Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Wraah, war zone!
OK. Next plan of action: record a bit so I can re-amp a loop. That allows me to fuck about with the amp while having my own guitar signal as an imput at the same time. Useful, as I only have two hands.
What I'm going to do: use the best bits of both to frankenstein an über-Vibrosonic. Keep that one and faux-blackface its innards (i.e., there never was a blackface Vibrosonic Reverb model. Also, I'd like to keep the master volume.). The other one is going; I have two interested buyers. One of them has played them a lot as we've done several gigs together. Makes more sense if he gets it, I guess. I'll let him decide if I'll fix it up or let it remain in its current state. Proceeds will go towards a certain vibro champ with my name on it. And food.
Only thing wrong with that is that I really, really like the modification that has been done to the one that's going. It's been the Greeat Unifier in the several things I've called "my sound" for the past twenty years, so it'd be a bit weird to let that go completely. So I need to find out what it is first. It's an extra gain stage at the expense of the reverb. I was hoping it was the very simple mod Brad mentioned once, but alas, it's different (I should have known, as the reverb pot never controlled the distortion). It's a very usable sound, especially with humbuckers. I wonder if there's some clever way to add it to the "normal" channel of the amp I'm keeping. But it would require a lot of switching, it seems.
OK. Next plan of action: record a bit so I can re-amp a loop. That allows me to fuck about with the amp while having my own guitar signal as an imput at the same time. Useful, as I only have two hands.
What I'm going to do: use the best bits of both to frankenstein an über-Vibrosonic. Keep that one and faux-blackface its innards (i.e., there never was a blackface Vibrosonic Reverb model. Also, I'd like to keep the master volume.). The other one is going; I have two interested buyers. One of them has played them a lot as we've done several gigs together. Makes more sense if he gets it, I guess. I'll let him decide if I'll fix it up or let it remain in its current state. Proceeds will go towards a certain vibro champ with my name on it. And food.
Only thing wrong with that is that I really, really like the modification that has been done to the one that's going. It's been the Greeat Unifier in the several things I've called "my sound" for the past twenty years, so it'd be a bit weird to let that go completely. So I need to find out what it is first. It's an extra gain stage at the expense of the reverb. I was hoping it was the very simple mod Brad mentioned once, but alas, it's different (I should have known, as the reverb pot never controlled the distortion). It's a very usable sound, especially with humbuckers. I wonder if there's some clever way to add it to the "normal" channel of the amp I'm keeping. But it would require a lot of switching, it seems.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- OffYourFace
- Mods
- Posts: 14260
- Joined: Thu May 03, 2007 2:59 pm
- Location: Los Angeles, CA
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
that's a lot of books, smart guy...Orang Goreng wrote:
Congrats on doing the cap job yourself! It looks great That must be one of those new fangled hot nails...
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Hey, couldn't have done it without you. Of course, now I don't have the correct resistors to do the bias rewiring, let alone the blackface conversion. So I'm just gonna install the new power tubes and be done with it for a while (unless shit blows up, of course ).
After some digging, it seems my one amp has the "revision F" version, the other "revision G". Just so you know .
After some digging, it seems my one amp has the "revision F" version, the other "revision G". Just so you know .
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
OK, new JJ tubes installed. Moment of truth... so far no arcing, power failure, weird noises, or anything else. It makes sound...if I turn a scratchy pot I hear the reverb nicely.
I don't have any grounded outlets in my house except for the kitchen. So either I'm gonna drag it there before plugging in, or I'm gonna risk it.
I don't have any grounded outlets in my house except for the kitchen. So either I'm gonna drag it there before plugging in, or I'm gonna risk it.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Holy shit, it's awesome.
First thing I notice: there's no noise or hum!
My guitar has never sounded this nicely. Of course, that bullshit. It probably has, but I'm overwhelmed by the fact it worked on the first try. Also, I like the sound with attenuated trebles, and at present it's still lying face down, so I'm hearing the back of the speaker. I like that sound, that's where I like to mic. So, I guess I'll now put the chassis back (and electrocute myself int he process), and listen to it the proper way.
Oddly enough, there's no sound coming from my JM's neck PU, so if I thought I had finished now, I have another thing coming. But I was just jamming along to Straw Foot on just the bridge PU with the reverb on 5. Just awesome. I'm happy.
First thing I notice: there's no noise or hum!
My guitar has never sounded this nicely. Of course, that bullshit. It probably has, but I'm overwhelmed by the fact it worked on the first try. Also, I like the sound with attenuated trebles, and at present it's still lying face down, so I'm hearing the back of the speaker. I like that sound, that's where I like to mic. So, I guess I'll now put the chassis back (and electrocute myself int he process), and listen to it the proper way.
Oddly enough, there's no sound coming from my JM's neck PU, so if I thought I had finished now, I have another thing coming. But I was just jamming along to Straw Foot on just the bridge PU with the reverb on 5. Just awesome. I'm happy.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- Stratelejazzuar
- PAT. # 2.972.923
- Posts: 6744
- Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2007 10:15 pm
- Location: K-W, Ontario, Canada
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Excellent! Good job!
- øøøøøøø
- PAT. # 2.972.923
- Posts: 6085
- Joined: Sun Jan 06, 2008 8:26 pm
- Location: Los Angeles
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Depending on how tired/old your caps were, it very likely DOES sound better.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
I'm pretty sure they're the original ones, which makes them 35 year old, yeah.øøøøøøø wrote:Depending on how tired/old your caps were, it very likely DOES sound better.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
BTW, it's been off for about an hour. So I just unplugged it, and did a security check. Not bad, but yeah, still a voltage. Nothing dangerous, though:
Flipped the standby switch, and immediately it started bleeding off.
Quite funny to watch that. About a minute later it's at 0.1 V, which might as well be measurement error.
Flipped the standby switch, and immediately it started bleeding off.
Quite funny to watch that. About a minute later it's at 0.1 V, which might as well be measurement error.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- OnlyVees
- PAT. # 2.972.923
- Posts: 334
- Joined: Thu Oct 16, 2008 8:17 pm
- Location: Arizona, USA
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Awesome job, thanks for sharing. Makes me wish I had the confidence to re-cap my little White 5F2A.
I'll bet that thing sounds spectacular now.
I'll bet that thing sounds spectacular now.
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
If it's any help, this is the first time I have attempted anything like this. As may be obvious from the thread, half the time I have no idea what I'm doing. It's taken me forever to gather up the balls to do it, but now I've done two in a row I wonder why I ever fussed about it, really.
Of course, I'd never have attempted it without the moral support of people here .
Of course, I'd never have attempted it without the moral support of people here .
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- sookwinder
- Mods
- Posts: 11179
- Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2006 6:47 pm
- Location: Melbourne Australia
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Hey Doc, can you write this up for the library please
relaxing alternative to doing actual work ...
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Sure. Don't we have one already?
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.
- sookwinder
- Mods
- Posts: 11179
- Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2006 6:47 pm
- Location: Melbourne Australia
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Doc, yeah we already have cap jpbs in the library, but I don't think there is one that shows the amps that you've worked on.... remember a picture is worth a 1000 (what ever they are) and have a few pics with some good words, on that type of amp may well encourage others....
relaxing alternative to doing actual work ...
- Orang Goreng
- Mods
- Posts: 15876
- Joined: Tue Sep 12, 2006 5:56 am
- Location: Amsterdam, NL - €
- Contact:
Re: Cap job on Vibrosonic - pictorial. Update jun5.
Truedat, plus it works the same on all 70s 100W models. OK, I'll shuffle it around a bit and re-post there.
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man's a freak.