GDS Amplifiers - The 18w Connection

Welcome to the home of GDS Amplification LLC, manufacturer of guitar amplifier chassis, kits and complete amplifiers.

GDS Amplification is holding another one-day amp building seminar at our shop in Fenton Michigan on Saturday September 1. During this seminar, you will build a GDS 18W kit from start to finish. I will be there to assist and answer questions and teach you how to do it properly. You will leave with a working GDS 18W amp by the end of the day. You have the option of building a full size 18W with tremolo or TMB or a Single Channel 18W. The cost of the course would be the same for each option but the S/C kit would be a little cheaper. Lunch and refreshments/snacks will be provided.

Cost for the kit would be discounted a little from the prices listed on my website. With the cost of the seminar, the overall cost would be slightly higher than just buying a kit but you would get the assistance to build it right in my shop. Transportation to and from our shop would be your responsibility. If anyone wants to come in on Friday night before, I can arrange for discounted hotel rooms and we would probably have a small get-together/greet-n-meet on Friday night.

All tools and soldering equipment would be provided with the option of buying the tools to keep. Of course you would be welcome to bring your own tools too if you wish.

I can accommodate up to 10 people max if there is enough interest. There is a nice airport here in Flint if anyone wants to fly in. We can pick you up at the airport.

The cost will be as follows, depending on which kit you wish to build:

18W Combo - $950
18W Head - $1000

Includes:

Seminar and instruction on site at GDS Amps shop for one day
Lunch (this is going to be good!)
18W kit
Full assembly manual
Does not include cabinet or speakers

Special deals will be available for cabinets:

18W head cabinet - $200
18W Combo cabinet - $300 (may be able to do better on these)

Let me know if you are interested. Email Graydon

We really are revamping our website. Please hang tight for a few more weeks while we build our new site. Our new webmeister is Ducati from designbyducati.com and I am very excited about what he has in store for us.

To help pass the time, take a look at some photos and videos of transformer winding from a trip we made to Heyboer

I also recently started writing to a blogpage. You can read my latest musings here...

There seems to be alot of interest in amplifier kits lately. This is great as it gets more people into building amps which is a great hobby. Occasionally I hear rumours of people who think that a pre-packaged all-in-one-box kit is too expensive. Let me tell you that there is much more in the kit besides a box of parts.

In each GDS 18W kit, be it a head kit or a combo kit, you get the following:

1. Every part needed to build the amp. This means everything*, even the wire, screws, tubes, sockets, plexi panel, GDS/Heyboer trannys, etc. It also means that the parts are chosen to work together (meaning the correct types of resistors and capacitors) and they are all topnotch parts, not cheap second rate parts. The only thing not included is the cabinet and speakers because most of our customers want to build their own cabinet and they usually have speakers already which they would like to use. We offer optional head cabinets now (ask for availability) and possibly combo cabinets in the near future making our kits complete in every way. (* Except the cabinet!)

2. The Capacitors and resistors are all labeled so that you will know exactly which resistor goes in which spot in the circuit. There are cases where the same value of resistor or capacitor is used in multiple places in the amp, but a different type is needed in each location. For a beginner, this is invaluable and virtually guarantees a successful build. It has also been brought to my attention recently that since there are actually quite a few guys that are colour blind, this helps enormously in properly identifying the correct resistors.

3. All of the parts come in one box. That means you pay one shipping charge for the whole kit. If you were to source all the parts yourself, you would have to pay at least three or four shipping charges and could easily pay 7 or 8 shipping charges if you try to source your parts from a few different sources. Then you will likely have to reorder parts as you _always_ forget something. I don't know anyone who hasn't had to do just that. You can count on nearly doubling those shipping charges because of that. I don't care how hard you try to make sure you order everything the first time. It happens to the best of us.

4. The assembly manual. This is a huge factor. The GDS Assembly manual for the 18W kit is a step-by-step manual that carefully explains every step of the process. It includes full colour photographs, drawings, layouts and schematics. There is a section on the first startup and a section on additional details for the head version. It is nicely bound and provides a reference that you will want to keep with your amp for as long as you own it. You might even want to display it on your coffee table. Well, ok maybe its not quite that nice.

5. Technical Support - You can always email me for technical support if you have a question. I don't care if it is a simple question or a difficult one. I am happy to help. There is also a forum designed expressly to support folks that are building 18W amps and it is a fantastic resource for everyone who is interested in the 18W amp. www.18watt.com

6. Made in USA! Every major part and most of the minor parts are made in the USA. That means our chassis, and especially our transformers are made right here in the USA, Michigan in fact. There are very few parts which are not made here such as the authentic Cliff jacks which are made in the UK, the tubes which are made in Czechoslovakia and Russia and some resistors and capacitors which are made in Taiwan.

7. Resale value. Normally one doesn't expect to make money by building a kit but in fact, a number of folks have built their kits and sold them to finance the next kit (yes, it is addictive!). Surprisingly, the price fetched on Ebay in quite a few instances is quite a bit more than the sum of the parts. Chalk that up to the rarity of 18W amps and the fact that everyone wants one of these amps.

Go to the GDS Amps kits page here to see photos of the parts and a sample of the manual.

A word about boutique resale value... Typically boutique amps have been cursed by poor resale value in the used marketplace due to the lack of a well known name. However, we have begun to overcome that stigma. First of all, our name has begun to pop up all over the net in conversations about classic British-flavoured amplifiers. Our reputation for excellent customer service is becoming well-known. But in a much more tangible piece of evidence, (sooner or later it had to happen) GDS amplifiers are showing up on the used market. I have seen a small number of used GDS amplifiers on the market recently and in most cases, the asking price was nearly 90% of the new retail prices, and the sales prices were around 75-80% of new retail. For example, on a 1-12 combo, the asking price was $1800 on an amplifier that was $2000 new. I assume they sold for somewhat less than asking price, but even if they sold at $1500, that would be 75% of new retail which is extremely high for a used amplifier in general. Also, just recently a used GDS 18W head sold on Ebay for 73% of it's new selling price. I think it is safe to assume that used GDS Amps will hold their value very well.

Reverb???? Do you like lush full reverb but don't like what it does to your guitar tone?

With a two channel 18W amp, you can jumper the channels, however, rather than doing this to get more gain, you can stick a reverb pedal or rack effects unit in that jumper and use the second channel as an amplifier to amplify only the reverb/effected tone of your guitar. That means that the first channel is still clean and unfettered by any effects units and the second channel is unfettered by the original guitar signal. The 18W mixes the two in the phase invertor and you get fantastic, clean, lush effects out the power tubes. Also, even in heavy distortion, you get a good clean reverb since typically effects channels are at much lower levels than main signal channels, so the effects channel doesn't require much of the power amp at all. Check out this discussion on the 18watt.com group... http://www.18watt.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=1831&highlight=reverb

I use an older Lexicon LXP-1 or LXP-5 (typically $100 - $125 on Ebay!) or my favourite, a Lexicon PCM81. I have also tried the EH HolyGrail and a couple other effects pedals in this manner. They all work great. Let me know how it works for you if you try it. Email Graydon

We are pleased to introduce our newest amplifier, the GDS 18W S/C (Single Channel)

GDS Amplification is pleased to offer a single channel 18W available in a head format. Here's a photo of the head with one of the early limited production run of hardwood cabinets...

Click here to see it with it's 1-12 cabinet...
http://www.gdsamps.com/Photo/18WSC003med.jpg

This head has all of the tone of a well tuned 18W but in a simple small package. You get all of the tone with no hassles, no questions and no compromises. This is 100% hand wired, eyelet board construction with only premium grade materials throughout.

There is simply an input, volume and tone. Personally, I leave the volume and tone at 5 - 7 and just play.

2 12AX7 preamp tubes, 2 EL84 power amp tubes and one EZ81 rectifier tube.

MSRP for the tolex head is $1199.00 and the 1-12 cabinet (with a G12H30) is $699 plus shipping.

The 18W S/C head is a little bolder than a typical GDS 18W amp and has a little more sustain. Try it for yourself to hear the latest in 18W tone and decide for yourself if the 'S/C' stands for 'Single Channel' or 'Supercharged!' Email me for details.

The 36W S/C prototype is finished and it screams! more details as they become unclassified.

We have a gold plexi panel which fits the PJ chassis perfectly to make it look more like a British amplifier. Look here...

Email me for details. $30 plus shipping. (BTW, a GDS/Heyboer 18W OT is a great upgrade to the PJ conversion!)

Nicky Moroch of the David Sanborn band and all sorts of album and producing credits played some GDS 18W amps recently and was very impressed. Here are a couple photos from a David Sanborn gig in Toledo on Jan. 16, 2004. Nick tried out the "Special Edition" red amp on the gig. (Click the thumbnails for more detailed photos.)

We currently have no amplifiers in stock however we have a few cabinets in stock for building into complete GDS 18W and 36W amps. Email me for details. In the meanwhile, take a look at this green 2-12 that sold recently to a GDS customer.

Check out the review we got in the August issue of Guitar magazine in Japan... Anyone speak Japanese?

We currently have the JTM45 chassis in stock and both front and rear plexi panels are now available in gold or white. They look great! If you want to build a 45W amp with the best aluminum chassis available anywhere, this is the one to use. If you want to see the 45W project, you can check out the 45W chassis by GDS Amps here.

International customers, please do not ask us to devalue your shipment on customs paperwork. Not only is this practice illegal, but it exposes you and GDS Amplification LLC to potential litigation from a number of government agencies in both the USA and your country. It also limits our ability to make a claim in the unfortunate event that something happens during shipping. Don't forget we also take Paypal.

Here are a couple photos of the Offset 18W head. The 18W offset has a new treble/middle/bass tonestack in place of the tremolo that is on the standard 18W amps. This tonestack is available as a no-cost option in the regular 18W heads or even the combos. The normal channel retains the classic 18W normal channel circuit so you can have the best of both worlds. This amp absolutely screams when you crank it up! You have to hear it to believe it. It looks great too! We have 1-12 and 2-12 Offset cabinets available to mate up with the Offset heads. These are rear ported cabinets built in the same style as the head shown below. Here it is... (click to see full size)

And here is a rear view showing the handy storage pocket for the power and speaker cords...

KITS! Complete, unassembled kits for the 18w amplifier in both head and combo version are available now.

To purchase complete amps or chassis, visit our Paypal-enabled ordering pages. Click on buttons to buy chassis, parts and amps

-Ove Martin from Finland had this to say after he unpacked his 18W kit after it's transAtlantic journey,

-Lynn Cowden had this to say after he finished his GDS 18W combo kit and installed it in 2-12 cabinet...