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Post by jerrylee on Sept 9, 2007 18:16:59 GMT -7
It's time to retube - I've lost headroom and output - do any of you fellow Z-28 owners have any suggestions..to kick the mojo up a notch?
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Post by rcrecelius on Sept 10, 2007 6:40:10 GMT -7
NO suggestions here...get the same thing the Dr puts in em at the factory(GT #6 I believe).
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Post by donnyp on Sept 10, 2007 7:31:20 GMT -7
I would agree with using the stock tubes. I tried a pair of NOS Brimars in my Z-28 and it sounded pretty thin even with the proper bias setting. The stock 6V6's brought it back to the sound I thought was best. Plus they are a lot cheaper!
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Post by zdogma on Sept 10, 2007 12:13:18 GMT -7
I think the doc is using the JJ's now (GT 6V6S) versus the old GT 6V6R's that used to come in them. I saw one in the store the other day and that's what was in it.
I has the GT 6v6S in my Z 28 and they were great. A little tighter sounding and brighter than the older 6V6R
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Post by jerrylee on Sept 10, 2007 18:45:35 GMT -7
Thanks guys. Any suggestions for the EF88 & 5751. Ofcourse I'll ask Mike at KCA too.
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Post by jerrylee on Sept 10, 2007 18:47:52 GMT -7
uhmmm...you know the EF88 is like the EF86...it's just 2 more.
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Post by Joey Beverages on Sept 11, 2007 4:58:51 GMT -7
uhmmm...you know the EF88 is like the EF86...it's just 2 more. lol - classic let us know how the re-tube goes. Joel p.s. welcome aboard ;D
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Post by zdogma on Sept 11, 2007 5:08:04 GMT -7
Thanks guys. Any suggestions for the EF88 & 5751. Ofcourse I'll ask Mike at KCA too. I've never tried a NOS EF86 that I didn't like. If yours is working well, and it is NOS I wouldn't change it. Telefunkens are my favorites. I have a few mesh plate bugle boys that I really like, too. Changing the 5751 (PI) is reasonable. Get a matched 5 star 5751 if you can find it, otherwise any matched NOS will do.
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Post by Telemanic on Sept 14, 2007 12:46:54 GMT -7
Doc designs his amps around the availible tubes and the amps always sound great. Experimentation is the only way. Sometimes i havent been able to improve the tone with ANY choice of Nos. I am a big fan of Nos tubes tho, and have made great changes from time to time. My 28 was an early gold front/grill one and came with the EH 6V6's. they were pretty horrible i thought, kinda harsh on the upper mids and became mechanicaly noisy after a while. One of my favorite 6V6's is the good ole grey plate GE. Really open and chimey but warm too. They're still a bargain as well, while everyone goes for the B.P. Rca's. Phil put the GEC's in his and loves em!
My philosophy is to just accumulate a bunch of great old nos stuff to have on hand, and not to be a Nos snob! I try to keep it real, and when the new stock tubes sound better, then leave it alone. But i love to hear the difference in all the old stuff. After a while you start to really get a handle on their inherent sounds and you start to look at it like a painters palet!! You want more open linear sound with less congestion in the mids, then you know to look to a Amperex Holland 12ax7, or even a telefunken. You need some more golden mids with a little recessed high end? then try a mullard, etc. Same to a lesser degree with power tubes. In almost every case tho the NOS stuff sounds a bit warmer to me, not as edgy, but also conversly sometimes not as punchy either, so its up to evaluating with an honest ear what it is youd like to change about your tone. That way your going ahead with a clear picture and not just happenstance, ( which is ok too! ). Especialy with EL84's i tend to like NOS, .... they seem to in general have a better ability to hang on before completely squashing down with too much compression, and for those amps that is #1 with me. Unfortunately that is the tube type that has probably THE shortest life span, so if it's your main amp it may become impractical!
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Post by Jim @94 Amps on Sept 19, 2007 19:29:36 GMT -7
The JJ 6V6S are good, but the EHs have more of a traditional 6V6 sound. We have used both, but are now using the EH aka 6V6R. Depending how old the amp is the EF-86 and 5751 should be NOS and last a long long time.
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