6v6

[quote name='Andyjr1515' timestamp='1450689260' post='2934810'] A simple but clever jig. Hopefully he doesn't wear a tie! [/quote] It's actually pretty terrifying - I'm sure there's a good reason it's mounted like that, but I personally would feel much safer if it was mounted in a more traditional orientation like a router table or spindle moulder (which are still very dangerous machines). Looks like a great build tho!

[quote name='Subthumper' timestamp='1448919702' post='2919267'] Appears they only deal with warranties. But they did give me the number of Surrey Amps. Anyone had any experience of these guys? [/quote] I had a mackie PA speaker repaired there - I dropped it off and they have a decent workshop and seem to know what they're talking about - the speaker has been fine since (over a year of gigging). Not particularly cheap but I would use them again.

[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1448927705' post='2919383'] However I'm now pretty happy with the basic design of a 18mm cab with four pipe ports tuned to 50Hz so the slot port won't be a problem as we won't be recommending it. The availability of cheap hole saws means cutting the holes for the ports will be easier than forming the slot which was the only reason I went that direction. I found the wooden slot was tricky to form if you don't have plenty of clamps to hand. [/quote] I know proper woodworkers would flame me for saying this, but FWIW when I built my slot port cab I used screws as well as glue as I didn't have many clamps - I simply drilled a pilot hole then a clearance hole+countersink in the outer panel, then ran a screw right though nipped up tight - few of those per joint and it ended up clamped tight, no gaps anywhere and good strong joints. Admittedly I did also use some biscuits which helped alignment, but even without the glue/screw method works fine provided you take your time and potentially dry-fit it all before glue. Also re the hole cutting - I bodged a hole cutting jig on my router with a bit of old hardboard - 3mm straight bit, couple of holes in the hardboard, then screw the board on the router, another screw into the baffle, and I cut the speaker aperture perfectly round without any wobbly jigsaw action. I guess the same technique might work for port holes if you could get the pivot screw close enough to the bit. I know Phil and the other experts will know all this already, but thought it worth sharing for the other first-time builders like myself.

Looking good! For the uninitiated, would you mind describing what the "flossing" entails? I assume it's a technique for fine adjustment of the joint prior to joining?

[quote name='synthaside' timestamp='1448277542' post='2914041'] The Hartke is a great option , but i'm going to let the cat among the pigeons and suggest this , [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bass-Amp-Behringer-Ultrabass-BX1200-/111829904101?hash=item1a0994eae5:g:2SgAAOSw8-tWUK-F"]http://www.ebay.co.u...SgAAOSw8-tWUK-F[/url] . [/quote] Ha, I actually owned one exactly like that several years ago, I agree they are pretty decent for the price despite the reputation. I bought mine new, and the first one failed after a few weeks, but the replacement lasted several years of jamming and even abuse as an occasional stage monitor before I sold it (for about £50 IIRC). The Hartke is about the same size, and a similar weight, which is either pretty light for a very cheap combo, or heavy (compared to expensive neo cabs/combos) depending on your perspective. Compared to the old Peavey combos I'd used before both were pretty portable. Strangely, the Hartke model has a little more headroom IME, despite the same power rating.

I would suggest a used Hartke Kickback 12 - they are small, relatively light, have a DI out, and can be found for under £100 used. I had one for over a year and it worked great for rehearsals and small gigs (particularly with a little PA support).

That makes a lot of sense, thanks for clarifying! Build looks great btw, very inspirational to see what you're achieving, particularly given the lack of dedicated workshop space & machinery!

That's an interesting approach, is it a problem that you can't clamp across the wings to get them super-tight against the side of the neck (because they'll be glued to the top)?

For routing rectangular holes, it's actually very easy to make a template - my approach is to take a scrap of MDF/ply, carefully mark out the rectangle with a set-square, then use offcuts of pine batten temporarily screwed in to the side where you marked the hole. Then you drill a hole with a spade drill through the waste, run a jigsaw (carefully) around well inside the lines/battens, and drop a flush-trim (bearing on the bottom) router bit through to trim perfectly up to the battens, nice and square with rounded corners (same radius as the router bit). Seems obvious now, but it took me a few tries to figure out this as the easiest approach.

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1447093221' post='2904811'] Personally I think the amount of power lots of people use for pub gigs these day is ludicrous. Back when I was gigging regularly and going to see lots of live local bands in the late 80's/early 90's nobody used anything over 150 watts for bass & I cannot recall anybody ever being too quiet. [/quote] This. I've always found the whole "without PA support" thing puzzling as well, I always put a little bit of bass through the PA so I don't have to run my rig on stage to levels which put the bass/drums level out of whack.

The kits I've seen aren't great quality tbh - if you want a good playable bass I'd look at something like a squier P or a Yamaha BB, then mod that if needed. However if you primarily want a project, I'm sure one of the kits will provide some good entertainment, Thommann do a kit for £65 which has got to be worth a go I guess, although a fully built and finished Harley Benton bass is the exact same price, which is kinda hard to understand!

I would think a metal grille could be fairly easily powder coated, or hydro-dipped if the holes are fairly large. The other option would be either normal rattle-can paint, or for a more reversible finish, you can get peelable paints, which put a rubberish coating on which can be peeled off like a film. The only one of the above I've actually done on a cab was rattle-can painting a grille for a DIY cab, that was very easy and has held up fairly well to regular gigging despite only being paint, e.g not as tough as powder coat.

[quote name='Naetharu' timestamp='1444666903' post='2884918'] Just to lob another option into the pot I'm going to mention the Ampeg SCR D.I./Pre-amp pedal [/quote] Noooo! I want one of these now!

[quote name='Mykesbass' timestamp='1444427923' post='2883280'] Unless go for some real specialist stuff, I was under the impression epoxy wouldn't be suitable as it has no flexibility. The PVA has worked on a couple of the cracks, it is just a couple of others that look like they need another go. Thanks for the idea though. [/quote] IMHO you want something without much flexibility, as it'll help stabilize the crack. The problem with PVA in this application is it's designed to work well between two bits of tighly clamped wood (where it'll be stronger than the wood itself in most cases) - but pouring it into a crack with no clamping it'll just end up a slightly flexible filler, with not much real improvement to the structural integrity of the crack (at least this is what I've seen with the PVA varieties I've used). If you want epoxy which isn't too brittle, try a slow cure variety, IME these are somewhat semi-flexible (moreso than the fast-cure kind), and can be turned into a good filler with the addition of a filling agent like "micro ballons". The other option as previously mentioned is to accurately machine a flat above the crack, then clamp a veneer with PVA so you regain the structural integrity via a solid non-cracked piece of wood, then sand to match the profile of the surrounding wood.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1444337835' post='2882465'] Is not the max power of a valve amp independent of the impedance tap used..? [/quote] Yeah it is, you'll get approximately the same power regardless provided the load of the speaker is matched to the impedance of the output transformer secondary winding.

I have one, they're nice - relatively uncoloured but still quite full sounding if that makes any sense. Nice and light, plenty of power for any gigs I'm likely to do. The only thing which I wasn't expecting is mine failed (fixed inside warranty, just), but they are supposed to be generally quite reliable AFAIK.

If you want the absolute best, go to Charlie Chandlers in Kew - my brother had a 60's 335 setup there, including plek fret dressing, and the difference before/after was unbelievable. I looked that their prices, and being a bit of a tightwad, took my guitar to a local tech. While it's fine, it's not got that slinky fast feeling it had when the neck was new - the plek does give you that IME so to some extent you get what you pay for.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1443511441' post='2875286'] If you don't have any other equipment connected by USB (or at least nothing that isn't directly supported by the OS) other than the interface you should be OK, but personally I'd always pick a FireWire or Thunderbolt audio interface over a USB one. [/quote] Except firewire is essentially deprecated (support on recent versions of Windows for example is terrible), so you have to be really careful you don't end up with a legacy box that won't work with any newer PCs - I've learned that the hard way with two presonus interfaces which are basically useless since I "upgraded" to Windows 8. I realize Apple may have a more supportive attitude given their historical involvement with firewire, but it's not a standard I'd be buying into right now unless buying something cheap/used and only for use on Mac. In response to the question in the OP about USB/thunderbolt quality - no the transport makes no difference to audio quality, all else being equal - the only difference IME is you can sometimes achieve slightly lower latency on Firewire, but with recent USB devices (particularly from manufacturers who invest in decent software driver development) this is less of an issue than it once was.

Good work so far! If the glue doesn't stablize the cracks I'd be tempted to cut the cracked part out and glue/clamp a (thick) veneer over the top, particularly that back one which looks structural wrt the bridge screws. PVA isn't known for it's gap-filling properties, but you might get away with it if you finish with a skim of polyester resin/filler at the top.

A good affordable option is the EV ND767 - it's hotter output and brighter/clearer character (than an SM58) would probably work well for the situation you describe.

[quote name='0175westwood29' timestamp='1441353539' post='2858122'] Was interested at 199, 300 for a 110 for me is too much sadly [/quote] Likewise, seemed pretty tempting until I realized that 199 isn't the normal price.

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1441285393' post='2857545'] I will bitch and moan about the US -v- UK price for ages. And then I'll end up buying one. As usual. [/quote]

[quote name='Toasted' timestamp='1441272999' post='2857363'] Dude. VAT. Import duty. Come on. [/quote] Well the US street price will include their sales tax which won't apply to exports, but I never said it was only mesa shafting us - I mean come on, 40% combined VAT and import duty, welcome to rip-off Britain! As others have said, plenty of other manufacturers manage more competitive pricing than this despite similar overheads.

[quote name='eude' timestamp='1441267226' post='2857309'] [b]I disagree! [/b] It's $699 in the US! By today's exchange rate, the amp costs the equivalent of $1127.99 here in the UK, that's $428.99 in tax and shipping. For that, I'd expect it to be hand delivered in a solid gold box by two playboy bunnies! Eude [/quote] Agreed, if the pricing was reasonable it'd be around £500, e.g the US price plus shipping.

[quote name='RandomBass' timestamp='1439754180' post='2845521'] Yes the cost of the capacitor is probably quite low. However the time and expertise involved in tracing the fault is where the real value, and cost, lies. That's why there are electronics experts to fix our gear. [/quote] Exactly, you can easily imagine it took them 2hours to diagnose the fault, disassemble enough to fix the faulty component, re-test then reassemble, so to me the cost looks pretty reasonable.