This is the video that inspired me to start building amps. I recently finished my third tweed. Thank you for posting your amp videos, they all sound amazing.
I got components and some build tips from another builder when I built my first. There is a learning curve. I repaired a lot of champs before I built my first. Building was 'one step beyond' the repairs! I collected pictures of the insides of original tweed champs and used them as a reference for the layout. The exact layout of components and wires greatly affects noise, hiss, and hum. Fender's original layout is the best. Minor adjustments once it's built can increase gain and tone and cut hum.
So amazed at the full bodied sound! Small amplifiers tend to sound boxy yet this little marvel sounds thick and juicy with plenty of low end compressing nicely as you turn up into tube distortion. Congrats on a winner!
i didn't build this from a kit. there is another video i posted of the same amp that goes into some detail about the guts of it. i do them either as straight up traditional fender style builds (like this one) or with a few tweaks (like the black one i posted in another video). the kits i've seen are usually focused on first time builders and meeting a certain low price point, so they aren't really my thing. this amp was built with parts sourced from about a half dozen different suppliers.
i posted another video of this same amp that shows the insides and i talk more about the parts in that one. basically, i try to go as true to the originals as i can for this style of build. resistors are carbon composite, capacitors are electrolytic, wire is cloth braid. i ground to the chassis the same way they did one the originals, i route the wires the same, i even use unpolarized 2 prong a.c. cords. basically, i try to get it as exact to the originals as i can with modern parts.
+Sam Lease Exactly! I love the way a champ 'reveals' the character of the guitar that's plugged into it. Strats sound like strats, teles like teles, etc. With a little judicious use of the volume control and pick attack, you can get some real magic out of just a guitar and an amp.
Read the comments @flamingoguitar, any chances of commissioning one of these from you? Larry’s cabinets look epic, and I’m sorry to hear he passed away. Let me know if you are interested.
It is from scratch or a Kit, or a kit you modded? It sounds great from here. Enjoy. Thanks for saring. It sounds great compared to the crappy Fender champion 600 amp I use as a practice rig. I have got to build me a tweed amp. Thanks for the motivation.
not a kit. i never found a kit that had all the parts i prefered to use. even though i had to source things from half a dozen different places, i think the result was worth the extra trouble. when i first started doing these, i went through a bunch of different variations and trials of transformer sets, capacitors and speakers before i settled in on a mix of parts that got me a result that actually sounded like an original late 50's champ. i've had these side by side with bunches of late 50's 5f1's and it sounds just like a real deal. i play through it more than any other amp i've got.
@@anthonyrosa5006 There is another video I did of this amp with the back off, where you can see the internals. I discuss what I used for caps and resistors there. The ac mains on this one is sold through antique electronics. It's their fender brand replacement for 5f1. I like it better than any other I've tried. For output, this one has the heyboer champ output that is sold through mojotone. I got chassis from a few different places. They're probably all using the same supplier. Mojotone or Angela is probably where this one came from. The main thing is to avoid the stainless ones that are sold on ebay and some websites. Because I did this one like the original, the grounds are actually soldered directly to the chassis. The plating has to be ground off and a heavy duty soldering iron used for that operation. It's something that just doesn't work with stainless.
Awesome video. thanks for the detail you went into. I wish other people went into the detail you went into when demoing their amps. I am building my own amps also, NO KIT! I wanted to ask you where you got your cabinet from? Thanks
Beautiful!! Great tones my man. I'm actually building a 5F1 amp right now, I haven't decided if I'm going to put a 8" or 10" speaker in. What do you have in there, an 8"?
+ahjiau I made a bunch of these and sold or gave away most of them. I'm not really doing this style of building at the moment. But, I have been tossing around the idea of doing one more and filming the build process and showing parts list and sources so that anyone that wants one can do their own.
Very nice sounding little amp. What transformers have you used? Have you followed exactly the historical layout or there's any mod (i.e. 25uf cap in parallel with the 1K5 resistor on the 1st cathode, which is found on many originals)?
Thank you. I built this like the originals. So, it does have the cap. I know the official 5F1 schematic doesn't show it, but every 5f1 I ever owned and worked on had that cap. I posted another video of this that shows the guts. It should still be on TH-cam. When I made these, I tried a lot of different parts. For the AC mains I liked best one that Antique Electronics sells. They don't share the manufacturer name. For output I use a Heyboer. That combination got me the most authentic sound out of all the ones I tried.
I built one and now I'm thinking of changing speakers. I used a Celestion tube 10 and it lacks sparkle. Also I didn't put a 25uf cap in parallel with the 1.5k resister. Now I'm wondering if maybe I should? and what the results would be?
I haven't built one of these in a while. Larry Rodgers isn't making the cabinets anymore. I quit doing these about the same time he quit doing the cabs. I've still got one cab left that I didn't build an amp for. I could build it, but you might be able to find an original champ for about the same price I charge. I was never doing these for profit. I did them to pursue my own interest and curiosity in nailing the perfect champ. I feel pretty happy with the results. The best sounding one I did was the black tolex covered one I show in a different video. It had a few modernizations to the build. The tweed ones I made were done just like the originals. I was just very particular with getting all the details right. I used a different ac mains than what others use and that probably has some effect on the sound. I also was very particular about getting the internal wiring of the amp exactly right. That actually makes a huge difference in how these amps perform.
+ascott51088 these amps are 5 watts. If I'm onstage next to someone who's playing a 50 watt amp, you'll still hear my amp. 5 watts can be very loud, as in my db meter says this little amp easily gets over 100db. Your neighbors will kill you if you play it that loud in an apartment. If you want an amp that can be pushed to power stage breakup at apartment volume, I'd look for one of the 1 watt and less designs and pair it with an inefficient speaker.
not really. i built a bunch of these when i was figuring out the 'formula' for making one that really sounded like the old ones and i sold those off as i went along. once i got it dialed in, i fooled around with speaker configurations a little bit and did them with 10", 12" and 15". sold those off, too. i probably would have gone ahead and made some of these because i do get a lot of requests, but Larry Rodgers quit making my cabs and then he passed away. he was a good friend of mine and i sort of quit fooling with amps for the last year year or so because i don't really have anybody else to do it with. i'm kind of thinking of doing one more and filming it so people can see how to make one like this. we'll see. maybe after the holidays.
Relocated my home built 5f1 to an original size cab ... It is currently hooked up to a 10" so I need an 8" this is the best sounding 5f1 I've heard thus far so please enlighten me. WHAT SPEAKER DID YOU USE ? This way mine can sound like yours as I also sourced the components from about 12 suppliers to get all NOS
this was not a kit. i don't know of anyone who sells a kit that has the parts used in this build. lil' dawg amps is probably the closest. i posted another video of this amp where i show the guts. give that one a look if you want to see the component choices.
Check out a dude on TH-cam called Uncle Doug. He does excellent tutorials demystifying the world of tube guitar amps, vintage repairs and mods. Really excellent
The tweed material on the old cabs had lacquer on it. It kept the lacquer cleaner, made it 'cleanable' at least a little and is one reason why they started out with this sort of golden look, but turn really orange if they're around smoke. To get the look right, you've got to lacquer the tweed before its on the cab. The original material fender used for theirs arrived pre-lacquered and was also used on a lot of luggage at the time. It was a standard 'off the shelf' product.
I mentioned this in the earlier posts, but they may not be visible anymore... It would appear that the camera has a limiter that keeps the audio from distorting. The amp itself is very loud. Portions of the audio here were well over 100db. My db meter says this gets over 110 db. Without that limiting, it would be a mess. I didn't do any editing to it and just posted it as-is. There isn't any way to record anything and play it back without something coloring or affecting the sound somehow... On a different side of things, compressing and limiting after the amp is a great sounding effect and it's all over great recordings. Using compression in front of the amp never sounds the same. Wish it did.
Well it sounds fine and you play fine too. That wasn't a complaint. I've been reading the Dave Hunter book and wondered if the amp compressed naturally. Sounds better than my blackface Vibro Champ. Mine's really a dog.
it does have a natural squash to it. all these old tweeds kind of do. they hit max volume before you're halfway up and go into distortion after that. once they get to their max saturation point, they get real squashy. this one doesn't do it as much because of the rectifier. the new 5y3 (which this has) is not a 'true' 5y3. it's a rebranded soviet something or other. it's closer in a lot of ways to the old 5ar4. in this amp, it's really hard to push it beyond the limits of the rectifier. a deluxe or something would come closer to it, because of the extra power draw. i use these same tubes in my deluxes as well, though and they don't bog down there either. if i was to put an old rectifier in it, it would get real squashy around 10 on the dial. a blackface vibro champ can be a really good amp. you probably just have some worn components in it... things that are either not performing at 100% or that have drifted from their original values. they're easy to freshen up. if you've got one of the old oxford or cts speakers in it, i like to change those out for the new jensens or webers. the old speakers are kind of dark and inefficient compared to the new ones.
Thanks for the heads up on my Vibro Champ and rectifier tubes. Yeah it's real harsh and because it's an 8 inch, it's real boxy sounding. Beyond new filter caps and tubes I don't know what elese will need changing. I'm reading the Dave Hunter book and getting some cement resistors to drain the caps and will have to tear into it eventually. I hope a better speaker will solve the boxiness? I have a few 10's that need a cab, too, so I can always hook bigger speakers to it..
resistors can drift from their original values as well. it's worth testing all the components and making sure they're at their specified values. before you go that route, try some new speakers. chances are really good your amp has an oxford in it, if it's the original speaker. to my ear just about anything sounds better than the old oxfords. try just plugging your amp into some other cabinets.
This is the video that inspired me to start building amps. I recently finished my third tweed. Thank you for posting your amp videos, they all sound amazing.
thanks! that is really nice to hear.
I got components and some build tips from another builder when I built my first. There is a learning curve. I repaired a lot of champs before I built my first. Building was 'one step beyond' the repairs! I collected pictures of the insides of original tweed champs and used them as a reference for the layout. The exact layout of components and wires greatly affects noise, hiss, and hum. Fender's original layout is the best. Minor adjustments once it's built can increase gain and tone and cut hum.
So amazed at the full bodied sound! Small amplifiers tend to sound boxy yet this little marvel sounds thick and juicy with plenty of low end compressing nicely as you turn up into tube distortion. Congrats on a winner!
thanks!
i didn't build this from a kit. there is another video i posted of the same amp that goes into some detail about the guts of it. i do them either as straight up traditional fender style builds (like this one) or with a few tweaks (like the black one i posted in another video). the kits i've seen are usually focused on first time builders and meeting a certain low price point, so they aren't really my thing. this amp was built with parts sourced from about a half dozen different suppliers.
Did you ever put out a parts list? Love the sound/tone.
Nothing sounds like a tube amp...so sweet! Beautiful job! Looks factory built!
Cool amp, im just planning a Champ build of my own. I love your playing aswell. Great tone and feel. Keep rocking!
i posted another video of this same amp that shows the insides and i talk more about the parts in that one. basically, i try to go as true to the originals as i can for this style of build. resistors are carbon composite, capacitors are electrolytic, wire is cloth braid. i ground to the chassis the same way they did one the originals, i route the wires the same, i even use unpolarized 2 prong a.c. cords. basically, i try to get it as exact to the originals as i can with modern parts.
Great job. Sounds and looks fantastic - wonderful tone!
Sounds beautiful
it brought tears to my eyes
This sounds great!
Love the tone!
I get my cabinets from Larry Rodgers. He runs Rodgers Amplification in Naples, Florida. His work is the best there is for these Fender style cabs.
thanks! this one has a jensen reissue p8r.
good amp, i have one 10 jensen alnico 5 pm speaker from 1960 in this amp,
graet sound!!!!
Killer tones; looks stunning too- great job!
Thanks!
The perfect amp. Period.
sounds like a fun project!
So nice!
Well done, awesome tone.
The natural reverb in the room sounds great, as does this amp.
What else do you need?
+Sam Lease
Exactly! I love the way a champ 'reveals' the character of the guitar that's plugged into it. Strats sound like strats, teles like teles, etc. With a little judicious use of the volume control and pick attack, you can get some real magic out of just a guitar and an amp.
Freaking awesome!
This is one of the best sounding champs I've heard what kind of speaker do you have ?
Thanks! The speaker in this one is a jensen reissue p8r.
Have you ever tried a 10" baffle/speaker in this amp?
+Matt Kerslake
No. I did make one with a 15" alnico Jensen as a 'bass amp' version.
Read the comments @flamingoguitar, any chances of commissioning one of these from you? Larry’s cabinets look epic, and I’m sorry to hear he passed away. Let me know if you are interested.
send me an email at flamingoguitar at hotmail dot com and we can discuss what you're after and what i can do.
Sounds good !
It is from scratch or a Kit, or a kit you modded? It sounds great from here. Enjoy. Thanks for saring. It sounds great compared to the crappy Fender champion 600 amp I use as a practice rig. I have got to build me a tweed amp. Thanks for the motivation.
not a kit. i never found a kit that had all the parts i prefered to use. even though i had to source things from half a dozen different places, i think the result was worth the extra trouble. when i first started doing these, i went through a bunch of different variations and trials of transformer sets, capacitors and speakers before i settled in on a mix of parts that got me a result that actually sounded like an original late 50's champ. i've had these side by side with bunches of late 50's 5f1's and it sounds just like a real deal. i play through it more than any other amp i've got.
@@flamingoguitar Sounds great. Any chance that you list what parts you used on a website?
@@anthonyrosa5006 There is another video I did of this amp with the back off, where you can see the internals. I discuss what I used for caps and resistors there. The ac mains on this one is sold through antique electronics. It's their fender brand replacement for 5f1. I like it better than any other I've tried. For output, this one has the heyboer champ output that is sold through mojotone. I got chassis from a few different places. They're probably all using the same supplier. Mojotone or Angela is probably where this one came from. The main thing is to avoid the stainless ones that are sold on ebay and some websites. Because I did this one like the original, the grounds are actually soldered directly to the chassis. The plating has to be ground off and a heavy duty soldering iron used for that operation. It's something that just doesn't work with stainless.
which speaker are you using?
Awesome video. thanks for the detail you went into. I wish other people went into the detail you went into when demoing their amps. I am building my own amps also, NO KIT! I wanted to ask you where you got your cabinet from? Thanks
Sounds great
Could you please share the layout and schematic? Thanks a ton :)
Sounds beautiful. You play really well man (y) Enjoyed listening to that.
Awesome
to play with a drummer you would mic it through the pa?
1 guy is a professional kazoo player.
Sounds amazing. So sweet and clear. Which speaker are you using in there?
Beautiful!! Great tones my man. I'm actually building a 5F1 amp right now, I haven't decided if I'm going to put a 8" or 10" speaker in. What do you have in there, an 8"?
It's an 8" Jensen reissue
Hey there, totally blown away by this amp.. Are you will to sell this one or to make one for me?
+ahjiau
I made a bunch of these and sold or gave away most of them. I'm not really doing this style of building at the moment. But, I have been tossing around the idea of doing one more and filming the build process and showing parts list and sources so that anyone that wants one can do their own.
Very nice sounding little amp. What transformers have you used? Have you followed exactly the historical layout or there's any mod (i.e. 25uf cap in parallel with the 1K5 resistor on the 1st cathode, which is found on many originals)?
Thank you. I built this like the originals. So, it does have the cap. I know the official 5F1 schematic doesn't show it, but every 5f1 I ever owned and worked on had that cap.
I posted another video of this that shows the guts. It should still be on TH-cam.
When I made these, I tried a lot of different parts. For the AC mains I liked best one that Antique Electronics sells. They don't share the manufacturer name.
For output I use a Heyboer.
That combination got me the most authentic sound out of all the ones I tried.
I built one and now I'm thinking of changing speakers. I used a Celestion tube 10 and it lacks sparkle. Also I didn't put a 25uf cap in parallel with the 1.5k resister. Now I'm wondering if maybe I should? and what the results would be?
do you build and sell these amps? If so, how do I contact you?mike
I haven't built one of these in a while. Larry Rodgers isn't making the cabinets anymore. I quit doing these about the same time he quit doing the cabs. I've still got one cab left that I didn't build an amp for. I could build it, but you might be able to find an original champ for about the same price I charge.
I was never doing these for profit. I did them to pursue my own interest and curiosity in nailing the perfect champ. I feel pretty happy with the results.
The best sounding one I did was the black tolex covered one I show in a different video. It had a few modernizations to the build.
The tweed ones I made were done just like the originals. I was just very particular with getting all the details right.
I used a different ac mains than what others use and that probably has some effect on the sound. I also was very particular about getting the internal wiring of the amp exactly right. That actually makes a huge difference in how these amps perform.
What kind of components did you use?
I am planning to build my first amp kit but should I buy the Champ Kit or Princeton Kit?
+Delta62onhalo
That's totally a matter of personal preference. Whichever one you want to end up with when you're done.
You said that there were ways of making these amps quieter. How can this be done? I'm interested in break up tones at very low levels. Thanks!
I too would be interested in info on a quieter amp (I live in an apartment in downtown SF!). Great sound and playing.
By quiet I mean less self noise. Less hiss, less hum.
+ascott51088 these amps are 5 watts. If I'm onstage next to someone who's playing a 50 watt amp, you'll still hear my amp. 5 watts can be very loud, as in my db meter says this little amp easily gets over 100db. Your neighbors will kill you if you play it that loud in an apartment.
If you want an amp that can be pushed to power stage breakup at apartment volume, I'd look for one of the 1 watt and less designs and pair it with an inefficient speaker.
Thanks for the reply. I'll have to look for a kit with lower wattage then.
You can vary the wattage by wiring in a power selector. You can get it down to 0.5W for bedroom practice.
Is that a reissue Jensen P8R speaker? I got a mod 8/20 in mine but it isn't all "that".
+omegalen
Yes. I also used a c8r in some of these and liked it, too.
flamingoguitar Thanks :)
Is that the typical 8" speaker? Sounds fantastic.
very nice. do you build any and sell them?
not really. i built a bunch of these when i was figuring out the 'formula' for making one that really sounded like the old ones and i sold those off as i went along. once i got it dialed in, i fooled around with speaker configurations a little bit and did them with 10", 12" and 15". sold those off, too. i probably would have gone ahead and made some of these because i do get a lot of requests, but Larry Rodgers quit making my cabs and then he passed away. he was a good friend of mine and i sort of quit fooling with amps for the last year year or so because i don't really have anybody else to do it with.
i'm kind of thinking of doing one more and filming it so people can see how to make one like this. we'll see. maybe after the holidays.
What kit did you use?
Relocated my home built 5f1 to an original size cab ... It is currently hooked up to a 10" so I need an 8" this is the best sounding 5f1 I've heard thus far so please enlighten me. WHAT SPEAKER DID YOU USE ? This way mine can sound like yours as I also sourced the components from about 12 suppliers to get all NOS
+NateNabz
This one had a reissue p8r Jensen.
Is this the mojotone kit?
No. Not a kit.
Did you build this from a kit? If so, which one?
Thanks! Great chops;-)
What value filter caps did you use? This thing seems to hold together a lot better than a lot of other champ demos on youtube
All values are what the original schematic calls for. I posted another video of the guts if you want to see the actual components.
Was this a kit! If so which ? Thx
this was not a kit. i don't know of anyone who sells a kit that has the parts used in this build. lil' dawg amps is probably the closest. i posted another video of this amp where i show the guts. give that one a look if you want to see the component choices.
thanks!
12???!!! Even Spinal Tap could only go to 11...
GORGEUSSS!!!! How much cost to do it?
Thanks! I don't know if I ever did a materials cost on these amps. Without looking back at receipts, I'd figure at least $650 in parts, maybe more.
Thanks
how well does it handle fuzz pedals ?
i don't use fuzz pedals, so i don't really know other than to say like a champ.
You gave me an idea... :))
How difficult is it to make these?
It really depends on your level of experience and your attention to detail.
Check out a dude on TH-cam called Uncle Doug. He does excellent tutorials demystifying the world of tube guitar amps, vintage repairs and mods. Really excellent
Did you lacquer the cab yourself? It looks and sounds great!
***** what do you mean lacquer the cab?do you mean build and tolex it?
+Brad Stivers
The cab is Rodgers. He does them like the originals. So, it is lacquered tweed.
The tweed material on the old cabs had lacquer on it. It kept the lacquer cleaner, made it 'cleanable' at least a little and is one reason why they started out with this sort of golden look, but turn really orange if they're around smoke.
To get the look right, you've got to lacquer the tweed before its on the cab. The original material fender used for theirs arrived pre-lacquered and was also used on a lot of luggage at the time. It was a standard 'off the shelf' product.
can you make me one?!?!
Very nice.
YEAH!!!
UK
sounds almost like there's a compressor hooked up to it
I mentioned this in the earlier posts, but they may not be visible anymore... It would appear that the camera has a limiter that keeps the audio from distorting. The amp itself is very loud. Portions of the audio here were well over 100db. My db meter says this gets over 110 db. Without that limiting, it would be a mess. I didn't do any editing to it and just posted it as-is. There isn't any way to record anything and play it back without something coloring or affecting the sound somehow...
On a different side of things, compressing and limiting after the amp is a great sounding effect and it's all over great recordings. Using compression in front of the amp never sounds the same. Wish it did.
Well it sounds fine and you play fine too. That wasn't a complaint. I've been reading the Dave Hunter book and wondered if the amp compressed naturally. Sounds better than my blackface Vibro Champ. Mine's really a dog.
it does have a natural squash to it. all these old tweeds kind of do. they hit max volume before you're halfway up and go into distortion after that. once they get to their max saturation point, they get real squashy. this one doesn't do it as much because of the rectifier. the new 5y3 (which this has) is not a 'true' 5y3. it's a rebranded soviet something or other. it's closer in a lot of ways to the old 5ar4. in this amp, it's really hard to push it beyond the limits of the rectifier. a deluxe or something would come closer to it, because of the extra power draw. i use these same tubes in my deluxes as well, though and they don't bog down there either. if i was to put an old rectifier in it, it would get real squashy around 10 on the dial.
a blackface vibro champ can be a really good amp. you probably just have some worn components in it... things that are either not performing at 100% or that have drifted from their original values. they're easy to freshen up. if you've got one of the old oxford or cts speakers in it, i like to change those out for the new jensens or webers. the old speakers are kind of dark and inefficient compared to the new ones.
Thanks for the heads up on my Vibro Champ and rectifier tubes. Yeah it's real harsh and because it's an 8 inch, it's real boxy sounding. Beyond new filter caps and tubes I don't know what elese will need changing. I'm reading the Dave Hunter book and getting some cement resistors to drain the caps and will have to tear into it eventually. I hope a better speaker will solve the boxiness? I have a few 10's that need a cab, too, so I can always hook bigger speakers to it..
resistors can drift from their original values as well. it's worth testing all the components and making sure they're at their specified values.
before you go that route, try some new speakers. chances are really good your amp has an oxford in it, if it's the original speaker. to my ear just about anything sounds better than the old oxfords. try just plugging your amp into some other cabinets.
give me please this amp
That’s a nice amp but it still doesn’t sound as good as my 57 champ.
Seen you saying the same thing in another champ video! We get it already! nothing in the world sounds better than your 57 champ!