# Triode Electronics JCM 800 kit? Anyone have one?



## cerwinthedoc (Dec 3, 2009)

So my JCM 800 2204 DIY kit came in, finally. I ordered it from Triode Electronics, a US tube amp company located in Chicago. 

It took them literally a month to ship it, and I got as many excuses as possible as to why my kit hadn't come in yet. But it finally came in 2 days ago. I got started on it today (not much you can do without a chassis) and I am about halfway done with wiring the turret board.

They gave me a pretty crappy diagram on their website that looks like it may have been made in MS paint. Appears to be outdated too, since alot of the smaller components don't actually look like how they appear in the diagram (blue caps in the diagram are in fact black and smaller) which has been pretty inconvenient.

Has anyone else had any experience with a kit from these guys, or any DIY tube amp kit in general?

It'd be interesting to share some experiences. I'll also be posting my progress as I go along.


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## Leuchty (Dec 3, 2009)

I have not had any experience, but...


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 3, 2009)

*sigh*
Here's their "diagram."
It's like they were trying to help out beginners while being as vague as possible.
I think in their situation, either a schematic or a step by step guide might be more suitable. The schematic would be ideal for me personally, but the step by step guide may be less effort on their part.


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## TriodeChad (Dec 3, 2009)

cerwinthedoc,
Our apologies for the issues you've had with our kit. As far as shipping time is concerned. Triode Electronics recently relocated to a larger and more streamlined facility, and unfortunately there were a few customers that had to wait longer than usual for their parts. Now with the move almost complete, Triode is shipping at a faster rate than ever before. 

If you ever have technical questions regarding any of our parts, kits, or instructions, feel free to call me at 773-871-7459 or email at [email protected]. I am always more than happy to answer questions or give advice. 

I am in the process of revising and re-drawing layouts for many of our kits, and the 2204A kit is definitely one of them. As you can see, our new 2203A kit layout looks much cleaner.

Happy Tubing!
Chad at Triodeelectronics.com


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 3, 2009)

TriodeChad said:


> cerwinthedoc,
> Our apologies for the issues you've had with our kit. As far as shipping time is concerned. Triode Electronics recently relocated to a larger and more streamlined facility, and unfortunately there were a few customers that had to wait longer than usual for their parts. Now with the move almost complete, Triode is shipping at a faster rate than ever before.
> 
> If you ever have technical questions regarding any of our parts, kits, or instructions, feel free to call me at 773-871-7459 or email at [email protected]. I am always more than happy to answer questions or give advice.
> ...



Thank you very much Chad. To be honest, the delayed shipping was quite a nuisance, but it's very understandable. My family owns and operates a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training center that recently had to undergo a facility change. It's been a huge pain for everyone involved, especially the students. 

We all have those mistakes. 

Have to comment on the materials in the kit though. I thought you guys would be cutting corners to make that 300 dollar price tag. I was wrong. I'm pretty surprised with the quality of the materials, pretty good for the money. This isn't my first build, however this is my first JCM build. I'm trying to do everything by the book, at first at least. 

I'm going to be working on a chassis today I think. I could have just bought one, but then I started thinking about it... This could be a great opportunity to fire up the welding torch...

I'm thinking a pretty decent quality aluminum. Easier to work with compared to steel. I'm also trying to factor weight into the whole deal. If I can keep this under 40 pounds, then awesome.


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## johnmac99 (Dec 3, 2009)

I ordered the kit from Triode Electronics and sent it right back. It was missing parts and all I got was excuses. The parts they gave me were sub-par and not what they advertised for the kit. They did refund my money promptly. I will be ordering my kit from Ceriatone. Good luck with it though!


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 3, 2009)

johnmac99 said:


> I ordered the kit from Triode Electronics and sent it right back. It was missing parts and all I got was excuses. The parts they gave me were sub-par and not what they advertised for the kit. They did refund my money promptly. I will be ordering my kit from Ceriatone. Good luck with it though!



Doesn't the Ceriatone kit cost an arm and a leg though? I may be wrong on that, so don't quote me. I know alot of people have been giving me alot of good recommendations for Nik, but I had already ordered the Triode kit. From what I understand, Nik is a pretty intelligent guy. I came pretty close to buying a chassis from them. 

What parts were missing exactly?

Idk, the parts that came with mine appear to be pretty decent quality. I haven't soldered anything yet (thank god for turret boards) so I supposed I'm safe in case something is missing. Although I'm sure their customer service is decent enough to send anything that's missing in the kit. I took inventory to the best of my knowledge. No easy task though, they didn't provide an inventory list or anything. There's a few more necessary documents that should ALWAYS be provided with a "kit."

1. Inventory List, possibly with illustrations or pictures of each component.
2. Individual labels for individual bags of components. For example, a baggie of caps with a sticker label on it reading "capacitors" or whatever.
3. Step by step guide. Not necessary for alot of intermediate or experienced builders, but a huge necessity for new builders. I can imagine the tube amp kit industry being of high interest to alot of young musicians, especially ones that don't have prior electronic experience.

Also, a legal disclaimer. That's a huge must. There may have been one on the website that I visited maybe about once, but one didn't come in the box. That's kind of like putting out a welcome mat for sue-happy noobs that got shocked by the transformers.


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## johnmac99 (Dec 3, 2009)

cerwinthedoc said:


> Doesn't the Ceriatone kit cost an arm and a leg though? I may be wrong on that, so don't quote me. I know alot of people have been giving me alot of good recommendations for Nik, but I had already ordered the Triode kit. From what I understand, Nik is a pretty intelligent guy. I came pretty close to buying a chassis from them.
> 
> What parts were missing exactly?
> 
> ...



I dont remember all of the parts but quite a few. The pots were supposed to be CTS pots and they sent me Alpha pots. The caps were supposed to be Atom caps but I got JJ caps instead. It looked like everything was thrown into a box and shipped to me. When I got it I went through the kit as well as several wiring diagrams and realized I was missing quite a few parts. My wife just suggested to send it back because I ordered the kit thinking I was getting a decent kit and instead they just sent me lower grade parts.

I totally agree with you on an inventory list and separate bagging of parts. I know other vendors like Mojo and Ceriatone do this. Nik at Ceriatone has answered all of my questions and responded very quickly to my requests. He will be getting my business because of that.


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 3, 2009)

Nik will DEFINITELY be getting my service next time.
I considered sending the kit back when I first looked at the diagram and realized how inaccurate everything was.

And in fact, now that I look ever everything and compare it to the description, you're right - definitely not as described.

Bait and switch?

Too early to tell. 
But I think it's reasonable to assume that I won't be doing anymore business with them again. 

Sorry Chad.

I'm about done with the turret board, but there's a few components left that I'm not sure what to do with. The diagram is very confusing, especially without a key or legend. 

Hopefully I got everything right...I guess I'll find out down the road.


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 7, 2009)

I'm having a tough time finding which leads go to which transformer. I'm getting slightly irritated as to how vague this diagram is. My patience is wearing thin, but before I decide to chuck my expectations today, maybe someone can help me out.

I posted the diagram earlier in this thread. It doesn't seem to mention in any detail whatsoever where the transformers go and how they are wired to the rest of the system. 

Anyone that can give me a helping hand will receive my thanks.


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## brian121b (Dec 8, 2009)

You might want to try the guys over at MetroAmp.com Forum &bull; Index page

They seem to be helpful with diagnosing problems with other kit amps.
George doesn't sell a 2204 kit but but you might be able to download one 
of his manuals and it may help.


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 8, 2009)

brian121b said:


> You might want to try the guys over at MetroAmp.com Forum &bull; Index page
> 
> They seem to be helpful with diagnosing problems with other kit amps.
> George doesn't sell a 2204 kit but but you might be able to download one
> of his manuals and it may help.



I've compared the specific 2204 diagram to the diagram Triode Electronics provided me with and there are quite a few differences. 

I'm browsing the forum, hopefully I will find something. I've been finding a large amount of praise for Triode Electronics though, LOL.

I'm trying to go back over the layout and compare it to other JCM builds, but so far no luck. I've even searched dozens of websites, and it's almost as though no one has documented their progress on any of the TE kits. No dedicated forums, very few loose threads completely irrelevant to my needs, no tutorials, no videos, nothing. 

But on the other hand, I finally finished soldering my turret board. I started connecting the pots too. Next I'm going to start connecting the tube sockets. I wont be able to do those all the way since I don't actually have a chassis yet...

BTW, Chad if you're still following this thread to track how much crap I'm talking against your company, do you think you can redeem yourself and give me a hand here? Idk, attach a revised diagram or something? You mentioned revising the 2203 manual, do you think you can do the same for the 2204?

Might as well try to salvage something out of this customer-employee relationship...


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## TriodeChad (Dec 8, 2009)

cerwinthedoc,

As I said before "If you ever have technical questions regarding any of our parts, kits, or instructions, feel free to call me at 773-871-7459 or email at [email protected]. I am always more than happy to answer questions or give advice."

It is much quicker and easier for me to answer a phone call or an email direct to our company than to search out customer issues on the forums. 

Triode Electronics understands the value of customer support, and I can assure you that the customers who contact us directly get taken care of. After all, you did order this kit from us, not sevenstring.org.
Chad at Triode-


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 8, 2009)

TriodeChad said:


> cerwinthedoc,
> 
> As I said before "If you ever have technical questions regarding any of our parts, kits, or instructions, feel free to call me at 773-871-7459 or email at [email protected]. I am always more than happy to answer questions or give advice."
> 
> ...



I will consider myself pwnd.


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## cerwinthedoc (Dec 18, 2009)

Just finished cutting and drilling all the pieces for the chassis. I will post pics as soon as it's all riveted together. 

I just need to come up with an idea for the faceplate. I could just print something out on photo paper and laminate it/sandwich it between two pieces of acrylic. I don't need anything to crazy, just something to label the knobs and whatnot.

I ordered some tubes today, so those should be in pretty soon. I just went with what was cheap off the Musician's Friend website, I don't feel like going through anymore drama with other lesser-known retailers. 

I went with the matched pair Electro-Harmonix EL34's, and 3 Tungstol 12AX7's. This is in no way a "permanent" setup, I just need them so I can test things out. So far, I think I managed to get just about everything figured out, I'm just waiting to get my chassis finished.

I used some scrap aluminum for the chassis. For the top, I used what used to be a shelf. It's got a sort of "curved" lip around it, and it has some nifty ears on the sides that would make it PERFECT for mounting in my shell (once that's finished) so allow fast and easy removal. On the sides of the chassis (front and back, didn't see a huge need for right and left sides, trying to cut down on weight) I used pieces of air conditioning conduit, or whatever it's called. I guess it was supposed to go to building a vent or something, but I swooped in on it first.


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## 7slinger (Dec 18, 2009)

interested to see the finished project, I hope the sucker just wails provided all the work you've put into it


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## cerwinthedoc (Jan 5, 2010)

finally, here's some pictures.
Don't have an enclosure or preamp tubes yet, but everything's mounted. Now I'm just connecting the trannies to everything. Going to be calling Triode soon to get some clarification on the diagram.
Sorry pictures look crappy. Then again, I'm also sorry the chassis and build itself looks crappy. Didn't feel like paying for a few pieces of aluminum, so I pulled everything together myself. I think I did a decent job, but I know it cold have been better. Honestly, I really don't care. No one's going to see it anyway due to it being in an enclosure.


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## elSamuel (Jan 20, 2010)

hi man,

I´m having serious thoughts of ordering one for my self. Put some more pictures as you progress with the project.
Still wondering should I build the cabinet too or buy one. prices here in Europe are just fucked, total rip off. Almost cheaper to buy a cabinet from the store than build one from the same parts.
Anyho´, good luck man, I hope the amp sounds great.



cerwinthedoc said:


> finally, here's some pictures.
> Don't have an enclosure or preamp tubes yet, but everything's mounted. Now I'm just connecting the trannies to everything. Going to be calling Triode soon to get some clarification on the diagram.
> Sorry pictures look crappy. Then again, I'm also sorry the chassis and build itself looks crappy. Didn't feel like paying for a few pieces of aluminum, so I pulled everything together myself. I think I did a decent job, but I know it cold have been better. Honestly, I really don't care. No one's going to see it anyway due to it being in an enclosure.


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## Draxsonimy (Mar 30, 2011)

That's quality work done there...


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## Draxsonimy (Mar 30, 2011)

my experience with triode electronics and my first tube amp build EVER.

Chad and Lisa both are amazing to work with. Everything that came in in the kit was as described. Quality parts. mallory 150's alpha pots cliff jacks vintage push back wire.. everything

there were no step by step instructions (should there be? were not building a lego kit) 

Parts were not labeled (seriously if you can't read resistor values or take 5 secs to google it and figure it out. red band means 2 black band means 0)

just look at the quality of work done by cerwin and then question chad at triodes ability as a distributor and tech


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## Jzbass25 (Mar 31, 2011)

I want to build one of these but I dont have the cash or time. I wish they had like a mesa mark clone =P


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## Benzesp (Apr 2, 2011)

don't they come with a real schematic?


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