Hi Guys Skip is not licensed and produces an inferior version of what he has seen us and others do. It is not his ethics (or lack thereof) that I take issue with, rather it is the poor implementation of the Power Scale concept. The fact you find his works for only 50% of the sweep tells you that the...

Hi Guys Power Scaling is of benefit to anyone who wants power tube compression or distortion as a component of their sound. As discussed in another thread on this forum, and on my site, you know if you use such effects by adjusting the MV from a very low setting to a higher one. At the low setting, ...

Hi Guys "half-power" switches are most often triode-pentode switches. However, when there are four or more power tubes, the switch can turn off two or more tubes. Triode sound is cleaner than penotde sound, so it sounds a bit darker due to the reduced THD. Pentode sound is punchier than triode and i...

Hi Guys It is important to remember that there are as many "correct" effect+amp orders as there are players. You can install a loop in any circuit - you just get a specific range of results and may have to set the effects a little differently in one loop-position versus another loop-position. The "d...

Hi Guys Describing the Drive Compensation control as a MV is a misnomer. DriveComp can perform that function when used alone BUT its primary purpose in a Power Scaled amp is to help maintain tone as Power Scale is dialed down. When both controls are wired properly, they do not alter tone. Have fun K...

Hi Guys Conjecture is a waste of time, just like reinventing the wheel. If you want to learn about Power Scaling, go to the source: www.londonpower.com There is also a list of qualified Power Scale installers from around the globe. Our books explain how Power Scaling works, illustrating hundreds of ...

Hi Guys It is obvious that Marshall wants to mimic Mesa's look on stage - and if Zakk chose this, so does he. The expanded-metal grille look is distinctly Mesa's - along with the diamond-plate look. There are who-know's how many Double- and Triple-Rectifiers out there and they are a new icon of "sta...

Hi Guys

Mathematically, converting a sine wave into a square wave may not represent "100% distortion" but it is pretty close. Yes, the tubes clipping represent the dominant distortion mechanism in a clipped output stage.

Have fun
Kevin O'Connor

Hi Guys Most players find that attenuators and load boxes work "okay" down to about 8dB of reduction. This is almost a cut of power from 100W to 10W. As watts, this will seem dramatic, but as "loud" goes with respect to your perception, it will be "almost half as loud". We do not have calibrated ear...

Hi Guys If the VM is like most recent guitar amps with B+ just around 500V, then you would need the SF-1 kit to Power Scale it. You might also need the RBX Raw Bias Auxiliary supply kit to get proper performance. The need for RBX depends on how the bias voltage is generated in the amp. When installe...

Hi Guys The player _is_ considered in everything I've written. Ultimately, it is a player who uses the amp, whether he buys the amp, commissions it, or builds it himself. Our books are necessarily written for hobbyists and builders with enough skill to be safe around tube voltages, so some minimum o...

Hi Guys Garrincha: If the C5 already has an external cabinet jack that is great! The other discussions here made it sound less featured than that. If one cabinet is not loud enough, add a second and spread them out. This will give you a two-point source and the impression of the sound will be that i...

Hi Guys Post-PI MVs are always problematic and compromise the clean sound. The problem is that they are usually inside a feedback loop. The splitter compares the preamp signal with the speaker signal and drives the power tubes however is needed to get the two signals to look the same. Inserting the ...

Hi Guys Yes, I came up with Power Scaling and the term is my trademark - now part of the music biz lexicon, just like our "detuned" cabinets. Power Scaling can be applied to any tube amp. Our books show hundreds of ways to implement Power Scaling, as Power Scaling is both a methodology and the goal ...

Hi Guys

Before his death, Jimi was experimenting with smaller amps. Loud sound takes its toll on your body.

If he were alive today, my guess is that he would be using something around 20W with EL-34s.

Have fun
Kevin O'Connor