Question regarding building vs buying?

[Bruce / Mission Amps]

Also, for what it's worth, I think the name "Rampage" is a great idea!!!

Except other amp builders already using that name, such as Rocktron, will have your lunch.

[bob p]

I'd say that its always cheaper to buy an amp and more fun to build one.

IME building amps one at a time is for people who are looking for a hobby to occupy their time, not for a way to save money.

[Steve Conner]

It's true. If you have the knowledge and skills to build an amp, then from a strict economic perspective, it's better to use your skills to earn money fixing widgets in industry, and then use the money to buy a mass-produced amp. You'll achieve the end result with less time and effort.

Having said that, I like to build amps anyway because I'm very interested in how they work and what makes them sound the way they do. Every time I make another one, I learn a lot more. I also like the geeky thrill of knowing that I've got a one-off unique piece of gear that nobody else has.

Also, playing with tubes makes a pleasant change from my day job as an embedded programmer. Three-legged fuses for business, eight-legged light bulbs for pleasure!

[kkregsg]

The responses in this thread really cover the topic, and my journey from electro-dummy to mildly experienced amp builder for personal satisfaction mirrors the comments perfectly. I just enjoy being able to choose a particular style amp, research it, assemble parts, construct it and then troubleshoot and tweak it. I buy blank aluminum chassis, and build my own cabinets. My wife is a graphic designer, so I get to have some fun with the faceplates and my own nameplates. I'll leave the attempt to make it a business to people with a lot more knowledge and tenacity.

[GregS]

I've also found reliability to be a big factor in favour of building one's own amp. It was one of the things that drove me to start building my own amps in the first place. It becomes more important if you're playing in a band. The mass produced commercial amps didn't last that long in band use before problems with intermittent and weird sound started happening as the result of failing connections in the amps. Of course, as Murphy's Law would have it, you'd lose your sound right in the middle of your solo during a gig! There was also the countless rehearsals where the other band members were standing around waiting while your amp wasn't working. That was my experience anyway

Hand wiring and using good quality jacks, switches etc. solves this reliability problem provided your solder connections are good and solid. I've been using my own scratch built amps for the last five years now and have had no problems to speak of.

It is certainly cheaper as far as parts cost is concerned to build your own hand wired amp than it is to buy a hand wired amp. In addition to boutique makers, the big companies like Fender and Marshall also make hand wired amps that cost a fortune. It's simply that it's costly in labour to build something that way. You can save the labour cost by building yourself provided you're prepared to put a lot of your time in. But, if you're like me, that's fun and a very rewarding experience - well worth the effort. You'll also get more enjoyment out of playing something you built yourself.

For someone interested in scratch building their own amp I'd recommend getting Kevin O'Connor's "The Ultimate Tone 3". It covers in detail what you need to know including physical construction, wiring, parts layout etc. There are also numerous projects of classic amps to choose from with schematics and layout diagrams in TUT 3. I also found Paul Ruby's site helpful with its information in how to power up a new build for the first time.

Greg

[chinrest]

This is a poignant and challenging topic. It makes one question "what's the real reason I do this?" I think I got into building because I had both a passion for technical problem solving, and a warped sense of self-sufficiency (aka: cheap). My passion for the technical tweaking has been satisfied, and I've learned much along the way. On the other hand, much of the money and time I've spent with all those half-assed home brews could have bought a few magnificent amps and guitars and cars and vacations.

Last month, I broke down. I admitted that "I do not have the proper tools nor the proper workspace, nor the skill to build an amp with the quality I always envision. I always start out with the grand vision, and end up with an ok amp.

So now you're thinking that I saved my coin, and went out and bought the amp of my dreams, right? Wrong! I'm a junkie, obssessed with this process. I don't give a damn about great sounding killer mojo tone amps. I love the process of planning, dreaming and building. The actual building is something I've had to practice great patience with. I find myself rushing through the build sometimes to get to the next project.

The moral of this pseudo-philosophical story? Dig deep to find the essence of what you want. To own and play the best amp? To save money? To express techreativity? To be admired? To me, the joy is in the journey, and the journey includes some ground loops, bad solder joints, metal corners to cover bad tolex, smoke, some great sounding amps I wish I had kept, some boat anchors, burnt fingers, embarrassing moments on stage due to technical difficulties, some very impressed friends, angry wives, and money well spent.