|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Mar 10, 2016 9:11:22 GMT -7
Playing my SRZ-65 LE recently—in which I have JJ KT77's, not EL34's—got me thinking that I should go back and try EL34's, which were intended to be in this amp in the first place. (KT77's are a pretty straightforward tetrode replacement for EL34's, which are actually pentodes, I believe.) Not saying the KT77's aren't great, but I'd like to come back to home-base on where Doc positioned this amp, tonally.
So, my question is this: can anyone advise on the status of new-production EL34's, as far as overall quality, reliability, and/or tone?
I've never been interested in using expensive NOS tubes in the power section (which means those expensive & rare Sylvania 6CA7's are out); so, what's good out there nowadays? Mullard & Tung-Sol reissues? Svetlana? Electro-Harmonix? Discuss...
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 11, 2016 10:02:26 GMT -7
They're expensive, but the Winged C EL34's are awesome. I always used them in my Mesa Rectoverb. I'm contemplating getting a set to try in the Therapy...
|
|
|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Mar 11, 2016 10:23:02 GMT -7
They're expensive, but the Winged C EL34's are awesome. I always used them in my Mesa Rectoverb. I'm contemplating getting a set to try in the Therapy... Ah, yes... yeah, those are still sort-of "new production" because they're not 50 years old in moldy boxes, however they're also NOS because they're no longer being made. And pricy, yes--but worth considering.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Mar 12, 2016 8:28:22 GMT -7
They're expensive, but the Winged C EL34's are awesome. I always used them in my Mesa Rectoverb. I'm contemplating getting a set to try in the Therapy... Ah, yes... yeah, those are still sort-of "new production" because they're not 50 years old in moldy boxes, however they're also NOS because they're no longer being made. And pricy, yes--but worth considering. I don't want to hijack your thread, but how did you like the KT77's in the SRZ??? I'm also contemplating a set of those...
|
|
|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Mar 12, 2016 12:29:23 GMT -7
...how did you like the KT77's in the SRZ??? I'm also contemplating a set of those... Pretty nice.. but very loud, I think. Not really sure because it's hard to A/B compare them quickly to compare. But recently I had to crank my attenuator WAY down just to use it with others in the house. I don't remember the amp being that loud before. (Also, I'm thinking that since they're more of a 6L6/EL34 hybrid, maybe these should be in a Therapy down the road, not necessarily my SRZ.)
|
|
|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Mar 28, 2016 19:21:09 GMT -7
...BUMP... to see if anyone else has comments here.
Your favorite non-NOS EL34's? Mullard, Tung-Sol EL34B, Svetlana, E-H, JJ E34L...?
|
|
|
Post by freddieg on Mar 29, 2016 19:57:49 GMT -7
Bump
|
|
|
Post by Rhino on Apr 22, 2016 6:07:07 GMT -7
Subscribed!
SRZ-65 inbound, reportedly with Winged-Cs. In light of the saying that "2 is one and 1 is none" I'm watching for recommendations as well! Dave
|
|
|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on Apr 22, 2016 8:17:43 GMT -7
OK, so... I got me a set of new-production Svetlana's incoming. No they're not rare, expensive, or highly sought-after; but, every reputable dealer seems to indicate that they're pretty darned decent. So, we'll see--I'll report back after they arrive and I've had a chance to install, check bias, and test.
|
|
|
Post by Mark (Basement Enthusiast) on May 3, 2016 18:49:03 GMT -7
Svetlana EL34's now installed & biased between 35–36 mA, depending on which tube you check (Doc recommends 34 mA; Myles suggests 36–38 mA). Yup, "pretty darned decent," indeed; though, I don't think my ears are calibrated enough to discern a huge difference between these & the JJ KT77's I had in there prior. It's tough to judge when there's at least a week or so playing time between the outgoing & incoming tubes.
One thing I will say is: holy heck this amp is killer loud, has major punch, and some seriously-intense midrange "cut." Probably the least likely amp to ever get "lost in the mix." Would never happen with this amp. Wow... bring on some hard-rock!
|
|
|
Post by sharkboy on Jun 13, 2016 20:19:42 GMT -7
I have some NOS Siemens EL34s that sound very good in other amps. The best EL34 type I have ever heard was the GT6CA7GE from Groove Tubes, but they only made them briefly. Actually, the early JJ KT77s seemed to be about my third favorites, but for the most part, I vastly prefer 6L6 and EL84 sounds these days. I wasn't terribly impressed with any of the other modern offerings in the EL34/6CA7/KT77 range.
|
|
|
Post by wraparound (Steve) on Jun 14, 2016 13:33:52 GMT -7
For it's worth, I had a duet of the Winged C Svetlana's that Mesa used to relabel and used them in my old Hiwatt. They were great, and were able to handle the fixed non-adjustable bias that amp had. I have an amp that uses a duet of 34's in a 20w configuration, and use the standard Electro-Harmonix Russian tubes in it due to them being more subdued. If I want that amp to sound bigger, the Ruby EL34BSTR sounds very strong in a good way, full bass, sweet highs and not hard like some of the JJ's I've had. I would ask Doug at dougstubes.com on his thoughts on the Ruby in that amp. I liked them alot.
|
|