Ok I lied this was not handmade by me. My father-in-law built this for Barry at Ampmaker. It's an early version of the N5X amplifier kit with a few interesting mods/quirks. Let's talk through it.
At its heart it is a diode rectified version of the classic Fender Champ. But wait there's more.
Master volume - so you can get those preamp tubes pumping at low volume
Three Band EQ - Similar stack to a a modern Marshall. Can be bypassed via the front switch for extra gain
Boost Switch - three way switch adds different value capacitors to the cathode bypass resistors. Gives a little boost in gain
Power - This is the Ampmaker VVR (Variable Voltage Resistance) curcuit. A little mosfet that can starve the power power supply of the amp and make it break up at lower volumes.
6V6/EL84 Switch. That's right you can switch between a British style EL84 power tube or and American style 6v6. This baby has two in them!
A few extra things to mention.
This has an oversized toroidal power transformer (Carnhill I think). It's not something you see on valve amps and its design keeps the amp nice and quiet and a little lighter in weight than an equally spec'd traditional transformer.
Oh and the other thing, it's all point to point hand wired goodness! amazing stuff at this price point. If you're really interested, send me a message and I'll post some gutshots. The chassis without the wooden enclosure is 19" wide so you could rack mount this if your'e a psycho. The wooden enclosure is solid but not the prettiest thing in the world. I've seen worse tolex jobs and I've also seen better. The front panel carpeting is almost definitely an old tweed jacket.
I've found a video of another one built with the same toroidal transformer for your consideration. These things sound amazing. If you're interested in building your own please visit the ampmaker site and order yourself a kit!
If you want to have a go on it we are based in Cambridge. I'll throw in a small discount for anyone interested in local pickup.
