Trainwreck...

LoFiBrian

LoFiBrian

New member
I've been saving for my next amp purchase and im on the fence. Plan was to get a celtic franklin towards the begining of 09'...But..

I've played a homebrew express clone before and I thought it was like a AC15 on Meth. it had that chimey complex clean and brokeup into marshall territory. A very simple circuit I see from scouring the net. But without specific paticulars about OTs and such and even KF to tune the circuit by ear. Should i just get a Matchless Lightning type or something more akin to a proven exact design

heck, noone has ever seen the inside of these. its all mystery schematics and internet lore.

Will a homemade express style amp get me atleast 3/4's of the way in front of those flashing lights looking at that oncoming train?

I dig the cleans here and response. even if this guys gear makes me feel sad about mine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2_12Ler9B8&feature=related
 
Re: Trainwreck...

Glen's clips are great!

the best source I know of for 'Wreck info is The Amp Garage

I have a Rocket clone made by Paul Ruby, BTW ... an excellent amp, but I should mention that 'Wreck style amps are made to be ** CRANKED ** , and optimally controlled from the guitar, which requires a developed technique.
 
Re: Trainwreck...

part of the magic was kens touch, when you fine tune each amp you end up with a better amp than if you follow the same formula all the time.

ive never played a real 'wreck but ive seen dozens of schematics, some supposedly by guys who had a trainwreck. i think the biggest thing is to keep it simple and use the best parts for the job at hand, not necessairily the most expensive. the type of wire you use and the routing of that wire make a difference as well as hundreds of other things. i am collecting pieces to make an express clone for myself but i have no illusions of ending up with something as great as a real trainwreck express. 3/4 shouldnt be too hard, im hoping for at least 4/5 but i bet 9/10 is possible. with out ken i dont think there will ever be a 10/10
 
Re: Trainwreck...

I read an interview with Ken and he even considered the direction (polarity) of the wire in the amp. He also used solid core wire in certain positions--madness.

That dude really knew what he was doing.

Also keep in mind he had trannys, caps, chassis, etc all custom made to his spec...so (like Jeremy said) it's going to be hard to really capture that sound. It's, unfortunately, not as simple as copying a schemtic. Vox wahs and CryBaby wahs are a good example of this. They have the exact same circuit (on paper), but they sure don't sound the same because they used different manufacturers, resistors types, etc.

That being said, I'm sure you can capture much of the wreck tone. This is something I've also considered. but I can imagine it being a frustrating journey.
 
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Re: Trainwreck...

transformer placement is important too. on my recent builds ive been wiring everything up with out bolting it down and moving things around till i find the sweet spot. its amazing how much noise you can eliminate when you put things in the right places.
 
Re: Trainwreck...

jeremy said:
transformer placement is important too. on my recent builds ive been wiring everything up with out bolting it down and moving things around till i find the sweet spot. its amazing how much noise you can eliminate when you put things in the right places.
Click to expand...

That's a cool idea.

When I first started researching amp builds I was hoping I could be lazy and take the approach of a monkey with a soldering iron and just copy circuits all day...it's not that easy.

It shares many of the same frustrations of building pickups (assuming you try to capture vintage tone)...you simply can't get materials like the ones from the "golden age". But we're talking about amps from the late 80s here so I'm getting a bit off topic...
 
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Re: Trainwreck...

jeremy said:
i think the biggest thing is to keep it simple and use the best parts for the job at hand, not necessairily the most expensive. The type of wire you use and the routing of that wire make a difference as well as hundreds of other things.
Click to expand...

+10000000
 
Re: Trainwreck...

idk now guys...seems like a real crapshoot.

I remember reading about TW when i first got the net and I didnt understand how a 20watt single channel head made in the 80s could be a holy grail amp.

do you guys have any sugestions for a 15-20watt class AB head with a tube rectifier that has enough headroom for blooming cleans and gets feirce as it is cranked without getting recitfier mush?

something i could have built or maybe look into botique wise 6 mos from now.
 
Re: Trainwreck...

LoFiBrian said:
idk now guys...seems like a real crapshoot.

I remember reading about TW when i first got the net and I didnt understand how a 20watt single channel head made in the 80s could be a holy grail amp.

do you guys have any sugestions for a 15-20watt class AB head with a tube rectifier that has enough headroom for blooming cleans and gets feirce as it is cranked without getting recitfier mush?

something i could have built or maybe look into botique wise 6 mos from now.
Click to expand...

Didn't mean to discourage you. If you do it right you'll end up with a great amp even if you don't hit the mark 100%. Trainwrecks truly are one of the best amps out there IMO.

I'm really becoming a fan of Fender 5E3s. That might be work considering too.
 
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Re: Trainwreck...

jerryjg said:
I thought the " Dumble"? was the end all-be all of the amp world?
Click to expand...

Also great amps. Although (allegedly) many cruddy sounding Dumbles were released for the European market. Makes paying 30k (or whatever they go for now) a little scary.
 
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Re: Trainwreck...

I just dont like the dumble for the type of guitar i play. I need more of that cranked powertube sound. less of that sweet cascaded preamp gain...
 
Re: Trainwreck...

A few contrary points-just for your info. From "The Fischer Pages" Ken acknowleges that he also had some not-so great amps that are really the basis for a few of the schematics out there. Also, he didn't always use custom parts, rather his gift was that he could really match certain parts well-often stuff he had lying around the shop. So yeah, a TW isn't expensive parts or even exclusive parts, just the absolute culmination of using the best pieces that perfectly match all others-right down to the wire length, material, composition.

A true genius! RIP Ken Fisher
 
Re: Trainwreck...

I find a lot of this so very funny...I've played through a REAL Dumble and I've stood in front of a REAL Trainwreck Express through a killer vintage greenback loaded Marshall 4x12...I thought both were cool amps but the truth is I prefer a nice BF Fender to the Dumble and a nice plexi 50 watt Marshall to the Wreck!!!
 
Re: Trainwreck...

the guy who invented fire said:
I find a lot of this so very funny...I've played through a REAL Dumble and I've stood in front of a REAL Trainwreck Express through a killer vintage greenback loaded Marshall 4x12...I thought both were cool amps but the truth is I prefer a nice BF Fender to the Dumble and a nice plexi 50 watt Marshall to the Wreck!!!
Click to expand...

Nothing wrong with that! Those are all fine amps.
 
Re: Trainwreck...

yeah those are a little to complex for me.

i only need a simple tone stack and standby switch and one input...
 
Re: Trainwreck...

the guy who invented fire said:
I find a lot of this so very funny...I've played through a REAL Dumble and I've stood in front of a REAL Trainwreck Express through a killer vintage greenback loaded Marshall 4x12...I thought both were cool amps but the truth is I prefer a nice BF Fender to the Dumble and a nice plexi 50 watt Marshall to the Wreck!!!
Click to expand...

Look Out

The world is coming to it's end!

I actually agree on this topic with 'the guy who invented fire'.
 
Re: Trainwreck...

I have more decisions to make it seems. Can we talk schematics and the best inspiration for a TW amp?
 
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