The Amp Garage

… I'm sure I will notice more as I study it. Have you already spotted any other such details? Hi Max, Thank you for the reply and additional information/history of the amp. I will certainly give that a listen soon. Yes, some other items I have noticed that lead me to believe the amp was certainly m...

Max, thank you so much. I cannot recall ever seeing this before. This is very interesting. Do you know anything about the history of this amp that you are able to share? For instance, I wonder if it was updated by HAD at some point? See LNFB at V1, which we usually associate with circuits typically ...

Hi Dan, thanks for your feedback. So you oftern play your amp in “jtm45-lamd” in terma of loadline. It would be interesting to try different voltages on g2 (lowering it by 50V each time while modifying bias voltage to reach the same plate dissipation) and target the sound tou prefer with that very ...

Has anyone ever tried different load lines (even simply by mismatching a 16 Ohm cab in a 8 Ohm output, with or without modifying the nfb)? I recall numerous comments on TAG saying that ODS with Twin Reverb OT (single 4 ohm secondary) were often operated using an 8 ohm speaker load. This was often t...

Good point Martin. For the MegaPlx it appears they are cloning one specific example, #003, even though they also own #005 and say it is the last amp HAD built entirely. I guess they like the earlier example better. I would speculate they are building a set circuit for the ODS, but for VIPs may build...

Hi Smitty, That is very interesting. I think we all have our own biases as to where our personal ethical line of no return is regarding "cloning". To address your question about Mr. Berlin and the "DPS" I would offer my personal speculations, being just that. We all can talk ourselves into doing thi...

Thanks for the additional info Max. I wonder if this amp has a serial number in HAD's records and for whatever reason it was never placed on the amp or was removed at some later time. Those number stamps can be quite difficult to hammer in and never look very precise. I could imagine this bothered H...

That is the Hoyt Axton amp, right?

-Dan

I made some changes to this amp quite a while back and forgot to post updated info here. Before: PXL_20251025_144711095.jpg Summary of my changes: All shielded cable replaced with NOS Columbia Flexlife cable. Not exactly correct...but looks closer to the part. V1 and V2 cathode resistors have been c...

Fair points Max. And good on the seller to clean thoroughly when asking such a high price. Most amps of this vintage I have seen are maintained less diligently.

-Dan

martin manning wrote: ↑Wed Sep 30, 2026 3:10 pm Looks almost new, doesn't it?

This was my initial reaction too. I was going to take a peak in the Dumble book to see if this amp is there. Everything is so clean and solder joints so shiny. It looks legit but made me wonder at first if this might be an excellent fake.

-Dan

I agree with all the comments to go with an SSS or Wonderland. I would add, that you may want to stick with a classic tonestack versus skyline to bring out a more straty sound. I still have an SSS 002 on my todo list, but the 100W Wonderland I built is incredible. I could honestly be fine with just ...

What type of cap is on your mid switch? I can't tell if it is multilayer ceramic or traditional construction. The new production vishay caps sound nice and clear to me, while the blue TDK ones give a bit of pleasing distortion to the sound. YMMV You may also play with your lead dress to get closer t...

Thanks Martin. I don't think I've ever seen that site before.

I wonder if anyone has an opinion on the circuit differences (LNFB loops in particular) being different between DL 009 and DL011 being a result of: 1. Progression of the circuit design, 2. Circuitry being tailored for a specific player and their gear, and/or 3. Simply a guitar vs. a bass amp? In oth...