Im sure everyone is going to recommend the fender but what are the differences between a gibson ga5 lp junior amp and a fender tweed champ. If we love anything more than a musty old tube amp in outstanding condition, its a musty old tube amp with a stirring history a tale that takes us rapidrewind style from the present day back to a time in the mid 50s, when this gibson ga20 was first bought, played, and loved. The gibson ga83s was a short lived model introduced around 1959. Thanks for the info guysit seems that gibson made two versions of the ga8t discoverer amp.
By popular request i annotated one of the more popular gibson amps, the ga 40 version 3. I first got the chance to work on one of these for an austin guitar teacher and all around cool guy, andy bullington. The schematics from the two sources you two supplied have the early version schematics and only a picture of the late ga 8t, so im still looking. This model was added to gibsons tweed combo amp line in 1959 but was only on the market for about a year. Ive been looking into building a ga40 reproduction from scratch, partly because vintage gibson amps are quite rare in my area holland and partly because even if i find a vintage one usually many parts have been, or should have been replaced by now. Tube amp schematics index page there are over 3500 tube amp schematics and other types of schematics in the el34world schematic library. Gibson tube amp schematics, hoffman amps tube amp schematic library. An oftoverlooked amp powerhouse from the 50s and 60s, the gibson ga 40 combo brought in 6v6 power tubes, a dual channel layout, and an offbeat pentode preamp design for a sound wholly distinct from its rivals of the time. Victoria amps electro king amplifier humbucker music. It is 100% original with original brown case, and comes to us from the original owner, and includes old photos of him playin. During its tenure of 1954 until the late 60s the ga 5 ga 5t was probably gibson s most popular model of amplifier. They have the minimum controls necessary to produce a good range of sounds, from clean to overdriven. If you want to join us and get repairing help please sign in or sign up by completing a simple electrical test.
Gibson ga40 schematic versions and output transformer. The 12ax7 tubes used in gibson ga6s and later fender champs like the 5e1 and the 5f1, distort a bit more, but keep those distortions in. Gibson ga8t schematic service manual download, schematics. This model featured tremolo but did not reflect it in the model number, as gibson normally used a letter suffix to denote features like reverb rv and tremolo t. The gibson ga40 les paul amp was introduced in 1952, and by the time the les paul name had been dropped on products by gibson in 196263, it had undergone five major cosmetic alterations. Gibson ga5 les paul junior amplifier as the new owner of the les paul junior amplifier, you have joined a great gibson legacy. This is an amazing 1954 gibson les paul goldtop 1954 gibson ga 40 amp. In the amp on top, the circuit board is on the visual right. Gibson diagrams, schematics and service manuals download for free. Ga version 1 ga 1rt maestro revecho ga 1rvt ga 2rvt ga 3rv ga 4re ga 5 skylark. First, the twotone finish, and secondly, they also utilize the preferred circuit and. Gibson was known for changing their amps fairly often.
Gibson ga40 v3 annotated schematic telecaster guitar forum. Please do not copy info contained here without a link back to this page. The schematic calls for a 7199 reverb driverrecovery tube. Something about gibson amps reminds us of the tommy cooper gag about the stradivarius and the rembrandt. Tremelo with frequency and depth controls, classic chickenhead knobs. This 1956 vintage gibson ga40 les paul tube amp was given to me to repair so i decided to try it with pedal steel. Gibson ga80 varitone schematic service manual download. For collectors, the ga 40 amps made between 1956 and 1959 are the most desired for a couple reasons. The paraphase phase inverter lower triode gets its signal to its grid through the upper 470k grid leak resistor. When i am sure that i have my drawing finished and accurate, i plan to. Gibson ga40 manuals manuals and user guides for gibson ga40.
I had always thought of gibson amps as pretty dark sounding and fender as the bright ones. For your consideration garrett park guitars presents this 1956 gibson ga 40 les paul amplifier. Gibson les paul model ga40 1955 with original cover code am955. I already have the ga10p power transformer from a previously purchased gibson clavioline amp.
The problem with any of these amps is you need a schematic. Ive found only one schematic see attachment the component values on this one seems to be good, ive compared with the circuitry unfortunately, without no voltage chart, its hard to verify the value of the power. It is a 30 watt amplifier with 6 jensen 8j11 speakers. The victoria electro king is based on the 15watt 1957 gibson ga40 les paul. As the new owner of a gibson amplifier, you have joined a great gibson legacy.
Combo amp has alltube circuitry, alltweed covering, 2 channels, 4 inputs, 40 watts. The ga 40 v3 uses one 5879 pentode per channel as a single preamp stage. Back in the 1950s gibson sold amps and guitars as sets under the premise that the guitar would sound better through the amp that was designed for it to be played through. There were several very different gibson amps that wore the skylark name over the years. This whole thing started a while back when i got a handful of 5879 tubes. Gibson golden age tube amp specifications, tube configurations and shipping information. Gibson ga15 maestro schematic gibson ga15rvt explorer schematic gibson ga16t viscount schematic gibson ga17rvt scout schematic gibson ga19rvt falcon schematic gibson ga20 crest schematic gibson ga20rvt minuteman schematic gibson ga25rvt hawk schematic gibson ga30 invader schematic gibson ga30b schematic gibson ga35rvt schematic. Tere are at least a pair of different schematics about the gibson ga 5 t skylark 61 3 tube 5y3 12ax7 ecl82 that you can see this is on the web and this is the version on dougs archive no one is perfectly readable, so, starting from the ga 1 rt schematic, with a bit of image editing ive redrawn a more readable version. I have aquired a gibson g80 chassis and a schematic. This 1956 vintage gibson ga 40 les paul tube amp was given to me to repair so i decided to try it with pedal steel. An oftoverlooked amp powerhouse from the 50s and 60s, the gibson ga40 combo brought in 6v6 power tubes, a dual channel layout, and an offbeat pentode preamp design for a sound wholly distinct from its rivals of the time.
The tremolo oscillation is fed to the channel 2 preamp plate. See more ideas about vintage guitars, fender deluxe and black and white printer. The ga40 v3 uses one 5879 pentode per channel as a single preamp stage. Gibson ga 40 manuals manuals and user guides for gibson ga 40. The amp in question was produced before the lancer, yet had a tube complement like that of a lancer.
The victoria electro king is based on the 15watt 1957 gibson ga40 les paul amplifier. In the 1940s and 1950s, gibsons continuing advances in. The 12ax7 tubes used in gibson ga 6s and later fender champs like the 5e1 and the 5f1, distort a bit more, but keep those distortions in the lowerorder harmonics. Three of the input jacks have a 100k tied to them as a group and a fourth jack with a 1m to ground. View and download gibson ga 19rvt schematic diagram online. Ga 19rvt musical instrument amplifier pdf manual download. This is an amazing 1954 gibson les paul goldtop 1954 gibson ga40 amp. Ga 6 lancer ga 8 gibsonette ga 8t ga 9 ga 14 titan same as ga 6 ga 15 maestro ga 15rvt explorer ga 16t viscount ga 17rvt scout ga 18t explorer ga 19rvt falcon ga 20 ga 20t ga 20rvt minuteman ga 25 ga 25rvt hawk ga 30 invader 50s ga 30 invader 60s ga 30rv invader ga 30rvt invader ga 35rvt lancer ga 40 1954 ga 40t crestline. Schematic heaven have some ga40s too but maybe they are the hard ones to read eg. If you see a problem with any of the schematics, please email me so i can fix the problem.
I expected the circuit to be that of a lancer, but. We have 1 gibson ga40 manual available for free pdf download. Ga 40 les paul 1954 gibson amplifiers gibson brands forums. I was thinking of building a phono preamp on a schematic published. Get the best prices on our vintage gibson amplifiers both instore and online. In the pic below, an ebay auction ga20t is on top, my ga20t on the bottom. Add a driver pedal to the front end for a little overload and wonderful sonic breakup. When the electric guitar emerged in the 1930s as an instrument with its own voice, gibson amplifiers powered that voice. View and download gibson ga19rvt schematic diagram online. The victoria electro king is based on the 15watt 1957 gibson ga 40 les paul amplifier. Old style snapin ac power inlet for gibson goldtonetrace.
Ga 6 lancer ga 8 gibsonette ga 8t ga 9 ga 14 titan same as ga 6 ga 15 maestro ga 15rvt explorer ga 16t viscount ga 17rvt scout ga 18t explorer ga 19rvt falcon ga 20 ga 20t ga 20rvt minuteman ga 25 ga 25rvt hawk ga 30 invader 50s ga 30 invader 60s ga 30rv invader ga 30rvt invader ga 35rvt lancer ga 40 1954 ga 40t crestline ga 40 les paul ga. The version you have was produced roughly between 1955 and 1957 and is the second version of the les paul amp. I bought the chassis and component board and am now sourcing a replacement output transformer and choke. I am having a hard time finding any parts as this was built in 1971. This model featured tremolo but did not reflect it in the model number, as gibson normally used a letter. Pedal steel played through a gibson ga40 les paul amp. Tube line up is, 12ax7 x 2, 6l6gc x 2 big bottle, the weird 5v66v6 in most schematics, looking at the drawing you can see the tube is. Img the ga 40 v3 uses one 5879 pentode per channel as a.
The article also has some respectful, goodnatured welldeserved. It needed all new power supply caps 20101010 at 450 wvdc and i added a 3 prong power cord and a new handle. During its tenure of 1954 until the late 60s the ga5ga5t was probably gibsons most popular model of amplifier. For your consideration garrett park guitars presents this 1956 gibson ga40 les paul amplifier. First, the twotone finish, and secondly, they also utilize the preferred. Tere are at least a pair of different schematics about the gibson ga5 t skylark 61 3 tube 5y3 12ax7 ecl82 that you can see this is on the web and this is the version on dougs archive no one is perfectly readable, so, starting from the ga1 rt schematic, with a bit of image editing ive redrawn a more readable version. Gibson ga5 t skylark 61 3 tube value of cathode resisor. And 6sj7 tubes do that whether they are in a gibson les paul junior or a tweed fender champ fc1.
Its a great time to upgrade your home music studio gear with the largest selection at. Gibson ga 15 maestro schematic gibson ga 15rvt explorer schematic gibson ga 16t viscount schematic gibson ga 17rvt scout schematic gibson ga 19rvt falcon schematic gibson ga 20 crest schematic gibson ga 20rvt minuteman schematic gibson ga 25rvt hawk schematic gibson ga 30 invader schematic gibson ga 30b schematic gibson ga 35rvt schematic. Ga6 lancer ga8 gibsonette ga8t ga9 ga14 titan same as ga6 ga15 maestro ga15rvt explorer ga16t viscount ga17rvt scout ga18t explorer ga19rvt falcon ga20 ga20t ga20rvt minuteman ga25 ga25rvt hawk ga30 invader 50s ga30 invader 60s ga30rv invader ga30rvt invader ga35rvt lancer ga40 1954 ga40t crestline. 14 amp builder bob gjika gjika amplification, the mojo behind singleended amps. Ga 6 lancer ga 8 gibsonette ga 8t ga 9 ga 14 titan same as ga 6 ga 15 maestro ga 15rvt explorer ga 16t viscount ga 17rvt scout ga 18t explorer ga 19rvt falcon ga 20 ga 20t. In the early days of the electric guitar, manufacturers who made both guitars and amps very often attempted to sell them as matched setsand players very often bought them that way, until they figured out there was nothing wrong with mixing and matching to suit your varying tastes in each. Gibson tube amp specifications i would like to thank bjorn anger for permission to use the information contained here. In total, gibson produced no fewer than five les paul ga40 amplifier variants. Gibson ga5 reissue model schematic 2004 chasing tone. First, the twotone finish, and secondly, they also utilize the preferred circuit and tube configuration for this model. I am rebuilding a gibson ga40 2nd version with 5879 preamp tubes. An oftoverlooked amp powerhouse from the 50s and 60s, the gibson ga40 combo brought in 6v6 power tubes, a dual channel layout. For collectors, the ga40 amps made between 1956 and 1959 are the most desired for a couple reasons. Gibson amp heaven schematics maestro skylark les paul.
If you need tubes for these amps, i have a dwindling selection of new old. Gibson ga40 service manual download, schematics, eeprom. Three of the input jacks have a 47k tied to them as a group and one jack with a 33k. I examined the schematic and there was a difference in the chip in the input channel. Gibson schematic heaven, tube books, schematics galore. The ga50 schematic is available and one could clone the circuit from. In the 1940s and 1950s, gibsons continuing advances in amplifier design matched the companys celebrated guitar innovations. I first got the chance to work on one of these for an austin. It seems to be from the gibson amplifier master service book. Seth lover designed the tremolo circuit, which utilises an octal 6sq7 triode.
Gibson les paul model ga 40 1955 brown tolex amp for sale. We have 1 gibson ga 40 manual available for free pdf download. This model from 1956 was sold in just that fashion b. There is also a huge library of effects and solid state schematics.
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