First things first, the amp I built is a standard 100W kit from metro. I built it between november 29th and december 10th in the very few spare time I have in my life (2 kids, a wife, crazy job that eats up my time...), essentially the amp was done in 2 hours sessions... between 10:00 and midnight when everyone was asleep. I took my time, no rush, trying to have fun all the way, which I did.
The amp is simply outstanding tone wise, nice vibrant and glassy sounding! Silent like a plexi can be... incredibly LOUD!
About me... I built 2 byoc pedals prior to this just to make sure I could at least follow instructions and build something with a soldering iron. I do not have any more soldering expertise than these pedals and a guitar rewiring... pretty basic. For this kit I bought a cheap Weller WES51 soldering station, I had all the other tools needed (pliers, cutters, round file, drill...)
1) Should I be an expert at soldering ? No, but be prepared to solder a great deal on a kit. I did watch all the vids I find on youtube on proper soldering techniques, one was very nice from tubedepot (http://www.tubedepot.com/solder.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;). I highly recommand watching this vid and also read a bit on the subject.
2) How can I prepare myslef to build one ? I bet I ain't the best example to follow here, cause I overdid this one a bit. I think I read the entire forum the last two years, read every guide numerous time... Dont do as I did, act more quickly, but reading the guides first just making sure you picture the actions that will take place is a great way to prepare. Reading this forum is also a great way to learn, some people here knows so much about these amps that it's almost spooky. Plus, the forum has a great feel, no bashing, just helpfull people.
3) Is the amp that great ? Does it compare to the real thing ? I never owned a "real" handwired vintage Marshall. But I had a 1987xl Reissue. The amp was ok sounding, but a bit dull. The 100W I build owns that RI, the sound quality is so much above par that's it's a no challenge. Initially I tought that people were a bit over excited about all this handwire point to point quality... man... i was so wrong. I can't talk about the other kits, but this 100 Watt kit sure is the sweetest sounding amp I ever had a chance to hear... and I built it! Sweet! For the price, it's a no match. A RI cost around 1500$ I got this kit for 1200$ with shipping (I live in Canada). Plus, having a such good amp built yourself can't be bad for the ego!
4) Is the guide exact enough to build the amp ? Albeit a few (very few) spots, a big YES. But I was so cautious and so scared of breaking my kit that I followed to the letter the guide. At the end, testing the amp, I never saw an indication indicating to flick the standby prior to check the voltage against the voltage chart. It's only after talking to someone on the forum that I knew I had to do this. I bet that if George had written "Step 17d: Take the biggest hammer you can find on your toolbox, grab it tightly and give yourself three good hit on the head while saying 'I'm a goofball ready to do anything written here!'" I would surely gave it a shot! More serioulsy, I highly recommand checking out the other guides for the other kits, especially the Master Volume guide. It has nice pictures and info that is easily reusable to your kit. That's what I did. And in doubt... stop everything and give the forum a shot, search or ask!
5) Will I have enough components, wires... in the kit. I'm afraid that if I do an 5 inches error cutting wires, I'll have to go to the store to get those ? Turned out that I had a surprisingly large leftovers, be it resistors, caps and wires. I'm not saying that you have enough stuff to build two amps, but everything is there, in quantity... even solder. I will surely keep those as a net for my next build!
6) Is the kit hard to build, how much time will it takes ? For the kit being hard to build, in essence I'd say NO. But that's not to say "It's easy". You have to be able to follow instructions, not in a rush, do proper solid soldering. I built mine under 25 hours of work. I didn't had a major showstopper problem, but this ain't a race. Some people take 100 hours to build it, some people really do an incredible nice wire job. I took my time, having fun all the way, listening to some AC/DC while building it so it knows what I had in mind for it! Jeez... I even liked doing the heaters wires...
7) These warnings about the danger of getting electrocuted scare the woot out of me, is it that bad ? I did not test it
... I took extra precautions about not beign electrocuted. I think the idea here is to threat these things with respects, dont rush, think! And the draining techniques explained in the guide are effective! This can't be taken lightly. I have two kids at home, and I told them to never put theyre hands in the amp if I ever happen to let it sit on the bench, to touch anything. When I finished working on the amp, I placed it somewhere where they can't get to it! Respect, it's all there is to it!
What's next ? You'll be hooked! All you want is build another and another! I do a brain job all day long (computer science field), it was such a relief actually building something tangible and real... man, better than a vacation!I put slides of my build here (http://www.flickr.com/photos/56814760@N ... 555259864/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;) sound clips soon!
Have fun... and if I had to rate the experience, I'd have to say 5 stars out of 5. Great service, fast shipping, well done wrapping and packaging, incredible community. Man... I WANT MORE! As soon as this 100W Master Volume (2203) is back on the shop I'm building it!
Thanks to everyone active on this forum and a big thanks to George and his crew! Keep it going!
