Metropoulos Forum

Amp mods?

80s modder - apparently modded amps for Steve Vai etc.

For those of you that have watched his instructional DVD----he is an amp hacker...still gives me goose bumps to watch that DVD.....

Allen

I've just been watching it too, for a customer's amp. Is the sound really distorted on your's? I checked to DVD audio settings and everything is set right. But the ausio clips everytime Lee says something, on all three of my DVD players.
The picture is really dark too. And this came right from the Lee Jackson website, it's not a copy.

John from Sozo said the VHS version has clear audio and picture.

One thing about the mod: I don't understand why Lee would have you drill a hole (it killed me to watch that) and add a tube, only use half it. Especially when one half of V1 is disconnected and not used.....?????

george

My DVD copy is not distorted but the light is poor, like he placed a video camera on a tripod in a candle lit room and let it rip, not very professional in my opinion. Yea, punch a hole in a vintage marshall 2203.......and place all the cap, etc. on the preamp tube socket....I think I need to hurl!

Allen

SO what is so special about that guy?? He can make your Peavey Bandit sound like 10 Marshall stack??

5150loveeddie wrote:SO what is so special about that guy?? He can make your Peavey Bandit sound like 10 Marshall stack??

From what I hear some of his mods he did back in the 80's sounded pretty good so he got a reputation as an amp modder then came out with his own line of amps that went belly up after a few years.....he now lives in Austin, TX. and has some secret amp deal he is working on with some manufacture to produce some wild ass new amp. That's all I know.

Allen

A new Ampeg series again? JF, Lee really got a name for himself with his Perfect Connection preamp that Zakk Wylde used on No Rest For the Wicked. That was about the timeframe that Lee Jackson was the guy to work on your amp out in Hollywierd(late 88-89), then he came out with the Metaltronix M-100 or M-1000 can't remember what the model was, which was a super hot rodded 2203 essentially. He also did a "blues" version Metaltronix amp which didn't sell so well from what I understand.
In the early 90's he did a amp with Ampeg that was another 80's metal amp which sounded decent on its own, But had a key to access the mains. Sort of like a positive standby. You could turn the amp all the way on but the key would enable you to lock the amp from being used by others. Really gimmicky.

In the world of mods no matter what it maybe, a guru is always the one who can hide or dont change cosmetically an amp. So if one looks at it will find it hard to see that its not stock. I have seen so many Marshall like my friends Marshall Bass been butchered.

I bought a dvd too, and it played ok, no audio clipping, although the internal circuit board pictures are pretty dark, almost useless for me. He does include a schematic though.

I get the idea that this mod is actually a part of a more complex mod, so it leaves some parts looking incomplete, especially when looking at the schematic.

I'd guess this is just the gain stage mod from a complete setup with tube buffered efx loop and what not, but without all the other candy.

It would have been better (for me anyway) if he'd have taken more time with explaining what he was thinking with the mod, instead of just 'put 22 puff cap here, clip this, solder this, now play!'

show us thy schematic.

lol

I dunno, it says right on the schem, "Whosoever shall post this document upon the intarweb shall certainly be smoted upon, post haste!" or words to that effect....

ok email it here: mark@markabrahamian.com what? it didnt say anything about emailing it did it??