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		UG Community @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com > Instruments > Guitar Gear & Accessories
NGD! Custom amp and Carbon Fiber Guitar

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01-15-2013, 01:24 AM	#1
Roc8995 Moderator (Ninja) Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Madison, Wisconsin	NGD! Custom amp and Carbon Fiber Guitar Min (AcousticMirror) made me a custom amp. It's amazing! It's most closely related to a Matchless DC30 but there's quite a lot going on under the hood. I'm calling it the Min Machine (he wanted to call it the Tworec30roadking), and it is a fantastic piece of work. Min did a great job and put up with a lot of stupid requests from my end. Specs in a dropdown below so you can get to the pictures quicker if you prefer: V Click V show 4 EL84s, 3 12AX7s, 1 EF86, and it can run either 1 5AR4 or 2 5V4 rectifier tubes, or switch to SS rectification. Custom power transformer so there's no voltage drop when switching from SS rectifier to 5AR4 (small drop when using 2x5V4s) All the good stuff! AB pots and carbon comp resistors, film filter caps (never needs a recap!), individual cathode biasing for each power tube with crazy spec'd resistors, etc. Min went a little overboard on this one and I am glad he did. Fairly standard front panel controls, similar to a DC30 but with a blend switch on the inputs so I can link channels, and screen/boost controls on the EF86 for more flavors of crunch. Lots of switches on the back! Min got mad but then he liked it when they were done. Switches for: SS/Tube rectifier, High/low first filter cap value (like on the Vox AC30CCs), Triode/Pentode, Full/Half power, and Fast/Med/Slow response sort of like on a Trainwreck. Min started with a Ceriatone chassis so we could get a good matching headcab and 1x12 for it, but everything else is 'bespoke' as he'd put it. The transformers were custom made by the guy who made the original Matchless units, and all the discrete components were chosen by Min for one nefarious reason or another. It matches my couch because I like boring colors. Sonically, it's enormous! Most simply put, it's like a bigger sounding DC30 with more knobs and switches. There's a lot of crunch from the EF86 channel, and the Kill/Stun switch on the back lets you get a Vox or Matchless type of sound/bass response. It's got tons of volume. On paper it's 30 watts but in front of your face it's louder than any sane person would ever need. The cleans are super fat and super chimey. No reverb required! Extra jangly with a compressor in front. The OD stays chimey! It's fairly unique to this amp. Voxes stay chimey as they OD but there's not a lot of bass. Matchless amps keep the bass but lose the chime as they get louder. This one rings until your ears bleed and still sounds fat. Which is awesome. The amp is very, very articulate, especially with the fast response and stiffer filter cap/SS rectifier switches on. It's perfect since I almost always clawhammer/fingerpick, but using a pick takes a little extra effort because the pick attack comes through bright and clear if you let it. ^ HERE ^ Some near-completion build pics: Two rectifier tubes and four power tubes hiding under heatsink wings: Top of the chassis with BIG BAD TRANSFORMERS and lots of toobz: Empty head cab with a cool vent under the handle: Peeking in the vent, you can see some of the caps and heatsinks. Finished product (note the couch matching) : With matching 1x12 cab. This is where the magic happens. Oh, and I got a Line 6 M13 too. It's in that last shot. Great unit, bad dirt models, lots of pretty colors, you've heard it all before. I use it for swooshy sounds and robot sounds through the Polytone. And for part 2, a Composite Acoustics GXi in Red Wine Burst. I absolutely cannot get a good picture of this thing because of the gloss finish. Please forgive a few pictures from the store - this is my exact guitar, at least. Again, review in dropdown if you just want to look at the pretties. V Click V show I am a big fan of carbon fiber acoustic instruments. I like that they don't go out of tune, ever, I like that you can transport and even play them in extreme temperatures, and I like that they're a bit different sonically without being a jarring departure. Plus they look cool. I got a CF violin a while ago and I'm very pleased to have a similarly constructed guitar. The neck joint, if you could call it that, is my favorite aspect of the guitar. I'll try to get some good light for a picture tomorrow. The entire body falls away to meet the neck, like it was scooped out, so the back is just beautifully scuplted and you can pick up the whole body at the cutaway with one hand. That's way cool, and super comfortable. Carbon fiber means super strong and stiff, so there's no truss rod. The action is very straight and will stay that way forever. The frets are stainless steel so they will probably not need to be replaced in my lifetime. Dan says the hole is in the wrong place, but I like it there. It projects well and you can stick a mic (or your head) right in front of it and get full blast sound without your hand getting in the way. The composite work is decent but not perfect. Some of the earlier/pre-Peavey ownership CAs are a bit cleaner on the inside. I think given the price point of the CA and comparable Rainsong guitars, the work is quite good. Totally flawless composite work on an instrument costs a ton of money, which is why my violin was $6K and these guitars go for around a third of that. CA was really not good to work with. The guitar is fantastic, but the company has some issues. They were totally unresponsive about ordering and delivery, even about repair work on the first guitar I was going to buy that showed up to the shop with dead electronics. They seem to have serious issues with meeting even modest production and turnaround standards. The electronics are good! I have to say I liked the Fishman Aura system in the Xi better, but the Fishman Prefix-Plus T in this one is great and will suit me well enough. Again, had CA been more responsive about custom orders I might have just gotten the Aura, but they seemed very disorganized and weren't able to make the change for me. The color is really neat. Greg said I couldn't have the bright red one unless I was in a Mariachi band so I got the more subtle one. It's a dark dark ruby red, and usually looks darker than the pictures show it. The gloss epoxy gives it some cool depth and it does neat things in the light. It's got my initials on the label on the inside! That's cool. ^ HERE ^ The CA logo is a bit reflective, and the epoxy lets in light from the sides so it looks like there's a backlight or something behind the logo. It's a really neat touch. So that's my stuff! Live long and prosper. __________________ Hi, I'm Colin.

01-15-2013, 01:28 AM

R45VT

Doesn't speak guitar

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Traffic Town LA

that's a good diverse haul.

Want clips of the amp.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeathByDestroyr

See, it's important that people clarify when they say "metal", because I pretty much always assume they are a Cannibal Corpse fanboi.

01-15-2013, 01:31 AM	#3
Ippon I N T J Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Left Coast	Want! __________________ Who To Listen To EG/GG&A and GB&C ... 7/ERG Field Marshall ... ?!?

01-15-2013, 01:34 AM	#4
cdr_salamander Or Simply Nick Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Plano, TX	Awesome! Not one square inch of that chassis left abandoned. Can't wait to hear clips! And nice acoustic too

01-15-2013, 01:36 AM

TNfootballfan62

Mr. Blue

Join Date: May 2004

Location: Tennessee

The amp looks really good inside, and apparently sounds even better.

for you and Min.

__________________
Feel free to call me Kyle.

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Originally Posted by ibz_bucket

Just so you know, I read everything you type in a Mike Rowe from Dirty Jobs voice.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubetime86

I mean in Kyle's case, it is in the best interest of mankind that he impregnate anything that looks at him funny...

01-15-2013, 01:43 AM

Eppicurt

Don't even like pedals.

Join Date: Aug 2008

Location: Sydney

Cool shit.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by SimplyBen

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Originally Posted by Toppscore

NakedInTheRain aka "Naked with shriveled pencil sized bacon In The Rain"

01-15-2013, 01:48 AM

R45VT

Doesn't speak guitar

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Traffic Town LA

I like the fact its a head and has tube dampeners. No microphonics going on there!

Hold up! Does that say Shoalin/Wu-Tang on the back switch? Can we get another photo of that????

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeathByDestroyr

See, it's important that people clarify when they say "metal", because I pretty much always assume they are a Cannibal Corpse fanboi.

Last edited by R45VT : 01-15-2013 at 01:50 AM.

01-15-2013, 02:12 AM

ragingkitty

meow?

Join Date: Jun 2008

That amp looks mean as hell.

So does that mean that Min's starting his own amp company too?

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blompcube

it's so cool to hate Gibson, even the federal Department of Justice hates them.

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( . .) This is Bunny. Copy and paste Bunny into your
C('')('') signature to help him gain world domination.

01-15-2013, 02:23 AM

Roc8995

Moderator (Ninja)

Join Date: Nov 2005

Location: Madison, Wisconsin

Quote:

Originally Posted by R45VT

I like the fact its a head and has tube dampeners. No microphonics going on there!

Hold up! Does that say Shoalin/Wu-Tang on the back switch? Can we get another photo of that????

They're more heatsinks than dampeners. These amps run super hot and the carbon comps don't like that. Plus the tubes sit under the board with this amp layout, so I wanted to dissipate the heat a bit.

It does indeed say Shaolin and Wu-Tang. Shaolin is the SS rectifier and Wu-Tang is the tube rec. I get to be Lord Qing and make them fight so I can learn their secrets.

Do you think your Wu-Tang sword can defeat me?

En garde. I'll let you try my Wu-Tang style.

__________________
Hi, I'm Colin.

01-15-2013, 02:26 AM	#10
darkwolf291 Hookers and Blow Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: NJ	Wu-tang amp ain't nothin' to chug with. __________________ My Name is **ing Ace Velour. Or Frank... Pedalboard Thread Native: The Thrashaholic Buy my Thrash Album for whatever price you want!] http://facebook.com/sanitariumthrash GG&A WTLT List**

01-15-2013, 02:27 AM

#11

R45VT

Doesn't speak guitar

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Traffic Town LA

What is the kill/stun switch? Please explain the rest of the switches.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeathByDestroyr

See, it's important that people clarify when they say "metal", because I pretty much always assume they are a Cannibal Corpse fanboi.

01-15-2013, 02:40 AM	#12
Roc8995 Moderator (Ninja) Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Madison, Wisconsin	Back panel, left to right: Shaolin/Wu-Tang: SS or Tube rectifiers Kill/Stun: High (Matchless) or Low (Vox) filter caps Triode/Pentode: Does what it says Full/Half: 30/15 watt output Fast/Med/Slow: switches output tube bypass caps, IIRC 47/4.7/0 uF caps to change how quickly the bias reacts. So on the faster settings it acts more like class A/B with less bias shift and on slow it's closer to class A where there's a lot of bias swing. Output impedance: 4/8/16 __________________ Hi, I'm Colin.

01-15-2013, 02:42 AM

#13

R45VT

Doesn't speak guitar

Join Date: Dec 2009

Location: Traffic Town LA

Crazy amp. Min is insane. He would have to be to do what he did there.

Looks great and love the features.

Where you able to compare it to the Matchless yet?

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeathByDestroyr

See, it's important that people clarify when they say "metal", because I pretty much always assume they are a Cannibal Corpse fanboi.

01-15-2013, 02:44 AM	#14
Roc8995 Moderator (Ninja) Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Madison, Wisconsin	Not head to head but I've played most of the Matchless amps before. I'll get them side by side through a Matchless 4x12 in two weeks if everything goes to plan. __________________ Hi, I'm Colin.

01-15-2013, 02:45 AM	#15
JAHellraiser Registered User Join Date: Jun 2009	the badass level just went over 9000! with the wu tang switch __________________ http://cdn.gs.uproxx.com/wp-content...s/2012/05/v.gif

01-15-2013, 02:55 AM	#16
Stealthtastic Registered User Join Date: Jun 2007	11/10, nice score mr. moderator. __________________ Want to Buy: UV7PWH

01-15-2013, 04:56 AM

#17

stonyman65

Unregistered User

Join Date: Sep 2005

Location: Jacksonville FL.

Holy shit man!

That's awesome!

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by strat0blaster

This is terrible advice. Even worse than the useless dry, sarcastic comment I made.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cathbard

I'm too old for the Jim Morrison look now. When I was gigging I had a fine arse.

01-15-2013, 05:03 AM	#18
Cathbard Grumpy Old Tech Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Australia	Very nice. And good job, Min. HNSD __________________ Gilchrist custom guitar Yamaha SBG500 Telecaster Ibanez Iceman Roland GP-8 Quadraverb Abbey Harmonic II Marshall JTM45 clone Marshall JCM900 4102 (modded) Marshall 18W clone Fender 5F1 Champ clone Marshall 1960A Cathbard Amplification

01-15-2013, 05:19 AM	#19
darkwolf291 Hookers and Blow Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: NJ	HNAD Colin Glad to see Min likes you enough to not try and kill you. If only Dom could say the same..... __________________ My Name is **ing Ace Velour. Or Frank... Pedalboard Thread Native: The Thrashaholic Buy my Thrash Album for whatever price you want!] http://facebook.com/sanitariumthrash GG&A WTLT List**

01-15-2013, 06:00 AM	#20
WantsLesPaul Nod to my Nod Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: nods	Cooool __________________ Gear: Epiphone Nick Valensi Riviera Squier VM Jaguar Yamaha Pacifica 112J Matchless Lightning Clone w/ Celestion Gold EHX Big Muff Pi Mad Professor MRD TC Hall Of Fame Ibanez DE-7 🐙🐙🐙🐙🐙🐙 we b all just sqids in de pond bb

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