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Post by chetz on Nov 19, 2010 19:32:17 GMT -7
I have no problem taking these out but how about a matched quad of matched Amperex Bugle Boys from Harleen in the early 60's.......got two spares also. I also have some RCA Blackplates but I will probably never try them I will not screw this amp up but if I can guild the lilly I will. I have every imagineable preamp tube including The good Dr's favorites. That will be another excercise I cannot promote the NOS tubes because they are so rare and if you don't have a tester you will never know. I am going to have a great time messing with them though........ Peace, Jeff
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Post by Scott on Nov 19, 2010 20:41:15 GMT -7
Amperex Bugle Boys!! I am lucky enough to have 1... Having 4 is nice indeed. Sweet grab!
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Post by dock66 on Nov 19, 2010 20:47:46 GMT -7
Those are sweet. I'd like some of those.
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mck
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Post by mck on Nov 19, 2010 23:57:16 GMT -7
Wow! That's a good stash if I know one. Let us know what works well for you please.
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Post by chetz on Nov 20, 2010 3:47:33 GMT -7
My Z brother's I will let you know. This amp sounds so good it is really a struggle to mess with it. Plugging tube in and out is easily correctable on my end.
My first Z was my Remedy and Z Best cab a few years ago. I was "floored" with the tone and am still the same way. My son (in college and plays a Carr Mercury) loves the Remedy also.
The 'Wreck is something different but very special to me. I thanked the good Dr. a few years ago for the Remedy and would like to thank him again........I am figuring out the Vox-type settings on this amp (in addition to it opening me up to some whole other sounds........I am a Marshall tone guy).
Once again it is 4am and this novice player is got his Remedy and 'Wreck fired up for the night/morning. Insomnia is not always a bad thing.....
This 'Wreck is a "Masterpiece" Congrats Dr. Z. (The more I play it and mess with the settings, the more I am amazed at the pure sound/tone this puppy will give you. I am so not worthy of an amp like this or the Remedy........but I will cherish them both......can't wait to get the proper switcher to play both of them. The other funny thing is I have a really nice collection of pedals.......my son has his pedalboard but I just want to play these amps straight up. Am I nuts?
Has enyone ever said this 'Wreck is LOUD and you need to turn it up to really benifit from its tone?
Crank this mofo to fully get the musicality it has. (Am I the wierd one that will put in some ear plugs when I really open an amp up?) Sorry if I am because my job is environmental safety and health. I can tell you all about my concert experiences in my earlier days but can tell you more about hearing loss in today's terms.
Peace,
Jeff
Peace, Jeff
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Post by Ben on Nov 20, 2010 5:53:53 GMT -7
Crank this mofo to fully get the musicality it has. (Am I the wierd one that will put in some ear plugs when I really open an amp up?) Weird one?? How about the Smart one! I've had a pair of quality musician ear plugs for a while now (the $2/pair from the drugstore aren't it!) and they attenuate 15db. The MAZ wide open is one loud mofo and I would only expect the Wreck to be that much louder. I ear basically no loss in sound clarity and definition with them in. My Airbrake was supposed to be here yesterday, but it looks like it'll have to wait till Monday. Until then, good ear plugs it is. As musicians, our ears are just as important as the ten little piggies we have to play with! Btw, you do have my address right, for those extra buggle boys lol. Cheers Ben
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Post by chetz on Nov 21, 2010 21:39:04 GMT -7
I couldn't help myself and plugged these in tonight. Just these power tubes resulted in a pretty cool change. I will mess with the other tubes over the holidays.
One thing is for sure, the good Dr. crafts some ampification that is out of this world.
I can't play for sh** but I've got some ears and the Remedy and 'Wreck have cured my needs for amps. The last amp I have and will be selling is my Victoria 50212.
My son has his Carr Mercury up at college and that will go as soon as I can replace it with a prescription jr. He also has my fully modded Fender Blues Jr. BillM that will go too.
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mck
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Post by mck on Nov 22, 2010 8:13:18 GMT -7
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Post by myles on Nov 22, 2010 20:42:24 GMT -7
I would save the NOS stuff for the studio. The JJ EL84S is a great sounding tube that has a long life and is reliable. Cathode biased EL84 amps go through tubes somewhat rapidly so I would save the NOS output tubes.
In many of Brad Paisley's amps the output sets are changed every 10 or so shows, about every 30 or so hours. I hand trace tubes about 20 quads at a time for Chad Weaver (Brad's tech). If anybody wants info on what I look for on Brad's tubes feel free to drop me a note.
In the case of Buddy Whittington; he and I share a common Z amp model where he always says mine sounds better than his when he borrows mine. Mine is dead stock as is Buddy's. The difference? Buddy changes his output tubes when there are months of hard use on them. When he borrows my amp I only have 5-10 hours on a new output set, enough time to assure reliability.
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Post by markT on Nov 23, 2010 5:01:14 GMT -7
I would save the NOS stuff for the studio. The JJ EL84S is a great sounding tube that has a long life and is reliable. Cathode biased EL84 amps go through tubes somewhat rapidly so I would save the NOS output tubes. In many of Brad Paisley's amps the output sets are changed every 10 or so shows, about every 30 or so hours. I hand trace tubes about 20 quads at a time for Chad Weaver (Brad's tech). If anybody wants info on what I look for on Brad's tubes feel free to drop me a note. In the case of Buddy Whittington; he and I share a common Z amp model where he always says mine sounds better than his when he borrows mine. Mine is dead stock as is Buddy's. The difference? Buddy changes his output tubes when there are months of hard use on them. When he borrows my amp I only have 5-10 hours on a new output set, enough time to assure reliability. Thanks for the great advice and info Myles! Anyway you would want to post "what I look for on Brad's tubes " here? or is that super duper private info?
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 10:44:38 GMT -7
I would save the NOS stuff for the studio. The JJ EL84S is a great sounding tube that has a long life and is reliable. Cathode biased EL84 amps go through tubes somewhat rapidly so I would save the NOS output tubes. In many of Brad Paisley's amps the output sets are changed every 10 or so shows, about every 30 or so hours. I hand trace tubes about 20 quads at a time for Chad Weaver (Brad's tech). If anybody wants info on what I look for on Brad's tubes feel free to drop me a note. In the case of Buddy Whittington; he and I share a common Z amp model where he always says mine sounds better than his when he borrows mine. Mine is dead stock as is Buddy's. The difference? Buddy changes his output tubes when there are months of hard use on them. When he borrows my amp I only have 5-10 hours on a new output set, enough time to assure reliability. Thanks for the great advice and info Myles! Anyway you would want to post "what I look for on Brad's tubes " here? or is that super duper private info? Not private at all. First, I ask my vendor to only send me tubes in a plate current range of 39-44 milliamps from their test machine. My test equipment is calbrated to the same standard as theirs, RCA book standard spec for an EL84. Industry spec for an EL84 is 48mA but if plate current is dropped a touch the amp is a bit cleaner at Brad's settings and fits his personal taste better. If you go to www.guitaramplifierblueprinting.com/Tube/6BQ5-rca.pdf and look at page 4 of the data sheet you will get an idea. I look at some of the specs such as plate current, transconductance and plate resistance as initial checks but then I curve trace all quads and match them into sets based on their curve traces. There is a reason for this. Just about every tube vendor I know matches tubes at idle for plate current. In some ways this is good enough but it only tests the tubes at idle. This is sort of my setting my Scion Xb to idle at 750 rpm and having the Doc set his BMW idle to 750 rpm and then stating the cars are matched. I match traces over the entire operating range of the tube because I am pretty sure that when I have heard and watched Brad he does not play with his volume controls on the guitar and amp turned all the way down. Most tubes which are matched at idle show many places where they are not matched when operating. I also look for rise time on the tubes because Brad sometimes plays notes that follow each other as fast as a speed metal player. Can't have a laggy tube in the set or articulation is compromised. There is also more background hum if things are not closely balanced. As a side note, if Brad wants to soften things up Chad Weaver has a selection of different phase inverters so those can be changed to drive the output tubes in a different way to change output, clean headroom or change rise time and some aspects of distortion to the output set. The tubes come from www.arselectronics.com where I deal directly with Marty who I have known for years. As he goes through EL84 tubes for their business he puts aside tubes that he knows I will need so when there is a need they are there to be sent to me in bulk. I hope this answered some questions. If there are more feel free to ask. Actually, I will copy this post and make it a blog entry as I have been asked this sort of thing before. Myles
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Post by stratovarius on Nov 23, 2010 10:49:54 GMT -7
Don't look now, but you can get the same NOS tubes that come stock in the Z Wreck for some very competitive prices. Why compromise on tone, saving "the good ones" only for special occasions?
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 11:08:08 GMT -7
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 11:15:39 GMT -7
Don't look now, but you can get the same NOS tubes that come stock in the Z Wreck for some very competitive prices. Why compromise on tone, saving "the good ones" only for special occasions? Try the JJ and you might find they are not a compromise, just different. None of us eat the same lunch everyday.
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Post by stratovarius on Nov 23, 2010 11:23:00 GMT -7
Don't look now, but you can get the same NOS tubes that come stock in the Z Wreck for some very competitive prices. Why compromise on tone, saving "the good ones" only for special occasions? Try the JJ and you might find they are not a compromise, just different. None of us eat the same lunch everyday. Those are fine tubes, but i just wanted to point out that I actually paid less for a quad of the NOS Russian tubes than what new JJs would cost me. You can have your NOS cake and eat it too!
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 11:26:32 GMT -7
Try the JJ and you might find they are not a compromise, just different. None of us eat the same lunch everyday. Those are fine tubes, but i just wanted to point out that I actually paid less for a quad of the NOS Russian tubes than what new JJs would cost me. You can have your NOS cake and eat it too! Yes, there are a lot of great tubes out there and in the end it is user taste and preference. The more choices that are priced within reach the better for us all.
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 11:30:05 GMT -7
Crank this mofo to fully get the musicality it has. (Am I the wierd one that will put in some ear plugs when I really open an amp up?) Weird one?? How about the Smart one! I've had a pair of quality musician ear plugs for a while now (the $2/pair from the drugstore aren't it!) and they attenuate 15db. The MAZ wide open is one loud mofo and I would only expect the Wreck to be that much louder. I ear basically no loss in sound clarity and definition with them in. My Airbrake was supposed to be here yesterday, but it looks like it'll have to wait till Monday. Until then, good ear plugs it is. As musicians, our ears are just as important as the ten little piggies we have to play with! Btw, you do have my address right, for those extra buggle boys lol. Cheers Ben Ben - side note on ear plugs ... look at www.cabelas.com as they have higher db plugs in bulk pretty cheap. I keep a jar in my car for shooting sporting clays.
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mck
New Member
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Post by mck on Nov 23, 2010 16:48:23 GMT -7
Hey Myles, thanks for your informative posts here and your blog. Very much appreciated.
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Post by myles on Nov 23, 2010 18:41:06 GMT -7
Hey Myles, thanks for your informative posts here and your blog. Very much appreciated. You are welcome. On my GAB website there are over 500 pages and I cannot find things I put out there over the years so I am porting a lot of things to the blog rather than my website. I am adding links to the right side of the page such as amps, guitars, tubes, resources, prints, etc. It is easier to update the blog than the website when I am on the road.
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Post by Ben on Nov 24, 2010 5:24:11 GMT -7
Weird one?? How about the Smart one! I've had a pair of quality musician ear plugs for a while now (the $2/pair from the drugstore aren't it!) and they attenuate 15db. The MAZ wide open is one loud mofo and I would only expect the Wreck to be that much louder. I ear basically no loss in sound clarity and definition with them in. My Airbrake was supposed to be here yesterday, but it looks like it'll have to wait till Monday. Until then, good ear plugs it is. As musicians, our ears are just as important as the ten little piggies we have to play with! Btw, you do have my address right, for those extra buggle boys lol. Cheers Ben Ben - side note on ear plugs ... look at www.cabelas.com as they have higher db plugs in bulk pretty cheap. I keep a jar in my car for shooting sporting clays. That's a great idea Myles - hadn't thought about droppin' by the local hunting shop for ears plugs before! I may just get some and leave them in my pedal board case, if I ever forget my molded one at home - wouldn't want to be stuck without em now that i've had them. Cheers Ben
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