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Post by 1juicy1 on Jan 19, 2014 18:49:52 GMT -7
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Post by BradPaisleyFan (Pat) on Jan 19, 2014 20:39:00 GMT -7
The one thing I have noticed with 5AR4 tubes...there is not a huge difference from tube to tube. They are not like pre out output tubes. They don't loose their flavour after a while...they either work or they don't.
They are a bit better then the sovtek or Chinese...don't sound a whole lot different but are more durable.
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Post by 1juicy1 on Jan 20, 2014 10:26:58 GMT -7
Thanks, believe it or not, I have a spare Valve Arts (chinese) rectifier and it is way, way brighter in my Maz than the sovtek. I have an old NOS 5V4 and 5R4 which are have a warmer feel but are just too compressed and mushy for me. I like more of the Marshall classic rock crunch. I wonder if the TAD or the Genelex Gold Lion 5AR4 have a warmth or higher audio quality (plus reliability) over the Sovtek and such?
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Post by Albert on Jan 20, 2014 10:32:32 GMT -7
Find a NOS on ebay look up greengirl613 have had great transactions with them ..
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Post by bluzman on Jan 25, 2014 23:53:13 GMT -7
Actually the TAD Rectifiers are/were Shuguang (Chinese) which to me looks exactly like a RUBY (Chinese) which makes sense because like TAD, RUBY is a relabeler... I bought a couple that go in my Tube Ready Kit (padded box) that I bring to every gig. with a tube order for about $17.00 each. I was told that TAD hand selects and tests the tubes. I was also told that the Red based Shugaung Rectifier was a cryo treated tube but the price was still on the cheap. I bought them from TAD direct at the time too. I'm lucky, I bought some NOS Rectifiers and Pre-Amp tubes over the years before there was any shortage... with hindsight they were very cheap at the time but not compared to TADs.
I tried the TAD pre-amp and power tubes because they were "Selected" and tested.. but I had failures on everything TAD but the Rectifiers so far. In general I am happy with TAD tubes due to the price. I have actually gotten some basic 12AX7 and some of them sounded great and were pretty cheap. (I have since tested all of my TAD pre-amp tubes and power tubes with my Orange tester and they are balanced/matched fairly well so I'm sure they do check them.)
Since like many, I have had a few problems with newly manufactured Rectifiers, I tried the TAD and they are good so far... with reliability being the key for me... I have the NOS wicked expensive rectifiers that I'm not ready to put into my gigging amps that get extreme temp changes at times and bumped around.
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ksks
Full Member
Posts: 120
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Post by ksks on Jan 26, 2014 8:41:52 GMT -7
Tell us more about your Orange tester.
I've been wanting to test drive one, but nobody local seems to have one.
Have you compared the Orange test results with any other tester results?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2014 9:26:58 GMT -7
I use TAD-EL84'S they are killer and long lasting. The only NOS tubes I buy are rectifiers and 5751s. Worth the coin if bought from a reputable dealer. Rectifiers I was using all gave out after only a few months. I've been using a NOS RCA 5AR4 rec for almost a year now, zero issues. NOS recs are pricey but are totally worth it in the long run.
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Post by myles on Jan 26, 2014 11:22:25 GMT -7
Tell us more about your Orange tester. I've been wanting to test drive one, but nobody local seems to have one. Have you compared the Orange test results with any other tester results? If you are on facebook you can read a note I posted there when the device came out. www.facebook.com/notes/myles-rose/orange-tube-tester/10151556511311711As a side note, you cannot compare the results of this tester with any "real" tester as the Orange tester gives no results other than LEDs lighting up. When tube design standards were written there were no LEDs
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Post by randalp3000 on Jan 26, 2014 12:04:46 GMT -7
I have had good luck with the Chinese and Sovtec 5ar4's but have had a couple JJ's go out in my Mazerati GT.
The Mazerati GT and I think the Maz series use a 80uF cap for the first filter which can put a strain on a 5ar4. 5ar4's have a limit of 60uF for the first filter and most amps using them don't go over 50uF. One thing that can help these amps if blowing recto tubes is to not use the standby switch. A 5ar4 should have a 17V voltage drop compared to a SS rectifier. This is where they may differ by brand or tube. Some may drop more or less voltage which will change the voltages through your whole amp effecting the feel and tone of the amp. Kinda like the speed/comfort switch on a Z Wreck. Someday when I have time I'm going to compare voltages between the 3 new production tubes and a NOS Mullard. This could also open up a good discussion about fluctuating wall voltages which get multiplied 3-4 times by your power transformer. This is a big problem with vintage amps that were designed for 117 volts that are now running with an excess of 125 volts.
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Post by 1juicy1 on Jan 26, 2014 12:51:29 GMT -7
Thanks for the replies, I just scored a NOS RCA 5AR4, it's on it's way as we speak. That's interesting on the non use of the standby switch. Am I going to excessively shorten power tube life if I leave my amp off standby for an hour between services at church? I hate to turn it off and flip it on and immediately play the closing song with no warm up time. Advice?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jan 26, 2014 15:06:16 GMT -7
Thanks for the replies, I just scored a NOS RCA 5AR4, it's on it's way as we speak. That's interesting on the non use of the standby switch. Am I going to excessively shorten power tube life if I leave my amp off standby for an hour between services at church? I hate to turn it off and flip it on and immediately play the closing song with no warm up time. Advice? Nice! You'll be quite happy. Rock solid rec! I rarely use standby for long periods of time. Just shut her down for better longevity. I turn the amp on in standby and within a few seconds flip the power on. Then back into standby then immediately off. Never an issue.
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Post by 1juicy1 on Jan 31, 2014 20:04:14 GMT -7
I received the NOS Rca today and WOW what a difference. With the Sovtek, I've never been able to get the cut knob above 9:00. It really smoothed out the ice pick part of the highs. Very full and tight bass too.
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Post by zpilot on Feb 1, 2014 4:18:27 GMT -7
Thanks for the replies, I just scored a NOS RCA 5AR4, it's on it's way as we speak. That's interesting on the non use of the standby switch. Am I going to excessively shorten power tube life if I leave my amp off standby for an hour between services at church? I hate to turn it off and flip it on and immediately play the closing song with no warm up time. Advice? Nice! You'll be quite happy. Rock solid rec! I rarely use standby for long periods of time. Just shut her down for better longevity. I turn the amp on in standby and within a few seconds flip the power on. Then back into standby then immediately off. Never an issue. A 5AR4, unlike SS rectos and other recto tubes, has an indirectly heated cathode so it takes about 20 seconds for it to come up to full B+ voltage and it does it gradually. That's about the same time that it takes for the rest of your tubes to be ready to operate. So, if you turn the amp on when you first walk onstage, then put your guitar on and quickly check your pedal board and tuning, about the time you are ready to play the amp will be "good to go". I wouldn't leave it on for that hour between services.
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