Psionic Excalibre 15 | First Power Up & Initial Evaluation

IT works and sounds very good. Next, to get it sounding GREAT...
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[@megwatts1903]

Man, that is a clean and beautiful layout. It looks, I don't know, "serene" is the word that comes to mind. Like you open up a Boogie and immediately become stressed. You open this one up and feel a sense of calm and tranquility wash over you.. Nice.

[@maxine2798]

If it looks right. It’s usually right. (Probably not but it’s a good thing to say!)

[@hkguitar1984]

The Wire Dressing is beautiful, it’s nice to see cable ties used as intended.

[@chokkan7]

On your panels, I'd like to give you a tip, if you're receptive: you can have them reverse engraved on a black/clear medium, paint in whatever color you like (I'm fond of silver sparkle, but that's beside the point), then install. Depending on your vendor, it may be less expensive than you might think, and you'll have complete control over the final appearance... I like your play/mute switch; I've been using a mute switch (grounding the grids of the OP tubes) rather than a standby for some time, and for the same reasons as you've stated...I may steal your idea ;). About the EF86s: I'm sure you have a copy of Blencowe's 'Designing Valve Preamps...'. Compare p. 153, fig. 6.15 to p. 155, fig. 6.19. I'm sure that you're sufficiently astute to see what I see. A 5V relay and a parallel B+ resistor to the cathode/plate junction could provide a 4dB boost at the touch of a footswitch (a potential mod just waiting to be implemented), and all from a 12AU7...way less finicky or pricey...'nuff said... If I'm not being a jerk (just trying to nudge you past your writer's block), again; Blencowe, p. 28-30. This might help you get past your quibbles about the responsiveness of the amp; it's a method of fine tuning that I've found very helpful... That said, I very much admire how you've transcended slavish imitation in your personal pursuit of a contemporary incarnation of the magical VOX sound, and have instead dug deeply into the nuts and bolts of what Mr. Denney had envisioned many decades ago. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors...

[@freemoney3723]

No response. Do you build/ sell amps?

[@Nightryder7]

Bro do you build amps

[@SkyscraperGuitars]

I want to hang a picture of your turret board on my wall. That might be the best layout I've seen... Elams is right there with you... So nice to see tidy, well designed layouts. I bet the service guy who keeps that thing going 50 years from now will be amazed.

[@AdamHumburg]

Fascinating. Absolute artwork. Cheers sir!

[@rasjase1]

Congratulations man!!! Excellent prototype

[@sgt.grinch3299]

Love the tones and ability to control the volume without losing them.

[@efsglass]

I cannot wait to get one of these!

[@shotgunrebels]

Gorgeous. The regular channel clean is pretty fantastic. Going to be a great amp!

[@leecartwright7415]

sounds lush, beautiful

[@jasonstone1046]

Sounding great already!!

[@derekglasspool946]

Sounds Fabulous!

[@shayeasy]

the quality of tone from clean to cranked master volume is really impressive. a very interesting look at amp design and a work in progress. thanks for sharing.

[@nickdevriese]

Love the play/mute switch. Looking promising!

[@lonniezamarripa959]

Lyle , the amp is showing a lot of promise . Good job!

[@robertbarnes9745]

Great start my friend. Salivating about my top boost/ef86 Excalibre!

[@jancreighton]

that clean channel already sounds gorgeous - like Jersey milk - creamy n' clean. The overdrive sounds really good over YT to my ears. Looking forward to further developments. I think you have a winner here.

[@chronobot2001]

It's a very clean build. A work of art and technology.

[@scottstewart6353]

A beauty for sure. Nice stuff.

[@FretboardToAsh]

It's absurd how good this sounds for such a simple recording.

[@baddestgrampa8543]

Wow. Very nice work.

[@JoaoOliveira-wp7eh]

Very cool amp !! (and perfectly built)

[@raymondlau6507]

Excalibre is a great name for your amp. Your wiring jobs are awesome. Have fun with those cathode bypass caps.

[@unclelefteye3166]

This makes my OCD soooo happy. Gorgeous layout. Sounds even better. Put me on the list please!❤🎉❤🎉

[@jeffmaloney8701]

That’s a nice piece of work, dude. Mercury Magnetics too. Nice.

[@faultlessguitarsandamps1116]

It's looking fabulous . Great control choices , will keep the player focusing on playing and not fiddling with knobs .

[@Clockeman]

I'm sold just on the positive SNAP of the switches.

[@kendipietro6855]

I'm looking forward to hearing this amp once you've tweaked it to where you want it. As a suggestion, when you do the finished product video, it would be interesting (to some of us) if you included a few clips from this video so we can hear the difference back to back - at least as much as KZbin will allow us to. Keep up the awesome work.

[@TubeGuy1975]

That is a great start to the amp! I have built three tube amps myself, all with a EF86 preamp. The brand of tube for EF86 makes a big big difference with the tone and noise floor. I believe the best EF86 types include NOS UK Mullard, Tungsram, and the Genalex Z729....best if you can find one that is affordable. Have been using a Z729 for years and found it to be very quiet, sturdy, and toneful with no microphonics regardless of which amp it is in.

[@godbyone]

Nice work.

[@silviopimentel7247]

A MASTERPIECE !!

[@richclayton5785]

Tweak away but it sounds amazing to me! Let me know when you are ready to take orders. My guess is that you will be inundated with requests for your amp!!!

[@0800338833]

What a beauty! 🍻

[@Souldoubtrocks]

Great chime

[@IL2TXGunslinger]

Yes!!!!!!!!!!!! Congratulations Lyle for getting to this point - so happy to hear it - sounds pristine to me even at this point. Love the character

[@IL2TXGunslinger]

Do you think you’ll ever make a version with a parallel effects loop?

[@PsionicAudio]

Not on this amp. Much of the overdrive comes from the phase inverter and output tubes. A loop would be pointless in this.

[@IL2TXGunslinger]

@@PsionicAudio Thank you for explaining that.

[@Bairov]

@@PsionicAudio post master series would sound nice

[@curtiseverett1671]

So great!!! I would like to buy one quick before the price Dumbles!

[@deemitchell4603]

Very cool...

[@edwardhannigan6324]

Lyle's new beast is born..Wow, so cool..That's a great sounding amp...Ed..UK..😁

[@bernarino5942]

I love guitar and I love to follow your vids although my knowledge in audio amplifying is near nothing. I wish that I will be able to grab the science anytime soon. Thank you for sharing.

[@shckltnebay]

You're lucky you have plenty to do and it's something you love.

[@hkguitar1984]

The current Pentode Channel sounds like a small Electar amp I used to have, kind of choked and compressed. Once that channel is dialed in it will compliment the other channel beautifully.

[@PeteBreen]

Really looking forward to the finished product.

[@user-ok2ju4lw4u]

My amp!!!

[@michaelreis8266]

Congratulations on the build, it is beautiful 👍 If you have time to answer, what does make a "standby switch" necessary on an amp? Thanks 😎

[@HiHello-ku1fl]

Sounds pretty damn good already but can't wait until you get it sounding amazing. Nothing like an amp that inspires you to play for hours and hours so I get the obsession and the passion. Have you used the Mercury Magnetics transformers before? Some say they can be a tad darker than some others. I know I really like Divided by 13 amps and Matchless amps and noticed they both use a small transformer company call TDS transformer design and supply which I think is just a father and son small operation. Badcat amps used them too early on before James sold the Badcat amp company. All 3 of those amp companies are among the best I have heard back when I was playing through every amp I would come across. Divided by 13 being my favorite. I know there is a lot more to it but they say the heart of the amp is the transformers. I know you know all this already but is why I brought it up. See what your thoughts are on transformers. I like a very open sound and prefer brighter as it can be tamed. I have played a few Morgans that I liked and they had Mercurys in it but didn't think they were quite as nice as a Divided by 13 amp. 65 amps were probably the best ones I played with the Mercury transformers.

[@shealeffler6147]

this thing looks amazing. i just wish that the "O" in "PSIONIC" on the front panel had the LED in it ;)

[@NotMarkKnopfler]

I thought it sounded great, especially considering the recording method. The gain was terrific. The LED should be red on standby/mute and green in play mode. This will, of course, increase the quality of the tone considerably :-)

[@PsionicAudio]

I'm red/green colour blind, so no... There's also the issue of not being able to find a 3 conductor LED receptacle/cable, so a dual color LED for this isn't doable without a PCB. But I can vary intensity without going to PCB, so this is what it is.

[@doktorhunggari4415]

Speaker!🙏🔑✌️

[@russellhltn1396]

I take it that this isn't your first rodeo in building amps. But I've learned the hard way that even after getting an analog circuit prototype to work, making the consistently good subsequent builds can be quite a challenge.

[@hkguitar1984]

Wish you could somehow stamp the. S/N on the chassis as labels can fade and tear off over many decades. A great piece of work and so intelligent thought through.

[@PsionicAudio]

Yeah, I'd love to have my own machine shop too...

[@mikecumbo7531]

@@PsionicAudioHarbor Freight sells number/letter stamping sets, prices go from $10 to $25.

[@seanhammer6296]

Looks like a great start. Seems like there might be a lot simple variables that could change things like single coil vs humbuckers and speaker type. Gonna skip to the final video now.

[@donbutler8760]

I see you got the good iron from Sergio!

[@PsionicAudio]

Hey Don! Nice of you to drop by.

[@jonnybeck6723]

Shit to you sounds amazing to me... Can't wait for the final Can the two channels be bridged for parallel tones? Carry on!!!

[@PsionicAudio]

You could jumper them if you wanted three levels of gain for live use. They are in phase with each other.

[@lowdownfender]

Front & rear panel graphics, simple & elegant, this will be a superb amp when finished. Hmmm bass amp next ? 😜

[@PsionicAudio]

I would do a tube bass preamp, but bass tube power amps are just a nightmare in terms of cost/size/weight. Maybe one that had an improved '60s Bassman output for 50W use (or into an Ox etc) and a good line out to a 1000W solid state power amp for large stages. It's doable, but no 300W-400W tube amps. It's just a silly expense that you keep buying again and again over the years.

[@lowdownfender]

@@PsionicAudio I’ve been using an Epifani Class D bass head , has a cloned vintage Bassman circuit, 64 … never owned a bass head this long. (Owned a 64 Blackface in the past …. sigh….) It’s a pretty solid 385w/600w now relegated as a back up & home studio amp as I have the newer Epifani 901 head which is also really really close to what i hear in my noggin. Bassists can be a real pain looking for that elusive tone , more so than guitarists. However part of that equation is the right cab which I have found works for me, with semi hollow body basses, vintage & modern P’s & modern 5 string. Tube pre sounds interesting a la Noble or Khan, Reddi, Sonic Farm.

[@NEILBSMITH]

I have a few 15 watt ( well, plus or minus 15 ) and I prefer them. Fender Excelsior ( modded), a hand built Tweed Deluxe, and an AC15 HW. I REALLY apperciate your quest for perfection-it's mine, too. Is this a one-off build? I'd either love to have one, or send you ALL my amps for tweaking- one at a time, of course. Where are you located? OH, and thanks for your channel.

[@michael.wiegand]

Going back through your videos on this, so apologies if I missed it: But when do you expect to bring these to market? I’ve been a huge Vox guy since I started playing electric guitar in the mid 90s. This seems like the holy grail of Vox-style designs.

[@PsionicAudio]

Thanks Michael. Still trying to find a new source for the control plates I need.

[@oldguy5381]

After the prototype, what will the serial numbers start at? Details details oooooh man I can’t wait. I love the birth of new gear. I know I’ll build a new guitar. Breath old guy breath. Lyle you have a grate weekend

[@PsionicAudio]

Probably EX15-21-001

[@stevesuv]

It feels like a hard slap in the face.

[@protoolsfanatic7276]

What is the approximate time and cost to purchase this buetifal peace of work?

[@jonnybeck6723]

The guts are so pretty I can imagine using it stark naked (no box)

[@goodun2974]

Are you using 7189's or 7189A's? What brand?; and vintage or modern? The A versions have a slightly different pinout, just for the grid, so that you couldn't use a regular 7189, or EL84, in the output stage of a high-voltage amp designed for use with 7189A's. If anyone is making 7189*A* tubes nowadays, do they have the same pin-out as the originals or were they made to be compatible with 7189 and EL84-wired sockets?

[@diegocastro5114]

Overdrive its so nice! Very Quiet too! How many ground points on this prototype?

[@PsionicAudio]

Three for the audio circuit, one for the AC.

[@seanlavery2236]

Where did you source that slotted nut for the power switch?

[@geoffpickles9064]

nice work! does swapping the volume pot to linear taper give you a more even sweep and would that apply to amps with a pre phase inverter master volume?

[@PsionicAudio]

It depends on a lot of factors. In other amps this same MV works best with audio taper. Most pre-PI MVs are audio taper for a reason.

[@markarita3]

3:38 the struggle is real.

[@guitarguru4492]

Why are ed 86 tubes so temperamental?

[@Bodiddley788]

I checked today at my local music store in Tupelo and they didn't know anyone who works on amps.

[@mattjohnson6916]

That layout belongs in the Smithsonian!! What particular type of speaker impedance switch do you plan on using? I'm wanting to add one to the back of my black panel Bassman build for 4/8ohm options, but a traditional rotary switch is just a little too tall for me to feel comfortable putting in the chassis. (It would bump into the PI tube socket anyway)

[@PsionicAudio]

Thanks! I'll be using a 6A Carling SPDT for this.

[@mattjohnson6916]

@@PsionicAudio Thanks! Similar to what you see used as a ground switch?

[@PsionicAudio]

Yes but the higher current version. Or a lower current DPDT with the poles paralleled.

[@mattjohnson6916]

@@PsionicAudioCan't wait to see it! I've been leaning towards using a paralleling a lower current DPDT the more I've thought on it to minimize space. Something like this: www.tubesandmore.com/products/switch-carling-mini-toggle-dpdt-2-position-solder-lugs-short-bat

[@Bairov]

How much 💰💰💰 do I have to throw at you for the prototype!

[@joerectifier]

The leads will never stop twisting...it's the ancient curse, not a "fluke" 🤣

[@shed9155]

I have what might be a pretty dumb question... but here goes: what are the considerations of doing a Marshall style layout, with the tubes and transformers on top of the chassis, vs the Fender style with the tubes and transformers on the bottom? Just curious

[@PsionicAudio]

Tubes up gives better heat dissipation than tubes down but is awful in a combo because the chassis would be on the floor where all the dirt is. There are ways to mitigate heat in tubes down configs. If I was having custom chasssis made I would do it tubes sideways.

[@shed9155]

@@PsionicAudio Ah I see. so if you're tooling to manufacture one amp in both head&combo forms you might as well just go tubes down across the board. Thanks!

[@jesseyasaitis9036]

What effect does changing the dropping resistors to the plates of the tubes have on its characteristics?

[@PsionicAudio]

There is no fixed correlation that applies to every circuit. In a triode you have lots of variables. Let's simplify and say there are only three variables, and you know two. Then you can solve for the remaining variable. If you have supply voltage and plate resistance, you then choose the cathode resistance to get the operation conditions (gain, compression, harmonics, etc) you want for that triode. In this case, I had plate resistance and cathode resistance, so I was adjusting the supply voltage to get to my desired sound/behavior. There are more variables at play, but the concept is the same. For more info, you need to learn about load lines. See www.valvewizard.co.uk

[@jesseyasaitis9036]

@@PsionicAudio Thank you.

[@steakncheddar]

Are you going to get these safety certified? What are your thoughts on that, are you responsible if something goes wrong?

[@PsionicAudio]

There are three ways to approach that. Good big companies build to the codes for the various countries distributed to. And they pay many thousands of dollars to have everything certified. Others do not build to any safety code and they buy approval stickers off eBay, saving themselves thousands per amp model and pretending to be safe. I cannot afford to have these very small batch amps certified, but I build them to safety codes. If I need to be fuse the heater for an EU customer I can install a block fuse holder in the chassis. The mains and HT are already properly fused and all grounding/wiring is to code. This is an amp that would fly through certification but I cannot afford that process. So I will be selling these to individuals from an individual. If any potential buyers have concerns I will be glad to address them. But this amp will be as safe as any tube amp can be. I would love to have them certified, but that's a multi-thousand dollar pricese per model. Fine when that cost is spread out over 500 or more amps. Impossible for small batches.

[@chipsterb4946]

@@PsionicAudio that’s the best possible answer to a difficult question.

[@Satchmoeddie]

Two words I hate to use with amp design, "holistic" and "empirical". Repairs? Empirical fits okay.

[@picajoool]

Can these be bought? Or this is just a hoby?

[@PsionicAudio]

They will be available for custom order once I iron out a supplier issue for the facepanels.

[@halhawkins7641]

"not in the business of meh..."

[@tedmich]

10:55 oops, you spelled "color" with an added "u" ! ; )

[@chipsterb4946]

British spelling 😝

[@PsionicAudio]

Bleedin' right I did.

[@chadhulsizer]

Throw the amp in the harbour next to the tea! Joking love the amp, want to buy one!

[@maxwhitten8376]

Is this one of your builds?

[@oldguy5381]

You bet it is, Lyle’s new baby

[@maxwhitten8376]

@@oldguy5381 I put my glasses on and answered my question....😂

[@geoffpickles9064]

nice work! does swapping the volume pot to linear taper give you a more even sweep and would that apply to amps with a pre phase inverter master volume?

[@PsionicAudio]

Taper is circuit dependent - no hard/fast rules on that.