Dimebag never had problems cutting through the mix...Just sayin'... He also never had problems reproducing his sound on record live-yet he always laid down a trackor two in the studio with a tube amp yet left it at home when he hit the road. (can't remember which brand of tube amp he used, but his Randalls always rocked and didn't break down)

Sure thing. I'm kind of thinking of maybe building a pre amp and incorporating this as a power section. A quick, rough explanation is this: Mains>Transformer>Tube>Turntable>Condensor>Rectifier(solid state)>various resistors>Volume pot>Speaker. It's really simple. I assumed that where the signal from the needle comes in I could install a 1/4 plug and go in with my preamp. I'm also wondering if maybe a cheap combo amp could be robbed of its preamp section to be mated with this to be a complete unit. When I figure out how I'm going to utilize this thing, I plan on cloning it if Ilike the sound. The circuit itself is simple and all of it mounts in a box roughly the same size as Radio Shack's metal project enclosure. The tube and condensor are mounted on the outside of the enclosure. The unit claims 45 watts on the turn table. The tube is a 25L6GT manufactured by RCA and has a manufacture date of 3-48(wow!) I hope my limited, rambling info helps.

Could you give me a quick explanation? The transformer, tube, volume pot, and wiring is all contained in a metal box that is easily removed(which I've done.) I have 1 RCA in for the needle, 2 wires for speaker and 2 for  turntable motor. I guess what I'm wondering is: how could I isolate it cheaply? Radio Shack carries a transformer that's 1to1(no step up or down) for phone circuits. Could this be utilized? If so, a scheme  or a link to one would be appreciated. Would it be safe to plug this in to my old hi-fi? It has a outlet for aux. equipment on its rear. Is this one isolated for this purpose, or is it there for convenience? Is there a cheap or easy way to build something with supplies purchased at the hardware store? Thanks in advance for any help.

I recently acquired one of these guys and it appears that the power section can be removed and used for guitar. I've found an article that suggested that because this unit only has one transformer that it would be unsafe. If this is true, why? What I wanna do is feed my signal into a Digitech RP-200a floor modeler then into the tube power  section then a speaker. If it can be done, can somebody supply some info on how?

I'd like to hear a Am to G progression hammered out a la VH's Aint Talkin Bout Love (the greatest song ever!) Seriously, that's a lick I try any amp/guitar/pedal etc. with. If I can crank the gain but still get that twang of the Am going, I'm thrilled. Some triads and barre chords helps too. High gain scooped stuff is fairly easy to achieve as long as you stick to power chords-bigger more complex chords that retain clarity at high gain is or should be an amp builder's goal along with "flavor" or signature tone for lack of better words. Last but not least, I dig straight forward aesthetics that have a unique, trademark look. Mr. Fahey's amps have a very nice look that is very singular but under the hood the modular, retrofittable aspect to his designs are something no major players have thought of. The right promotion of that aspect alone would sell mountains of his product. Whirlpool saw that wisdom 20+ years ago when they designed their direct drive washing machines and it earned them some 80% or so of the market. That coupled with brute strength along with ease of servicability truly put them at the top of the game. If it aint broke, why fix it?

I can't tell by looking, but is this a master volume amp or straight forward plexi? If it isn't master volume, can it be easily modded to be? Also wondering if it has an effects loop? It's quite an impressive set up nontheless. I hope to have the skill to build one someday. That's a really neat looking rig, and if it sounds like a "real" plexi, you've built a masterpiece! Guys like you and Mr. Fahey are truly artists when it comes to this stuff. I am in awe of your talents. Major manufacturers would be wise to swoop in and hire you guys. Astonishing, to say the least!

Gotcha. I'm on a phone but with symbols and such I should be able to make crude diagrams. Didn't think to ask-should my input and output jacks be insulated?

Now I've built the unit. I used 1 8ohm 20 watt resistor going from the hot leg coming from the amp going to one side of the rheostat. Wiper leg from rheostat to hot leg out. Ground coming in to opposite terminal on rheostat to ground going out. Tested it witha little Gorilla practice amp. No sound and amp appears to be going out on thermal overload. It dies completely-no led, nothing. After a few minutes, the amp will run fine. Is this a case of bad wiring, way too much resistance in my unit for the Gorilla (10 watter 4 oh I believe), or a case of solid state amps not being usable with attenuators? I just used the Gorilla because I didn't wanna blow up the tube amp. I'm also wondering if I could use 1 10 watt, 10 ohm resistor instead? Also wondering if this scheme would work: 1 10 watt 10 ohm resistor soldered across the outer legs of a 25 ohm 3 watt rheostat with hot wire going in, to outer leg of r'sta. Wiper leg to hot out. Ground coming in to opposite outer leg to ground going out. Also wondering if the r'stat body needs to be grounded like guitar pots are. Any help is appreciated. I also built one with the Radio shack l pad and it works just fine. The only reason I wanna build from scratch is education and possibly financial if I can sell them.

Hello Frank. I found the forum the same way. What attracted me was the fact that everybody's friendly, helpful, informative, and more than willing to share their knowledge. I've lurked in other forums related to guitar and see alot of name calling, ass kissing, hazing of noobs, and generally spiteful people. Such a shame. I've only been here a couple days and have been treated nothing but nice. I've never built an amp or pedals but hope to in the near future. This is the place for the info and guidance.

Contacted Gorilla/Pignose. No dice. They tell me whoever owned Gorilla before them left no info for them. I'll also add this-while prompt with a reply, they were very unfriendly. The first e-mail I received simply read: we can't help you. I inquired as to why, that's when I received a very unfriendly e-mail explaining why. It was almost as if they were insulted that I would inquire about such a small, cheap amp named after a primate rather than swine!

 :tu:  I'm wondering what the tone's like. Is it a really high gain set up? They look very, very nice! Right on par with the big dogs-Marshall, Peavey, Fender, etc. There's a real straight forward no b.s. look to them that I dig. I'll bet here in the states with good promotion you'd sell 'em by the truckload. You also mentioned the fact that equipment you built decades ago could be retrofitted with a new board and be running in minutes-astonishing! How many of the big dogs have been that wise? My hat's off to you. Given the right cicumstance, Fahey would be right next to other big names!

Now we're getting somewhere. I can grasp that. I wonder how many folks don't understand what a motor is. Many people probably just think of the motor that runs their washing machine, condensor fan motor, etc. In my work I've been put to test trying to explain the fact that a refrigeration compressor is a motor. The folks that don't understand that would probably keel over if I also explained that a speaker is a motor. Seriously, while I do have a basic grasp of circuits, electronics, etc. I don't claim to be an expert. My schooling covered the bare bones basics of electrical theory and focused mainly on diagnosis and repair of refrigeration. I've met other tecnicians that have absolutely no grasp of electronic theory who were spectacular techs. I've also met guys who probably held degrees in electronic theory yet were piss poor techs(they tended to over think stuff). My philosophy kinda falls somewhere in the middle. While I don't doubt electronic theory I also keep in mind that it's just that-THEORY. What I mean is- according to theory, some things I've seen should not work, yet it runs like a champ. I'm sure some of you guys have built or seen projects that on paper, defy all logic and shouldn't work yet you plug it in and it makes beautiful music. I'm probably losing some of you but the ones that understand are probably smiling and nodding their heads.

Thanks, guys. Jim, that's the same unit I've got. Looks like I've got some reading ahead of me to completely grasp all this. My job as a tech has taught me alot about electronics and such, but obviouslly I have alot to learn! I assumed impedence was strictly pull the leads, ohm it out, etc. I wasn't aware of differences between ac and dc ohms. Thanks for the info, Phil. Appears I've learned something today, now my head hurts! lol I've gotta lookback through the archives and note reference guides, books, etc. Now my interest is piqued to the max.

I believe that's what I've got. It's all mounted on a board, has a faceplate and knob so you can mount it in the wall. You've got hot and ground in and hot and ground out to your speaker. I hooked several different 8 ohm speakers to it and put my meter on the other side to get an idea of what my transformer would see. The readings were way too low. I disconnected the speaker and ohm'd it at the terminals and got a normal reading. Is this a case of me taking my measurements incorrectly? I don't understand  how an 8 ohm speaker would ohm out correctly but ohm out incorrectly with the attenuator hooked up. Is this a case of the trans will see the correct load with everything in place? I mean how could this control cause the ohm reading to change? I assumed that the speaker's impedence would satisfy the transformer and having the attenuator in line between the two would only raise the ohm reading. I'm kinda stuck here. If someone could briefly explain I'm sure I'd understand. As far as going through all the trouble, it serves to help me grasp a better understanding. My girl thinks I'm crazy, but I would love to be a Jim Marshall, Hartley Peavey, Leo Fender, etc. If anything, I'd be happy as a clam just owning a small shop and keeping garage bands going. I could get so much satisfaction just throwing together little 5-10 watt transistor units that kept music alive for poor kids. You never know, one man's hobby/livelihood could potentially help to inspire the next EVH, Randy Rhoads, Dimebag, etc. Music is most sacred to me but as with all my hobbies(firearms, cars, etc.) I also like to know how it works, build one myself, diafgnose, and repair or modify as needed. I'm sure everyone here's got that in them too.

I believe I've got it. How does this scheme sound: input jack coming from amp>1 10 watt resistor in series to outer leg of pot. Wiper leg of pot to hot side of speaker. Ground leg from amp to opposite outer leg of pot to ground terminal on speaker. If my thinking is correct, this in effect makes the pot r2 as in the schematic shown above. Please show me my error if I'm wrong. Now I also bought one of their in wall speaker faders. The impedence varies from 0 to about 3 ohms when I ohm it out. Could I just wire a resistor across the ter minals on one side of this to also have an attenuator suitable for my needs? I'm also wondering if you can go with "too much" resistor? Example: 20 watts of resistor for a 5 watt amp? I know it's rated at 5 watts but seems to be able to put out closer to 15. It's just as loud as a 20 watt ss amp I also use and itzms quite a bit louder than a 15 watt ss amp I also use.