Small DIY amp suggestions?

Inspired by DC's Noisy Cricket combo I've been having a bit of a look online for small amp projects.

I thought I might build a couple to compare, so I was thinking maybe Noisy Cricket, Tiny Giant Amp, and Ruby Tuby.

Does anyone have any other suggestions / circuits they've tried that they enjoyed?

I was looking at the Lamington amps but the cost is a bit more than I can manage at the minute, and it's starting to stray into voltages that I'm not comfortable with.

Honestly I just really want a new amp, but have no cash, ha ha. Hoping this will stave off the craving

I have only built the Noisy Cricket. From what I have read it's the evolution of the Smoky and Ruby amps. There is not a lot of headroom but it works as a low volume practice amp. Mine does not have a great bass response, it gets flubby quite fast with a lot of bass. However I suspect that is more from my terrible speakers than the amp itself. By design the Noisy Cricket rolls off quite a bit of bass.

I don't have any real guitar speakers, so have only tried it through the 80s vintage general audio speaker that came in the speaker box, and a generic $5 speaker from Jaycar. I have read stories of people getting good results from the noisy cricket when playing into a decent cabinet. So YMMV depending on what speakers you have around.

If you have the parts for a Ruby Tuby and a half-decent speaker on hand then I would suggest that. Breadboarding a Noisy Cricket would take no time at all as well.

All this reminds me that I still need to finish that project...

Finish the guitar first...

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Originally Posted by Simon Barden

Finish the guitar first...

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Ha ha ha, fair. But actually while I'm working from home I'm getting quite a lot of work in on the various guitars, and also have an hour lunch break I've been using to finish pedal projects. So, for once in my life I have the time to indulge both

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Originally Posted by JohnH

Ha ha ha, fair. But actually while I'm working from home I'm getting quite a lot of work in on the various guitars, and also have an hour lunch break I've been using to finish pedal projects. So, for once in my life I have the time to indulge both

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Ha ha, here I was thinking Simon was talking to me :)

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Originally Posted by jugglindan

If you have the parts for a Ruby Tuby and a half-decent speaker on hand then I would suggest that. Breadboarding a Noisy Cricket would take no time at all as well.

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Ok, cool. I have a variety of speakers kicking around but whether any are of use is a different question. I can always hit up the green shed or the rock doctor to see what they have.

A used small practice amp might be a cheaper option once it's all put together. Not as much fun, I know. But a good amp is (IMO) a better investment than a good guitar, and can make even a cheap guitar sound good, whereas a bad amp can make even a great guitar sound bad. So get something workable to start with, but if you can, don't leave it too long before sorting yourself out a good sounding amp. I still think valve amps sound best, but today's modelling amps are now so very close and so much cheaper (and lighter). So I'd recommend not spending too much on a first/intermediate amp, but minimise outlay and start saving for the amp after that.

As usual I completely agree with Simon. I've had inexpensive guitars that I loved and sounded great, but I've always been disappointed when settling for an amp. I really had no idea how much the amplifier affects tone during my first bout of guitar playing. This time around I'm using a preamp and cabinet simulator until I find and can afford the right amp. Which will probably be a Mojotone Blackface kit.