Allen Encore Amp for Steel and Guitar

Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Anyone here have any experience with the Allen Amplification Encore amp? I am thinking about building the kit and mulling over tube, transformer and speaker choices. Appreciate and knowledge you may want to share.

Stephen Abruzzo · From: Philly, PA

A buddy of mine on another forum built an Allen Sweet Spot from the kit. While it's not the same amp you are building, the same company makes it.

Here's his thread on it and he gets detailed about the whole process.

http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php/21485-Amp-build-Allen-Sweet-Spot
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Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Thanks for the reply. Nice write-up for sure! I an leaning towards the following amp:

Encore 1x12 combo
Travis Toy Eminence Double-T 12" speaker
TO40MT upgrade output transformer
5AR4 rectifier with 6L6s

black tolex, round white knobs and grill cloth as pictured here (blackface):

Fred Rogan · From: Birmingham, AL USA

Greg
I have that exact amp and speaker only David Allen assembled it for me. I did a post here with pics last year when I got it.
It is about the only amp I have used that I think sounds great for steel and guitar. Let me know if you have some questions.
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Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Thanks Fred! It's on my pre-bucket list to build another guitar amp. I like the controls and layout of this amp. I am down to just my Telonics amp for everything and it's great. This will get me back to tubes again and keep me busy this winter up here in the frozen tundra........ Very Happy

MIchael Bean · From: North Of Boston

I have an Allen Accomplice, which I built from a kit. I have the upgraded transformers, which really makes it usable for pedal steel, but certainly heavier. I also have the Eminence Double T-12 in mine. It's a really versatile amp, usable with either 6V6 for 22W or 6L6 for 40W. It's plenty loud for PSG.

I use it for guitar, psg, & lap steel. The Eminence sounds great for guitar too - it shaves off the ice pick highs of the Tele, making it a bit more bearable.
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Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Thanks Michael. Don't think I'll use the tremolo much but that's the main difference between the Accomplice and the Encore other than the bright switch, size and weight, I'm guessing. If I was only going to use it for steel guitar I'd re-voice the amp but like you, mine will cover a range of instruments.

Michael Devito · From: Montclair, NJ, USA

Greg:

My Encore is a head. Kit built before David Allen even marketed kits. Guy bought the schematic and all parts from David, had the head shell built. (It was tech enthusiasm like this that got David into the kit business I suspect.) Anyway, had it for more than 10 years. Mine came with the stock OT, not the more powerful upgrade. I use it with a 12+10 pine cab, WGS G10C and G12C speakers.

It's the most versatile amp I've found. (Mostly for guitar, but just as good when used for baritone gtr and lap steel.) The interaction of the MV and the RAW knob is the key. I never go much more than 2 or so on the RAW knob ... it pretty dramatically revoices the amp. Really two different amps - one, dialed back on the MV, a bit of RAW, the other, full up MV, less RAW or none. The first, perfect for fat tone at lower volumes with a somewhat tweedy flavor, the second, a rich kind of BF fender sound for louder stage work.

I've tried many power tubes, including 6v6s. Best by far to my taste is an old, mismatched pair of RCA blackplate 6L6s. The trem is outstanding, the best of any I've heard built in. Stock reverb quite good. Just my opinion here: the stock, 35 watt OT is perfect. When the amp drives, it's natural and beautiful. Like the old VR in that respect. A just right OT size for the power, gets you this beautiful crisp edge at medium volume, warm drive up higher.

The other OT would be just as good I'm sure, but a bit different. Guessing more headroom, tighter bass. I doubt you can go wrong either way. This is one of the great Fender inspired amp designs IMO.
MD

Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Thanks for the info Michael. I've got the kit about 90% wired and will be posting a lot of build pics, measurements and sound samples with a few different instruments as time progresses. Don't have the speaker/cab/tank but I'll be making some bench measurements just because I've got nothing else to do with all this cooped up time. The RAW and MV controls will be a big deal in the studio for getting some nice distortion and other non-stock sounds.

Mark Fowler · From: Minnesota, USA

On your Encore does David still split the 100k with 51k/51k on the plate load?

Mark

Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Schematic in pdf format:

Schematic

I am considering doing the reverb dwell mod. It replaces the 1M ohm resistor that goes between ground in the inputs of the dual reverb tank 12AX7 drivers with a 1M linear pot. I will pry mount the new pot on the chassis. I see a lot of mods for the Encore but this seems to be the most popular.

V3b does have split 51K resistors feeding its plate.

This amp has a nice tube based tremolo arrangement that feeds the output tube control grids at the same point as the bias adjustment.

Greg Cutshaw · From: Corry, PA, USA

Yet another useful feature of the Encore and other Allen amps is the impedance switch on the back panel. By switching it into the mismatched state, you can alter the amp's tone and even slightly reduce it's perceived output power into the speaker load. While the volume difference in decibels will be small, the difference in tone and transient response will be noticeable. It will also put the amp into distortion or overload a bit sooner. Again the tone may sound better to your ears in one switch position than another but it gives you another tone option and makes the amp even more versatile.

Basic application of ohms law shows that, with a tube amp design like this, the maximum amp power is delivered to the speaker load when the speaker impedance is matched to the amp's internal impedance. Speaker impedance above or below the amp's internal impedance will deliver less power to the speaker. Undersized speaker loads will force the amp to deliver a higher current, but a lower voltage. Higher speaker loads will force the amp to deliver a smaller current but a higher voltage. In either case, the product of the amps time the voltage = power is maximized when the speaker impedance matches the amp's internal impedance. This all varies with frequency for both the amp and the speaker. Just a simple plot of speaker impedance shows how this is not a simple fixed impedance situation:

Jim Sliff · From: Lawndale California, USA

Something like that might work well for both steel and guitar, if you are talking about either lap steel and warmer guitar tones or pedal steel and very clean guitar.

I can easily use a Deluxe Reverb for both, but I don't play with typically squeaky-clean pedal steel tones. When I've used a larger amp similar to the Encore I ended up in a pickle - I either had to set it up primarily for steel (cleaner) or for guitar (warmer). Pedals just aren't the way to "warm up o": guitar sounds realistically IMO,

Often this could be done by simply adjusting the output tube bias, but the amp would still be more one "direction" than the other".

This is about the loudest type of amp I've found to be practical, and even this type is overkill in small clubs IMO (normally 6L6/6V6 amps run 6V6's pretty hot). This is why I had multiple gig amps - to be able to drive the output stage & speaker(s) to full frequency response.

On lager ones similar to this I'd install things to "warm it up" like a switch to remove negative feedback, or a cathode/fixed bias switching option.

Another trick for small clubs is to leave an amp like this stock and carry something like THD Yellowjackets or Groove Tubes Substitubes - a plug-in unit for the power tube sockets that allows you to use EL84's in cathode bias configuration. Knocks the power down by about half!

Just wanted to toss around some idea that may or may not be useful.. Again, if tones for both are very clean things like this may not be necessary.
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1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional

Michael Devito · From: Montclair, NJ, USA

I'm not hugely experienced at steel playing with my Allen Encore, so could be very wrong about this. But I did play an 8 string lap through it often at home. Never even occurred to me to vary the ohm setting. The Encore is so easily voiced for different volumes and guitar character just via the regular EQ options. Most of all, the interaction of Raw knob and MV. Also by judicious application of the treble knob. The Encore is one amp I on which I rarely used the bright switch. The treble knob is so well voiced, turning that up from half way up or a little more seemed to work perfectly for varying warmth and cut.

I should note that everything for me - guitar or steel goes through a small pedalboard with clean boost, a TIM pedal with gain low, some bass rolled off. So it's not straight in. I didn't find that steel needed any real changes from settings I use for guitars. Your mileage certainly could vary and most likely will.

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