# Slo Clone Build...



## hopkinwfg

hi guys been a member here since for quite sometime.. recently after reading a thread which a member of this forum Bigg has gotten me very interested to build one off too... 

i am wondering if any member who has build an amp beforewhich also wanna build an SLO clone be kind to share his or her work and experiences here with me ? or we can date a timeline which we could also post pics and share or perhaps a check on each others build on what can be perfected... i guess it would be fun to have few of us here to share pics on our SLO clone... am from singapore and it be my first time building a tube amp with such high gain character..be taking off from Rob of C3 amp by end of this month  any join in ?


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## biggs

If you do proceed I can share some info that will help your build along.


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## hopkinwfg

biggs said:


> If you do proceed I can share some info that will help your build along.



Hi there Biggs .... thanks for your reply .. If all is well am hoping to get it by few weeks to come... Never played an SLO100 before but am buying it not just to get an overall on how the original SLO sounds but also to learn how to build a tube amp... I looked and admired at your clean nice build...but what I wonder is you didn't even twist your heater wires... Unlike many Marshall amp diy I seen all are well twisted...

maybe you can help me on a general idea... and I be going on with onetics tranny I wonder if the classic tone would be a better choice over the onetics ? lastly am not sure if Rob would ensure me with F&T caps at the filtering power stage... But I bumped in a thread having someone who builder the SLO clone with Panasonic caps... 

I also wonder if it makes no change by getting just alpha pots for all ? thanks  didn't hope to turn this nice forum into another slo100 forum..


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## biggs

I would go Onetics for the power transformer and get stock boards from C3, Classictone 40-18072 for OT, and choke of choice. I used the 40-18058 3HY 250ma choke. I also used Alpha pots. F&T caps are great but I went with a NA brand 220uf 400V. As far as the heaters I followed the Soldano's methods. Wires are twisted to the sockets and then parallel solid buss wire from there.


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## danman

Will this be your first build? Building amps can be a great experience but the Slo is a complex amp so attention to detail and lead dress will be very important to pull off a successful build on your first attempt.


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## sct13

Yep I'll help....

I have done a few builds....would be glad to. 

however....you have to understand the dangers associated with this sort of thing. The Voltages can hurt you and even Kill you if you grab the wrong thing. 

But that said....sure I'm willing to lend a hand.


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## hopkinwfg

sct13 said:


> Yep I'll help....
> 
> I have done a few builds....would be glad to.
> 
> however....you have to understand the dangers associated with this sort of thing. The Voltages can hurt you and even Kill you if you grab the wrong thing.
> 
> But that said....sure I'm willing to lend a hand.



thanks alot guys as i still waiting for Rob to reply... soon as i getta kit i will get back here to this thread...


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## hopkinwfg

biggs said:


> I would go Onetics for the power transformer and get stock boards from C3, Classictone 40-18072 for OT, and choke of choice. I used the 40-18058 3HY 250ma choke. I also used Alpha pots. F&T caps are great but I went with a NA brand 220uf 400V. As far as the heaters I followed the Soldano's methods. Wires are twisted to the sockets and then parallel solid buss wire from there.



thanks for sharing Biggs... but any particular reason why u choose classictone over onetics OT and choke ?


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## biggs

I've used Classictone many times now in builds. I like their quality and I also wanted to hear their newer extended response OT transformer which turned out to be awesome. That being said the much more expensive Onetics match the drill pattern of the chassis where the Classictones do not. You'll have to decide which way suits you best. Take your time and think it through as its an expensive venture so you'll want to get it right from the start.


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## hopkinwfg

biggs said:


> I've used Classictone many times now in builds. I like their quality and I also wanted to hear their newer extended response OT transformer which turned out to be awesome. That being said the much more expensive Onetics match the drill pattern of the chassis where the Classictones do not. You'll have to decide which way suits you best. Take your time and think it through as its an expensive venture so you'll want to get it right from the start.



i have no idea how much influence has the PT choke and OT has got on the tone... ?


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## m1989jmp

Choke effects the feel or response of an amp.

PT is the heart of an amp and should be of good quality to provide years of service.
Absolutely no effect on the tone other than the variation in voltages it provides can push and amp from clean to overdrive with nothing else in the circuit changed (lower B+ - less headroom; higher B+ - more headroom).
Soldano has pretty high B+ but more gain stages than Marshall.

OT should be of good quality too and can only cut some of the upper or lower frequencies depending on how the windings are spread, absolutely no magic materials or techniques here no matter what people say


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## m1989jmp

Do you have experience building less complex amps than SLO100?


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## hopkinwfg

m1989jmp said:


> Do you have experience building less complex amps than SLO100?



howdy thanks for your information on transformer & choke contributing to tone of an amplifier...

i have no experience in building one off but after seeing the build thread that Biggs started i am all set to build one too with slow and precise steps...will try to include pics here and take it slow each time from preparation to building section by section...thou i also have an itch to DIY a Marshall 2204 PTP but hell am a metal player and SLO clone Mmmmmm it sounds good !


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## m1989jmp

Make sure you get a quality (preferably with temperature control) soldering iron and average quality multimeter too, everything else is up to you; 
with enough patience and cautiousness, at the end of this project you'll be alive and rocking out with your SLO100.


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## Alabama Thunderpussy

m1989jmp said:


> OT should be of good quality too and can only cut some of the upper or lower frequencies depending on how the windings are spread, absolutely no magic materials or techniques here no matter what people say



I'm afraid it's not that simple. True, there is no magic involved in transformer construction, but how its constructed has everything to do with its bandwidth and performance at varying signal levels. It's not merely about lows or highs. There is also core saturation headroom and other factors that come into play.


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## Sleepy

I spent a long time trying to convert a jet city into a "real" soldano clone only to play a real soldano and realize i didn't like it at all

So that's step #1  haha


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## hopkinwfg

Sleepy said:


> I spent a long time trying to convert a jet city into a "real" soldano clone only to play a real soldano and realize i didn't like it at all
> 
> So that's step #1  haha



am a Fryette freak have not tries soldano before but its one of the legendary high gain amp ... to have a chance to learn about it to build and to understand how it evolves from marshall to such high gain popularity... am all set with white powder coated chassis , F&T filter caps, blue jewel lamp and closest set of onetics tranny for SLO ...


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## Vostre Roy

hopkinwfg said:


> howdy thanks for your information on transformer & choke contributing to tone of an amplifier...
> 
> i have no experience in building one off but after seeing the build thread that Biggs started i am all set to build one too with slow and precise steps...will try to include pics here and take it slow each time from preparation to building section by section...thou i also have an itch to DIY a Marshall 2204 PTP but hell am a metal player and SLO clone Mmmmmm it sounds good !



As a fellow metal guitarist, I can understand the itch to get an high-gain amp as a first kit, but be aware that those amps can get noisy quite fast if some stuff are badly wired. It would be better to start with a small watter amp with little to no gain and learn how to properly wire and make an amp work.

Do you have knowledge in electronics? DO you know how to safely discharge a capacitor? Do you know how to bias an amp? If you said no to any of those, you'll have some research to do

I'm not trying to discourage you, I love to build and mod amp. But amps are dangerous, they are hard to build and even more to make sound good.

That being siad, I can give you as much info as I can, given I'm still a noob


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## hopkinwfg

Vostre Roy said:


> As a fellow metal guitarist, I can understand the itch to get an high-gain amp as a first kit, but be aware that those amps can get noisy quite fast if some stuff are badly wired. It would be better to start with a small watter amp with little to no gain and learn how to properly wire and make an amp work.
> 
> Do you have knowledge in electronics? DO you know how to safely discharge a capacitor? Do you know how to bias an amp? If you said no to any of those, you'll have some research to do
> 
> I'm not trying to discourage you, I love to build and mod amp. But amps are dangerous, they are hard to build and even more to make sound good.
> 
> That being siad, I can give you as much info as I can, given I'm still a noob



hey... thanks alot for your concerns over my safety on building amps.. well i actually an electrical student and abit on electronics... but sadly over the course of time am not really polished in this area... but have seen alot of the proper ways and means to discharge an amplifier safely... i should build the probe first..


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## m1989jmp

Alabama Thunder***** said:


> I'm afraid it's not that simple. True, there is no magic involved in transformer construction, but how its constructed has everything to do with its bandwidth and performance at varying signal levels. It's not merely about lows or highs. There is also core saturation headroom and other factors that come into play.



I'm aware of it, just wanted to lay down some fundamentals for OP and turn his attention to circuit design.
You would agree that any decent winder can make a good OT though?


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## RickyLee

I would love to start an SLO100/50 build but do not have the funds at this time. Plus, I do have a few things still left to do on a couple other build projects I have that need a few more dollars to finish. 

If you do undertake this one, have fun and take your time for sure to see that you end up with a somewhat quality project.


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## Joe L

RickyLee said:


> I would love to start an SLO100/50 build but do not have the funds at this time. Plus, I do have a few things still left to do on a couple other build projects I have that need a few more dollars to finish.



Ricky!!! Did you finish that amp we had discussed? Was it an SLO or a Friedman or what?

Also, did you see that they are reissuing the Silver Jubilee?

..Joe L


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## jball1985

Here's a link that might interest you... You might need to join the forum to view, I'm not sure.

Build Your Own Clone Message Board &bull; View topic - I'm building a SLOClone. This is the worklog.


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## RickyLee

Joe L said:


> Ricky!!! Did you finish that amp we had discussed? Was it an SLO or a Friedman or what?
> 
> Also, did you see that they are reissuing the Silver Jubilee?
> 
> ..Joe L



Hello Joe. Hope things have been good for you.

I can't remember which amp we were discussing now as I had two projects going then LOL. But basically, they are both up and running. The Bogner Cantrell Facelift amp needs to be tweaked and fine tuned for sure. I just can't get that exact midrange grind and refined lower mids you hear in the beginning intro of "We Die Young". Of course it is tough when you try to compare a sound that is from a recording studio recording to a live amp sitting in front of you. My amp is more bottom end heavy than the original for sure.

The other project is my two channel amp with the 6100 Clean channel and a hot rodded 800 SIR36 type channel. I just need to install a relay channel switching circuit and that one is done.

But can't afford to do the SLO100 as times have been financially tough with family and my Mom living here that I am supporting. Bummer as I basically just need the SLO board and a chassis and I could probably gather up everything else that I have from my parts stash.


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## hopkinwfg

wow Ricky ! you mod bogner amps ? well that's cool !! i cant imagine if am successful with an SLOclone would i be successful in adding features like for different tube configuration ie from El34 to 6l6 and to KT88.. i guess it involves a calculation on the PT and the power tubes you have to set them at huh? or things like adding a tube rectifier and silicon switch... a class A switch ... maybe am thinking far ahead .. its a waiting game now and its really an expensive DIY ... its a 50watter instead.. lets see how it goes when i got it


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## RickyLee

hopkinwfg said:


> wow Ricky ! you mod bogner amps ? well that's cool !! i cant imagine if am successful with an SLOclone would i be successful in adding features like for different tube configuration ie from El34 to 6l6 and to KT88.. i guess it involves a calculation on the PT and the power tubes you have to set them at huh? or things like adding a tube rectifier and silicon switch... a class A switch ... maybe am thinking far ahead .. its a waiting game now and its really an expensive DIY ... its a 50watter instead.. lets see how it goes when i got it




LOL..

No, no modding on Bogner amps. I can't even afford to lay my eyes on one of those amps. It is just a project amp I have where I am trying to get it to sound like the amp Cantrell used on the Facelift album.

You can run different type power valves but you will have to set up your bias supply circuit accordingly. I would not worry about all the fancy bells and whistles until much later down the road after you get the basic amp design running.


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## hopkinwfg

jball1985 said:


> Here's a link that might interest you... You might need to join the forum to view, I'm not sure.
> 
> Build Your Own Clone Message Board &bull; View topic - I'm building a SLOClone. This is the worklog.



wow thanks for sharing the link... i dont think i could know how to master a PTP style.. guess is more work and extra tools for turret board... maybe after this SLO project when i wanna try out a PTP style marshall 2204 and hope to tweak hell out from it having to.compare the SLO and 2204...


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## hopkinwfg

RickyLee said:


> LOL..
> 
> No, no modding on Bogner amps. I can't even afford to lay my eyes on one of those amps. It is just a project amp I have where I am trying to get it to sound like the amp Cantrell used on the Facelift album.
> 
> You can run different type power valves but you will have to set up your bias supply circuit accordingly. I would not worry about all the fancy bells and whistles until much later down the road after you get the basic amp design running.



wonder any amp gurus here who has dismantled out Reynolds Helios PTP work ? hehe... one thing i know its still scared with high gain amp is that one Fryette design that its still kept a big secret .. i wonder anybody does trace the double layered PCB and study it ?


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## RickyLee

I was real close to getting a Fryette SigX last year. Wish I would have now as I am strapped on the $. I have not been able to hear one in person yet, but I am still GAS'ing for one along with a Splawn Quickrod. If I can get myself to sell off a few of the Marshall collection, maybe I can get something along them lines some day. Unless I hit the Lottery, I will probably never own a Bogner either LOL.


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## hopkinwfg

RickyLee said:


> I was real close to getting a Fryette SigX last year. Wish I would have now as I am strapped on the $. I have not been able to hear one in person yet, but I am still GAS'ing for one along with a Splawn Quickrod. If I can get myself to sell off a few of the Marshall collection, maybe I can get something along them lines some day. Unless I hit the Lottery, I will probably never own a Bogner either LOL.



Fryette basic tone for most of their line is relative of its other amp... the high gain beast and they recently launch gpdi small one watt amp still in progress... its like selling at 700USD currently if you sign up... its all filled but email Fryette.support you will never know...


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## hopkinwfg

Biggs... did you get your SLO build an EL34 based or 6l6?


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## biggs

hopkinwfg said:


> Biggs... did you get your SLO build an EL34 based or 6l6?



6L6. My personal favorite for high gain amps.


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## hopkinwfg

biggs said:


> 6L6. My personal favorite for high gain amps.



hi biggs thanks for your prompt reply... 6l6 are rated at 30watts huh ? 5881 is only 23watts where EL34 is 25W... i guess for your case the power tubes takes more current from the tranny ? but i guess it sounds huge! didnt know soldano came originally with 5881 but my guess is with 5881 at 23W... it sounds more timid than EL34 and 6l6 huh ? 

so what did you change to fit in two matched 6l6 having the kit stock to be for 5881 tube run ?


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## biggs

It is designed to run 6L6/5881's.....just plug em in and set the bias accordingly.


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## hopkinwfg

biggs said:


> It is designed to run 6L6/5881's.....just plug em in and set the bias accordingly.



cool... cant wait to have it


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## hopkinwfg

wow... the fun begin now  am kind of happy that the kit reach in good shape... chassis is nice.. and Rob took the trouble helping me install the two onetic irons... with F&T caps but just as i thought i be getting sprague orange caps but instead it came with SBE ... no idea but who cares long as it do the job... will try to solder up the pcb this week and assemble the chassis parts


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## sct13

pictures of your progress are imparitive 

And you should be starting with the heater wires, not the board


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## hopkinwfg

sct13 said:


> pictures of your progress are imparitive
> 
> And you should be starting with the heater wires, not the board



thanks for the advise..  i mean i will try to populate the electronic parts on the pcb of the preamp power amp and power supply section.. i will have to try fitting into the chassis first the get them out again and do the heater wiring ?


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## sct13

hopkinwfg said:


> thanks for the advise..  i mean i will try to populate the electronic parts on the pcb of the preamp power amp and power supply section.. i will have to try fitting into the chassis first the get them out again and do the heater wiring ?



Its up to you, but I do all chassis work first, then check all chassis work while the board is out of the way. 

You dont want the board in there when you have something you need to fix....


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## hopkinwfg

Just update on few pics as i got using my crappy Samsung S2... 

here is arrival of the kit..


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## hopkinwfg

hopkinwfg said:


> Just update on few pics as i got using my crappy Samsung S2...
> 
> here is arrival of the kit..


 
Done up on the power supply... i took a blind eye soldering up the F&T caps and ended up squeezing them and not having them to sit well on the board... they ended up sitting higher than one another... and i realised the protruding caps cannot be fitted into the chassis.. 

i took the hassle to desolder them and forced individual out from the board by breaking the pins of the caps... drill the holes larger so i could have more space to shift the caps and get them well seated ... did a resolder on the F&T caps with the remaining short leads... lucky me .. haha


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## hopkinwfg

did the preamp board as well ... as usual the resistors gets onto first, the jumper wires and the optocoupler... 

i have no idea if i could just solder the wires direct instead of having to install the turrets on the preamp board? 

i have no tools for installing in the turrets .... any SLO builders could kindly chime in if i could just get in the wires from the preamp board's down side.... instead of installing in the turrets which i have no experience in... ?


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## hopkinwfg

back to what am thinking ... any of you guys think adding a tube rect switch in an SLOclone be ok? for thicker tone and add more sag ?


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## criszou

biggs said:


> I would go Onetics for the power transformer and get stock boards from C3, Classictone 40-18072 for OT, and choke of choice. I used the 40-18058 3HY 250ma choke. I also used Alpha pots. F&T caps are great but I went with a NA brand 220uf 400V. As far as the heaters I followed the Soldano's methods. Wires are twisted to the sockets and then parallel solid buss wire from there.



hi, biggs
Can OT Classictone 40-18072 (100W) be used with 50W PT?


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## biggs

criszou said:


> hi, biggs
> Can OT Classictone 40-18072 (100W) be used with 50W PT?


 
It Can.


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## biggs

hopkinwfg said:


> back to what am thinking ... any of you guys think adding a tube rect switch in an SLOclone be ok? for thicker tone and add more sag ?



You could certainly do that....not something that I would want out of a high gain amp but to each his own. Would be interesting to hear clips if you go there.....


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## rmroza

"but how its constructed has everything to do with its bandwidth and performance at varying signal levels. It's not merely about lows or highs. There is also core saturation headroom and other factors that come into play. "

...just like speakers. What is the enclosure made of and materials used and characteristics there of (a difference between Birch and Mahogany and Ethiopian Mahogany and African Mahogany), how constructed, what speaker, what the Quiescence of if it, impedance, efficiency rating...amp RMS wattage, at what THD? what about IM distortion, what about Slew Rate??

The is what separates a "builder" (someone who just throws things together, like a Billie Bladez) and an engineering, technician, or "designer". ...just saying there's a lot more to it.


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## biggs

Hi RM, if it's the Classictone 40-18072 you are referring to it is the one the sloclone guys had Classictone design for them or at least that's my understanding. I used one in my build and mine sounds amazing. It's some serious iron. As far as using it in a 50W app a bud of mine used it in his and according to him it's great but I cannot say I've heard it. He changed up the taps to match to the two 6L6's. It's not something I would personally do but it can certainly be done.


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## biggs

Classictone also makes some 50W project transformers (40-18091 and 92) but I don't believe they are capable of the same bandwidth as the 100W version 40-18072. IMO that's an important factor in the Soldano sound.


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## criszou

biggs said:


> It Can.



What 50W PT you prefer? O'netics too expensive for me.


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## biggs

I used a Onetics PT. I'm not aware of a 50W PT other than C3 that fit the requirements but to be honest I've not looked. I was only interested in a 100W.


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## Thiez

There is a small dealer in germany that made SLO transformer replicas. I've got a set of them waiting on the bench.... 

You have to contact him first, he is a small company and there was a time that he couldnt keep up with his orders. So don't know how whats the waiting time at the moment.
https://www.ig-transformatoren.com/...tput-transformers/321/igot-slo50-soldano?c=49


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## RickyLee

biggs said:


> Classictone also makes some 50W project transformers (40-18091 and 92) but I don't believe they are capable of the same bandwidth as the 100W version 40-18072. IMO that's an important factor in the Soldano sound.



I used that 40-18072 OT in my Jubilee 2555 Clone. It is a massive OT for sure. And I used the 40-18069 PT in that same 2555 build. But it really makes the amp heavy to lift for sure for someone like me with a lower back injury.

Awhile back someone on ebay was selling that same exact set of the 69 and 72 trannies for $100 for both. I was tempted but strapped for $ at the time. Plus they were banged up and scratched up quite a bit which I thought was odd for someone who said they were not used yet.

I can say that my 2555 Jubilee Clone sounds quite different than my '87 Silver 2555. I have always figured it had mostly to do with those transformers. 

I am still holding out hope I can take on a SLO Clone one of these days . . . .


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