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That looks like a resistor to pin 3, which would make it a cathode bias resistor. Looks like it was working hard to do its job. You don’t have to replace it and since the amp seems to have individual biasing you can just pop in another valve. Just to be safe, I’d try one of the other old valves in t...

That video is total bs. If pcbs and pcb-mounted valve sockets are such a problem, why has mesa boogie (and Fender) been using this design in their amps for decades? And people pay good money for them! I don’t think board-mounted sockets are a good idea for boutique amps, but there’s nothing wrong wi...

I’ve heard that ESR increases with voltage rating on caps, so the trick is to get ones that have a rating higher than they’ll see in the circuit, but not excessively higher. So avoid using 400v 22uf caps in situations where they’d only see 5-10v (like cathode bypass caps in tube amps). But in your c...

Volume is not related to impedance - it’s related to AC voltage. Impedance is basically resistance, but for AC. Longer cables create more series impedance. When that series impedance ends at a parallel impedance (the speaker), you get a voltage divider. A higher series impedance makes for more atten...

Are you replacing all the caps or just the electrolytics? Hopefully the latter! Low ESR is only a consideration for power supply caps, where you want to filter out all hum n buzz. Usually vintage power supplies that are under-flitered (few caps or low uf values) benefit from most from low esr caps. ...

Starfire wrote: ↑Fri Jan 19, 2024 9:28 am Extremely meh. Horrible asthmatic-sounding thing.

Sounds like they nailed the tone of the vintage 60’s ones they’re trying to imitate. They were often really boxy sounding amps - mostly due to the speakers but also some real head-scratchers in the circuit designs.

Also this is amazing The spring reverb tank is made in Wisconsin be beautiful women in a sealed chamber https://imgur.com/NqkwCqu.jpg My two experiences with Wisconsin: 1.) I once crossed into the state just because they sell alcohol on sundays (get stuffed Minnesota!) 2.) I was nearly flattened by...

Here’s the input part of the schematic. I was wrong about the ring - it does nothing. But I still think the jack is your most likely suspect at this stage.

Can you post a photo of the underside of the input jack pcb? It would help to see the solder pads and the circuit traces. It would be unusual for the virtual ground cap to be a problem (first time for everything though) and it sounds more like a problem with the jack itself - either it needs resolde...

That is tidy! Bonus OCD points for orienting all the resistor colour codes in the same direction. That’s some seriously impressive attention to detail! Awesome job Mike.

CRC seems to be the ‘gold standard’ but there are generic electrical contact cleaners that will clean & lube your pots. Jaycar has one that I’ve used and it definitely does the job. Using just a contact cleaner spray (isopropanol usually) is not a good idea unless you use it sparingly, otherwise...

So last year rockshop did black friday from 21st-27th of Nov and then Cyber monday on the 28th, with 15% off and free shipping.. this years black friday ends on the 26th of Nov so hopefully we get 15% off everything on monday... worthing waiting for since I'm keen to grab a Hydra... I have a Hydra ...

I say remove all the lettering and leave it blank! You already know what everything does - why does it need labels?

If wiggling doesn’t cause any more problems then i wouldn’t worry about re-soldering. Give it a good test before you put the chassis back in, though.

Id focus on that one tube socket. Could just be residual CRC in there that needs evaporating or perhaps the tube pins or socket is especially corroded and needs more cleaning. For tube pins you can push them in & out of some steel wool to remove stubborn corrosion. If none of this fixes the prob...