Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

General Tech Discussion - Anything amp-ish goes!

Moderators: CurtissRobin, colossal, zaphod_phil, Daviedawg, Graydon

User avatar
colossal
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 450
Joined: Thu 05/10/07 2:00 am
Location: Moving through Kashmir

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by colossal »

Daviedawg wrote:
Wed 03/09/22 3:50 am
" I found SEwatt thru some more research and also found a member there that has a schematic for his Wild_Thang mod."

Several years ago I built the Wild Thang from scratch based on that thread on SEWatt. It is still here, is used irregularly and is great for home recording. But since it is a "spare" amp it is also useful as a tool for practical learning about mods to the preamp. That may be because it is a single knob circuit with very few losses. Mine has a 6X4 rectifier and 6AQ5 power valve but the EL84 is just as good for this design.

Dd
How did you like that amp, Dd? My understanding of it was that it was chasing a Billy Gibbons-esque sound.
0 x

Daviedawg
Superior Amp Tech
Superior Amp Tech
Posts: 748
Joined: Fri 01/08/10 2:00 am
Location: Scotland

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by Daviedawg »

It can provide that sort of sound but at a volume appropriate to the output valve you are using. I use it for recording at home. But it would never be my only amp. if you try you can get very nice smooth sustained distortion with a Tubescreamer. But why try with an 18 watt sitting beside it?

Dd
1 x

User avatar
spider
Unrated
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu 10/30/08 2:00 am
Location: Unknown

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by spider »

Daviedawg- thanks for that info. Can you tell me how much tonal difference there is between Wild Thang and Pat's mods? I am dying to mod mine to Wild Thang as I remember hearing it was well designed and I believe they said you couldn't get it any better sounding than what they did for that particular amp.

Pat's tone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZRveNnv0L4
0 x

Daviedawg
Superior Amp Tech
Superior Amp Tech
Posts: 748
Joined: Fri 01/08/10 2:00 am
Location: Scotland

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by Daviedawg »

Did not see if Pat says but I assume that is an EL84. The first thing I say is that comparisons of similar amps where one is live in your room and one over the internet can be deceptive. Also it depends on what guitar you are playing.
But it seems that the Wild Thang is louder, noticeably, and the tone looked for is at a higher volume setting. Mine is in a combo in a small Fender cab with a 10" 30 watt high efficiency speaker. A 10/10 will give an earlier break up and less volume. Not sure what is in the VJr. So there are other variables too.
All I can say is that they sound similar and you will get that sort of response from it but maybe after some effort.

Dd

Edit. That made me dig it out. Most of what I say above is sound. But at risk of annoying next door's enormous dog I turned it up bit by bit. As soon as it gets too loud for home use it sounds very close to what I am hearing on the video. If you want that and stay friends with dog and spouse you will need maybe a treble boost of some kind. Or maybe a very low efficiency speaker. Dd

Edit again. With the 6AQ5 it has a very nice clean tone. Dd
1 x

User avatar
zaphod_phil
Builder, Admin
Builder, Admin
Posts: 15208
Joined: Wed 03/19/03 2:00 am
Location: YYZ

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by zaphod_phil »

colossal wrote:
Thu 03/10/22 6:09 pm

" I found SEwatt thru some more research and also found a member there that has a schematic for his Wild_Thang mod."
Daviedawg wrote:
Wed 03/09/22 3:50 am
Do you have the URL for the schematic of this mod? I haven't managed to find it on sewatt.com :?

Several years ago I built the Wild Thang from scratch based on that thread on SEWatt. It is still here, is used irregularly and is great for home recording. But since it is a "spare" amp it is also useful as a tool for practical learning about mods to the preamp. That may be because it is a single knob circuit with very few losses. Mine has a 6X4 rectifier and 6AQ5 power valve but the EL84 is just as good for this design.

Dd
How did you like that amp, Dd? My understanding of it was that it was chasing a Billy Gibbons-esque sound.
0 x
Nature abhors a clean tube amp

User avatar
spider
Unrated
Posts: 13
Joined: Thu 10/30/08 2:00 am
Location: Unknown

Re: Clone Kit Am I asking for to much?

Post by spider »

Dd, thank you so much for the great detailed info on it and checking your amp out again. I was very excited about doing this mod and was having a hard time choosing which to do. I think I will try pat's first as lower volume is key for home use. Maybe after I actually complete that I will have more confidence in trying the Wild Thang mod.

Again much appreciated for the information. It has greatly helped me decide which way I need to go now. Thank you!
0 x

Post Reply