Trainwreck express transformers and pre-build advice

[JBP2017]

I posted this on TDPRI and would like to hear opinions from everyone here.

Im fixing on building a Trainwreck express style amp and open to any pre-build suggestions. Im currently sourcing parts and know these stlye amps are "sensitive" to components, lead dress and such.

What are the "go to" transformers for this style amp. i have used Classic Tone in several of my amps. including - an 18 Watt Lite, 18 Watt TMB, AB763 Deluxe, 5F1, 5E3 and a 5F6A and been very happy with the results. Just seeing what transformers other folks used.

Suggestions on Coupling Caps and Electrolytics?

anyone with a -- i wish someone woulda told me this or i should have did this to my build

thank,
josh

[RockinRocket]

The original Pacifics Ken custom ordered are now reissued from Pacific for the Express and Liverpool. This linked below is Pacifics sales.
No reason to use anything else IMO. Sound great and price is fair. Probably 220$ for power and output.
http://rockingclass.com/

Rooster in the classified section here has the original Mallory signal caps too.
These two components are the most crucial parts for any build.

[Winder]

I have two sets of Mallory's from Rooster - why not go with the originals and he's a good guy to deal with. Use quality components. My only experience is with the Pacific transformers and no complaints there. Some folks really seem to like Mercury Magnetics, as well as the Classic Tones which you mention.

I wouldn't be completely married to the layout. FWIW, I felt my build sounded good but it really came alive when, based on the advice of few of the great builders here, I started focusing on details regard to components and tubes, and especially grounding. I would take a look at Colossal's build for some ideas on grounding and read up on the various grounding improvements that can be made. Plenty of info in the Forums here. I isolated the input jack, have a distributed bus in the preamp and a star ground for the power and PI section, with the exception of the power tube cathode grounds. Obviously, the Express can sound phenomenal with a "traditional" layout, per Franscesca. It didn't quite work for me. My next build will employ improved grounding out the gate. YMMV.

[Noobytube]

I have two sets of Mallory's from Rooster - why not go with the originals and he's a good guy to deal with. Use quality components. My only experience is with the Pacific transformers and no complaints there. Some folks really seem to like Mercury Magnetics, as well as the Classic Tones which you mention.

I wouldn't be completely married to the layout. FWIW, I felt my build sounded good but it really came alive when, based on the advice of few of the great builders here, I started focusing on details regard to components and tubes, and especially grounding. I would take a look at Colossal's build for some ideas on grounding and read up on the various grounding improvements that can be made. Plenty of info in the Forums here. I isolated the input jack, have a distributed bus in the preamp and a star ground for the power and PI section, with the exception of the power tube cathode grounds. Obviously, the Express can sound phenomenal with a "traditional" layout, per Franscesca. It didn't quite work for me. My next build will employ improved grounding out the gate. YMMV.

Very interested in advanced grounding schemes, do you know where I can find the “collosule” build you speak of? Thanx

[romberg]

Grounding guitar amps seems to be one of those subjects that involves many "secret recipes" and voodoo. But it does not have to be. Many amp designs
have a reputation of being touchy and unstable simply because they use less than optimal grounding schemes. And are very unforgiving if you deviate even
a small amount from a known "working" scheme. Thus reinforcing the myth and mystery. It does not have to be like this.

The ground path is 1/2 of the circuit. Current flows in it. And if you understand what currents flow and control them in a logical thought out manner you don't
have to stick to a known recipe like an arcane spell. It is just simple engineering. A very well written explanation of this for the guitar amp builder is here:

http://www.valvewizard.co.uk/Grounding.html

It is the one thing I wish I had read before starting to build guitar amps. It demystifies the whole grounding thing. Once you understand and start to control ground
currents where *you* want them to flow, you no longer have to be a slave to reproducing things exactly the same way it was done before. And it really is not all that
complicated .

Mike

[Winder]

I have two sets of Mallory's from Rooster - why not go with the originals and he's a good guy to deal with. Use quality components. My only experience is with the Pacific transformers and no complaints there. Some folks really seem to like Mercury Magnetics, as well as the Classic Tones which you mention.

I wouldn't be completely married to the layout. FWIW, I felt my build sounded good but it really came alive when, based on the advice of few of the great builders here, I started focusing on details regard to components and tubes, and especially grounding. I would take a look at Colossal's build for some ideas on grounding and read up on the various grounding improvements that can be made. Plenty of info in the Forums here. I isolated the input jack, have a distributed bus in the preamp and a star ground for the power and PI section, with the exception of the power tube cathode grounds. Obviously, the Express can sound phenomenal with a "traditional" layout, per Franscesca. It didn't quite work for me. My next build will employ improved grounding out the gate. YMMV.

Very interested in advanced grounding schemes, do you know where I can find the “collosule” build you speak of? Thanx

Pictures of the amp are here in this thread. It's as much a piece of art as an amp:

http://ampgarage.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... t=tw+karen

Super neat/tidy build with a lot of good ideas. You can see the bus positioned away from the pots, and so not depending on the pots for a good ground. Also, it's isolated on the PI end, so the bus is only grounded near the input jack. I took it a bit further and followed most of the advice from this GeoFX article by Forum Member R.G. Keen:

http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/s ... targnd.htm

The information from the article is essentially in agreement with the Valve Wizard chapter on grounding and Randall Aiken's article on the same subject.

I thought what the heck, I'll go for it and if it doesn't improve anything I can always put things back the way they were and I'll probably learn some things along the way. FWIW, I did not and do not plan to put a thing back the way it was prior to making the changes. Obviously, folks have good success without these changes. I just wasn't satisfied with my initial results. Tubes are pretty important to dialing in "your" tone as well.

An interesting point, at least to me, is the amp sounded great prior to the grounding changes. What seemed to happen with each change was maybe a reduction in noise and I was able to back the volume little by little from about 2:00 to 12:00 to get the drive and sustain that I wanted. I think every bit of currrent wasted in inefficient grounding takes away current available for the primary purpose of amplifying the input signal.

There are some folks here that were beyond helpful in my quest (Colossal, Jelle Welagen, Mark ...). Take some time to search, read, search some more, read some more, etc. I hope you have a successful build.

[Colossal]

of the amp are here in this thread. It's as much a piece of art as an amp:

http://ampgarage.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... t=tw+karen

Super neat/tidy build with a lot of good ideas. You can see the bus positioned away from the pots, and so not depending on the pots for a good ground. Also, it's isolated on the PI end, so the bus is only grounded near the input jack. I took it a bit further

Thank you for your kind words, Winder. I did the ground that way to be a little more modern while staying close to the original layout. Also, that amp has PEC pots which have stainless steel casings. You cannot solder to them, nor do I like that methodology at all.

[Winder]

Inspired me quite a bit.

[Noobytube]

I have two sets of Mallory's from Rooster - why not go with the originals and he's a good guy to deal with. Use quality components. My only experience is with the Pacific transformers and no complaints there. Some folks really seem to like Mercury Magnetics, as well as the Classic Tones which you mention.

I wouldn't be completely married to the layout. FWIW, I felt my build sounded good but it really came alive when, based on the advice of few of the great builders here, I started focusing on details regard to components and tubes, and especially grounding. I would take a look at Colossal's build for some ideas on grounding and read up on the various grounding improvements that can be made. Plenty of info in the Forums here. I isolated the input jack, have a distributed bus in the preamp and a star ground for the power and PI section, with the exception of the power tube cathode grounds. Obviously, the Express can sound phenomenal with a "traditional" layout, per Franscesca. It didn't quite work for me. My next build will employ improved grounding out the gate. YMMV.

Very interested in advanced grounding schemes, do you know where I can find the “collosule” build you speak of? Thanx

Pictures of the amp are here in this thread. It's as much a piece of art as an amp:

http://ampgarage.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... t=tw+karen

Super neat/tidy build with a lot of good ideas. You can see the bus positioned away from the pots, and so not depending on the pots for a good ground. Also, it's isolated on the PI end, so the bus is only grounded near the input jack. I took it a bit further and followed most of the advice from this GeoFX article by Forum Member R.G. Keen:

http://www.geofex.com/Article_Folders/s ... targnd.htm

The information from the article is essentially in agreement with the Valve Wizard chapter on grounding and Randall Aiken's article on the same subject.

I thought what the heck, I'll go for it and if it doesn't improve anything I can always put things back the way they were and I'll probably learn some things along the way. FWIW, I did not and do not plan to put a thing back the way it was prior to making the changes. Obviously, folks have good success without these changes. I just wasn't satisfied with my initial results. Tubes are pretty important to dialing in "your" tone as well.

An interesting point, at least to me, is the amp sounded great prior to the grounding changes. What seemed to happen with each change was maybe a reduction in noise and I was able to back the volume little by little from about 2:00 to 12:00 to get the drive and sustain that I wanted. I think every bit of currrent wasted in inefficient grounding takes away current available for the primary purpose of amplifying the input signal.

There are some folks here that were beyond helpful in my quest (Colossal, Jelle Welagen, Mark ...). Take some time to search, read, search some more, read some more, etc. I hope you have a successful build.

Wow” thank you so much!

[Noobytube]

of the amp are here in this thread. It's as much a piece of art as an amp:

http://ampgarage.com/forum/viewtopic.ph ... t=tw+karen

Super neat/tidy build with a lot of good ideas. You can see the bus positioned away from the pots, and so not depending on the pots for a good ground. Also, it's isolated on the PI end, so the bus is only grounded near the input jack. I took it a bit further

Thank you for your kind words, Winder. I did the ground that way to be a little more modern while staying close to the original layout. Also, that amp has PEC pots which have stainless steel casings. You cannot solder to them, nor do I like that methodology at all.

Collosule, what a stunning build, right through the figured box! I think I saw this for sale recently? No pics inside, or I might have jumped on it, just as well as Im really looking forward to building one, I may have a lead on some original pacific tranny’s, how do they compare to the MM’s u used in this build?
Thanx