All About Vacuum Tube Guitar Amplifiers

The good news is, Weber tells you what a lot of the components in an amplifier do in terms that can be understood. E.G., leaving this capacitor out of a triode pre-amp circuit reduces the amplification of that circuit, and creates compression. Using the correct value on that resistor will set the DC current to exactly halfway between saturation (the maximum current that could possibly flow through the tube) and cutoff (the point at which NO current flows through the tube) is how one sets the bias of that tube. There's a lot of useful information for somebody who wants to understand what's going on.The bad news is, he doesn't always complete the job. Some of his explanations really *aren't* for beginners: they presume prior knowledge. Well, if you had that to begin with, you probably didn't need his explanation. Or, the part you didn't understand is explained elsewhere, and you'll have to piece it all together when you get to that part. Sometimes the figure he describes, which WAS there (I assume) in the original article describing how a pentode circuit operates, didn't get included in the book. That's simple oversight, and it rightfully comes across as half-fast. As he explains, he writes a monthly column for a guitar magazine and, when enough of those articles accumulate, he puts them in a new book. So, this book isn't organized, start to finish, to take you from one level of knowledge to another.With that caveat aside, I really do like it when he explains things in a simple, useful way. Quite often, the way he does that makes it possible to arrive at a big picture. I AM accumulating knowledge in a piecemeal way, that I will need to organize on my own to arrive at a useful big picture. I can see myself writing explanations in the margins, or referencing other articles within the book, or elsewhere, that explain the part I didn't understand in the current article.So, I'd say it's worthwhile for a beginner, and I'd definitely recommend it. But, he does leave a lot of room for improvement.

Lots of info but, if you want to learn how to bias your tubes, the instructions are in one of the author's other books.Not exactly "All" about vacuum tube guitar amps. I can't count how may times the authors says, "to learn how to do this, buy my other book"... very frustrating.NEVERTHELESS... it is a great book but, I can't give it the five stars that it deserves because, it is lacking the one thing every tube amp owner needs to know: how to bias your own tubes.Edit: I decided to give this book a fourth star because it does a great job of explaining how an amp and all it's components work. If you want to know how to bias your tubes, the answer is in Gerald Weber's book, "A Desktop Reference of Hip Vintage Guitar Amps".

I'm learning enough to give me some confidence in trying to overhaul/revitalize a few of my amps that are not quite performing where I'd like. I have a good understanding of electronics; just never learned tube technology. I think I expected more drawings/schematics/pictures. That's not what you get here. The multiple references to one of his other books for certain things is a bit irritating. At the price of these books and books like it, I don't really want to have to build a library. I would recommend it for a basic understanding of the "blocks" that comprise most guitar tube amps. If you just want some key points to add some tube amp knowledge to existing knowledge of electronics, it does that.

Some of the information is not correct but are based on opinion or interpretation of practical experience. Overall a decent book especially for want-to-be techs looking to learn about tube amps. Very good for guitarists looking to tweak existing gear they have. Not exactly accurate information about class A amplification from an engineering standpoint. What this book really has to offer most of all is the years of experience building and repairing amps that Mr. Weber possesses, and that is worth the price of the book.

This is an essential reference book for all guitar amp enthusiasts. The book is user friendly and packed with a ton of useful information. Although, I already have the first three guitar amp books written by Gerald Weber, I found this book to perfectly compliment the other three volumes. Each book contains unique and easy to understand information that just can't be found anywhere else. I have amplifier books written by other authors, but I continue to almost exclusively rely on Gerald Weber's amp books. I highly recommend this this book.

The name says it all. This is a good book for someone, like me, who is new to tube amps from a repair point of view. I've been playing through them for many years I just never really looked inside one other then to change a tube or swap a speaker out. I've been using the book to guide me through some relatively simple mods I'm doing and I find it to be spot on. It is an excellent resource, well written in pretty much lay persons language.

This is the 4th one I have of his. More useable info.I have found them all helpful in broadening my tubeamp working knowledge. Gerald dispells a myth that DCpowered filaments in the preamp tubes are quieter thanthe standard AC circuit which he explains is alreadyHUMBUCKING...In this case, more complicated is NOT better. He writes with language that a guitar player,who also is familiar with basic electronics, can findprofitable.

For the money this book is a bargain for anyone who loves old amps and is thinking about working on them or building his own. The book is a pleasure to read and is filled with valuable information. It's definitely a good investment. It's a book you'll read from cover to cover twice. However, there are better books to read if you want a better look into the basics of tube amplifiers.

Author doesn't like Taiwan. Or anything made outside the US. Or Black people or women. Would rather be living in the 1920s. I don't think he was even born then. If cut to the technical content this book would be very thin, and the really important content - how to bias a valve amp - is apparently done by buying another of this guy's books. Nope. Returned.

All about the author's life experiences fixing a wide range of commercial tube amps but very little practical info about how or what makes them sound the way they do and almost no circuit info provided at all.

Well for the first time, a book explaining valve amps that I can actually understand! Excellent book, well recommended to people wanting to learn

Self indulgent and full of waffle. More of the authors opinion than useful information about amplifiers. Much better books out there

Mi aspettavo un libro tecnico,invece è molto descrittivo, scritto bene, in un inglese chiaro, ma manca totalmente di figure e argomentazioni matematiche.Per esempio in tutto il libro sono presenti soltanto 2 (due) schemi elettrici e nessuna formula matematica, neanche quelle più banali che spiegano il comportamento di componenti in serie e parallelo.Inoltre il libro sembra essere una raccolta di articoli pubblicati su rivista, senza una chiara sequenza logica.I contenuti interessanti sono quelli frutto dell'esperienza pratica di riparatore dell'autore, ma per questo il titolo del libro è fuorviante.