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I purchased a 5E3 Tweed Deluxe amp kit from Marsh Amplification. Mike Marsh puts together a package of high quality components, supports his customers until the amp is complete, and does it all at a good price. His chosen combination of components, Mojo transformers, JJ and Sovtek tubes, Weber speaker, make for a fantastic sounding amp.
I had never heard one of these amps before, so when I powered up my kit and plugged in I was stunned! Although these guys are usually rated at 15W, it is much bigger sounding and louder than I expected. Side by side, it is louder than my already loud 22W Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue, and it hangs with my 40W '65 Bandmaster with two 12s. The normal channel is fat and smooth, and is currently my favorite with a Strat. The bright channel is snappy, clear, and jangly, and also sounds pretty darn good with a Strat. The tone control yields a wide range of sounds for both channels. Jumpering the channels gives up a whole new range of tone. The output of the two channels add together so more gain is on tap, and the two channels volumes can be adjusted for just the right combination of smooth and bite. This baby has fantastic tone and if you have never played a good 5E3 before you owe it yourself to try one.
Building a Tweed style amp isn't just about soldering components to a board. To me, the challenges were mechanical: drilling holes in the chassis for the ground connection, and working in the very confined space of the chassis. Mike's instructions, although brief, give good advice in these areas, and others, such as grounding technique and construction sequence. His comments helped me solve problems that otherwise would of stumped me. Also, he answered my emails promptly and let me know that I had somewhere to turn in the event of a problem. After working through this kit, I feel that I am up to the task of completing more complicated designs.
Rating:  [5 of 5 Stars!] |
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