The Tube Amp Book - Deluxe Revised Edition Book and Disk Package (Hardcover),   ISBN:9780879307677

Customer Rating: 

I was looking for a good starter/primer on tube amps, and this book serves that purpose. It is, however, a running advertisement for Groove Tubes, which in itself, is not a bad thing, but can be a bit distracting or annoying at times. The author also points out the book's editorial shortcomings. I don't see why grammatical errors, for example, should not be corrected in revision rather than acknowledged. They do distract the flow of reading, and the contributions in this book (many excerpted from magazine articles) come from amp guys, not English majors, so flow can be a challenge at times regardless.

The book centers on descriptions of tube amp brands and famous models, giving greater detail on Fender, Marshall, and Vox than the rest. It also imparts some good information on basic signal flow, and gives a few tips on repair and nomenclature, though it is not, and I don't think is intended to be, a repair guide.

Overall, a decent book, a good starting point, and a worthwhile purchase.

Customer Rating: 

This book is a good way to learn about tube amplifiers and manufacturers like Fender, VOX, Marshall, Peavey, Rivera, and many more. There are also schematics and articles on repair. You also learn about different types of tubes and how they are different. Highly Recommended.

Customer Rating: 

Let's face it. Not everyone is an amp tech or engineer. This book was never intended to be an electrical engineering text. It has the schematic diagrams for a good number of commercial guitar amps which is handy for the tech, and it does go over some of the basics to give the non technical an idea of what might be wrong with their guitar amp. It does spend a lot of time talking about the different brands and models of tube guitar amplifiers, both vintage and newer manufacture. But, it's listing and reviews of guitar amplifiers is in no way complete. We get a lot of the author's opinions on what sounds good and what does not. Myself, I prefer to always say that only YOUR own ears can make the decision as to which amp is right for you. So, take the reviews with a grain of salt. Mr Pitman also promotes his company (groove tubes) quite a bit. But, that is to be expected. The CD contains a lot of guitar amp schematics. The hard copy pages are only a sampling of all the schematics found on the CD. It has tube manual type specs for the most common guitar amp tubes as well as some modifications for certain amps. Some are really useful since they allow the use of more common output tubes to replace older types that are expensive if you can even find them. With respect to his reviews on the sonic aspects of the different brands of tubes, you need to take that with a grain of salt and again, take my advice and let YOUR own ears make the decision as to whether one tube is better for your application then another. But, all in all, he does offer a good overview of the tube guitar amplifier world and does explain, in easy to understand terms, the differences that make or break a guitar amp's sound. Although not the last word in tube amplification, this book is entertaining, easy to understand, and offers up a good deal of useful information in a nice larger printed format. For anyone into tube guitar amps, this book is well worth a look. For those who want to actually design their own, unique amp and NOT clone a Fender or Marshall, this book is going to be of minimal help.

Customer Rating: 

Awesome spiral bound heavy duty construction. Many photos of classic and boutique amps. great section on tube types and brands that i found very helpful.

Customer Rating: 

Actually a very good book and I've been a electronics tech for 35 years. Many things I've already know but very refreshing. I think Mr. Pitman did very good job on his illustrations and his layouts. I would recommend it for the beginner and the experience tech.