Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

Being a drummer and non-expert on this matter, I have to say that Mike Soldano's take on it makes perfect sense, from a business standpoint and from a quality one. If the methods and materials used are of top quality, a circuit is a circuit. Good tubes, good components, good connections and design make a good amp. The actual type of board used and the hand vs. machine aspect only makes a difference to the bottom line of who's doing the work vs. who's buying the product.

That said, I have the utmost respect for the hand-built amp makers who use the old methods. I'd love to get my hands on a Satellite Atom or a Scarlett amp from KC where I'm from. But, I'll probably have to get a Jet City amp for my money (or lack thereof).
 
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Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

dozens of builders make affordable handwired amps nowadays?

?????

they get mentioned here all the time.

Benzomotikvim needs to post more, always.
 
Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

on the subject of tweed clones alone, lots of threads about lots of builders selling affordable HW'd, not kits but complete amps for under a grand, and for the big mean high-gainers, the first one that comes to mind is Mako. Mako threads with gutshots and prices. A search will reveal many of these threads to which I refer were started by a very talented and handsome individual who values many Peavey products.

Just curious, what year is your Shiva and is it 6L6 or EL34?
 
Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

Just curious, what year is your Shiva and is it 6L6 or EL34?


Newer model, EL34 with reverb. I haven't bothered to find-out what year it was made, but the seller I bought it from on Ebay last April said it was just a couple of years old. It's still dead mint. When I got it, it had ZERO clean headroom. I was a bit miffed and wondered what the deal was. The "cleans" were very fuzzy. They did have that Shiva spank, but not clean at all. So I replaced all the preamp and power tubes with the new ones that Bogner ships them with and all was perfect. I'm kind of wondering if the guy who sold it thought it was a crappy amp, and have always wanted to email him and tell him that a tube replacement and bias job had it sounding like a million bucks (like it should).
 
Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

d1dsj,
I assume that's a yes? :-))
THGWIF, what are your comments of Cornfords quality of P2P
 
Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

d1dsj - thanks for posting those Conford gut shots.

I love seeing all the different ways an amp can be laid out.

Any special reason the relay is circled in red? Somebody thinks it's the Devil's mess?

Cheers,

Chip
 
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Re: Hand-wired amps... why so expensive?

d1dsj - thanks for posting those Conford gut shots.

I love seeing all the different ways an amp can be laid out.

Any special reason the relay is circled in red? Somebody thinks it's the Devil's mess?

Cheers,

Chip

It was just a photo I used to help a fellow MK50 user to replace his relay which was sticking, a nice and simple 15 minute job. :)
 
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