The Tube Amp Book

Aspen Pitman is best known as the founder of Groove Tubes, well‑known purveyors of valves to the music industry. Aspen is quite simply a valve fanatic, and his Tube Amp Book has now reached its fourth edition and includes much new material. For anyone remotely interested in servicing valve equipment, this book is a must. Aside from a nostalgic pictorial catalogue of just about every memorable guitar amplifier built, (many of them from Aspen's own collection), the revised edition contains a brand new section on valve microphones, plus useful chapters on amplifier fault‑finding, and biasing valves. The expanded circuit diagram section now contains hundreds of detailed schematics, including key models from Marshall, Mesa Boogie, Ampeg, Vox and dozens more. Unusually, its UK price of just under £20 corresponds exactly (after calculating current exchange rates) to what it costs in the US, where it's published. For a book topping 750 fact‑filled pages, this has to be a real bargain. Paul White.