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Any Interest in Fully Modded Valve Junior Combo?

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duhvoodooman

duhvoodooman

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No, not my personal one! But I have a line on a used VJr combo for sale locally at a good price. From the photo I've seen, it looks to be in excellent condition, and it appears to be a version 2, so it wouldn't need as much upgrading as the version 1 that I own. I will inspect it carefully before purchasing, in any case.

If you've read postings here in the Mods forum by Tunghaichuan, myself and a few others, you will know that with some carefully chosen modifications, this very respectable sounding 5W Class A single-ended amp can be turned into a truly GREAT sounding amp, amazingly powerful for its size, with excellent punch & clarity.

Looking at the cost of the used amp (assuming it's a v.2), the modification parts, and the time involved to do the work, I can offer the fully modded amp for $225 with the stock speaker or $260 with an upgraded Jensen C8R. In that case, you'd get the original speaker, too. I can install pretty much any other 8" speaker of your choice, with the price adjusted according to it's cost + shipping. Shipment of the amp to you will be an additional cost, of course.

If you're interested, PM me. I can provide a full list of all the mods that will be done, upon request. If you've been reading about the Valve Jr mods and drooling over one of these little tone monsters, but aren't willing or able to undertake the mod work yourself, here's your chance to snag one! :rockon: :dude: :rockon:
 
I went ahead and bought this second Valve Jr. Contrary to what I thought from the photo, it's a version 1 combo, just like the one I already own. I've checked my figures and what's involved in the upgrade, and decided that I can do better than the prices I originally quoted. So if any of you Fretters would be interested in a genuine DVM-modified Valve Jr. combo that will stun & amaze you with its punch, power and clarity, it can be yours for $199 plus shipping. That's with the original speaker and Sovtek tubes. Those can also be upgraded, which I would do at part cost + shipping (for example, ~$35 for a Jensen C8R speaker upgrade, or ~$25 for a new set of JJ tubes).

Obviously, everything in the amp is fully functional, or I wouldn't have purchased it in the first place. I took the chassis out to inspect the components and the PCB, and everything looks to be in excellent shape. I was pleased to see that there is very little thermal discoloration around the EL84 tube socket, unlike the original combo I purchased & modded for my own use, which was amber brown from the heat. This would indicate that the amp wasn't given a lot of hard use by its previous owner. The original Sovtek tubes look to be in good shape, too. Here are a few pics I took, since I thought I'd get a good set of before, after and "work-in-progress" pics for this amp upgrade:

VJr2_chassis_inside.jpg


VJr2_PCB_bottom.jpg


VJr2_orig_tubes.jpg


VJr2_chassis_bottom.jpg


PM me if interested....
 
Kazz said:
one question...are those capacitors leaking?
Click to expand...
No, that's just an adhesive they put around the base of the caps at the factory. I have the same stuff on my own VJr. I can see where it might prevent some vibration on the three larger filter caps, but it seems rather silly on the little ones!
 
Since ponying up a couple of C-notes for a reworked amp is a fairly significant cash outlay, I thought I'd list a summary of what the various mods I'll be doing will accomplish:

Reliability & Safety Mods
  • Reduce voltage levels and bias of EL84 power tube (stock is w-a-a-a-y too hot)
  • Upgrade multiple resistors to quieter/safer metal oxide type
  • Replace dinky stock volume pot with a beefier 24mm pot
  • Add "bleeder" resistor to DC power rail to drain large filter caps after power-down (shock hazard reduction)
Noise/Hum Reduction
  • Convert to DC filament heating
  • Add more filtering to power section
  • Multiple resistor & capacitor upgrades to reduce noise
Added Features
  • Tone pot, patterned on Fender's Tweed-era Princeton Reverb amp
  • Standby switch
  • Gain boost switch
  • Brightness switch
Tone & Gain Improvements
  • Upgrade stock output transformer to a Hammond 125DSE--multiple tonal benefits
  • Multiple resistor and capacitor changes/upgrades to improve tone, clarity, gain and punch
So you can see that this is a very extensive overhaul of the amp!
 
you're killing me :thwap: ....someone is going to get a really great amp! i'd be all over it if i weren't buying a car in the next month...

ww
 
Somebody should snag this up this is a really goooooooooood deal !!!!!!!!I have a little more than 200 invested in mine not counting my labor.
 
4/7/08 Progress Update:

Got all the parts for the upgrading of this Valve Jr combo by late last week and tore into it over the weekend. I basically got all the PCB component work done and tested/verified. So next come the more time-consuming modifications to the chassis, including changing the output transformer, converting the filament heating to DC, installing the "Tweed" tone control, and mounting the switchable mods (brightness, gain boost and standby) and new 8 & 16ohm output jacks.

Here are a couple of pics I took. The first one shows the PCB after removing all the stock components (resistors, caps and diodes) being replaced or upgraded. As you can see, there's not much left, other than a few resistors and the three power filter caps. The second one shows the board with all the new components installed. The only position still open on the board is the one labeled C3, which is the optional brightness cap's spot. I'll run wires out from those eyelets to a silver-mica cap & SPST toggle switch on the front panel. The last photo is a comparison of the puny little stock VJr OT to the much beefier Hammond 125DSE replacement:

PCB_stripped.jpg


PCB_newcomps.jpg


trannies.jpg


So when the heck are one of you astute bargain-seekers gonna BUY this puppy?? ;) :dude: :rockon:
 
duhvoodooman said:
So when the heck are one of you astute bargain-seekers gonna BUY this puppy?? ;) :dude: :rockon:
Click to expand...
If I had my check from the gub-mint in my grubby paws (and my wife wouldn't shoot me), I'd be all over this one.
 
I'm running a silent guess as to which one of you guys is going to cave and get this fine specimen of a custom amp.......I'm not tellin' who though I'm thinkin' will..... :D
 
Finished! Well, with all the electronics, at least. I still need to do some touch-up on the cabinet, which has a couple of small dings in the tolex along one top-side edge and needs a good overall cleaning. But all the mods & new features are complete and fully functional. I haven't been able to crank it up yet, since the family was sleeping when I made the last solder joint, but it sounds just like my original Valve Jr. (i.e. very good) when played at low volume through my 1x12 cab.

I'll take some photos of the completed chassis tonight and get them posted, and will record a demo clip as soon as possible.

Now, who around here has a couple of spare Benjamins in their wallet and is looking for a great deal on one hot little class A amp??? :D :rockon:
 
Photos, as promised. A clip to follow, hopefully soon:

Underside of the chassis, showing the new Hammond 125DSE output transformer at right-rear:

mod_chassis_outside.jpg


Inside shot of the modded chassis, fully assembled:

mod_chassis_inside.jpg


Front panel, showing added feature controls. Not labeled yet, but they are (l to r) a brightness switch, insulated nylon input jack, gain boost toggle, upgraded volume pot, new "Tweed" style tone pot, standby switch, and the original power switch.

mod_front_panel.jpg


Rear panel of the chassis, showing the original 4 ohm output jack and the new 8 and 16 ohm jacks to its left. The 8 ohm jack is the former input jack that was replaced with an insulated nylon cliff jack. The 16 ohm is another cliff jack.

mod_rear_panel.jpg


Inside shot of the front panel, showing the "working end" of the mods. On the right side, the new output jack is the black U-shaped plastic object between the two green toggle switch bodies. At center-top is the "Tweed" tone control assembly modeled on the classic Fender 5F2-A Princeton amp. This involves two differently rated capacitors soldered between different lugs of the volume and tone pots. Directly in front of that, with the fairly large black electrolytic capacitor mounted on it, is the bridge rectifier used to convert the tube filament heating from AC to DC, eliminating a source of 60Hz hum.

mod_inside_front_panel.jpg


Here's a close-up of the three output jacks from the inside of the chassis. The various different impedance secondaries from the OT(green = 4 ohm, yellow = 8, white = 16) are each wired to a separate jack, and the black ground wire is daisy-chained to all three.

mod_output_jacks.jpg
 
C'mon! One of you droolers has to have a tax refund check comin' from your good ol' Uncle Sam! Or how about that economic stimulus refund we're all supposed to get from Dubya?? Throw some of that stimulation at Duh Voodoo Man and get yourself one MIGHTY FINE AMP in return!! ;) :D :dude:
 
duhvoodooman said:
C'mon! One of you droolers has to have a tax refund check comin' from your good ol' Uncle Sam! Or how about that economic stimulus refund we're all supposed to get from Dubya?? Throw some of that stimulation at Duh Voodoo Man and get yourself one MIGHTY FINE AMP in return!! ;) :D :dude:
Click to expand...
trust me....as a sole proprietor tax time is not a cash cow time for me...uncle sam has it in for those of us who choose to lay it on the line and work for ourselves :crazyguy: :messedup:

ww
 
I'd love to...first, my wife would kill me; second, it would sit here until I really figured out how to use it (which would be a shame) and third, did I mention my wife would kill me? :thwap: but man, it looks great!
 
warren0728 said:
trust me....as a sole proprietor tax time is not a cash cow time for me...uncle sam has it in for those of us who choose to lay it on the line and work for ourselves :crazyguy: :messedup:

ww
Click to expand...


grumble, grumble, me too. Plus, I have put time over the winter into my skiing job that is very personally rewarding, but not as financially rewarding as my desk job. I have been working the throttle the last few weeks to try to get the motor hitting the sweet spot for revs in the power band again. We are very likely going to roll that refund check right over into savings for next year's taxes too.
 
Kazz said:
Oh the temptation........resist Steve....resist....
Click to expand...
Dude, you're listening to the wrong voice in your head! The one that's saying "I want that amp, I need that amp, I gots to have that amp!"--now that's the voice you should be heeding! ;) :D
 
i might need to start a new thread on this but since it is a question about modding a valve jr i thought i would tag it on here....

vood....how hard would it be to take the jr you modded and add another mod that would cut the watts down to say 1 watt.....is that even possible....like a toggle switch....5 watts or switch to 1 watt....just curious.... :whatever:

ww
 
warren0728 said:
i might need to start a new thread on this but since it is a question about modding a valve jr i thought i would tag it on here....

vood....how hard would it be to take the jr you modded and add another mod that would cut the watts down to say 1 watt.....is that even possible....like a toggle switch....5 watts or switch to 1 watt....just curious.... :whatever:

ww
Click to expand...


Great question Warren......
 
Warren & Kazz, to avoid hijacking this thread any further (this is, after all, the For Sale/Trade forum), I'll post a response to Warren's question in the Mods forum.

In the meantime, I've made further progress in getting the amp into a "sale-ready" condition. It's amazing what a little Murphy's oil soap and some Armor All can do (not to mention a wee bit of epoxy here and there on small tolex tears). The amp cleaned up very nicely, and while it wouldn't be mistaken for brand new, it looks pretty darned good, I think. In the last picture, I intentionally tried to take a shot of the top at an angle that would show the tolex nicks along the left-top edge as you view it. From most angles & under normal lighting (as opposed to a camera flash!) you wouldn't even notice these unless you get close and scrutinize the amp. The small white flecks are just camera flash reflections off the surface:

VJr_incab_front.jpg


VJr_incab_front_panel.jpg


VJr_incab_top.jpg


Last thing remaining to do is to make up & apply label decals for the new controls & jacks....
 
duhvoodooman said:
Warren & Kazz, to avoid hijacking this thread any further (this is, after all, the For Sale/Trade forum), I'll post a response to Warren's question in the Mods forum.
Click to expand...
looking forward to it!

man that amp is looking good... :drool: :drool: :drool:

ww
 
Nobody bought it yet?

DVM, What speaker you have in it? And the most important: would you send the amp to Brazil?
 

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