Wolfman88 Messages: 11 Registered: October 2019 Location: Vivian LA
Junior Member
What would it take to add a spring reverb tank to the K100-1 amp head? I have a couple of spring reverb tanks long spring and short spring and I want to add spring reverb to the amp. I'm already going to add a tube preamp to it which I know how to do but I'm lost on adding a reverb tank.
Kustom K100-1 50 Watt Tuck And Roll Black 2 12 Cab
stevem Messages: 4733 Registered: June 2004 Location: NY
Senior Member
A brief answer to your question is it's a project you do not want to tackle!
Get yoursel one of the many great reverb stomp boxes that are out there and hook it up after your guitar and you will be saving yourself a big nightmare of trouble!
Wolfman88 Messages: 11 Registered: October 2019 Location: Vivian LA
Junior Member
I'm already adding a tube preamp so what would need to be done? I'm handy on working on amps the tube preamp I'm doing a simple way so there has to be a simple way to add a reverb tank. Such as just wring the input to the input jack and output from the tank to the input side of the amp board adding a pot to control the reverb level. Give me it straight what do I have to do?
Kustom K100-1 50 Watt Tuck And Roll Black 2 12 Cab
since the question was "what would it take"
you would need to break the circuit somewhere after the tone controls. insert a driver stage veggie the tank input, taking into account the tank's input impedance. after the tank's output you will need a recovery circuit and then a reverb level control so that you can blend reverb with the dry signal
that's the how, but for the "should you" please refer to stevem's comment
stevem Messages: 4733 Registered: June 2004 Location: NY
Senior Member
You also need to make the brackets to hang the tanks off of the top of the chassis from along with some type of shock mounting and the tank needs to be mounted such that it's output end is as far away from the power transformer as possible., and in light of that need a short style 9" three spring type tank would be what I would use.
Where would you put the level control for the reverb?
The K100-2 amps which had reverb and Tremolo gave up there second channel so as to have room for these controls and circuits, and this with SS circuits working things, if your going with a tube driven set up then that high voltage power supply itself eats up room .
If you where going for a tube driven reverb circuit then I would make tits power supply separate from the amp and feed filiment voltage a DC voltage into a 4 pin male XLR jack mounted on into the rear of the K100.
For tube stuff you can buy premade tag boards with two 9 pin tube sockets already on them and then you can mount that to Aluminum 6/32" standoffs from the chassis.
this is gonna be one cramped (and HOT) chassis. i imagine the heat will stay in the unit (vinyl-covered foam being the great insulator it is) and that should result in some... interesting effects on the semiconductors
what if you built an external tube-driven reverb unit and just added a buffered effects loop in between the pre and power amps? that would be my choice if i were dead set on using a tube-driven spring reverb unit (in this scenario I'd much prefer my pedal though... hard to get hall/gated/modulated/etc reverb from a spring tank but i just gotta twist a knob)
stevem Messages: 4733 Registered: June 2004 Location: NY
Senior Member
I guess not many folks have seen the kustom TRB400 model bass amp from 1999 thru 2000, as one of the two preamp channels has a tube for the gain stages.
Wolfman88 Messages: 11 Registered: October 2019 Location: Vivian LA
Junior Member
I will cut some of the back to make ventilation for the tubes. I'm waiting to start my youtube channel to do these mods so I can do a video on them. Its simple the way I'm doing the mods and I think I have everything figured out on both the tube preamp and reverb much easier than everyone's talking. I will give an update once I do them and point to the video for the how. I'm not sure my way will work but I'll give it a try.
Which tank do yaw think I should use I have a med spring tank out of a Kustom KP80 pa head and a Accutronics long spring tank out of a Hammond Concorde organ. I'm thinking the med spring because I don't use much reverb but the long spring might have more depth. Basically I'm using an old 10 watt tube amp to make the preamp and the tank after the preamp. I will not give out how until I do the video but it should work fine the way I'm doing it.
Kustom K100-1 50 Watt Tuck And Roll Black 2 12 Cab
stevem Messages: 4733 Registered: June 2004 Location: NY
Senior Member
I really can't see any logic as to why you are so against duriving your reverb needs from a stomp box!
If your K100 is not a beat up near death mess I am really against you cutting a hole in the back of a vintage SS amp so tubes can vent out!
I appreciate that you love your Kustoms sound but please forgive me but I am backing out of helping you out any more in your reverb project, maybe some else on the board will take over and help you, but I am out!
To me your doing something like taking a mint 60's Porsch and putting on the front fenders of a VW Bug!
Wolfman88 Messages: 11 Registered: October 2019 Location: Vivian LA
Junior Member
The amp is in almost mint condition except for a tear in the Naugahyde on the bottom of the speaker cab. Now for a question on amps did Kustom make the 50 watt head in a all tube config with reverb? As for not wanting to use reverb from a pedal or my v-amp that I use for my distortion sometimes you want the real deal. As far as cutting on a vintage amp this is a ss amp from the late 60s its not like its a plexi. These amps are not worth much and never will be. So if you don't want to help that's your decision but its my amp I paid for it so I'll do the mods to get the sound I'm looking for. I might not have to cut because this is a 10 watt amp I'm using so I don't think it puts off too much heat and the way I plan on doing it it can easily be put back stock if I don't cut.
So for anyone else who's willing to help it would do less to the amp if I put the reverb on the tube amp so can anyone tell me where to start. Like I said it has trem that I won't use so can I use this circuit for the reverb?
Kustom K100-1 50 Watt Tuck And Roll Black 2 12 Cab
Wolfman88 Messages: 11 Registered: October 2019 Location: Vivian LA
Junior Member
I guess I could put the reverb on the tube amp make the tube amp a tube preamp and make a box and have all this outside of the k100 so the amp would remain stock.
Kustom K100-1 50 Watt Tuck And Roll Black 2 12 Cab