Verellen 'MeatSmoke' Amp Anyone ever hear of them?

[Mars Amp Repair]

Hey folks,
In the past 2 weeks, I got 2 of these 'MeatSmoke' amps after 10yrs of never hearing of them at all. The first one had pretty simple blown 6550 which took out Cathode resistors and a 3KV protection diode on the Screens.
The second one showed signs of being set down on it's end pretty hard to the point where the output transformer bent up, loosened one of its mounting screws until the nut came off & was dancing around inside causing some havoc.
Other than those simple things, the thing is built like a Brick Sh*tHouse with a turret board and nice layout.
It must weigh like 90lbs. The output xfrmer is humongous and actually larger than the power xformer.
Anyway, some fun. Glen

[tedmich]

Aha! A funky Seattle company! They ceased operation maybe 2 yrs ago but founder Ben Verellen (EE) is still around I think. Doom/Punk players love them and their cabinets are a hoot. Supposedly their lifetime warranty is still honored (?)


his current band is Helms Alee

[xtian]

A) This has the most aggressively twisted heater wiring ever!

B) Hammond 1650W = 280watts = $400 = zOMG!

[mozz]

Inspired by Traynor.

[The Dude]

Just looking at that amp makes my back and ears hurt!

[tedmich]

if an amp were a 300lb bearded flannel dude...
Some of their models had all the power caps just glued to the chassis, like chassis mount can without the holes and clamps, not the best idea.

and I cant remember the last time I saw Solen film caps in an amp!

[nosaj]

if an amp were a 300lb bearded flannel dude...
Some of their models had all the power caps just glued to the chassis, like chassis mount can without the holes and clamps, not the best idea.

and I cant remember the last time I saw Solen film caps in an amp!

Is that a reference to TAD (Tad Doyle)
nosaj

[Mars Amp Repair]

NO KIDDING! That OT looks like it could power your average home were it a power xformer!

[Helmholtz]

6x6550 is Ampeg SVT territory. To me the OT looks appropriate while the PT seems a bit small.

[tedmich]

6x6550 is Ampeg SVT territory. To me the OT looks appropriate while the PT seems a bit small.

There are separate HV and heater transformers, another odd idea but maybe beefy enough. He originally used KT88s and (6) KT120s (!) but switched to 6550's for reliability, reportedly.