It's the 156th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps, the call-in show where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all things tube amps. This week: Special guest Jack Weston joins us with a great Allman Brothers story.

Thank our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts

Some of the topics discussed this week:

:43 What's on Skip's Bench: a Fender Princeton with reversed input jacks 5:41 Special Guest: Jack Weston, author of 'The Allman Brothers Band: Classic Memorabilia, 1969-1976' (Amazon link) 46:17 The Magnatone Triplex; ultralinear output stages, redux; Bob Wills' The Tiffany Transcriptions

47:35 Raising kids and running a small business; tractor rollovers

51:13 A cooking baffler: Potatoes cooked in resin

52:30 Will my Airline 9003 amp kill me?

55:11 Traynor YGL-3A amps

56:43 Is it possible for a fuse to blow when the amp is fine? Best-case scenarios for a speaker mismatch? Jerry Portnoy's autobiography, 'Dancing with Muddy' (Amazon link)

1:03:02 Movie recommendations: Come See Me in the Good Light; The Lost Bus

1:05:28 The greatest Thanksgiving side dish of all-time? A corn-bread concoction; the 2026 Fretboard Summit (www.fretboardsummit.org); the TAVA Cookbook (Dropbox link) 1:07:37 Good goo: Oxalic acid/wood bleach (Amazon link); Permalac sealer 1:10:43 Using a 6SL7 as a long tail pair 1:13:03 Amps made with 6N2P pre-amp tubes and 6N6P power tubes? Ashen amps 1:15:16 The resurrection of Australia's GoldenTone amps? https://goldentone.com.au/ 1:18:39 What should I do with this West Mini IR combo amp? 1:23:37 Hopefulness and despair with a reissue Twin Reverb and a Silverface Champ 1:31:06 What should I do with my Wilcox Gay Recordio recorder 1:38:31 A Califone SP-30 powered speaker; chili

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the 155th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps, the call-in show where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all things tube amps. This week: Barn finds, lost dogs, an extra-grounded Jason (amp pun intended) and more!

Some of the topics discussed this week:

1:05 Skip gets the new Fretboard Journal (link); do banjos belong in the Fretboard Journal?

5:16 Recommended music: Ned Boynton's 'The North Beach Sound;' The No-Mads (nomadsband.com)

7:54 Our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts (and Mr. Microphone)

18:12 What's on Skip's bench: A Bogen GA-5; a Realistic Carnival; Masco C-6; 6AQ5 tubes

22:53 A listener baffler, answered (speaker re-coning); Vintage 47 amps (link)

26:18 Skip's ep. 154 baffler, answered: What does Skip do when he's modding the second input of a Fender Champ? Supro Spectators

32:51 New Accutronics reverb tanks by Revisit (link)

34:52 What's the low input doing in a Marshall JCM800; green chile on everything

39:20 Lowering the B+ on a 1971 Fender Bassman 10 project; ultralinear transformers; cactus salad

48:43 The long-awaited dog story

51:35 Colin Hay's "Overkill" with Choir! Choir! Choir! (YouTube link); Traynor amps

54:52 Should I treat the pitting on a Soundmaster 600 PA?

1:00:17 Lab Series amps

1:03:39 Smoke-damaged MusicMan HD-130

1:09:20 The dangers of old tractors (and drawbridges)

1:15:34 Modifying the power section of a Twin Reverb for lower volume playing; fixing a Filmosound 385 with hum; Evan Crafts (Instagram)

1:21:26 TAVA listener spotlight: Children's book author Matt James! (Order his new book, The One About the Blackbird (Amazon link)

1:23:56 How to raise kids and run a small business; Mae Ploy curry paste

1:31:16 Barn finds: Spring-loaded input jacks; a 1947 Fender Princeton amp and matching lap steel

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the 154th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps, the call-in show where amp tech Skip Simmons fields your questions on all things tube amps.

Some of the topics discussed this week:

:42 Skip is back on the Ferguson TO-35 tractor; Roy Clark & Joe Pass

7:04 What's on Skip's bench: A Marshall Plexi Super Bass, Marshall bright caps, the Pet Shop Boys

11:43 Our sponsors Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts; more Fender Champ mods; a Champ gain input baffler; Soursound transformers

23:51 200 more power cords; IEC hijinks; Steve Soest

28:13 A 1954 Fender Tweed Twins and the low-powered versus high-powered Twins; Tweed Pros; Fender Champion 600 amps

31:49 A Lafayette PA with ECL82 tubes (watch on Instagram)

33:45 A 1960s Airline 62-9021A amp; how to tell a Supro/Valco from a Danelctro amp

37:33 Skip's advice for a future repair business; liability insurance; the Boilermaker; the amp that couldn't be fixed

49:06 A listener-submitted baffler: A Supro that needed a speaker recone?

52:29 What should I do with my new Knight 93350 PA head?

58:03 Should I build a 6G4 or a 6G4A in this Northern Electric PA-20 with six pre-amp sockets?

1:04:28 Wiring a Danelectro DS-100 speaker output for use with other cabs

1:11:10 Recommended media: The Birth of Loud; The Sweeney; Taggart

1:12:52 Burning up chokes in a Princeton Reverb

1:14:13 Listers on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zl-wAqplQAo

1:15:18 ESR meters and ceviche

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the 153rd episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps and Skip is having a happy day fielding your amp questions. From cleaning tweed to Magnatone varistors and all points in between, it's 90 minutes of tube amp knowledge, laughs, and some serious California trivia.

Some of the topics discussed this week:

1:27: The 2025 Fretboard Summit; the importance of repair tags

6:55: Thanks for the mangos, John! And a food preservation tip

8:30: Our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts!

14:15 What's on Skip's bench? 60 amps in August; great Loma Rica deals; far out tubes

23:29 The big TV tubes in Standel amps (6DQ6 tubes, regulator tubes)

25:49 Skip's near-death experience; The Edwin Hawkins Singers' "O Happy Day" (YouTube)

31:05 Colman's Hot Mustard

31:49 A giant yard sale in Dixon

34:23 More TAVA t-shirts; whatever happened to Jason's Honda Scrambler?

38:04 An antique radio museum in Marysville, California

41:38 Calculating output transformer primary impedance

47:37 Cleaning tweed

49:58 Replacing the varistors in Magnatone/Americana amps; luthier Ken Bebensee; North San Juan, California; the Malakoff Diggins

56:53 Going to Guitar Center, a Gibson GA-20...or was it? Sierra Nevada Brewing Oktoberfest beer

1:01:20 The Rustic Kegger community on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/tavapodcast

1:02:51 El Pato in Alaska

1:03:41 Fender Tone Ring cabinets

1:05:54 A brown 1962 Fender Super with an 8516 transformer from a TV-front Super

1:11:01 Building a shell for a Falcon chassis

1:12:55 Building a Deluxe 5E3 clone in Brazil

1:20:17 Verellen's solid-state Octal tube (link); how power attenuators work; Benson's Monarch Plus power scaling

1:24:41 Recommended music: Texas Alexander & Lonnie Johnson's "Crossroads" (YouTube); KZFR; Julian Lage; Bill Frisell

1:26:19 Noel Boggs and his Day Sleepers' "Steelin Home" (YouTube)

1:27:16 Recommended reading: The RCA RC-30 tube manual (Amplified Parts link); California's two Sebastopols

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the much-delayed 152nd episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps!

Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show.

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Some of the topics discussed this week:

3:53 Real musicians ARE gearheads (redux)

5:47 Our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts!

6:40 Tom Gunterman gets two Grez's

8:21 Yellow Jacket tube converters

10:27 Standel amps (redux); Todd Clinesmith; National Dobro amps; driver transformers and pre-war amps

17:35 Using an A/B/C switcher box to flip the phase on amp channels

21:45 Thanks to Chicago's own @vintagetubeamplifiers for stocking the TAVA room at the Fretboard Summit

23:28 Building a clone AB763 with more headroom, ultralinear transformers

29:20 Yellow Jacket YJRs; eggs in ramen

32:42 Tom Gunterman, redux! 33:43 Finding joy with a John Kelly amp, until a loud zap and hum; the Western States Endurance Run 42:20 Playing guitar with accordion; the Joe Mooney Quartet; collard greens with kale 47:59 Speaker-to-power ratio on speakers; classic rock; album covers

Note: This was supposed to come out in mid-August (pre-Fretboard Summit), but your overextended co-host messed it up. Sorry. We'll get back on schedule. -Jason Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the 151st episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps!

Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show.

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Some of the topics discussed this week:

1:03:05 What's on Skip's bench: A pile of Standel amps; Vacaville's Pacific Hardware (redux); a baffler of sorts

8:28 Tom Gunterman (Instagram); Kevin from Ohio; Joe Walsh

11:30 Our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts! Marshall Capris; Christopher Guest

19:07 Julian Lage and Leo Kottke (tour dates here)

22:45 The Fretboard Summit August 21-23, 2025 in Chicago: https://fretboardsummit.org

23:57 What to do with the unused bass control on a modded Vibrochamp?

31:38 Weak tremolo on a late 1970s Fender Deluxe Reverb; optocouplers

36:36 The Bastard Instrument (Amazon link); the Ampeg book

44:57 A Teisco Melody amp; Takt amps; installing an isolation transformer

55:49 ESR / Multifunction testers

59:51 Channel jumping on a black panel Fender; Yellow Jacket tube converters (Amplified Parts link, we'll revisit this on our next episode...sorry)

1:05:30 The Soundmaster 600; Traynor YGM-3; Fender PS-400 and the Allman Brothers Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

It's the 150th episode of the Truth About Vintage Amps! How did that happen?

Thanks, as always, for being a part of the world's finest call-in tube amp repair show.

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Some of the topics discussed this week:

1:26 The Esparto fireworks storage facility explosion (link); salvaging organ pedals

6:22 Jason's life updates: Issue 57; Fretboard Summit (link); trail running; watching the 2025 Western States Endurance Run

11:46 Standel amplifier quirks, voltage regulator tubes, Dave's Hot Chicken kale slaw

16:36 Our sponsors: Grez Guitars; Emerald City Guitars and Amplified Parts! Amplified Parts is having a Fourth of July sale right now (act fast)

19:17 The Fretboard Summit Pinewood Derby race

22:03 Honorary sponsor: Tin Can Valley Letterpress (link)

23:10 Recommended reading: Matthew Zapruder's 'Story of a Poem' (Amazon link)

25:22 An Ampeg V4 / V4B bias circuit baffler

28:07 Single-ended amp 101; Stouffer's Hotel cherry chocolate cake

41:19 Channel jumping on a Silvertone 1482 and other amps; Neil Young

46:00 Music recommendation: Round Eye from Shanghai

47:11 Why do these homebrew 5F1 clones have blackened input jacks?

49:31 The Fender 400PS schematic

54:18 Harmony 420 amps, making a pre-amp out of a Heathkit volt meter

1:00:05 The Fretboard Journal's Dumble short film with Ben Harper (YouTube link)

1:01:46 Dave Hill at the 2025 Fretboard Summit!

1:02:34 Redwood cabinets on Gibson Falcons; Lima, Peru's Los Saicos band

1:12:21 A-Z Darts in Sacramento (link)

1:16:04 Getting a mono tube hi-fi for music playback

1:23:56 Listener Yann at Body and Soul Instruments (Instagram); the new Robert Johnson book (Amazon link)

1:25:24 Keeping the 12v DC power supply on old PA amps? Doug Hoffman

1:30:54 How far should I mod this 1980 Fender Deluxe Reverb?

1:37:24 Ishi in Two Worlds (Amazon link)

Recorded July 4, 2025.

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Want to share your top secret family recipe? Need relationship advice? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

Support our sponsors: Amplified Parts; Grez Guitars; Better Help, and Emerald City Guitars!

Acclaimed guitarist Jim Campilongo joins Skip and Jason to talk about his music and gear journey, vinyl treasures, George Barnes playing "Little Rock Getaway" (link), Vance Terry & Jimmy Rivers, Silverface Princeton Reverb love; Celestion G-10 speakers; Laika and the Cosmonauts; and so much more. Plus frozen meatballs! Follow Jim Campilongo: https://www.jimcampilongo.com/ Jim's Lessons: https://www.jimcampilongo.com/lessons.html

Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

We're back with episode 148 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Jason survives a month in Peru; the schematics of acupuncture; speaker break-in; and more!

Our sponsors: Amplified Parts; Grez Guitars; Better Help, and Emerald City Guitars

Topics discussed:

:00 Jason goes to Peru, Skip gets the new Fretboard Journal

11:20 What's on Skip's Bench: A roasted Tweed Harvard

13:18 Spotted on eBay: Packard Bell teaching tool / working schematic

16:13 A 1952 Champion 600 with a 1952 Telecaster

18:54 Skip doesn't hang out with Jack White

24:22: Our sponsors: Check out this groovy Showman at Emerald City Guitars!

31:33 Barry & The Remains; what should I do with this Bell 2122C integrated mono tube amp? slow-cooker chicken breasts with salsa; Radio Shack Minimus 7 speakers

41:40 Congrats to listener Marcus, Master of Public Health from Harvard!

42:44 Non-polarized electrolytics

45:58 Alternatives to 6V6s

47:50 Acupuncture point charts vs tube amp schematics

51:01 Deciding on a good speaker; mir a poux

1:03:05 Modding a Harmony 420

1:08:00 DIY cooling fan tips Mouser part numbers: Mouser #490-CFM-4010-13-22, FAN AXIAL 40X10.6MM 12VDC; Mouser #576-01500322H, Fuse Holder ACS INLINE FUSE HOLDER; Mouser #709-APV8-12, Meanwell 8W, 12V, 0.67A power supply

1:11:32 What should I plug a Fender Bass VI into?

1:14:22 Getting a good tone out of a master volume Silverface Fenders? Hal's Grub Steak BBQ sauce?

1:20:16 Pedal steel through JBL D130Fs, breaking-in speakers

1:25:46 Replacing the red module in a 1969 Standel solid state amp; vinegar, syrup and seltzer shooters

1:31:19 Movie recommendation: Steven Spielberg's 1971 film 'Duel'

Recorded May 30, 2025. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.

Episode 147 of the Truth About Vintage Amps: Jason is headed to Peru, hemp speakers, resistors, modding PAs for harps, Lilly vs Lily at the Fender factory, kosher sound, and more! Fluidics: https://acoustics.org/pressroom/httpdocs/132nd/2aaa8.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawJ5wZRleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETA4eUxOc0djNTJqWnJRVVBTAR7SSMwDpCna1oRbSpuMLYDJrD1VRKzf8vbj3V6WOi3icH6LldxBvnOYopsKzw_aem_I4XGzFLTK-gXim_txcL4ig

Our sponsors: Save $20 off Amplified Parts' new MOD vintage amp kits with the discount code TAVA20! (expires April 30, 2025); Grez Guitars; Better Help, and Emerald City Guitars

Recorded April 24, 2025. Want amp tech Skip Simmons' advice on your DIY guitar amp projects? Join us by sending your voice memo or written questions to [email protected]! Include a photo, too.

Hosted by amp tech Skip Simmons and co-hosted/produced by Jason Verlinde of the Fretboard Journal.

Don't forget, we have a Patreon page. Support the show, get behind-the-scenes updates and get to the front of the line with your questions.