnexion which is a Canadian company. I know of no other retail outlet that supplies them unfortunately, cheers!
Great video. One question please? With my dmm i checked for voltage. Why would i be getting 48 volts off the heater lugs? Is it because I'm using the amp chassis to ground my negative probe? So lost and unfortunately the 3 tubes don't light up. The big tube lights up but very very so gently, as if wired improperly maybe... any advice greatly appreciated! Great video again, i am not subscribed, thanks!
Dumb questions here - 1) Why are the sockets in alternating order of placement for which side faces 'up' (1 socket pin 9 is at bottom, next one pin 9 is at top)? 2) Why is it that with your first 'preferred method' pins 4&5 (jumper'd) received 1 wire, pin 9 the other, and then connected same to the next socket....BUT with the other 'preferred method' sometimes only pin 4 gets a wire (not 4&5) on one socket, then the next doesn't get one on pin 9?? Am I just seeing things incorrectly?? I really admire the symmetry, consistency and attention to detail on these builds. When an amp is as beautiful inside as out - that'd be a nice ass amp!
Yes, a DC supply would be best, however one would need to build a dedicated 6V3 rectified power supply with diodes and electrolytic caps etc. One could do this no problem, to whatever standard, however often the results are just the as correctly twisted cables. Therefore, the extra cost and turret board realestate need to be considered carefully in comparison. Cheers
Shielded cable does not work for AC filaments. Shielding provides protection from external magnetic fields only. In other words, it does not reduce the magnitude of a large AC filament magnetic field. You could indeed rectify the AC to DC, that would work indeed, cheers.
@@elams1894 interesting point. Does that mean that, in amps with a recrifier tube (eg 5e3), we neednt worry too much about hum? Tks for the fantastic vid btw!
@@paests A 5e3 rectifier tube, in contrast to diodes, is used to rectify the high voltage (say 400v AC) secondary winding. However the low voltage filament winding (6.3vAC) remains in an AC state, unrectified. So if you wanted to rectify the 6.3v winding, you would need an additional circuit, utilising either another special rectifying tube, or alternatively, rectifying diodes. This would mean additional filter capacitors and maybe a resistor or two, so would really add to both amp realestate and cost. The far easier option is simply twisting the 6.3v filament pair. If done correctly, it is effective. Thanks again.
sorry, another question - what wire do you use and where do you get it from? I'm in Singapore and struggle to find a nearby source of single-core 600V. Reluctant to pay for USA shipping :(
No worries CT. You can use any wire you like, they are all pretty similar. I prefer to use solid core, 20awg for most stuff, 22awg for earth hookup wire, however any stranded wire of the same diameter will do. I would advise though, try and get high temp stuff, and avoid Teflon insulated at all cost as it will drive you insane. No probs with the questions, ask whatever you like, cheers.
Wire them in the same fashion as that in the video, however you would have to have a larger transformer to handle the extra voltage needed. Check schematics for the same tubes, cheers
@@elams1894 I have lost the link to that video can you resend me that link so I can review it for details..,Thanks..,what transformer would I need and where would it go?
You certainly can. However the circuitry and components involved is far more complicated than twisting. Twisting is relatively simple, and when done correctly, offers comparable hum cancellation. Rectifying the filaments to DC on a large amp may certainly be the better option however. Cheers
i have problem caused by supply transformer hum which is coupling with output speaker transformer(s) . I did not decide if I like deminish more that hum by reconstructing layout. Because it is overlayed by my R2R mechanic noise and disappeares in compare to listning level (except extremly silent listening) . Filament hum is last on my list. To asses 50 Hz hum I would advice anybody first to turn amplifier on and listen to speakers If any hum is heard before amplifier is ready working or stops imidiately with switching supply off then it is not the filament originated hum but transformer fields . I think filament hum usualy is at very low level and never visible in blue, comparing to say poor screaning of sound carrying wires . But how to screen traces on printed boards? Only one way is whole metal casing. To to achieve more compact look I thrown away ready printed board. . Next, when we choose wired technology as shown, then the better screening applied the worse is performance with growing frequency. I accept compromises - accept some little yet not annoying hum in favour of nice wood casing , in important places with attached screaning and point to point (NO SCREENING) to save best hi frequencies. This way elaborated by me and constructed amplifier produces only 3 dB slop at 24 kHz, Filament hum is somwhere below others which I consider enough low. . And be aware - the filament hum is heard in very sensitive stages - like mic, preramp for turntable where it is 1 importance. For that rason in my brand made vintage Bell amplifier I have DC supplied filament in 4 tubes and no trace of 50Hz .
This is a good point. My father used to build in that way. He would elevate the filament windings and have them hang down vertically to the socket at right angles which worked well. It is also an effective method. Thanks for input.
Sehr gut,aber mach es bitte nicht päpstlicher als der Papst,sonst passt am Ende kein Haar mehr dazwischen!😂😂😂 ich habe auch schon 6L6 in die Mülltonne geklopft,bei denen die Kathodenbleche gefunkt haben...🙌🙀😎😯😂😂😂💖🐒💨👻👻👻😵
i just want to say. really impressed with your visualization of the wrong way to implement the filament connections. really well done IMO. thank you.
Thank you! Much appreciated!
@@elams1894 Lol!
His voice is so freaking soothing. And the close up video shots are like amp building porn. Some of the cleanest and most “Zen” amp work I’ve seen. Love these videos.
Thanks heaps for the kind words Mike, glad the vid was helpful. Have a great day!
When I saw the back wrench while twisting the wires, I said to myself; Another example of Man's need for not just three hands, But three arms as well ! Sir, Your content and wisdom is profoundly important! Well done and much appreciated, So I (we, I'm sure) Thank you for the numerous elements you employed in-too producing this extraordinarily well written and understandable definition of your own concept of the learning and teaching arena! Godspeed!
The final product of your filament windings was immaculate. Well done. Some builders do the filament windings up high out of the plain of the sockets and drop them down on the socket to prevent field issues.
Thanks Bill! My father also wired filaments like that, top down style. A great method indeed, thanks for kind words, cheers
Happy to see you again my friend. Hello from Charleston SC!!
Hi Chris!! Hope you are doing good over there, crazy times it seems. Cheers and all the best!
This video was SO well done. I love your close up camera work and the attention to detail in your work. This was a masterful display of invaluable content, recording and editing. Who would have thought Kiwi's could be so talented? (LOL! Yes, I'm from across the ditch).
Thanks TGAT! Really appreciate it. Every now and then kiwis can come up with a few things ha ha. I lived in Melbourne for a good year, fantastic city. In good ol ANZAC tradition, I think aussies and kiwis get along pretty well, just as long as we are not watching the cricket..
@@elams1894 We are brothers. I love the banter, but we always stand side-by-side.
@@theguitaramptech That is true indeed!
Looks really nice.
Just to share a bit, there are other ways that work very well also.
For anyone who insists that the AC heater wires must be twisted, take a look inside a Soldano SLO100. Everything is run dead-straight from one tube socket to the next, perfectly parallel and I can't think of a better test for inherent induction noise than a super high-gain amp.
Another twist option (the one I use when doing AC heaters) is to run the twisted pair UP high, ABOVE the sockets. This keeps the run away from the audio portions of the sockets and the floor of the chassis clear to run everything else with no chance of interaction between the heater run.
Lastly, simply convert to rectified DC voltage and the whole problem is solved. Now, some say that this incites damage to the cathode. I can, if the voltages are WAY higher than ever gets used anywhere near an audio amplifier. 🙂 The only other downside is that if the rectifier fails, it could be a really bad day. But there are ways to back-stop the system to prevent damage inside the amp.
So this is a nice demonstration of one good way. Just sharing other methods that also get the job done.
Jesus Christ. An amp-building buddy of mine sent me here "just to see how he twists his wires"-I'm a musician but I have no interest in amp-building . . . but I know a well-produced video when I see one. The extreme closeups here, the tight editing plus the subject matter all make a killer combination. Then you get the voice, which tops it all off. I get the feeling that this man is building the next FluxTube bomb, that will be able to play the sound of a hundred 1962 Sunburst Les Pauls with the flick of a switch.Then, with another switch, the sound of one hundred 707s just as they leave the ground at max power (the 1960s version, who made the best noise and that you could clearly hear from Dum Dum airport to downtown Calcutta). Then, on the Eleven Switch . . . no, best I don't tell you what the Eleven Switch does . . .
Ha ha thanks KS really appreciate the kind words and taking the time to comment, made me laugh!!, Have a great day!
Amazing video's!!!! Ive watched the whole series....i can see your passion in building these amps. Thanks to your video's i want to pick up and finally start building my own tube amps. Keep up the good work!
Your builds look like a work of art, absolutely beautifull.
This man has the power to keep you attached to the video from start to finish even if you don't care about what he's doing. And believe me I really couldn't care less about amp building 😂
Jokes apart: super informative and top filming quality as usual. Always a pleausure. Very inspiring
Cheers G, appreciated!!
Great video! I've shied away from using solid core cable out of concern from breakage. I've been using pre-tinned stranded core. It gives you the ability to bend your wire shapes without the concerns of solid core (plus it's pre-tinned!) :-D
I've had a few cables snap on me if I've bent them a bit much, indeed stranded can be good if you get desired results. Bit less heat too I would imagine. Good stuff, cheers!
Thank you for posting this! I have a friend who was designing and building tube circuits back when they current! He did his filaments the same way you do and he taught me how. This may not be popular wisdom but the way Fender wired filaments up in the air may get the AC field away from the two sides of a preamp tube but put the wires directly in the way of all of the other connections. To repair those amps I have to remove some of the existing filament wires to avoid burning things up! Great work!
Thanks Ken! Indeed, my old man used to wire his filaments from the top, sort of floating a bit, and that worked to some extent. Love those school techniques and tricks as much to learn from the old school pros. I prefer to keep the filaments at chassis level as it serves my OCD neatness as well ha ha. All the best with your repairs, many thanks!
love building valve amps heaters circuit so much fun i use fender topology wire the above up in the air dive straight down to the pins never has any hum buzz
My old man was a fan of that top down wiring also. It too is a good choice. He also always insisted on output tubes with the plate at the top of the glass tube. Some great old school techniques still are worth while indeed, cheers!
I just finished an 807 stereo class A amp ef37a input driver sound good
Maybe not for the traditionalists, but filaments hum is sometimes the reason why I prefer to use 12Vac filaments/heaters.
(less current means lowering the magnetic field), or even rebuild it to a DC filaments/heater.
Great video btw!! :)
Great points! Some old school transformers here in NZ were made with 12v heaters and also they had an extra secondary winding for the output tubes screens. Fantastic transformers which I am in the process of recreating. Thanks for your input, cheers
@@elams1894 Thanks.
Extra bonus is that many 12V tubes (like the 12V6) are much cheaper than the normal 6V version. Although hum is mostly an issue with the first couple of preamp stages.
Building a 12V voltage multiplier is quite easy from the 6v3 winding.
Glad to see you are making videos again! Thanks.
Thanks Shaun!
This is pure professionalism at work! And it shows in the fact that this is the first video I've seen with more than 10 views that has 0 thumbs down!
Thanks heaps RD! Really appreciate it!
i'm happy that youtube suggested me this channel. All the best to author!
Thanks Alex! Really appreciate the kind words, have a great day!
Beautiful, meditative approach. Reminds me of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Bless you sir!
your timing couldn't be better. Doing this tomorrow!
Awesome, all the best with that! Cheers
Высшая математика! Поэтому и коментариев на русском языке не вижу. Такие методики и подход очень нравятся рыбакам из за бугра. А если бы поймали две рыбки и устроили кулинарное шоу, был бы вообще класс!
hey ! you're back !
Funny thing, i was just watching some This Old Tony, and this video kinda has the same enegry ^^
Cool, thanks for that. Spare time for me unfortunately is very scarce but endeavoring to get some good vids out there. Cheers.
@@elams1894 hey take your time buddy you don't owe us shit ^^
I'm just glad you're here 😌
@@Zantrop64 thanks Z, appreciated it!
You destroy man, thank you so much for your efforts. You’ve wrote the book on how tight n’ tidy is done…
Thanks heaps matt, sorry for late reply, have a great day!!
Great job. Looks cool. I always ran wires next to the chassis and then bent up and over and straight down but you gave a great new idea. I like the method of showing the magnetic field.
Thanks DC, much appreciated, have a good oe!
There are excellent thoughts and methods in this video. That said. Why not build a regulated DC filament supply. As long as all the tubes are indirectly heated, a single sided above ground or below ground supply would work very well.
Thanks Robin. Yes a DC filament supply would be ultimate. If room permits then absolutely.
Thank you for this video. Although I have has good luck with hum on my first two builds, (40W Fender, 20W Plexi) It was very revealing to see how the magnetic profile propegated and taught me better approaches for the next built, which is a stereo tube amp (Eico HF60 sorta). I also find your grounding techniques worth the watch in itself. Very nice, thanks again.
Thanks Philip! Glad the vids were of help. My father, an oldschool analogue guru, drilled neatness into me from a early age. He is still going strong and still gets sick and tired of me asking him endless questions ha ha, cheers!
Each ones of Your work is truly a genuine piece of art!
Your videos are like little Christmas to me!
Thanks Vampira, glad you enjoy the vids, very encouraging!
Love the level of detail in your visuals and closeups. Well done!
That was the labor of love!
Your work is world class quality. Im a perfectionist aswell and you make me look like a hack
great you are back!
Thanks Norman, yeah still getting some stuff out there though I have almost zero spare time ha ha. Hope you are doing good, take care!
I built a pair of the first WISC and love them, guess I've got something new to make now. W00t!
Thats great to hear Dave. I played my first WISC the other day and I still love its tone and grunt. I've designed the S5 MarkII with an both footswitchable FX loop and channel toggle (complete bypass too). Just need to draw the layout. Should be quite versatile. Have agreat day and thanks for stopping by again, really appreciate it!
Another great video. In your examples of different ways to run the heater wires you didn't mention the Fender overhead method which seems to have worked well for many years.
Yes true, that's a good method too. My father uses that method with excellent results. Thanks David, good point.
If you're worried about noise from the AC filament wires, why would you not shield them?
It's largely unnecessary when twisting them like this. I've also always wired my filaments using what he shows as the "incorect" methods, and never had a hum issue... even in hi-fi amps. So YMMV.
Howdy. A piece of artwork.
I have built some tube PA:s not twisting the filament wiring. And no virtual centre resistors. No hum or buzzing. Tube preamp.s would be another matter. There twisting and running the pair correctly most likely is mandatory.
Hum and buzzing, I have found, likely stem from Eddy currents in the chassis. I never use the chassis as a return current conductor. I use a separate minus bus wire. The bus begins at the filter capacitors, runs from stage to stage in the order of the scematic backwards and connects to the cassis only at the input jack. I use wire gauge of 1,5 mm2 for the bus and avoid bends. Bends introduce inductance in the bus and may cause instability problems in high impedance circuits.
Regards.
Thanks for input. We have to acknowledge that everything concerning electricity is speculative. For instance, current.
Current does not exist as an entity. It is a relationship between voltage (magnetic field) and resistance, nothing more. There is zero flowing through a circuit. There is only the manifestation of a magnetic field, the manipulation of the magnetic field, and the elimination of the magnetic field.
A return circuit for 'current' is purely speculative. Earthing (the coupling of unnecessary magnetic field with the Earth's magnetic field) likely occurs at the component rather than the chassis. However as I said, everything to do with magnetism (electricity) is speculative and nothing is set in stone.
Electricity is given little critical thought. To conceive of electricity as an interaction between particles is lunacy in the extreme, yet here we are.
Цікаво дивитися, естетика на вищому рівні. Дякую.
Nice to watch you vids again!!!
Thanks OJ! Glad you like the vids, cheers!
Great videos and I just subscribed. Where can I buy a pair of those wire nipper/stripper tools? They are perfect for amp and antique radio repair. Thanks JH
Great tutuorial, thank You !
Absolutely fantastic job!
Thanks heaps for your kind words, cheers
Very meticulous. Impressive. I put DC on the filaments myself, a lot easier.
Cheers FM. Indeed, rectifying the filaments will do the trick!
12:57 Here is a trick worths more than all the video before 😊
After watching about two minutes of this video😅😅😅, my diy fever are all gone😂😂😂 none left😂😂😂😂😂😂
Glad I could help 😂
Beautiful and inspiring work!
Thanks again Kley! Not sure how I missed your comment from this vid, have a great day!
You are a true artist,great inspiration!
Thank you Peder! have a great day!
Great attention to detail. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Thanks SP!
Nice but for a low watt amp this small I simply eliminate the power transformer with a DC power supply from a laptop and use cheap ($0.50) voltage dropping boards for 6.3V filaments and an SNMP Boost Board (around $6) for an easily adjustable HV source. No way to induce AC hum and the switching noise for the PS board is way above hearing levels. Simple, light, cheap and effective. ;^)
Good work around there, all great points. I do similar stuff for pedals however good info there on the HV, that's something I hadn't considered Thanks for the input, cheers
@@elams1894 You do outstanding workmanship on your builds! Just thought you might be able to use this in the future. Keep up the good work!
Beautiful wiring work! But i am really not following the choice of pin connections, the first tube shown seems to have black/red conected to pins 4 and 5, with 5 then going tstraight axross 9 but not connecting so this is as oer 12.6vac wiring, but the next tubes seems to have black going to 9 and red going to 4, with 5 not connected to any wire so sort of 6.3vac wiring but no pin 5 - that is something i haven't come across - Have I missed seeing something? 10:21
The first tube socket is for the EL84 power tube which has different filament pins to the 12AX7. Pins 4 and 5 of the 12AX7 are common, and require a small connector cable to join them together. I believe that might be shown in the next vid? Good question though, I see how that could be confusing, cheers.
Interesting video Long time no see :) 👍👍
Thanks Jess, thanks for dropping by again and all the best, appreciate it!
You're alive!
Ha ha, yes I'm still kicking, all be it slowly, cheers
Really enjoyed😊 my thought l would not cut the wire 🙏
Very nice work! I've got a question about running filament wire and connections on the 12ax7 tube. I've seen where one wire will go through pins 4 and 5 and the other wire through pin 9. Another wiring is using just pins 4 and 5. I'm confused of which is right or wrong.....
How about connecting both 100 ohm resistors to cathode of output tube (cathode biased) instead of ground to raise heaters above ground to reduce hum?
Beautiful workmanship! Makes me want to build and amp as well! Some say it's best to keep the AC lines high off the chassis and drop down at each socket. I that method ok, or are they wrong?
That method is also good. Bringing the magnetic field down in a different orientation means that magnetic coupling is more difficult so noise is also reduced using that method. Thanks for kind words!
love the red resistors what are they
PRP
Perfect!!!!!
Thank you!
“Crash Test Dummies “ song 😂😂😂
What about flying heaters like fenders and train wreaks!???
Super video, lots of great tips!
Thanks Jeffrey for your nice comments, sorry for lateness in reply!
Awesome as always man!
Thank you Harry!! All the best..
Congratulations!
Surely the whole point of a twisted pair is to minimise external coupling, so the routing of a twisted pair is of relatively low importance compared to routing of non-TP wiring?
The twisted pair still holds a significant magnetic field. Although reduced through twisting, the filament cables, where possible, should be kept away from both grid and plate nodes.
Twisted pair reduces interference pick-up in e.g. ethernet cables; but also reduces electromagnetic interference emission I think, which is what matters in this application since the wires are carrying 50Hz power.
You don’t want to inadvertently coil a source of noise around your sensitive signal conductors.
Proximity, shielding, looping/coiling wires (like a transformer coupling one signal to another), and using twisted pairs all affect the amount of noise pick up & the strength of noise emissions AFAIK.
Absolutely stunning work! Sorry if you’ve answered this already, but what kind of pull-style strippers are those at 11:40? Cheers
Hi Ron, they are little nipped type strippers, the ones with the diamond shaped cutting heads. I'm not sure where you would find them as I got mine in a second hand purchase of a bag of old tools. They are great for when you have no room, and need to get close to a component. cheers!
Beautiful work… 🙏🏿
Great vid... thanx so much
Superb job Mate. I was sweating, stressing just watching and I’m not the one wiring the heaters. I have a 6V6G Bottle SE stereo amp in the cradle and now I want to rewrire the heaters. You know the model on those pliers? I wore the ones I use and they are a tad to thick. Good to see you back
Thanks mate! Glad the vid was helpful. The pliers are Facom to brand, model 403. They are without doubt the best pliers I've used, and they are super strong too. Cheers and all the best with the rewire.
I was always wondering if we could use stabilised (say with a 7812) DC for the filaments for zero hum. Have you tried it ?
You certainly can. You just need need an effective rectifying circuit. Sometimes the extra components and circuitry warrant them to be out of the question. However, if you need to rectify other windings, say a 5v winding for switching, then designing a convenient rectifying circuit that also services the filaments is a great choice. I'm doing just that in a FX loop circuit at the mo. Great question, thanks for that.
Very nice work.
Thanks Wes!
I always hear that at least in tube preamp phone stages, passive tone networks are preferable. Do you know when a baxandall tone stack is just the right one. I have a Valco pushpull 6873 with 2 12AX7 gain stages with a long tail paraphrase 12AX7 and I believe the baxendall tone stack comes right before. Great subject and cheers for a great video..
Bax tone stacks are fantastic, however almost all Bax tone circuits were made for HiFi amps, and you can't just take a HiFi Bax circuit and drop it into a guitar amp as the bass will blow everything to bits and the mids will be nonexistent.
I modelled my own Bax TMB circuit using LTSpice and then trial and error from there. Took months, but I think my one is just about bang on for a guitar amp and it works excellent, with heaps of cut and boost over entire frequency curve. Email me at elams1894 at gmail dot com and I'll send you one of my push pull schematics with the Bax TMB tone stack if you are interested. It requires an additional 12ax7 to run. Cheers
@@elams1894 as my would say once upon a time “sweet as”….I would love it. I have been at this a while now on my own for the most part trying to understand. A few books , and Skip Simmons ‘The Truth About Vintage Amps’ along with Uncle Doug. I haven’t encountered the Bax T much except with my own Valco…I believe my 65’ GS12R Reverberocket but it has a huge affect on the tone. The Valco’s tone knob pretty much stays dimed along with volume-better off controlling through the guitar.I thought your tube amp filaments windings vid was brilliant. I will reach out soon. Cheers-
A cordless drill makes quick work of twisting leads if you know what you're doing 😁
My old man uses that technique. For stranded wire, indeed the good ol drill is great, thanks for tip and have a great one!!
Why can’t the filament voltage be DC and thus avoiding some of the hum issues?
The filaments can certainly be rectified to DC, however it requires additional circuitry and components, and although it can be advantageous in a big amp, it's probably easier to twist the filaments in a small to mid amp. Cheers
@@elams1894 I mentally read that with your accent. 😁
It’s low voltage, right? So it will take very little to make DC.
Only a bridge rectifier or diode and a modern electrolytic capacitor (or two or three, etc. in parallel).
Superb! Thank you
Thanks Fernando!
So where to get those dale resistors,they seems so great! in europe sweden that is...
You can get them (PRP resistors and Kawami resistors)) online from Partsconnexion which is a Canadian company. I know of no other retail outlet that supplies them unfortunately, cheers!
Great video. One question please? With my dmm i checked for voltage. Why would i be getting 48 volts off the heater lugs? Is it because I'm using the amp chassis to ground my negative probe? So lost and unfortunately the 3 tubes don't light up. The big tube lights up but very very so gently, as if wired improperly maybe... any advice greatly appreciated! Great video again, i am not subscribed, thanks!
I was told you can only use 14g copper strain wire to the heaters or am I wrong ?
You can use any cable you like, as long as it's thick enough to handle the magnetic field. Anything from 20awg or thick will do.
I just watched all the small amp build series ❤ it. Now I hope I get to watch this one get finished . What is the build cost of one these amplifier?
Thanks Rob. The total cost is anything between $500 and $700 US dollars. Thanks for turning in!
Amazing details level!
Thank you!
Dumb questions here - 1) Why are the sockets in alternating order of placement for which side faces 'up' (1 socket pin 9 is at bottom, next one pin 9 is at top)? 2) Why is it that with your first 'preferred method' pins 4&5 (jumper'd) received 1 wire, pin 9 the other, and then connected same to the next socket....BUT with the other 'preferred method' sometimes only pin 4 gets a wire (not 4&5) on one socket, then the next doesn't get one on pin 9?? Am I just seeing things incorrectly?? I really admire the symmetry, consistency and attention to detail on these builds. When an amp is as beautiful inside as out - that'd be a nice ass amp!
If 6.3v AC causing so much trouble, wouldn't it be better if we put 6.3v DC to the filament instead? Just curious.
Yes, a DC supply would be best, however one would need to build a dedicated 6V3 rectified power supply with diodes and electrolytic caps etc. One could do this no problem, to whatever standard, however often the results are just the as correctly twisted cables. Therefore, the extra cost and turret board realestate need to be considered carefully in comparison. Cheers
Thank you for elaborate explanation! Your work is incredible, by the way. I keep watching it again and again. Very soothing and enjoyable!
@@madblock555 Thanks Madblock, very much appreciated, glad the vids are helpful, cheers.
Hi - what size Brace bit are you using to swage those turrets?
Hi Steven, I use a Stanley No.139 3/4inch bit for swaging. Thanks.
I've been into electronics since the late 60s and have never seen resistors like that. Where do you get them?
They are PRP resistors, US made, I purchased them from Partsconnexion.com. Cheers
Super Bravo !!!
Thanks again Vincent!
Where do you buy your red resistors? Which brand are they?
The red resistors are PRP brand, USA. You can buy them from Partsconnexion dot com. You can probably source them from other places too no doubt.
When we can to expected to see other part?
Pretty soon, within the next day or two. Just finishing up the editing. Cheers.
these appear to be dc heaters you're wiring up? no pin 9 connected?
No, they are AC filaments. Pin 9 is connected on all 3 12AX7's. If you want DC, then you will need to rectify the 6.3 secondary winding. Cheers
Wouldn't it be better to use shielded cable or use a DC voltage source rather then AC for the Filament?
Shielded cable does not work for AC filaments. Shielding provides protection from external magnetic fields only. In other words, it does not reduce the magnitude of a large AC filament magnetic field. You could indeed rectify the AC to DC, that would work indeed, cheers.
@@elams1894 interesting point. Does that mean that, in amps with a recrifier tube (eg 5e3), we neednt worry too much about hum? Tks for the fantastic vid btw!
@@paests A 5e3 rectifier tube, in contrast to diodes, is used to rectify the high voltage (say 400v AC) secondary winding. However the low voltage filament winding (6.3vAC) remains in an AC state, unrectified. So if you wanted to rectify the 6.3v winding, you would need an additional circuit, utilising either another special rectifying tube, or alternatively, rectifying diodes. This would mean additional filter capacitors and maybe a resistor or two, so would really add to both amp realestate and cost. The far easier option is simply twisting the 6.3v filament pair. If done correctly, it is effective. Thanks again.
@@elams1894 thanks for explaining. no getting away from the proper twisting then. i'm just starting my 5e3 and this is so helpful. subscribed!
Be aware: some heatschrink is slightly conductive, it does not insulate as good.
Thanks Danny, good point!
sorry, another question - what wire do you use and where do you get it from? I'm in Singapore and struggle to find a nearby source of single-core 600V. Reluctant to pay for USA shipping :(
No worries CT. You can use any wire you like, they are all pretty similar. I prefer to use solid core, 20awg for most stuff, 22awg for earth hookup wire, however any stranded wire of the same diameter will do. I would advise though, try and get high temp stuff, and avoid Teflon insulated at all cost as it will drive you insane. No probs with the questions, ask whatever you like, cheers.
The guy is a funny dreamer-theorist))
Clean
how would I wire 6 tubes in a series for 7L70GT tubes?
Wire them in the same fashion as that in the video, however you would have to have a larger transformer to handle the extra voltage needed. Check schematics for the same tubes, cheers
@@elams1894 I have lost the link to that video can you resend me that link so I can review it for details..,Thanks..,what transformer would I need and where would it go?
Noob question. Can we just rectify the ac to dc?
You certainly can. However the circuitry and components involved is far more complicated than twisting. Twisting is relatively simple, and when done correctly, offers comparable hum cancellation. Rectifying the filaments to DC on a large amp may certainly be the better option however. Cheers
Thank you :)
マグネテイックループの最小化をソケット周辺まで徹底するのは素晴らしい仕事ですね(^^♪ 他も凄く参考になりました
Thanks for that!! Cheers
i have problem caused by supply transformer hum which is coupling with output speaker transformer(s) . I did not decide if I like deminish more that hum by reconstructing layout. Because it is overlayed by my R2R mechanic noise and disappeares in compare to listning level (except extremly silent listening) .
Filament hum is last on my list. To asses 50 Hz hum I would advice anybody first to turn amplifier on and listen to speakers If any hum is heard before amplifier is ready working or stops imidiately with switching supply off then it is not the filament originated hum but transformer fields .
I think filament hum usualy is at very low level and never visible in blue, comparing to say poor screaning of sound carrying wires . But how to screen traces on printed boards? Only one way is whole metal casing. To to achieve more compact look I thrown away ready printed board. .
Next, when we choose wired technology as shown, then the better screening applied the worse is performance with growing frequency. I accept compromises - accept some little yet not annoying hum in favour of nice wood casing , in important places with attached screaning and point to point (NO SCREENING) to save best hi frequencies. This way elaborated by me and constructed amplifier produces only 3 dB slop at 24 kHz, Filament hum is somwhere below others which I consider enough low. .
And be aware - the filament hum is heard in very sensitive stages - like mic, preramp for turntable where it is 1 importance. For that rason in my brand made vintage Bell amplifier I have DC supplied filament in 4 tubes and no trace of 50Hz .
Very nice to watch. Except: Philips screws hurt my brain, have you thought about using torx?
Pretty sure i was watching a spy thriller starring The Valve Wizard.
"Cut the red wire!"
That's right brother...cut it...cut it!!
Your only thinking in two dimensions. Go up in regard to filament
This is a good point. My father used to build in that way. He would elevate the filament windings and have them hang down vertically to the socket at right angles which worked well. It is also an effective method. Thanks for input.
Sehr gut,aber mach es bitte nicht päpstlicher als der Papst,sonst passt am Ende kein Haar mehr dazwischen!😂😂😂
ich habe auch schon 6L6 in die Mülltonne geklopft,bei denen die Kathodenbleche gefunkt haben...🙌🙀😎😯😂😂😂💖🐒💨👻👻👻😵
?
Merci
Thanks Joseph!
Vai meu like :go my like
If only more people that build amps could actually play the guitar well when they demo it. Tuning the guitar first would be good too.