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The Truth About Vintage Amps with Skip Simmons


Mar 2, 2020

Amp tech Skip Simmons is once again fielding guitar tube amp questions from around the world. 

Submit your question to Skip here: podcast@fretboardjournal.com or, better yet, leave us a voicemail or text at 509-557-0848.

This week's sponsor: Grez Guitars (link)

Some of the topics discussed on this episode:

3:34 Skip goes to see Temple Grandin
10:20 A Facebook group for the TAVA Podcast?
10:48 Manbroidery’s Two Prong Hat update
11:16 This week’s sponsor: Grez Guitars
12:57 A noisy reverb thanks to vintage tubes
15:55 Cooking (on amps) with Billy Cowsill; a hot Flotatone
21:41 Using DC voltage to heat tubes for quieter operation (the 2020 Soldano SLO-100, Otis amps, other examples)
26:58 Using an amp as a pedal platform (tube vs solid state)
32:39 A successful 5F1 copy and liability concerns when selling boutique tube amps
38:42 Why can’t they fit reverb into a Fender Vibro Champ?
41:51 Evolution of the Fender Deluxe Reverb reissues
45:15 Power for an outboard EQ section DIY project
48:28 A new DIY project: Changing the power transformer of a Fender Twin Reverb and modifying it for 6V6s to reduce weight
52:17 What to do with a non-working Gibson Hawk?
55:09 Why do tube amps sound better after a few hours of use?
58:59 Correct fuse for a 1973 Fender Champ
1:02:21 Replacement speakers in a vintage Gibson Skylark
1:06:18 Where to grab a chassis before removing it?
1:08:08 Laurens Hammond vs Donald Leslie
1:12:00 Tips on speaker cabinet construction
1:15:26 Discrepancies in the Angela SSE schematic
1:23:06 Listener Nate's favorite hot & sour soup recipe (link)
1:23:36 A failing 5Y3 rectifier at a gig
1:28:51 Troubleshooting a weak channel on a 5D3 Tweed Deluxe
1:35:07 Coffee from Mechanicsburg, Ohio (Hemisphere’s Redline Roast, link)