Valve Jr head+cabinet arrived! now some pedals...

[Steben]

I bought the lot for 198€ ! Thanks for the dollar falling into pieces 
Unbeatable by DIY at that price. Even a MOSfet amp is too hard a nutshell.


5W class A.
Nice one. Really nice. Allas, it sounds so natural It tells me to start rehearsing pentatonics again...
I think you all know the deal: 2 triode stages, 1 pentode + transformer. Power as well as preamp distortion...
Also a nice 12" cabinet to use with Rubies and gems...

I guess a booster is a fantastic choice to add? Or a fuzzy face...?
Mmm, messing with tube amps...

[petemoore]

  I love it just to look at it.
 
  I Built a 2 triode stages, 1 pentode + transformer [recto] amp.
 
  For 'around town' these little amps are the quickest way to cranked tube amp, with power you can actually use.  Why have a tube amp if you're not in a comfortable situation to get used to cranking it?
 

[frequencycentral]

Very Nice!

It was buying my Harley Benton GA5 Thomann VJ clone that got me into building again. I've found that a LPB-1 is a nice boost for it, to saturate the preamp.

I also love it with my Valvecaster - it adds the tube 'dirty channel' that the VJ lacks. I boxed my Valvecaster up together with another LPB-1 as a pre-boost with its own stompswitch. This is a great companion to the VJ.

I have to admit the Epi head/cab looks loads nicer than the Harley Benton though.

[ayayay!]

That little rig is on my wish list of something my wife could realistically afford to buy me someday.  And that would last me years in joy and happiness. 

Sigh... Someday.

[jlullo]

I had the combo and i loved the sound of my tubscreamer through it

[liddokun]

If you guys are interested in a Epi Valve Junior, you might be able to get one cheap from me.  Well, sort of get one.  I'm getting my valve junior gutted, and a friend of mine is putting in a new point to point wired vox AC4, along with Mullard tubes, and new trannies.  So I think I'll be selling the epi PCB, tubes (US made RCA preamp and power), and transformers pretty soon, as soon as I get the amp back.  Would there be any interest? And also, what do you think would be a fair price?

[gutsofgold]

I just got the Epi half stack too in a trade. I love it, super dark and bassy which seems to be uncommon in many amps on the market these days. I would like some more clean headroom though, anyone familar with "more clean headroom" mods? 

[liddokun]

I doubt you could get more clean headroom.  There are plenty of gain mods, but at 5W, you don't get much clean headroom. Not that I know of. Haha.

[gutsofgold]

I was thinking about trying a different preamp tube, one with less gain factor such as a 12AY7.

[liddokun]

Hm, I guess that works too.  Get a few and swap em out and see.  12AU7 and 12AT7 will work as well I think. You might have to confirm this with a data sheet.
Either way, my epi valve junior is now an AC4. Haha. it's been gutted. 

[theundeadelvis]

Sewatt.com has some great VJ info. One of the best upgrades is replacing the output transformer, many recommend the Hammond 125ESE.

[m-theory]

Any booster or decent OD will work beautifully with this amp.  I use both a mosfet and a minibooster, and they both sound awesome.  I also have a few different OD builds that work very well, and a BSIAB that it seems to like also.  I've got a tonebender that I've come to believe actually works best into a clean amp, personally.  Into a dirty amp, such as this one, it mushes things up pretty severely.  

anyone familar with "more clean headroom" mods?

A JJ 803S or a 5751 will reduce the gain without thinning out the tone, as say an AT7 or AU7 would.  There are a couple of other mods that you can do to it to reduce gain.  Probably best to read as much about mods as you can before attempting any, though.  Get a feel for what you're really interested in doing, and make sure you know what you're doing before you crack it open.

Here's a good place to start:  http://forums.epiphone.com/Default.aspx?g=posts&t=7

At the very least, when you're certain of what you're doing, you should get the output tube bias dialed in.  They're notoriously hot from the factory, and that seriously hampers tone.  With a few minor changes, the latest version of this amp can sound pretty stunning.  

[frequencycentral]

A JJ 803S or a 5751 will reduce the gain without thinning out the tone, as say an AT7 or AU7 would.  

So reducing the gain is as easy as just replacing the 12AY7 with a 12AU7? Really?

[m-theory]

One of the best upgrades is replacing the output transformer, many recommend the Hammond 125ESE.

This really isn't necessary with version 3, because they finally got it right from the factory.  The ESE or similar won't give you terribly noticeable difference from the original, although it IS necessary if you intend to mod for octal tubes.  

With the earlier versions, absolutely...you HAVE to upgrade that dog of an OT, or be satisfied with mushy distortion, weak lows, and inarticulate highs.  

[m-theory]

So reducing the gain is as easy as just replacing the 12AY7 with a 12AU7? Really?

Swapping the preamp tube for a lower gain tube is the easiest way to reduce gain, but it's not the only way, and I really don't think that AY7, AT7, or AU7 are the way to go, because they have quite different frequency response from an AX7.  To my ears, a 5751 or 803S are far better choices.  I believe that the 803S is around 15% lower in gain, and the 5751 about 30% less. 

One of the great aspects of a simple single ended amp like this is that you can experiment with different tubes and hear the differences, without having to mortgage the house to do it.  Single NOS tubes are still fairly reasonable (as compared to matched pairs or quads!), and new production are dirt cheap. 

[BrianJ]

To make the amp more clean you might try adding some negative feedback from the output.  If you remove the bypass cap from the second gain stages cathode and tie a 22k resistor from the cathode to the speaker jack the amp will clean up quite a bit - In a different way than just reducing preamp gain. 

[petemoore]

  As far as tearing out all the guts...seems it might be easier in the long run to just sell, to just start extensive upgrades somehow with a different chassis of some kind. That way there's a working unit instead of a pile of 'lower-grade' parts. To me, a lower grade transformer that isn't in a working unit is a candidate for boat anchor.
  Having been through some amps like that, I recommend try to leave the thing working the way it is as much as possible.
  There's only a few things I like to choose to do with amps.
  One is let the amp decide how loud the amp sounds good.
  Go for tone 1rst and also second and third, expectations of volume which exceed the amplifiers normal ability...is not a recommended course of action or target by which to choose mods.
  That said, it'll sound louder somewhat by not amplifying as much of the lower frequency register...ie revoicing the staging and/or bypass caps, a trebly EQ can tell you somethings about that, not really the same as a 'sprinkled' re-voice.
  If it needs more filtering on the PS, not a bad idea if it can be made to fit.
  I just voiced the perfboard staging caps a little bit to a higher register, but have one switch that just about makes it too bassy.
  Mostly the pedals I like is just boosters and distort-o-boosters...anything else like phase or echo, while requiring adjustments, don't seem to be near as finicky as adjusting the amp/boost/clipping amounts, the 5w loves the pedals.
 

[ambulancevoice]

[Steben]

Apart from the mods, this is certainly not the version I have (comes with original schematic).
Mine has
- DC filaments
- 68k input resistor.
- 220 ohm resistor from Vs to transformer tap point (as in sag circuits)

Here is the correct scheme:
http://www.muzique.com/news/images/Epi1.gif  Thanks to Jack Orman!

Hint: lugs 1 and 2 of the master volume pot shouldn't be linked. Just use a normal volume wiring.

[ambulancevoice]

Apart from the mods, this is certainly not the version I have (comes with original schematic).
Mine has
- DC filaments
- 68k input resistor.
- 220 ohm resistor from Vs to transformer tap point (as in sag circuits)

Here is the correct scheme:
http://www.muzique.com/news/images/Epi1.gif  Thanks to Jack Orman!

Hint: lugs 1 and 2 of the master volume pot shouldn't be linked. Just use a normal volume wiring.

yeah i think its for the combo
and the master vol seemed to work for him, so i dont see why it matters