DIY 8 Watt Tube Amp
Those handy with a soldering iron and a bit of DIY know how might want to check out this Instructables guide, on how to build your own tube amp from components. There are currently pre-fab kits on the market, but it’s infinitely more fun building your own and tinkering with the design. This guide looks pretty involved, but I’m sure the results are well worth it.
A whole lot of tweaking later, I’ve got an amp that pleases me. A small, but surprisingly LOUD amp that outputs something in the neighborhood of 8 watts (see the Power Amp Stage step for more info.) And the combination of 12AX7 and 6DG6GT tubes, though unusual, works quite well…
Oh, and this is a fairly hi-gain amp–i.e., it has a good amount of natural tube clipping and distortion, and a decently “dirty” sound. However, hi-gain and high volume are not the same….this amp is loud for it’s wattage, but it’s not a Marshall stack. It remains a studio type amp, but it is louder than all those Valve Jrs., Champs,Blackhearts, etc. which are so popular today….
Check out the youtube video of the finished product in action:
I have the utmost admiration for those who build their amps by hand. In addition to having a thorough understanding of electronics, they also need to have knowledge of acoustics and metal/woodworking to build the head and/or cabinets, and to top it all off, they need to have an excellent ear for tone!