sales@effectrode.com

  • About Us
  • Knowledge Base
    • Tubes
    • Pedals
    • Science of Tone
    • Binson Echorec
    • History
    • Quality
  • News
  • Press
  • FAQ
  • Vacancies
  • My Account
  • Login
logo
  • Store
  • Stockists
  • Artists
  • Contact
  • | Newsletter
  • Store
    • Accessories
    • Pedals
    • Vacuum Tubes
  • Knowledge Base
  • Stockists
  • Artists
  • Contact
  • FAQ
  • About
  • News
  • Press
  • Newsletter
  • 0

    Shopping cart

    0
    Cart is Empty

Custom Work

  1. HomeKnowledge BaseCustom Work

Custom Work

This page contains pictures of several projects I undertook in the early to mid 1990s.

paravicini_ear_yoshino_859_tube_amplifier_480px
EAR 859 enhanced triode mode amplifier – picture taken by Preston Horsepool, Colchester, Essex.

This is the first DIY tube amplifier project – my own version of Tim de Paravicini’s EAR 859 stereo single-ended enhanced triode mode amp back in 1996. It’s a beautiful looking and clean sounding tube amplifier, however was a time consuming project to build. It took three days alone to complete cut-outs in the copper chassis and 1/4″ brass front panel. All wiring is point-to-point and the capacitors are polypropylene, even the power supply smoothing capacitors, which are motor-start capacitors. I love the retro steampunk look of this amp – it would not look out of place on the Nautilus (Jules Verne).

cascode_tube_phono_preamp_480px
Cascode Tube Phono Pre-amp – picture taken by Preston Horsepool, Colchester, Essex.

At some point I acquired a big box of television tubes from a local auction. I decided to attempt something useful with them and set about building a tube phono pre-amp for my Garrard 401 turntable. Each channel contains two 30L15 frame-grid triodes (an old TV tube). I settled on a cascode input stage, passive RIAA equalization curve and cathode follower buffer stage circuit. I had dozens of these tubes, but had to handselect them because the majority of them were too microphonic. The power supply was housed in a seprarate box to minimise noise and that also used 30L15 in a tube voltage regulator. The reference voltage was generated with a gas filled (argon, I think) tube which glowed a beautiful lilac colour.

soldano_in_a_box_480px
Soldano SP-77 Pre-amp in a tiny box – picture taken by Preston Horsepool, Colchester, Essex.

This little box contains the gain-stage of a Soldano SP-77 rackmount pre-amp. The subminiature high tension transformer was wound by hand as none of that miniscule proportion were available at the time – they still aren’t. The transformers were ferro-magnetically screened from the tubes using a steel partition plate. Other titles for this project are, ‘an exercise in miniaturisation’ or ‘How not to operate a manufacturing company!’, as it was another time-eating project. Good fun though and a learning experience.

modded_fender_twin_reverb_amp1_480px
Modded Fender Twin Reverb Amp – picture taken by Preston Horsepool, Colchester, Essex.

Hot-rodded Fender Silverface Twin Reverb. I rewired the redudant non-vibrato channel on this amp and added two tubes for four extra gain stages to create a lead channel. Also, photo-optical channel switching. In hindsight I don’t recommend cutting the metalwork on vintage amps and modifying them, however at the time it was a cool thing to do – it was great turining up to gigs and seeing the surprise on our rhythm guitarist’s face when this apparantly stock Fender amp amp produced immense, searing, saturated overdrive tones. The power tubes installed are vintage U.S.A. made JAN Philips/Sylvania military grade N.O.S. tubes and have exceptional low self-noise – quieter than any other 6L6 tubes by other manufacturers I’ve tried. I’d always thought that power tubes would not be critical for low noise in amp – you live and learn.

fane_speaker_cabinet_480px
Custom Fane 2 x 12″ speaker cabinet. Photo taken late 1980s

One of two custom-built closed-back speaker cabinets based on FANE 12″ 200W speaker drivers. These cabs were constructed using 3/4″ MDF and fitted with aluminium eges and steel corners, resulting in a very dense and strong cabinet. The closed back construction created a much more robust bass and warm response than a typical open or semi-open back combo.

In This Section

  • A Little Vibe History
  • Blackbird Bias Settings
  • Blackbird Sample Settings
  • Blackbird Sounds
  • Blackbird Switching Options
  • Blue Bottle Sounds
  • Custom Work
  • Delta-Trem Sounds
  • Delta-Trem Tremolo-Panner In-depth
  • Everything You Need To Know About Playing And Recording With The ‘Blackbird’ Vacuum Tube Preamp
  • Fire Bottle Sounds
  • Fuzz Pedal Placement
  • How to Use a Guitar Buffer Pedal
  • Mercury Fuzz Sounds
  • Mercury Rising: Making a Tube Fuzz
  • PC-2A Compressor In-depth
  • PC-2A Sounds
  • PC-2A Supplemental
  • Phaseomatic In-depth
  • Phaseomatic Sounds
  • Story Behind the Tube Drive
  • Swapping Tubes in the Blackbird
  • The Dream Machine: the Echorec 3°
  • The Effectrode Blackbird: A study in tube rolling
  • Tube Drive Sounds
  • Tube-Vibe Expression Pedal Options
  • Tube-Vibe Sounds
  • Vibe Pedal Placement
logo
+44 (0) 1782 372210 sales@effectrode.com
facebook instagram twitter pinterest rss soundcloud
Newsletter

Useful Links

  • Shipping Policy
  • Refund Policy
  • WEEE Policy
  • Privacy Policy
  • Warranty Policy
  • Register Your Pedal

Instagram

Copyright © 1963-2022 EFFECTRODE THERMIONIC. All Rights Reserved.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
_GRECAPTCHA5 months 27 daysThis cookie is set by Google. In addition to certain standard Google cookies, reCAPTCHA sets a necessary cookie (_GRECAPTCHA) when executed for the purpose of providing its risk analysis.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-advertisement1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Advertisement" category .
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
JSESSIONIDCookie used to allow the Worldpay payment gateway on the website to function.
machineCookie used to allow the Worldpay payment gateway on the website to function.
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
wordpress_logged_in_Users are those people who have registered an account with the WordPress site. On login, WordPress uses the wordpress_[hash] cookie to store your authentication details. Its use is limited to the Administration Screen area, /wp-admin/ After login, WordPress sets the wordpress_logged_in_[hash] cookie, which indicates when you’re logged in, and who you are, for most interface use. WordPress also sets a few wp-settings-{time}-[UID] cookies. The number on the end is your individual user ID from the users database table. This is used to customize your view of admin interface, and possibly also the main site interface.
wordpress_sec_1 yearProvide protection against hackers, store account details.
wordpress_test_cookieTest to see if cookies are enabled.
wp-settings-1 yearWordPress also sets a few wp-settings-{time}-[UID] cookies. The number on the end is your individual user ID from the users database table. This is used to customize your view of admin interface, and possibly also the main site interface.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
CookieDurationDescription
_gat1 minuteThis cookie is installed by Google Universal Analytics to restrain request rate and thus limit the collection of data on high traffic sites.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
CookieDurationDescription
_ga2 yearsThe _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_gid1 dayInstalled by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
CookieDurationDescription
mailchimp_landing_site1 monthThis cookie is used to keep track of newsletter sign ups and client emails at checkout, Mailchimp utilises cookies to store information captured from user input for remarketing purposes.
mailchimp_user_email1 monthThis cookie is used to keep track of newsletter sign ups and client emails at checkout, Mailchimp utilises cookies to store information captured from user input for remarketing purposes.
mailchimp_user_previous_email1 monthThis cookie is used to keep track of newsletter sign ups and client emails at checkout, Mailchimp utilises cookies to store information captured from user input for remarketing purposes.
mailchimp.cart.current_emailThis cookie is used to keep track of newsletter sign ups and client emails at checkout, Mailchimp utilises cookies to store information captured from user input for remarketing purposes.
mailchimp.cart.previous_emailThis cookie is used to keep track of newsletter sign ups and client emails at checkout, Mailchimp utilises cookies to store information captured from user input for remarketing purposes.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
CookieDurationDescription
woocommerce_recently_viewedsessionDescription unavailable.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Powered by CookieYes Logo