Sound Garage Tales

My Weller WTCPT Soldering Station

Gabi — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:44:27 +0000

Weller WTCPT Soldering Station

Many of you asked me about what soldering station am I using for my amps, so I thought of posting the info and a short review, and hopefully spare you from spending cash on cheap ones (as I did).

As one who went through a couple of cheap ones that had a inviting price but with unstable temperatures, waiting for them to heat up for ages, I narrowed down my search to the Weller WTCPT 120 Volt 60 Watt Temperature Controlled Soldering Station.

Here’s Why

For one, the Weller WTCPT has a stable temperature controlled by its own patented close loop method, meaning that you’ll have a constant soldering tip temperature all throughout your soldering session regardless of the joint type. This is critical to form nice and sturdy solder joint on any connections, even on the potentiometer’s body where the heat dissipation is higher due to the greater metallic mass.
But also the Weller does an outstanding job on small, delicate PCB boards, where a more focused attention, with a smaller size soldering tip.
You probably observed that there are no temperature control adjustment knobs on the unit. This is because the ferromagnetic temperature sensor in the handle, works together with the type of tip you are using to control the final temperature, so no external adjustments are needed.

Tip Types
Of the many PT series soldering tips for the Weller WTCPT soldering station available, I am using several types depending on the type of work I am doing.

The one tip I use often across many types of connections – like board turrets joints, tube sockets, and even the ground buss bar soldered on the potentiometers (see the amp building videos) is the PTA7 tip that works at a constant 700F degrees. It is actually being shipped with the Weller WTCPT.

Here’s a chart with all the 700F degrees PT tips you can find as a replacement for the Weller WTCPT. I didn’t try all of them but looks like they can cover all the soldering needs in your life!

PT Series Tip Chart

Weller PTA7 Screwdriver Tip

The PTA7 soldering tip has a simple flat screw driver type shape of 1/16″ size (the A size in the image). Makes it great for a variety of uses as I mentioned in my amps. This one is by far the work horse tip for me. And average of two seconds for a turret joint.

PTP7 Tip

The Weller PTP7 on the other hand, has a conical 1/32″ tip and makes it ideal for more delicate uses like PCB soldering on your guitar pedal kits or the like. It takes me an average of say one second per solder joint.

Weller PTM 1/8" screwdriver tip

If you need to go heavy duty for applications like stained glass or alike where you need enough power and contact surface to get things melted fast, I recommend the PTM7 1/8″ long screwdriver tip. That thing melts the world apart.

1/16" dia Kester Solder Wire (Sn63/Pb37)

Solder Wire

I am sticking with the 700F degrees tips (That’s the ‘7′ in the part numbers) because of the type of solder I am using, the 44 RA Solder Wire, .062 (Sn63/Pb37 that has a lower melting point) which forms a great bond and it is thick enough (1/16″ diameter) to have a slow feed (the thinner ones will go fast as you need to feed them faster while they melt).

So, think twice when you want to buy a cheap soldering iron for your guitar amp projects. Don’t do like I did, wasting cash on soldering stations that went kaput after one month, or varied in temperature like the weather, or was impossible to find replacement parts.

The Weller WTCPT is a winner. No wonder some have it for the last 30 years and still going strong!

Gabtone Live TV Resumes

Gabi — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:42:33 +0000

Live Gabtone Shop Cam

Short one here folks, to announce that the live Gabtone TV Shop Cam will resume in work days afternoons (usually at around 4:00 pm CST) for those of you curious on tube guitar amp building.

I don’t promise it will be a two way communication (as I need to concentrate at what I’m building) but I’ll read the chat from time to time just in case you have questions about what in the world I am doing!

Enjoy!

The Loopy Effect Loop

Gabi — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:12:27 +0000

A common question I am being asked frequently is if my amps have an FX loop. The answer is a BIG NO. Here is why…

Guitar pedal board routing

Long Live FX Loops (but not in my amps)!

Honestly, I have nothing against effect loops. They have their role in certain high gain amps and do what’s needed to be done greatly: tapping into the preamp output signal, and making it available (via a tube or a solid state buffer to level out any possible impedance mismatches) to external FX processors then returning it in the amp’s power stage.

But if I graft a typical active FX loop as we know it, (and believe me, I tried it) in any of my Low-Gain Gabriel V18 or V33, the tone morphs into something way far from the typical character and dynamics, with a noticeable gain loss that results in a wimpy sound, something that is the last thing on my menu.

High Gain vs Low Gain Amps

Leaving all “class-talk” behind, there are generally two kind of guitar amps on the market today:

High Gain amps, where the signal gets over driven in the preamp, then served further to the power section that does little more than just amplify it. So in a high-gain amp, the majority of the tone characteristics are typically shaped in the preamp.
Here, the effect loop makes great sense since the signal sent to the effect processors has already an identity without loosing anything of its original character.

Low Gain amps where the tone is not saturated in the preamp section (the signal is quite clean at the preamp output) but rather by the power tubes when driven at higher volume levels. This results in a very characteristic overdrive shape distinct to these kind of amps. The Gabriel amps fit in this category.

Now, besides the fact that grafting a buffered effect loop into my low gain Gabriel V18 or V33 might come close to a blasphemy punishable by being burned at the stake, it would make no sense since the clean preamp signal still needs to receive its character and overdrive from the power tubes and an effected preamp output signal will alter the final character of the tone, robbing it of its precious gain and dynamics that’s so needed for the power tubes to do their magic.

The Workaround

As I often mention, the 18 watt Forum is a wealth of information with a lot of folks who are willing share their guitar amp building tips and wisdom. And that’s how I found out about this cool way of wiring your Gabriel V18 or V33 (or 18 watt amp for that matter) so it can simulate a wet/dry scenario of an FX Loop. In fact it is more than a simulation – it is a real effect routing with separate control on the dry and wet signal.

Simply, go with your guitar in the BRIGHT channel, then with another guitar cord, patch in the parallel jack of that same BRIGHT channel (this is your FX Send) and plug it into your FX chain input. The output of your guitar pedal board (FX Return) will go into the NORMAL channel input (I like to use the lower input jack).

This way you control your dry signal with the BRIGHT channel and the wet signal with your NORMAL channel. Simple as that! Diagrams below to help explain:

Pseudo FX Loop Diagram

Now, you can get creative here. You can group your pedals per channel having even more control over the levels.

For instance you can have all your overdrive pedals right in front of your amp going into the BRIGHT channel and have all modulation pedals placed in the FX Loop, going into the NORMAL channel.

This way you have independent control (on the NORMAL channel) over the amount of modulated signal from your modulation pedals grouped within the FX Loop. The guitar signal going into the modulation pedal group FX Loop will already be ‘effected’ by the overdrive pedal group you have going into the BRIGHT channel – but in this routing you control your balance between the over driven and modulated tone. Diagram below that explains what I mean:

FX Loop 2

Yes, the two channels are out of phase on my amps. So if you would patch the two channels directly with a cable, the tone will sound boxy. But when there’s a pedal chain on its path, it really doesn’t matter since the tone is already processed and you cannot perceive the out of phase coloration.

Here’s a detail of the amp channel connection:

It is a very simple setup that literally gives you the same options that an FX Loop would offer but without compromising the tone, or any of the internal circuitry, and having the full rich tone of the overdriven power tubes.

Meeting Vernon Reid of LIVING COLOUR

Gabi — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:46:26 +0000

This past weekend I had the honor of meeting, hang out with Vernon Reid and witness the best show I ever saw in my life with LIVING COLOUR at the Double Door in Chicago. Also introduced him to my Gabriel V33 1×12″ Combo he absolutely LOVED! He is a master of high gain amps but very interested in alternatives for guitar tones and found the V33 a versatile guitar amp.

John Stamos, Vernon Reid and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (photo's courtesy of Earl Douglas)

A Musical Genius

Vernon is the LIVING COLOUR founder, bandleader, co-founder of the Black Rock Coalition, and an incredible guitarist and songwriter, that had greatly influenced the National and International rock scene. Just recently he was awarded NYC’s 2009 Mayor’s Awards for Arts & Culture presented by New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. He is working on multiple projects which he details in his interview with Fret 12.

Very Approachable

I was surprised to see how approachable Vernon is! He doesn’t have an aura of an artist yet he is a musical genius. Being in the guitar amp business I get to meet a lot of artists and it’s just interesting to see how some have a don’t-touch-me-I’m-a-rock-star attitude (even if they honestly suck in their creativity), and some like Vernon even if they are influencing whole a world with their musical artistry, are humble, simple and just like any others from the crowd.

It is something to ponder.

The Chair In The Doorway

I always heard that LIVING COLOUR show is a must-seen one, but I got to experience it on my goose-bumped skin. I was speechless, and still am.

They are touring with their newly released 5th album The Chair In The Doorway, but also had a ton of older songs from their previous albums. Each band member is an outstanding musician by themselves, but also when they come together as a band they simply bring down the house.

Considering Will Calhoun’s mind-blowing drum solo (10 min or so), an incredible virtuoso bass performance from Doug Wimbish, the stunning vocal abilities of Corey Glover and last but not least the innovative master of all guitars and sound morphing, Mr. Vernon Reid, the LIVING COLOUR show delivered something really hard to equal these days.

The show cannot be described – IT MUST BE SEEN!

The Tele Project: The Korina Wood Guitar Body

Gabi — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:30:17 +0000

A new (or maybe old?) project that’s been simmering on my back burner was the building of a Telecaster given the fact that I’ve had these two beautiful planks of exotic African Koruna wood for a while now from my good friend Mark Boehm (thanks Mark!).

Finally got a sweet deal from Nick Greer from Greer Amps (cost me the other plank) who did the laser cutting of the body and all the cavities. I have to say that I am very impressed with the work, and cut quality! Thanks Nick!

You might recall (if you had the privilege to live in that era), that Gibson had a run of the legendary 1958 Explorer and Flying V, now being among the most coveted guitars. There were only 200 guitars made of each model at that time. Today, if you have the luck of at least seeing a Gibson Korina Flying V or a Korina Explorer Flying V guitar for sale, then sell your possessions and house, and get deep in debt. Who cares if you become homeless with one of these guitars in possession! They might run between the ridiculous $300,000-$600,000.

50th Anniversary Korina Flying V photo: www.Gibson.com

Gibson Explorer photo: www.Gibson.com

Oh well. I guess I’ll stick with my home-made Korina Telecaster guitar. Don’t you think so? At least I’ll keep the roof over my head.

Luthiers are not happy to work with this wood despite its beautiful grain. The African exotic Korina wood (also known as Limba wood) splits very easily in the early stages of processing because of the fast water drainage. Plus it is very hard to get a hold of it and sometimes has stains because of fungus desease. My plank here looks kosher for a Telecaster body that when finished can rival the most coveted Teles.

But with all that downside, a Korina wood body ads a much brighter and sweeter character to the guitar tone and that’s why I decided that a Tele would be the right impersonation. Luthiers call it “mahogany deluxe” since it looks very close to regular mahogany – although lighter in weight.

Next step would be choosing the right neck, and finish. I will go for the natural look – no stain whatsoever. Something close to this:

Korina Wood Telecaster Body

Not sure about the pick-guard. Stay tuned.

Gabriel Amps Clothing Line

Gabi — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:16:10 +0000

I’ve been asked numerous times about when will I make those Gabriel Ts available again. The task was always on my list but never got to it.

So finally here it is! The Gabriel Amps Clothing Line, a fashionable, wide variety of apparel in various styles, colors and sizes! Take your pick!

Gabriel T

From T-Shirts to coffee mugs and beyond am working on a couple more Gabriel products so check back regularly because I will be making these available as I finish them.

Show off that you are an owner (or a fan) of one of the finest hand-wired guitar amps on the market!

create & buy custom products at Zazzle

The Magic Eye Wink

Gabi — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 17:53:58 +0000

I couldn’t control myself. After seeing these cool demos of the Magick Eye tube, (a tube commonly used as a tuning indicator in old radios) I had to try them out in my amps. So I plopped together a quick video to see the dramatic and cool visual effect. I will probably tweak some values but overall I am very happy with the visual effect.

The circuit is nothing complicated. All you need is one of the many Magick Eye tubes existent out there, with many different beam patterns, that might need a slightly different pin-out connection, but all of them work in a main common way – it taps in the path of the signal level of roughly 10 to 25 Volts (depends on the type of tube used), and a high DC voltage of something between 200 to 250 (B+).

I used a Russian EM80/6BR5 I scored off Ebay. The EM80 tube has a “U” shaped fluorescent target and two rods connected to the anode, producing two angled shadows on the edge triggered by the control voltage (input signal).

The schematic I used is the one below, posted by Michael on the 18watt site.

I tapped the control voltage (signal) off one of the plates of the EL 84 tubes, and got the high voltage of about 250v off one of the filter caps.

Check this video out of how cool this can be!

Make Your Own Guitar Pedal Coupler Cables

Gabi — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 15:31:44 +0000

The greatest space-eater on guitar pedal boards are the connection jacks.
Just take a look at your pedal board and imagine how much space you can free up if you can neatly align them next to each other as close as possible.

That’s exactly what I did with my guitar pedal board specially after purchasing the Pedaltrain Junior frame that’s quite small, so I had to rethink what pedal I REALLY need and need not. I like to travel light.

I know, this has been on my bench for months, and I finally got it out of the way. Sorry about the wait, hope it will pay back. I had numerous requests as a result of the video I made about my Pedaltrain Junior pedal board, about the guitar effect inter-connect cables I am using there. I came to the conclusion that the simplest thing is to shoot another video about this and hopefully be of some help for you.

Of course one can always buy the interconnect cables directly from a manufacturer like this Hosa CFS107 6-Inch Jumper Cable for Pedal Effects (Metal Type) but if you want your own custom length to route your guitar signal, it really comes down to make your own. And to be honest it is simple! There are a couple things to consider.

Soldering Skillz

Really the only main skill you need here is to know how to make a good solder joint. There are TONS of videos, infos out there on how to do this so I won’t elaborate other than to hone your soldering skills on some scrap PC boards, connectors, etc. This video I found might be of help:

It is of great use to have in the house some sort of soldering iron. Doesn’t have to be fancy, just something powerful enough (40w or so) that can make a good quality solder joint. I found this Trisonic Best Quality 8 1/2 to be of great use.

What You Need

Here are a couple sources to buy the components to build your own guitar effect pedal inter connect cables:

1. Right Angle 1/4″ Male jacks.
They are the thinnest I found on the market and very reliable. Remember that you do not need a jack that has a strong structure since your pedal interconnects are not pulled in and out like your guitar cable that has continuous strain applied to it. Your plug your pedal inter connect cable to and hopefully forget it there.

2. Mono Shielded Instrument Cable.
Can be found by simply purchasing a cheap regular guitar cable (like this 25 Foot CBI American made Instrument Cable) from where you can simply snip off the length you need.

That’s it! Now sit back and watch this video tutorial:

The Jumpy Mod

Gabi — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 04:46:25 +0000

A dramatic amp mod as well as the simplest in the Epiphone Valve Junior Head Tube Guitar Amplifier is known as the “JP1 Mod”. The name derived from the jumper labeled JP1 on the board.
It basically morphs the tone of the guitar amp from one with no definition, dark, to an instant edgy and more present tone. To my ears things came to life using the Fender Telecaster compared to the raw un-modded amp I had.

And all this without even replacing the tubes that the amp is shipped with (Sovteks). I suggest replacing the tubes, to a JJ (former Tesla) set. From there things get serious. But at least now for the sake of seeing how much a simple mod like the JP1 can boost your Epiphone Valve Junior tone character.

Snip It!

That’s all it comes down to – snipping a jumper. Technically eliminating the C3 (22uF) electrolytic cathode capacitor from the circuit on the second half of the pre-amp tube (12AX7). Simple as that! The amp will start singing – but not in falsetto.
All the tool you need is a simple wire cutter (preferably a flat one). No soldering iron, no soldering skillz, NOTHING! You can do it! If you can clip your nails, you can snip the JP1 labelled jumper on your Epiphone Valve Junior.

Follow the steps in the video and report back with comments on your impressions. Good luck!

Paul Riario and Gabriel V33 Video

Gabi — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 01:36:36 +0000

Paul Riario, did an exceptional video demonstration of the Gabriel V33 guitar amp, that was coupled with the print review that appeared in the Guitar World magazine a while ago (by Terry Buddingh). Paul explains in very easy terms the V33’s features as well as the footswitch functions. Sit back relax and enjoy the video!

It’s worth watching.

Sound Garage Tales

My Weller WTCPT Soldering Station

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