I used to put tweed kits together and convert pcb amps to vintage specs for myself and guitar buddies before retiring and moving to MX. My recipe for a perfect 5e3 if you're going to gig with it: 1. use a deluxe reverb output transformer. Those extra 10-15 watts firms and cleans up the bass a lot. Most kits come with a Deluxe Reverb PT, so why not take advantage of what it is? 2. change the PI coupling caps to .047uF's. 3. Change the V1 bright channel coupling cap to a .022uF. I like to use Sozo's or the Mojotone Dijon film foils. To my ears, once the amp breaks in there is a little more 3D detail when using film foils. 4. Either pull the 25uF bypass cap on the PI booster V2A or use a 220K resistor between the volume pot and the grid of V2A. 5. I never use carbon comp resisters on the input jacks. (the 1M and 68K's). Preferably quality metal or carbon films. If lead dress is good, they will reduce background hiss. 6. Speaker choice is very important. Since the circuit is so bassy, I never use a speaker with anything bigger than a 1.25 voice coil. 7. A solid pine cabinet with birch baffle is a must. It is part of the speaker. 8. Lastly, the 250ohm cathode/bias resistor on the power tube cathodes is usually way too hot. It may take a 330, 370 or even a 470ohm with todays wall voltages to get you in the sweet spot. i.e. correctly bias the amp. Why all this you ask? The amp was designed around the Fender pickups of the 50's. All usually under 5K DC resistance/fairly weak and bright sounding. Fender amps with their 25uF bassy bypass caps really boost the bass for a more full sound, which can be too much with todays higher wall voltages. These mods tighten everything up at higher volumes while still leaving you with what is great about the E series circuits.
The same can be done with a princeton reverb!!!!! But with a cz34, up the can to 40.20,20,20 ,and that will get you the great princeton sound but with some balls! Then modify to the AA764 circuit. I think that is just changing the value of two coupling caps.
I'll share a great tip with you that my amp tech taught me concerning the headroom in a 5E3 Deluxe: In the preamp, change your 12AY7 to an AU7. This reduces distortion in the first amplification stage significantly, essentially pushing the headroom up while only marginally reducing volume. Change the 12AX7 to a 5751; the SRV tube. Same tube as an AX7 but with a gain of 70, as opposed to 100, which dramatically reduces idle noise and wards off early preamp distortion. Again, more clean headroom for a nearly imperceivable change in volume. That simple tube swap gave me the ability to use my Deluxe for anything from trad jazz gigs to blues-rock jams with an excited drummer.
If you ever have issues with blocking distortion, you should replace the 12AX7 in V2 with a 12DW7, which is half a 12AX7 and half a 12AU7. The 12AU7 triode should serve as the phase inverter. It’ll accept a lot more voltage but since that stage doesn’t actually have any voltage gain you won’t notice a volume drop
I built two 5E3 amps and one 5E5-A amp within 3 months...Became addictive very quick...I did the mojotone kits....Their pretty much the same stuff..awesome video!!! Good stuff
I built the Mojotone Tweed Deluxe. Swapped the kit speaker for a Celestion Alnico Blue. I couldn’t be happier. With the channels bridged I the tone I’ve sought for years. Just my $0.02.
@@MichaelWWestbrook I ordered the British 45 from Mojotone. Should come (kit) mid February. After that maybe an AC kit in the fall or 2023. I have and live a Kemper but sometimes the amp itself is easier to bring to a friends or the simplicity of an amp vs digital device inspires music making.
I built a Trinity Tweed as well, but I added the VRM that they offer, and paired it with a Tone Tubby 12" alnico. Love being able to turn the power down and not get muddy, and the Tone Tubby sounds awesome. The great thing about the VRM is that it scales the power after the transformer so the heaters are still running at full voltage and temp.
Yeah, I have the VRM but haven’t installed it. I honestly don’t need it. I might feel different once I start gigging more and I want to get more of that great overdrive.
I just finished my first build. A 5e3 kit from a Chinese eBay seller. Upgraded to f&t and mallory 150s. Alpha pots and belton sockets. I just love it. Runs dead quiet which suprised me. Ive got the bug ! Many thanks to lowheadroom youtube channel for a great tutorial. Next up is a deville 4x10 gutting and 5f6a scratch build with a plexi style channel. I never realized how great the 5e3 was until I chose it based solely on its inexpensive cost. Your video helped me decide to go for it
Volume knob, not on the amp but on the guitar. If you don't use that you are missing out a TON on what the amp can do. With Humbuckers use input to to get more useful sounds from the amp. One of the best clean with "hair" sounds comes from the amp on 5 and the guitar also on say 5. Try it. Great sounds and not crushing volume. Remember use the guitar volume.
You explained the 5E3 perfectly. Nice job. I would only add that most music venues and bars have a PA for vocals. Drape a microphone in front of that thing and you’re golden.
I’m going to be getting my tweed kit from StewMac tomorrow!! So excited. That guitar bit in the beginning of your video is awesome!! I hope to be able to play like that someday
My first build was a Tweed Deluxe. Love them. I also built 6v6 Plexis, 2204 Marshall and some others but I really gravitated back to the 5E3. Played many small pubs with the 5E3. I also modded one with 2 tone knobs, 2 volume knobs so I could voice them differently and separate the input signal and blend them together. V1 pin 8 Marshall values 2.7K/.68uf. This actually gave the amp more headroom. I also reduced the coupling cap values down to 22nF instead of 100nF. Takes pedals very well. Depending on the power tranny capability you can use 6L6 power tubes, just dont bias them hot. This gives plenty of headroom.
@@MichaelWWestbrook 3:47 - 4:06 is really nice. Would like to know which scales and chords you used so I could try to play it. I have a homebuilt 5e3 too, haha.
That speaker sounds great. You can put a switch or potentiometer in to add additional negative feedback, which in turn will get more headroom. I've done it to my 5f1 and 5e3.
Great playing/material as always Michael! I’m still rockin’ your Tweed patches in HX Stomp (great!) regularly but I’m still tempted to build one of these!
I find you can get more headroom for the clean stuff by just backing down your guitar volume on these amps. Also, I find lower-powered pickups help as well on this particular amp. I do not find getting enough headroom to be a problem when in a live band situation. Of course, if you are in a loud situation, say with horns, then you will need to be miked.
Your posts have been very helpful about the 5e3. I bought a Clone off of Reverb, and I really like a lot of the aspects of this amp. I really like the natural compression of the ‘cleans’, and the breakup. I live in an apartment building, and installed a Dr.Z attenuator. I still have to watch my volume. Haven’t played it with a drummer yet? Glad you addressed the speaker question. I bought it loaded with a Celestion Blue which isn’t doing it for me? Researched to Alnico options, and I think a Ceramic is the way to go for me as well. Waiting for a Jupiter 12LC (Ceramic American Style) to arrive...I think it will be a better fit? The 5e3 does have some weaknesses, and you can see why Mike Campbell used a Tweed Deluxe, and a Blackface Princeton together.
Thanks Michael for your great advices on the 5E3 circuit. After watching you building your amp I had the luck to buy a used Trinity 5e3 combo with a Weber 150 in it. I swaped the tubes and puted some jan nos tubes in it. And gosh it sound so great. Just one thing tho. I did not get into a rehearsal with the band cause covid. Can't wait
I got a Fender 57 custom Tweed Champ. Even at 5 watts, I can play it with a drummer for practice. Idk if it's enough for an audience to hear without Miking it. But Like you say, it's not even remotely clean when you get up to those levels. The Champ has excellent clean tones, but those clean tones can only be achieved at bedroom-practice volumes. And yet, if you want tweed distortion, it's still too loud to crank it up to those levels in an apartment. But I do plan on getting a load box so that it can be sent to a separate power amp and so that I can get the tone I want at the volume I want.
I also have the 3way NFB switch in the middle eliminating the bypass cap and the post PI volume dialed back just a touch. I find the NFB setting a little to tame/dry.
Another great video :) one thing I might add is that because there's no master volume, there's not really a true "quiet" mode. On mine, even when the volume just kicks in, it's kicking in kind of loud. So for home use, it might not fly for everyone. Even my 100W Twin Reverb is easier to play at bedroom levels :)
@@MichaelWWestbrook yeah, in my case, i can get away with playing loud, but need to wait for my wife to take a walk if i want to push it :) i've got the Weber 12A125A. i know what you mean about the compression, but i absolutely love that effect at lower/cleaner volumes. i've got a switchable mod that drops the V2A cathode capacitor down to 0.47µF (instead of 25µF!). that's useful for getting rid of some flab when desired.
Great video and thanks for doing this! Do you find the amp to sound similar enough to an original Fender? I always find even the more expensive clones to lack a certain character I only hear with original Fenders. I'd love to hear a comparison of your build to other stuff too :)
Haven’t been able to compare directly but from memory the older ones always feel less efficient and softer. I’m not sure it’s quite possible to build a 70 amp new but I guess we can hope the new ones will age and softer over time
Great video, as always! Every time listen to you play your amp I feel amazed. You mentioned in the video that you like how the amp reacts to boosts. Which are your favorite pedals that you use to boost your 5E3? Cheers!
Thanks! Currently boost wise I end up using the RC Booster (clean boost with EQ), Klon clone set clean, or even different overdrives set clean. I also have a custom Greer germanium boost that gives me a very colored boost that’s really cool. I really dig the Special Request from Greer as well.
I have a clone 5e3 that I use at the house. I tend to put the tone and volume close to max and then use the hell out of my guitars tone and volume. I use a Weber Alnico speaker in mine.
Solution to keeping clean headroom playing with a loud drummer. Smash each index finger with a hammer. If still to loud on the skins, smash his thumbs. No need to make a speaker change or other mods on your amp.
great video and great tones. i love that allesandro. It sounds good in just about any fender circuit there is. I have a real 59 5e3 (have a celestion G12H30 in it) as well as a 5e3 style amp with that eminence in it and just got a Mesa California Tweed which for what you were describing about with the band and clean tones, it seems to deliver all that and seems real versatile for a tweed type circuit. I have not been in love with the alnico it comes with though and have contemplated putting one of the SC64 in that as well. But I just got it so gonna spend some time getting to know the speaker a bit. Love the tweeds (a brown deluxe is a pretty sweet amp too if you want the missing link between a tweed and black face deluxe).
@@MichaelWWestbrook I have a modified 5e5a that has a 15 and 8. I got the amp second hand and I hate the ceramic speakers in it. I’m trying to decide what to replace them with 🤷♂️
You can’t go wrong with either one but there are a lot of resources online for 5e3 which might make it easier if it’s a first time amp build for you. I’m sure an AC15 would be killer though!
Have you considered the Dumble Tweedle-Dee mod that's well documented over at Amp Garage? There are RU-vid video demos of it in case you're interested.
I started to but I love the original tweed sound so much I didn’t want to lose that. I increased the first filter cap to a 30uf at one point but it made it a lot stiffer. I liked it but ended up with a 20uf in there as a compromise. I’ve also considered building another amp to the Tweedle-Dee specs
Sounds amazing! I’ve had a blackface deluxe reverb for a while and do like it but mostly the cleans I love the tweed breakup so much! Im debating on buying a fender tweed deluxe 57 but they are so expensive!! Would I better getting my local amp guy to build me a kit ? Would in be cheaper? And do you have any suggestions to good kits available? Thanks in advance!!
@MichaelWWestbrook Have you experimented with running this amp with another? Splitting signal between a higher head room amp and the 5e3 Tweed? I built a Stewmac 5e3. It was a blast. I am experimenting with the 5e3 and a HOT Rod Deluxe using the "TPS Wet/Dry" sort of approach. It's been fun to try and figure out what drive pedals sound good to the 5e3 in tandem with the Hot Rod. At stage volume, I am finding that I can run guitar straight to 5e3, while all my other gain/modulation/delays run to the Hot Rod. The 5e3 is such a unique thing, and it's been a fun challenge trying to find ways to pair it with other amps/pedals in a way that only highlights its strengths. Curious if you have played with this as well.
Allow me to propose an absolutely radical idea to get more headroom- roll back that crazy little knob on your guitar that does volume duty a notch or two. I know it's just plain bananas but, by god, it f*&^%$#g works.
The only bummer is the 5e3 sounds great after about 4 on the VC, but it’s too loud for just practice. I built one straight stock, and several modded varieties all with a master volume which helps.
Out of curiosity, why didn’t you go for the cabinets offered by Trinity? I hope to get my build started as well so I appreciate your videos! Sometimes the mods overwhelm me so I might stick to their stock kit but it’s very exciting.
I wanted a head and cab and liked the options I found else where. I felt the same way about the mods. It’s took me a little while before I did the 3 way switch for the neg feedback because of having to drill into the chassis for the switch. Start with the easy stuff after you build it stock!
@@MichaelWWestbrook Good point, didn’t even consider that you went head and cab! Sounds awesome and I am definitely going to use your videos as reference when I start my build.
If in your estimation, a drummer is too loud for this amp, how loud is the difference between the "clean" and "distorted" tone ? How Cropper played with Booker T and how neil young did play with Crazy horse? It was all about monitoring ? I dont get it.
I think there is plenty of volume to play with a drummer in general... but if you play with a loud drummer (or in loud scenarios) and want it be clean it may not be loud enough. Every situation is different, just my 2 cents based on my experiences
In the case of Neil Young, his live rig is one the loudest and most unique in the world. His Tweed deluxe is mic’d and sent to his own personal PA on stage (as well as FOH obviously), he’s the only guitarist I know of that has a personal PA on stage as his “amp”. His stage volume is supposedly incredibly loud and dynamic, in a good way.
Im kinda torn between building one of theese or going with the reissue. the reissue is kinda expensive and i love the tones youre getting out of it here! I wonder if they sound similar or if its worth to pay the extra for the fender.
I think tones are going to be very similar but there are other things to consider. Resale is a big one. I think a Fender reissue is going to hold its value for resale and potentially go up in value through the years. For me, I wanted the experience of building one and I love have a great sounding amp that I made. It’s a great feeling and I learned a lot in the process.
@@MichaelWWestbrook thanks for replying! Gonna need to try the reissue for myself. The main thing for me is the tone. Funny thing is, the reason for wating a tweed dlx is my favourite amp for recording is the UAD tweed55. I even prefer it over my matchless hc30 for most things. But for gigs the matchless is to heavy. And if the monitor mix is bad, its hit or miss to use only digital uad amp with no speaker.
Just wondering, do you find that you use this amp mostly at home and for recording and do you use something else when out at a gig with a loud drummer? Is there a particular go to for that situation?
I use it a ton at home to record (one of my go-to’s) but also use it live. It’s really a matter of how much head room I need for the gig. A lot of times I’ll use it stereo with my Deluxe reverb. It’s never not loud enough for me but sometimes it might not get as clean as I’d like at the volume I need. Hopefully that helps!
@@MichaelWWestbrook As you've most probably found an AX or 5751 adds too much gain to the signal.......AY is the answer......smooth as silk.............lol
What boosts and overdrives do you prefer with the 5e3? I'm looking some good options for mine. I assume something more neutral, less mid hump would be best. Been thinking about a Nobels ODR-1, and a Boss GE-7 to sculpt the sound
I tend to like boost or light overdrives with the 5e3. Can’t go wrong with either of those you mentioned. Also check out my video on the Tube and Transistor Swindle. I remember that one being magical with my Tele and the 5e3.
I am going to suggest someone owns more than one amp. My height of amp ownership was 22. Yes at one time. Now I know I like certain amps with certain setups. I think I have built 7 or so. 12ay7 is one of my favorite preamp tubes. I really like my vintage sounds. Thanks for the video.
i’m looking for a tweed style amp for home use. i live in a small apartment with my girlfriend and a 3 year old half the time lol, so volume is a huge factor for me and i want something that sounds good at low volumes and is manageable on the dial. i’ve got an overdrive and a fuzz pedal that i use a fair amount, so i am not expecting to get too much overdrive from the amp unless i’m able to crank it. one of my favorite guitarists uses a tweed Deluxe 5e3, but i cannot decide between the Deluxe and a 5f1 style Champ. the Champ has lower wattage so it might be better for my needs, but the Deluxe has a 12 inch speaker which i’ve heard makes a big difference. if you were me what would you recommend ?!
Hey Mike! Beauty playing. I've been playing with different sounds lately and trying to get a swampy delta blues sound. Do you think this amp would deliver?
Absolutely! You could also try something a touch lower wattage to get more breakup at less volume as well - something like a tweed champ or tweed Princeton style amp.
I wanted to be able to have a head/cab rather than the combo. Speaker wise I really wanted to try the Weber which is similar to what a tweed would have used and it’s cheaper. I ended up with the Eminence GA-sc64 but both are great and combined ended up being the cost of the Tone Tubby.
@@MichaelWWestbrook Yessiree! My first listen to that guitar in your hands was in your vid covering for Rhett. Gosh dang that thing has the most perfect mid-range growl. Thanks for these videos!
Thanks! If you had another Gretsch with regular Filtertrons (whether stock or TV Jones) would love to see a comparison video. I'm curious if there are any discernable tonal differences. Love all your 5E3 videos too BTW!
Fralin Blues Specials (I think is what they call them) Basically they are 5% overwound of their standard Tele pickup. It makes a little warmer/darker. I can swap between it and humbuckers guitars without such a drastic difference.
Do you think the speaker is more versatile than the jensen c12q that comes with the mojotone kit? Love all the same things about the amp but have one that does that job and looking for a tiny bit more headroom I think. Thanks!
I’m not super familiar with that speaker but most people find the new Jensen stuff to be on a bright side. The Sc64 that I mentioned seems to be really versatile but some people also love a Vintage 30 in a tweed style amp. If you are looking for more head room look for a really efficient speaker. Look for at least 98db rating but ideally higher. This should make it a little louder and help you with the headroom issue a bit
What do you like better about the Eminence compared to Celestion Gold? I have a gold in mine. It's a great sounding speaker but, I find it very bassy, and wondering if there's a better option.
Very nice demonstration. If I'm not being impertinent, may I offer a few suggestions? Since you've assembled this yourself, then you are by no means locked into the given circuit (as you might be with a vintage amp). I have a '59 Deluxe that I'd never think of modifying, but with a kit, I'd say that the volume pots could be changed (P-P pots w bright switch), the tone control could definitely be improved, as could the interstage caps. Screen and grid resistors of appropriate values could be inserted, as well as a Zoebel network, all of which could serve to tighten up the response of the amp without losing its essential character...just a thought...
i also built a trinity tweed that i've got inside one of marc's cabinets, you've got good taste! i installed the VRM in mine but even at the lowest power setting the amp is still too loud to push into overdrive (nyc apartment woes). i'm thinking of installing the normal power switch back in and finding an alternative form of attenuation for playing + recording at home. i've never used an attenuator or a load box before, would you say your tweed and the two notes pair together well? any issues? i've got a nice library of IRs, dying to use this amp to it's full potential while we're all stuck at home
