tiny tube amp?

[Stevie Nazarenie]

i'm looking at getting a 5 watt tube amp. i was hoping for something with a headphone socket and a line out. i know these are hard to come by. i see the harley benton ga15 has these but it's a 15 watt and i would have to mod it to uk voltages. i don't want to spend too much over £120 so i't been hard work looking.

 

i like some of the epi amps but i don't see a headphone sockets on any of them?

there are some others in this camp like the bugera v5 or like the peavey nano that is cheap enough not to care about these other bits. (£59.) but anyone have any others to add to this list?

[brianh]

You could buy a used VJr or similar and build a simple speaker to headphone level stepdown circuit: http://sound.westhost.com/project100.htm

[ataylor]

Vox Pathfinder 15R.

 

It's not a tube amp, but it sure sounds like one. Warm yummy Vox goodness.

 

Can't beat the price. It's worth three times what you'll pay for it.

 

Sounds great at low volumes and it can hold its own in practices or small gigs.

 

I'm almost positive it has both a headphone and line out. I don't use mine but I'm sure they're there.

 

The onboard vibrato is great and the reverb is quite nice as well. Has a footswitchable gain boost as well if you like that.

 

Give it a try, I bet you'll be surprised.

[carverman]

You could buy a used VJr or similar and build a simple speaker to headphone level stepdown circuit:

 

 

Yes, but that circuit also disengages the main speaker..and that is the "rub" as they

say. Most headphones are 1K to 2k in impedance, so they don't need much to drive

them. A speaker output may be enough..but without a load on the final stage (especially)

a tube stage the output transformer may get fried.

 

That's probably the main reason why there aren't too many amps with headphone

circuits...because of reliabilty. You would need a good quality switch and a big

honking load resistor to replicate the speaker, ( if you are going after the output of final stage)

and then some kind of voltage divider (as shown) for the headset.

[deflepfan]

That's probably the main reason why there aren't too many amps with headphone

circuits...because of reliabilty.

Is this statement mainly pertaining to tube amps? Learning lessons here!

Sheila

[peeper]

Is this statement mainly pertaining to tube amps? Learning lessons here!

Sheila

yes

[deflepfan]

yes

Thank you.

Sheila

[AS90]

I have the Harley Benton GA5H which is a great little 5w amp. Dont worry about the voltage, it works fine.

[TWANG]

I had a headphone plan for a vj but I lost it when my pc crashed.

I'll try to dig it up.

I use a micro cube for headphones, no lugging the amp around, battery operated.

 

I know you'd like it all, but sometimes.. all is too many compromises or not price happy.

 

You have to set it up for a certain impedance, and then use those phones only.. as I recall.. and then you have to

rewire the phones for mono.

 

All in all, a good used multi effect would be smarter sound better last longer and do more.

pick up a digitech rp50 used on ebay..

grab yourself a well modified valve junior and you'll have great tone and handiness.

[bonzoboy]

I give the Vox Pathfinder 15R a vote too.It has a very tube-like warmth for a solid state amp and also has a real funky tremelo you can almost get the Johnny Marr sound he got on the Smiths How Soon is Now.It also has a boost circuit that gives a snarly overdrive sound but it sounds sweet clean too.The headphone input is 1/4 inch so if you use 1/8 inch phones you'll have to get an adapter.I paid only $135 Cdn. for mine.

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[AlanH]

I use a Peavey Royal 8 Valve King 5W amp and recommend it highly for its tone.

 

It has a gain knob, a master volume, a tone knob, high and low gain inputs and the headphone socket you're after.

 

People have made various mods to these amps which you can find out about on the web.

 

Anyway, here's a link to a video I recently made comparing stock Epi pickups to Seymour Duncans in my LP. I used my valve king for all but the metal clips:

 

 

 

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

 

 

For a better demo of the amp itself with much better playing than my own check out these videos:

 

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEu0NzSZ7RE[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

 

 

and

 

[YOUTUBE]

[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

 

Alan

[bluser12]

I have a Bugera V5. Its a 5W amp with a power attenuator switch that can be set for 5W, 1W or 0.1W. I use the 5W setting when I am alone and the 0.1W late at night when everyone is asleep. It has 4 controls-Gain, Tone, Volume, and Reverb. It has a jack for headphones and the 8" speaker can be unplugged so you can plug into an external speaker cab. Go to the Bugera site for more info. I got mine at Guitar Center for $129.00. I play a Sheraton II and I found that if I set the volume at about 5 and control how loud it gets with my guitar volume controls I get a much cleaner sound. I hope this gives you an option to look at. I never recommend equipment, I just know what sounds good to me. The best thing to do is go out and try some at your local music store

[AlanH]

Just thought about this Peavey Windsor Studio 15W. It has an attenuator to lower volumes and an XLR direct output. If you have a recording device I'm sure you could plug the amp in to that and then use headphones in the device.

 

 

http://www.peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/116598/Windsor%20Studio.cfm

 

Click on the video demos on the above link (especially the overview).

 

Alan

[Strumbone]

Is this statement mainly pertaining to tube amps? Learning lessons here!

Sheila

 

Sheila, tube amps have two large expensive transformers. One is for power - steps up 120 to over 300 to provide B+ voltages after rectification. The other is the output transformer which couples the output vacuum tube to the speakers, usually with 4, 8, and 16 ohm taps. These two transformers alone (for my homebrew amp) were over $80, and if wired improperly, will cause permanent damage...$$$. That's why you have to be careful with loads.

[Stevie Nazarenie]

thanks fort he suggestions guys. i have been checking them out on youtube.

 

on my travels i've come across this though:

 

http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/tube-mp-studio-v3/67190

 

has anyone have any experience of these? it has one tube: "a hand-selected 12AX7a Tube"

[Stevie Nazarenie]

yeah the idea is to add some warmth to my podxts models. i find the plexi tone pretty great. i really don't know how much better it can get but i'll gonna try it, as others say how much tubes add. (i like lots of the other models too.) i can use something like this for quiet recording direct downstairs. i would not need the headphone or line out and also go for something cheaper like a peavey nano or a secondhand epi for upstairs jamming. i knda wanna know if i'd be missing anything tone wise from only having the one tube, the 12AX7a?

[SamBooka]

I saw a couple in a discussion in the tele forums. I dont remember what so I will have to search. Usually the headphone jack switches the load from being a speaker to 10W resistor. The output to the headphones is actually always on, the switch in the jack just switches the load.

[carverman]

Sheila' date=' tube amps have two large expensive transformers. One is for power - steps up 120 to over 300 to provide B+ voltages after rectification. The other is the output transformer which couples the output vacuum tube to the speakers, usually with 4, 8, and 16 ohm taps. These two transformers alone (for my homebrew amp) were over $80, and if wired improperly, will cause permanent damage...$$$. That's why you have to be careful with loads.[/quote']

 

 

Absolutely! Like I mentioned in my previous post..adding an earphone plug is easy..it's

figuring how to dissipate the power in output transformer..even on a tiny 5watt tube

amp. From my tube theory (from the 60s), the power transferred in a transformer

from the power amp stage has to go "somewhere"..some of the power is dissapated

as heat in the plate of the power stage and the transformer itself...however..if you

leave the secondary of a transformer without a load...the "back emf and reflected rms

power not dissapated in the speaker coil..will eventually cause hot spots and burn

out the output transformer secondary winding. It might take a while..faster on

high power amps and maybe longer on low power..but it will happen at some

point..then you are faced with very expensive repair bill..in the hundreds possibly!

 

Here's an analogy..think of a output transformer like a car engine..rev it up constantly

at road speeds and it will last thousands of miles...but..keep it revving at high rpm

without the driving wheels acting as a load on the engine..and it could fly apart in a short time.

 

The only way to do the headset mod reliably is to use a load resistor of sufficient wattage

to substitute the speaker..or idle the power stage by removing the signal drive from it..

or the plate voltage etc. There are several possible schemes to do this as a headphone

doesn't require any power to drive it.

[carverman]

I saw a couple in a discussion in the tele forums. I dont remember what so I will have to search. Usually the headphone jack switches the load from being a speaker to 10W resistor. The output to the headphones is actually always on' date=' the switch in the jack just switches the load.[/quote']

 

Yes, this is probably the best way to do it.

 

A 10w wire wound resistor will handle at least 10 watts of RMS power..and maybe more.

as long as it's mounted on a standoff, because it could run warm...even if you are just

strumming the guitar occassionly.

 

The understanding here is that you are not going to crank up the

volume as much with headphones on...if you do then you might need a L-pad or

a T-pad. (balanced speaker power attenuator control) across the voltage divider resistor..

 

...or risk some possible hearing damage.

[alfsboy]

Perhaps one of the Blackstar HT5 options ,head or combo ,would fit the bill ,MIK designed by ex Marshall designers .I have one and its great.It has a choice of speaker outputs and an a speaker emulated head phone socket ,plus a FX loop .The range of sounds is very good thanks to the ISP control which goes from US style amps to british .It actually works though you have to sort out the sound you want as it doesnt select an amp make .I run through a Eminence 105 10' and a 4x12 cab which is just awsome .It has an overdrive channel on a foot witch and a master switch..I love it and its real quality bit of kit .