5E3 Questions

[MarkL8]

Hi all I have been reading up on building my first 5E3 lots of good info here. Since its my first the one Im going with is the Mission amp version. I am good with electronics, computer builder and former Roadie/Stage Manager back in the day. Plus 20 years as Plumbing contractor I can melt...ERR...aaaa solder just about anything. I found out early on the Plumbing biz payed way better than the music biz!

Heres a couple of questions you may be able to help with. There is a option for a choke on the OT is this something I should get? I am also getting the Mecury Mag OT option. Then speaker choices, I play mostly at home, recording and some jamming mainly blues and classic rock, so I dont need a firebreather. I was considering the weber 12A125-O as its decribed to be Warm, crunchy, early breakup, aggressive, punchy, loud. Since I dont need massive volume the early break-up would be good. Ill be putting in 6k6's as that has been recommended by Bruce in the past, as Iam not going to be filling the Garden any day soon.

I already have a Swart 5F1 6v6se which is sweet little firebreather for a 5 watter but I want the 5e3 sound and in a bigger package for a fuller sound. I also have a BDRI so this project should round out my options for tone to say the least. Thanks in advance for the help!

[tooloud]

I am starting my 5E3 also I am going to use a choke on mine check out this thread 3 pages HERE also see this pic guide with the schematic I am going to use HERE that has the choke and voices each channel a little different.......

[Bruce / Mission Amps]

Shameless plug and it's about time!

The Mission Amps 5E3 kits are serious Pro series kits using high quality components, custom wound trannys, all the tubes including a 12AY7 and a real NOS 5Y3GT, both of which are critical to the real tweed 5E3 sound.
The MA 5E3 chrome chassis' comes with all mounting holes needed with PEM nuts presssed in to accept a 20 or 40 watt amp choke, the MA 5E3 OT or the MA 30 watt 6L6 OT!
Even the Dave Allen 40 watt Deluxe power tranny bolts right in and the chassis is made (using 4 pressed in PEM nuts) to accept our heavy duty L bracket system to hold it all in the cabinet using a third chassis to cabinet screw and nut. (We have a few out like this with Pro players using that setup and two vintage 5881s and a GZ30 type rectifier, making close to 30 watts.)
As a matter of fact, 'everything' that bolts to the chassis is mounted using 5 ton, pressed in PEM nuts, even the tiny 9 pin sockets.
And, all the chassis are prepunched for the installation of the two SPDT switches used in the two Humbucker mod kits we sell so they can be bypassed if a builder wants the stock sound or switch in either or both of the modded Humbucker mods for different combos of tone.
This way a builder can do all sorts of cool mods and tranny swaps.

Using our custom made power transformer and custom wound 18 watt output tranny (which has 4 and 8 ohm taps for real AUX cabinet use), I feel VERY VERY strongly that this is the finest 5E3 chassis kit made.

The bone stock configuration sounds really good and they are a blast to play with... the problem is that the amp is so darn simple to mod, that it's hard not to!! Ha ha...

My personal 5E3 is not heavily modded.
It uses the standard MA transformers, the MA Tone-Vol mod, the switchable MA Humbucker 1 mod, NOS Sylvania 12AY7, NOS RCA greyplate 12AX7, NOS RCA 5Y3GT, two RCA 6V6GTs and a reissue Celestion AlNiCo Bulldog G12.
It is highly sought after by local players though so I have to keep it home as I've made the mistake of selling my 5E3 three times now over the last two or three years and I miss it dearly when I do.
The one I keep in the shop is very similar but has an old WeberVST P12B and EH tubes with a NOS 5Y3GT.

A really cool mod is to use the MA T-V mod with the two Humbucker mods and then dump the cathode biasing and go with fixed bias.
I don't have one built that uses the choke at the same time as the other mods but I suspect that would kick ass too.
However, the amp will make about 6 to 8 more watts running in fixed bias and built with a choke, more power but,.... sound a little bit "brown face Princeton meets black face Princeton".
Yikes... what's wrong with that too?