Opinions on this modded bluesbreaker RI

[GeetarGoul]

I've been considering one of these for a few months and this one came up for sale. I thought it looked pretty good and the price seemed fair. Please offer your unsolicited opinions. The seller has 100% feedback and seems really cool.

How does the work look? Can you tell who may have done the work? Any suggestions on other changes? I hope I can get KT-66's in there.

Gracias!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7328185625&indexURL=3#ebayphotohosting

 

[John Phillips]

This

is not OK at all. It doesn't look dangerous (it's in the tremolo circuit, which is fairly low voltage at this point) but it's very bad practice. The rest of the workmanship looks 'OK', but no better. It's not really likely to cause trouble, it's just not done to the sort of standard that makes doing that sort of major work worthwhile... IMO. But the most critical parts (the power supply section) aren't visible in the pic, and I'd want to make sure there isn't anything else like that in there.

Just my opinion, but I don't really see the point in stripping out a pretty well-made PCB and replacing it with a bit of a DIY turret-board job. The wiring layout is pretty haphazard too.

Perhaps I'm being a little harsh, I don't know. I just wouldn't really be happy knowing it was like that inside.


It's hard to tell from the pic if it's the deeper cab or not - you need it if you want to put full-size KT66s in.

 

[GeetarGoul]

John- Can you elaborate a bit on the problem you see? i'm a tech novice at best. The wires do look at bit messy but if they're going to right places and are soldered well I can live with it.

Are those pink square caps any good?

 

[sws1]

Looks sloppy to me.

Oh - and I do care how the wires are routed (not just where they are connected), since they can cause squeal.

 

[908SSP]

You won't be able to get the KT66 in that cab it is the early narrow cab...........sorry. The later cabs are an inch deeper so that KT66 will fit and it is still tight.

 

[John Phillips]

Originally posted by GeetarGoul
John- Can you elaborate a bit on the problem you see?

Yes - components must be secured properly, ie connected to rigid parts of the amp (turret boards, tag strips or fixed components such as chassis-mounted pots), not left floating around (or tacked down using glue, which that isn't even) and with wires just soldered to their leads. That cap seems to be partly held by the orange wire that goes to it being tied around the ground wire, and at the other end it's just soldered to the little resistor.

Stuff like this can vibrate around and break the connections, which can then short out against other things. It's just bad assembly practice and not acceptable in a properly-built amp. If this sort of thing is done in the power supply area it could even be dangerous, which is why I'd want to see that.

The work on the turret board itself isn't the best either - it's not really bad, but it's just a tiny bit careless; hard to explain exactly, but if you've seen enough 'right' ones you'll know why this one isn't quite. It makes no real difference if the component leads are straight or not, but it just doesn't show good workmanship and makes you wonder about the skill level of the assembler - and with the wiring layout, it can cause problems as sws1 says.

A lot could be done to tidy it up, but it's a bit of a chore unless someone else is paying you to do it...

 

[claptonisgood]

everything John said is right...it is not a pro looking conversion...what i saw first was the sloppy lead dress, and, particularly, the sloppy ground bus on the pots...the amp might work and sound just fine, but, i like to know that besides the shiny wax job, things are clean under the hood as well...

 

[GeetarGoul]

I wish one of you guys lived closer than a couple of thousand miles away. I'm gonna run the thing for awhile with my band and then start exploring some "tweeks."

Also, if the KT's don't fit I won't be bummed as I want to eventually take a stab at building a kit JTM-45 smallbox head from Graydon Stuckey. And it's not like El-34's are some kind of "schwagg" tube.

 

[peacock72]

You can use Groove Tubes KT66HP's or Tung Sol KT66's. Both are shorter than the Valve Arts or original KT66's. If you prefer NOS or Valve Arts, it's just a matter of using longer screws and a couple of washers to extend the depth.

 

[QuickDraw]

"schwagg" tube

hehe. btw im working on an amp with a few schwagg tubes in it but i think the sound will end up kind.

the wiring job doesnt look too bad to me other than that one cap and the ground bus (not a deal breaker for me but i'm not paying a tech either) but i cant see the whole thing and it's hard to tell how the board is wired up (how the parts are connected to the turrets). Good Luck mang!

 

[TAVD]

A few more loops in those wires and you'll be able to play along with the radio.

 

[n8b]

That looks pretty sloppy for a tech-done job, not the worst I've seen, but it could be tidier. The heater wire looks a little thin, but it could be the pic. The ground buss really scares me. I'm not familiar with the BB chassis, but is that can cap supposed to be underneath the board like that?

Nate
Bümbox Custom Audio

 

[John Phillips]

Originally posted by n8b
I'm not familiar with the BB chassis, but is that can cap supposed to be underneath the board like that?

Yes, and it's every tech's pet hate with Marshalls! It's a complete pain to change - you have to get the board up, and they don't usually leave enough length of wire to get at it without undoing all the pots and jacks so you can lift that side of the board up completely. So much for PTP amps being easier to work on than PCB...

 

[QuickDraw]

why cant you just clip the leads
take old cap out
solder new leads to the new cap
put new cap in
solder new leads to correct connections

seems easier but i have not worked on this particular type before, so i may be completely off on this one

but i dont like it when there's stuff under the board

just looked closer at that board, carbon comps... yuck!(personal taste stepping in here) all of those should be replaced in my opinion. mojo be damned

 

[John Phillips]

Originally posted by QuickDraw
why cant you just clip the leads
take old cap out
solder new leads to the new cap
put new cap in
solder new leads to correct connections

Because on those Marshalls the wires from the cap go to the underside of the turret board. Try soldering those back in without lifting the whole thing...

It's actually easier to do the job properly by lifting the board and undoing the wires from the cap - you can loosen the clamp and pull the cap up into the chassis to give a bit more slack.

FWIW, I never clip leads either - it's bad practice, you should remove the old wire cleanly by unsoldering it, not leave little bits connected to the terminals. Just my opinion.

 

[QuickDraw]

btw i dont leave the wires just hangin.

that's totally weird! why would you have one of the major serviceable parts in a crappy location with a connection on the underside of the board? (i dont have any connections on the undersides of my boards, that seems like bad practice to me) once the board is in there i dont want to move it for anything if i can help it, yuck!

 

[John Phillips]

I totally agree, but that's the way they are!

I think the physical layout of these amps is not ideal in several ways. The power tube sockets are too close under the jacks (or fuseholder, depending on model) too. It's probably because the design evolved slowly.

 

[QuickDraw]

it's funny cuz in the pics (going from memory here) it appeared that the cap could move about an inch so it wouldnt be under the board as much as it is. oh well, you learn something new every day.