Trinity Amps TRIP TOP Manuale utente

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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The Trinity Amps

TRIP TOP

Excerpts from the Trip Top Builder's Guide

DO NOT USE FOR BU LDS

For the sole personal use of Trinity Amps Customers.

August 2017, Version 1.96

Parts Trinity Amps 2005 - 2017

www.trinityamps.com

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Table of Contents

Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................................................................ 4

Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 7

Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................................................................................... 7

WARNING ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 8

Please Read this Information Carefully ...............................................................................................................................8

Version Control .............................................................................................................................................................................. 10

Trip Top Description .................................................................................................................................................................... 12

Guitar Amplifier Basics ................................................................................................................................................................. 14

Distortion ................................................................................................................................................................................... 15

General Amplifier Operation ....................................................................................................................................................... 17

Some DO NOTS ...................................................................................................................................................................... 17

Some DOs .................................................................................................................................................................................. 17

Introduction to Vacuum Tubes and Common Terms ............................................................................................................ 18

Biasing Tube Amps ....................................................................................................................................................................... 21

Building an Amp ............................................................................................................................................................................ 22

Introduction ............................................................................................................................................................................... 22

Switches and wire ...................................................................................................................................................................... 22

Physical layout ........................................................................................................................................................................... 22

Grounding .................................................................................................................................................................................. 22

Insulated jacks ........................................................................................................................................................................... 23

Minimizing transformer interference ..................................................................................................................................... 23

Wiring ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 23

Assembling the amp ...................................................................................................................................................................... 23

Before You Begin ..................................................................................................................................................................... 23

Tools ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 23

Soldering ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 24

Tube Pin Numbering ............................................................................................................................................................... 25

Assembly Steps Summary ............................................................................................................................................................. 26

1. Install the Hardware ............................................................................................................................................................. 26

2 Wiring ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 30

Grounding Scheme .............................................................................................................................................................. 31

Heater Wiring ....................................................................................................................................................................... 31

3 Install Transformers .............................................................................................................................................................. 32

4 Power Supply Wiring ............................................................................................................................................................ 33

Wiring the Power Switch and Indicator (120V) .............................................................................................................. 36

Wiring the Power Switch and Indicator (220-240V) ...................................................................................................... 37

Test the Power Transformer .............................................................................................................................................. 38

Assembling the Capacitor Assembly ................................................................................................................................ 39

5 Turret Board Construction .................................................................................................................................................. 42

TRIP TOP Board................................................................................................................................................................. 42

Install Turret Board ............................................................................................................................................................. 44

Build the Tone Boards ........................................................................................................................................................ 45

Install Control Bus Bar and Components........................................................................................................................ 45

6 Connecting the Turret Board .............................................................................................................................................. 47

Connecting the Turret Board to Controls ....................................................................................................................... 49

7 Output Transformer - Output Jacks .................................................................................................................................. 50

Connect the Impedance Selector and Speaker Output Jacks ....................................................................................... 50

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Connecting the Turret Board to Power Supply .............................................................................................................. 53

Power Supply Grounds ....................................................................................................................................................... 54

Power Supply High Voltage ............................................................................................................................................... 54

Bias Supply ............................................................................................................................................................................ 54

Connecting the Tone Boards ............................................................................................................................................. 54

8 Test the Power Supply .......................................................................................................................................................... 55

9 Input Jacks .............................................................................................................................................................................. 56

Prepare co-axial cable for connections .................................................................................................................................. 56

10 Final checkout ...................................................................................................................................................................... 58

Setting the Hum Control Pot ............................................................................................................................................. 58

Power Up ................................................................................................................................................................................... 59

Minimizing Hum .................................................................................................................................................................. 62

Trinity TRIP TOP Voltage Charts .............................................................................................................................................. 63

WARNING .................................................................................................................................................................................... 66

Please Read this Information Carefully ............................................................................................................................ 66

Troubleshooting ............................................................................................................................................................................. 67

Distortion ................................................................................................................................................................................... 68

Hum ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 70

Volume Test .............................................................................................................................................................................. 70

Faulty tube .................................................................................................................................................................................. 71

Severely unmatched output tubes in a push pull amplifier ................................................................................................ 71

Faulty power supply filter caps ............................................................................................................................................... 71

Faulty bias supply in fixed bias amplifiers ............................................................................................................................. 72

Unbalanced or not-ground-referenced filament winding ................................................................................................... 72

Defective input jack .................................................................................................................................................................. 72

Poor AC grounding .................................................................................................................................................................. 72

Induced hum .............................................................................................................................................................................. 72

Poor internal wire routing ....................................................................................................................................................... 73

Poor AC Chassis Ground at Power Transformer ............................................................................................................... 73

Defective internal grounding .................................................................................................................................................. 73

Hiss .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 73

Metal Film Resistor Substitutions .......................................................................................................................................... 73

Squealing/Feedback ................................................................................................................................................................. 74

Radio Interference .................................................................................................................................................................... 74

Scratchy Sounds on Potentiometer(s) .................................................................................................................................... 74

Amp Buzz or Rattle When Installed in Cabinet .................................................................................................................. 75

Tone Tweaking ............................................................................................................................................................................... 77

Running KT88 Tubes in the TRIP TOP .............................................................................................................................. 77

Appendix 1 - Vacuum Tube Bias Tables ................................................................................................................................... 78

Appendix 2 - How to read Resistor Color Codes .................................................................................................................... 79

First the code ........................................................................................................................................................................ 79

How to read the Color Code ............................................................................................................................................. 79

Appendix 3 - How to read Capacitor Codes ............................................................................................................................. 80

Appendix 4 - FAQ ......................................................................................................................................................................... 82

Appendix 5 - Cliff Jacks Explained ............................................................................................................................................. 85

Appendix 6- TRIP TOP Bill of Materials .................................................................................................................................. 86

Trinity Amps Schematics and Layouts ....................................................................................................................................... 87

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Thank You

Thank you for purchasing your TRIP TOP kit from Trinity Amps. We truly hope that you

enjoy building it and that it will be enjoyed for many years. If you have any questions please

do not hesitate to contact us and.

Please be sure to check the package contents in case there are any missing items.

We are always looking for feedback form our Customers on our products. We have checked

the build instructions over thoroughly and are confident in our product. However, mistakes

do happen so our advice is that as you connect each wire and part according to the layout,

cross-check against the schematic. If you find any inconsistencies, or have any concerns,

please let us know. Do not hesitate to contact us! We want this build to be successful for

you and for Trinity Amps!

We’re confident that you will like our product and our support and when you’re completed,

we’d appreciate your comments posted on any of the internet forums such as

thegearpage.net

, 18watt.com, AX84.com or trinityamps.com. You will find some extra

business cards in the package. Please keep one and pass the rest around.

We know you have a choice in suppliers and do appreciate your business. If there is any

other product we can provide to you or your associates, please get in touch and we will be

happy to discuss requirements.

Sincerely,

Stephen Cohrs,

Trinity Amps

Web site: www.trinityamps.com

email: stephen@trinityamps.com

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Version Control

Version Date Change

1.0 19Mar2015 First draft

1.1 23Mar2015 Updated based on comments from Chris Moir

1.2 27Mar2015 Tone board tip added; installation of control bus bar updated

1.3 19Apr Updates based on feedback

1.4 24Apr Updates based on Chris Moir’s first build

1.5 20May Removed terminal strip on V6, p. 27 (R. Coppola)

1.6 28Jun Updates to power supply and heater wire sections (J. Waterkotte

& R. Coppola)

1.7 18Jul Many Updates including:

Sec. 2 , 6SL7 pin numbers ;

Sec. 4, PT colours added; Test PT V4-V5 pins; PSU filter cap

updated to 47uF from 100uF; bias R updated to 22K from 47K;

Sec. 5 enhanced section picture of turret board; added alternate

installation; corrected pin numbers in pictures of terminal strip

installation at V1,V2 & grid resistor on V4, V5

Sec. 7 Made a note to lengthen the centre tap wire of the OT;

clarified the wiring of PSU ground and Bias supply; updated

bias resistor to 47K from 22K in PSU HiV

Sec. 8 added note to set meter to 600V

Sec. 10 Revamped the Start-Up procedure; added cathode bias

section

1.9 15Aug Enhanced Distortion troubleshooting with more tips; Noted

wiring of OT to Impedance switch.

1.91 23Nov15 Corrected connection to Bias supply from Rectifier from pin 8

to pin 6.

1.92 27Dec16 Updated BOM for 20Ga BUS BAR; updated instructions on

BUS BAR installation

1.93 31Mar17

Corrected primary impedance from 5500 to 6800 ohms

1.94 9May17

C19, 22,23,24 changed to 47uf/63V

1.95 22Aug17

Updated Connecting the Tone Boards instructions

1.96 4Sep17

Updated for Bias Selector slide Switch. Was toggle switch;

Updated BOM

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Trip Top Description

Based on several years of vintage Ampeg B15 designs, the Trip Top combines the

original circuits of both the Ampeg B-15NC (1964) as well as the later B-15NF (1965-

67). The B-15-NF channel has the volume control section before the tone stack and in

the B-15-NC channel it is after. Maintaining these circuits keeps the same gain structure

and biasing found in the original B-15N amp designs, helping to preserve their true

heritage. It also has two power supply settings - Cathode and Fixed bias to provide

further tone structure.

The Trip Top is designed to output approximately 30 watts in cathode bias mode and 40

watts in fixed bias mode using 6L6GC tubes.

It was possible to get it to sound very, very close to Sly-Fi Chapel's 70s B15N using an

Ampeg Portaflex 15" Bass cab, so it's tone has been proven authentic. But it has some

extra hot sauce the original doesn't and it absolutely kills for bass. Sly-Fi Chapel recently

re-amped all the bass on a current project as a result and found the extra headroom and

tone stack arrangements made it better than their studio B15 in a lot of ways.

But calling it a bass amp is missing half the point. It's an AMAZING guitar amp. It has a

different sonority than other Trinity offerings which have a focus on a very smooth but

sparkly top end (the Triwatt being the one that slightly deviated). The Trip Top is the

opposite - there's still a nice smooth top end -band plenty of it - but this amp is all about

low end girth and grind. It's got a nice big tight booty (even with the bass tone knob on

full!) that inspires rocking out down low on the neck with open chords!! Fixed bias has a

more forward, clear, present sound... Cathode bias gives it a saggier feel but adds this

gorgeous rich high harmonic overtone to everything - really nice for those ringy single

coil U2-esque type sounds

The Trip Top combines the original circuits of both the Ampeg B-15NC (1964) as well

as the later B-15NF (1965-67). Maintaining these circuits keeps the same gain structure

and biasing found in the original B-15N amp designs, helping to preserve their true

heritage.

It has two channels each have volume with a 'Pull Bright' switch, treble and bass

controls. The first channel, NORMAL, from the B-15-NF, has the volume control

section before the tone stack. The second channel, CASCADE, comes from the B-15-

NC which has the volume control section after the tone controls.

The power amp section has two switch selectable bias modes - fixed (B-15NF) and

cathode (B-15NC). While 1N4007 solid state rectifier diodes were used for the "NB"

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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Guitar Amplifier Basics

Electric guitarists can be fairly criticized for their reluctance to change to new ideas

and technologies; however, there is no doubt that a classic 1950’s guitar and tube

amplifier in good condition still sounds great in modern recordings. This is a

testament to good design from the start. What has improved today is consistency,

and the cost benefits of production line manufacturing. This is offset by the rarity of

good guitar wood (it makes a huge difference, even on an electric guitar), increased

labour costs for both guitars and amplification equipment, and the availability of good

and consistent quality tubes.

There is also an element of nostalgia, with memories of many of the great players of

years gone by, and the desire to use the same types of instruments and equipment to

recapture the magic. Vintage instruments and equipment have also become valuable

collectors items (some with very inflated prices) which adds further to the desirability

of older tools of the trade. There has been a recent trend by many companies to re-

market their original instruments and equipment; new guitars can even be bought now

‘pre-aged’!

This desire for vintage equipment is also related to guitarists’ reluctance to part with

tube amplification, and there are many reasons why tube and solid state amplifiers

behave differently. Quite simply, if players prefer the sound of tubes, they will

continue to buy and use them. Below are some fundamentals.

TrinityAmps Trip Top Builders Guide Ver1.9.docx

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General Amplifier Operation

Some DO OTS

• Never, Never, Never run the amp without a speaker plugged in. This

can cause major damage.

• Do not flip the power switch off, and then back on rapidly. This can cause

power supply damage.

• Never replace a burned out fuse with a bigger-amperage one. Remember -

there was a reason the first one burned out, usually protecting something

more expensive. Putting a bigger fuse in will just ratchet up the power level

until something really vital burns out. If the second equal-rating fuse pops,

turn it off and get a tech to look at it.

• Never ignore signs of high heat inside - a wisp of smoke or a burning smell

is NOT normal.

• Your amp produces lots of heat, and will continue to do so even if you

block the fresh air vents. Blocking the vents will overheat the amp and you

may have to get some very expensive repairs done.

• Never ignore a red glow other than the small orange ends of the filaments.

A red glow over a large part of the internal plates of the output tubes means

they're about to melt. If you notice this, shut it down and get a tech to help

you find out what it wrong.

Some DOs

Add another speaker into the "external speaker" jack; a mismatched speaker load

won't kill it, while an open circuit (disconnected speakers) may do so.

Overdrive the stuffing out of it. Tubes are very forgiving of massive overdrives,

unlike solid state gear. As long as they tubes don't overheat for long periods, it's not

fatal.

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