How to Understand Tube guitar amp Tone circuits Frequency response

[@TheGuitologist]

Tube Amp Girl is awesome. Kids are everything, man.

[@d-labelectronics]

Yep man, Emi has her goals set on D-lab. Hopefully by the time she's ready, the shop will be rocking!

[@tomgreenall3948]

Brad the guitologist, doing your internet study course with D-lab?

[@jpphelps3663]

You guys should start a fake beef to increase viewers lol.

[@makavrah_doom1491]

Very cool little lesson on an often overlooked (or frustratingly ignored) topic. Yours and uncle Doug’s are the Only I’ve seen that I feel would make sense to someone without a background. Always love your videos, thanks so much

[@Unavintage]

She´s going to be D-Lab CEO pretty soon!!!

[@jamesberlo4298]

Dear Terry, I just gave you the highest rating to a youtube survey ( a little bum kissing ) I wish you would do much longer Video's and go into technical detail on how the Amp's work and the Components & Circuitry , like what Diodes are and their function ., you don't have to go into extreme detail but the essentials. You know for those of us who are allergic to Solid State and adore Tube & Vintage gear . P.S. and someday maybe sell me your Iwatsu , can only find junk ones for sale ?

[@d-labelectronics]

www.ebay.com/itm/Iwatsu-SS-5702-Oscilloscope-Made-in-Japan-20Mhz-Manual-2-New-Probes-TV-switch/382427783246?hash=item590a78e04e:g:9iEAAOSwxyJaw8nl Here's a good one, just listed

[@jamesberlo4298]

Thanks Terry !

[@marsmediapro]

Terry- you have the perfect personality for these videos. I am by no means tech savvy, but am an end user. That being said, i am about ready to investigate why my Silvertone 1483 amp makes an occasional kerplunk noise, and why a Kalamazoo Model 2 has such a loud hum! (Am hoping some of your tube amp trouble-shooting will translate for these other amps...)

[@nor4277]

Grampa I glad you are trying to teach her ,make it simple for her to start with ,find out what she really likes,let her tell you ,I wonder if she would like a electric guitar,since her grandpa is one of the best guitar amp.techs.we no she got your sense of humor .Maybe she will take over your shop someday .

[@rciancia]

Terry, this video is so timely... I am uploading a video for the DLAB 6AQ5 amp I am building where I am playing with the Tone circuit... thanks for explaining this... now I get it perfectly.... Many thanks... Tube Amp Girl and her brother are precious as always. Many thanks for explaining this in simple english. I appreciate it my friend - Ron

[@d-labelectronics]

Roger that my friend. I would be honored to team up with you in a future video. I hope the new project went well. TD

[@umajunkcollector]

So when I use the Speed Queen hot or warm or cold water settings, it will wash with bass, mid, or treble rhythm, this is the way we wersh the clothes, so early monday mornin.

[@d-labelectronics]

Thats a good one man, I should have thought of that!

[@rciancia]

Terry, I would love to team up on a project..... that would be so much fun.. We should do it.

[@jamesberlo4298]

Wow she is getting big, I like when you include your Family.

[@AntonioCavicchioni]

Excellent video! Looking forward to the next one. Always very instructive. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!

[@BlueberryStinkFinger62]

Would you do a video on understanding today's valve state Amps and how they Mock Tube Amps the valve state amps the past 20 years have really become awesome and i see more and more of us guitarist are using them in recording and live playing..because they are that good..explain the circuitry in them...

[@justinbouchard]

Great video. I'd say reduce the resistor that sets your mids and you'll have more response out of each of your treble and bass. However I do not have the experience you do :p Love from Canada :)

[@jonnybeck6723]

Thanx for another great lesson, Terry and man 'o Manischewitz that 2E26 is looking really cool, but not too cool for school...

[@greatreset3]

That kid is thinking "Why is grandpa allways hammered"??

[@Shabbled]

LMAO!

[@imagemaker5150]

LOL !!!

[@AliKiani7887]

Thanks terry , great video ,awesome job...please help to mod my fender super reverb to get marshall jtm tones...thanks

[@DustInTheWindAZ]

After watching this video, I think I'm more confused than before. I often use water as an analogy for electrical flow, but this didn't make sense to me. However, looking at this diagram, it occurs to me that this is the reverse of a crossover network in a 2- or 3-way speaker, but instead of dividing the frequencies to go to the bass, treble and midrange speakers, it "divides" them to combine or "mix" them for the input to the amplified circuit. Perhaps an explanation on how the values of the caps and resistors affect the frequency of the signal would be an informative video...

[@tronics666]

Thanks for the excellent tutorial.

[@johngerson7335]

Thanks Terry!

[@electrolytics]

Thanks for another great video.

[@MusicMike939]

Great lesson. I enjoyed it. That amp looks cool. I play rhythm though so I would prefer more mids.

[@StopMoColorado]

Lingerffxi - Turn down the Bass and Treble, crank the volume! 😁

[@ProfTrout]

This is a great explanation but what I don't get is why are the controls so interactive? Is it a technical limitation of passive controls or is it intended?

[@DennisMurphey]

Terry great stuff, I have a Fender JAM, which is Solid State with 25 Watt output. It does not have tone control, it uses push buttons so you only get two positions. Can the circuit be reworked to introduce Bass, Mid, Treble Pots replacing push buttons? And Can I replace the Solid State Output Amp with a strong Tube Output Amp and keep the Solid State Pre Amp and sound shaping tools they have included, Chorus, Reverb, Contour etc. Seems the SS output Amp could be cut out, then a new box put on top with a SS PreAmp Input then a Tube Amp built to drive the 8 Ohm 12 Inch speaker. Is this possible, can you help? I would pay for time or design! You do a great job and really appreciate the walk thoughs. No better way to share the skill, talent and art you have.

[@GL64]

Thanks for the vid. Tone stacks confuse me but ever so slowly I'm getting it.

[@justinbouchard]

Duncan Amps Tone Stack Calculator might change your life

[@GL64]

I have it. My main issue is translating the schematic tone stack to a real life tone stack.

[@justinbouchard]

If you're talking about how to wire it then I completely will agree with that lol... I would be happy to draw you a wiring diagram rather than a schematic if that would help :) Cheers from Canada

[@GL64]

Thanks. Sure, draw me up something. Anything can help. I'm particularly interested in Marshalls.

[@jimtippens]

Timeless Awesomeness Every Time Terry. Your videos RULE. Thank's. I have a Nomad Mustang 130 by a guy (Eddie Spitzer) whom supposedly started at Mesa Boogie than built these Nomad amps (In the 80's) out'a his shop in Berkley Ca?. I had a good guy (Hike Babbian) add a Power Output Transformer from 180 watt Trynor amp (After the 1st band use I blew the original OPT) & 2nd channed to boost volume for Lead's in 91. Pot's are a tad scratchy. Sound's Awesome otherwise. I'll try a good Pot Cleaner/Lube. Hopefully it work's? I'd really love to send it to U & Amp Girl. I'm SURE U could really Tune it up AWESOMELY. I'll have to save up. Teamster L399 at WB in Burbank. love your vids.

[@kenhancock8931]

First Exellent video as always terry. so shortwave girl has a twin? lol grandads little jem ;-)

[@josephmartinez3851]

Amazing...

[@mrbigg7255]

Great video.

[@dentonhess5810]

You're Awesome.

[@skycarl]

Ah Terry, you know the kids steal the show,,, ;p)

[@d-labelectronics]

Yes, I enjoy having them in the videos. Never know what to expect. The Grand son is 2, already into mechanical things and getting interested in the workings at D-Lab

[@jpphelps3663]

Great video terry. She might be the worlds first female amp tech lol

[@yomommaiscalling]

Waitaminute, is that the notorious Tube Amp Toddler outside the window?

[@michel333100]

Hi Terry, not really on topic with my question. I have a Ceriatone JTM45 AMP bluesbreaker. It is 420 volts on the plates. My question is, can I use a 5V4G rectifier in place of the GZ34 rectifier that it came with? I know in most amps you can go down a step in rectifiers. Thanks Michael Newell from Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

[@d-labelectronics]

Reviewing the tube data info, they look interchangeable. You might get a little more sag out of the 5V4

[@MichaelLloyd]

Great example and that's a gorgeous amplifier. Question, do the caps set the frequency of each leg of the input going to the pots?

[@DustInTheWindAZ]

Are you familiar with crossovers in a speaker? The combination of caps (low-pass filter) and resistors (high pass filters) determine a frequency band. Tweeters require only a resistor to block the low frequencies, and woofers require only a cap (aka: "choke") to block the high freqs. Midrange requires a combination of cap/resistor. The values of these is what determines the frequency of the affected bandwidth.

[@DustInTheWindAZ]

The difference between the "tone stack" in a pre-amp circuit and a speaker, is that in the pre-amp you would also want to filter out the subsonic ("rumble") from the bass and the ultrasonic ("dog whistle") from the high end: one, so you're not overworking the amp with unnecessary bandwidth; and two, to prevent damage to your speakers (and your ears). Just because you can't "hear" it, that doesn't mean it can't damage your hearing! So those "extreme" frequencies are shunted to ground.

[@MichaelLloyd]

@@DustInTheWindAZ Thanks for these two replies. I understand LPF and HPF and vaguely familiar with crossovers. It looks like AF filtering is similar to RF (bandpass) filtering, only a little simpler. This: "Just because you can't "hear" it, that doesn't mean it can't damage your hearing!" is very important. I have never thought of it that way but 100% true!

[@DustInTheWindAZ]

@@MichaelLloyd Acoustic or radio; it's all frequency-based.

[@RobertKohut]

Nice!! (and cute). I still don't get how resistance affects frequency. I thought resistors would affect voltage and current. My understanding, which is limited, is that capacitance and inductance affects frequency. I only say this from my experience building speakers using passive crossover networks. In those, capacitance and inductance determine frequency (filtering) and resistors are used to attenuate the signal for driver output balancing.

[@silasfatchett5693]

A resistor and a capacitor in series form an RC (resistance/capacitance) filter. Think of the filter as an AC voltage divider where the output signal is taken from the junction of the resistor and capacitor. To form a high pass filter, the signal voltage is applied to the capacitor followed by the resistor. At high frequencies the reactance (resistance to AC) of the capacitor is small and most of the signal appears across the resistor at the junction. As the frequency of the signal falls, the reactance of the capacitor increases and a smaller proportion of the signal appears across the resistor at the junction. A low pass filter is formed if the signal is applied to the resistor followed by the capacitor. At low frequencies the reactance of the capacitor is large and most of the signal appears across it at the junction. As the frequency rises, the reactance of the capacitor decreases and a smaller proportion of the signal appears across it at the junction.

[@RobertKohut]

Thanks! For some reason my brain failed to see the capacitors in series with the resistors (in the schematic @8:41 ) so I was confused on how just a resistor could affect frequency. Great explanation, thanks!! I guess I'll chalk it up cranial flatulence...LOL

[@silasfatchett5693]

Happy to help!

[@Yugedrums]

Is that "Tube Amp Boy" running around in the back yard?

[@d-labelectronics]

Yes Sir, soon he will be on D-lab vids!

[@Yugedrums]

Haha, that's awesome. Your videos are great! I've learned a lot from them and have even ventured into some of my own repair/modifications on my own amps. Please keep them coming, they are an invaluable recourse and are fun to watch.

[@SandersAmps]

Too cute!

[@greendragon2471]

Hey D-Labs, why no mid control?

[@d-labelectronics]

Can be added to the circuit, just no room on this amp.

[@greendragon2471]

D-lab Electronics i can't live without pushed mids lol. Sweet vid.

[@whynotme5926]

Someone needs to make a video showing how to wire an input, one volume and one tone-people explain and talk about it but never show it and beginners need to be shown how and then they can learn the numbers and frequencies and so on. It may be out there but I can't find anyone showing it in person The few I have found the video is not good enough to see.. They don't tell you if you are looking at the front or the back of the pot. The'll say bob walked to joes house and got a half a cup of sugar then went by toms house and it was 55 steps -What color is jill's car-b over j times t over j equals the sum of 9 bananas and three oranges, so there is no answer. I think people that have been doing it a long time forget that they were a beginner at one point. I still to this day have young carpenters call me about something and I will go show them how to build a dormer or a staircase and they thank me because someone showing it on the blue print is just not the same. They will eventually learn the blue print but if you show someone they don't forget.

[@whynotme5926]

Why can't someone just show in a video actually wiring up -One input-one volume and one tone knob. I have seen people talk frequency, water numbers letters, but I have yet seen one person show them wiring one input, one volume and one tone and show it where you can actually see what they are doing.If you can't wire it you can't check the frequency or anything else.I know it seems simple to people that have been doing it for 20 years but for a beginner, they need to see someone actually doing it and then they can learn all the numbers. Please.

[@roberthurless3295]

She has some big shoes to fill. lol Btw, I thought she was shortwave girl?

[@d-labelectronics]

Emi is like a chameleon, always adapting to my crazy video ideas!

[@Torpengpogi]

hi terry, let the little girl just play outside, i think it's too advanced subject for her now, she might loose interest with it, and if she's really interested with this technology, don't let her turn into a nerd girl, otherwise wait for smaller boy to grow up and teach him if he's interested, just my 2 cents.....................