Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? - Page 2

Jae · 09-06-2009, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Just curious. Is there anyone using Sylvania "FAT BOY" 6L6GC's in their amps? This is to include the original, the STR387 and the STR415. These are some bad ass 6L6's and I would like to hear from anyone that uses them on how they sound and their reliability.

Also, there was an STR416. This was an EL34 used mainly in Boogies back in the early 80's, like a Mark II. Anyone have any of these?

If you run NOS 6L6's or EL34's, please post and let us know what you are running.

I recently got a quad Sylvania Fat boy 6CA7s, but they are probably not the same ones you are talking about, or are they? If I remember correctly or maybe not, I heard they are essentially 6L6s?

The quad is coming in on Tuesday I'm guessing. Can't wait to get them put in.
BTW, if there is anyone here familiar with tube biasing please tell me what you know. Is it better to bias them yourself or in fact get an amp tech to do it at a price. I mean, is it risky doing it yourself if you don't have a clue about biasing a tube, but want to jump in an do it? (That's me). I've heard of people biasing and doing it themselves, but I never got around to actually doing it. I think if I had a chance I could save myself a few bucks.

Being able to do it myself would also allow me to throw in and experiment as many tubes I can without the extra fee. Or is it really that simple?

I have a couple of JMP Superleads and a '78 JMP Master, which I don't want to damage due to bad biasing.

Is it also dangerous to do?

Another question is.. What are some really good tube biasing kits or equipment ( i heard about Webers being good).

Jae · 09-06-2009, 06:32 PM

Hey Marty,

So I found out that at least one of the telefunkens I have is a smooth plate. I ended up getting a pair of ribbed plate Tele's and a separate smooth Tele.

I haven't compared the two side by side, but will do so when I get the chance. From the looks of it the smooth plate was the better one. Another guy told me this was a good one.

Jae · 09-06-2009, 06:42 PM

Sorry, the last post was psoted in the wrong section. Stupid me.

MartyStrat54 · 09-06-2009, 07:34 PM

Hey, those 6CA7's are like EL34's, not 6L6's. A 6CA7 is an American sub for a British EL34.

Jae · 09-06-2009, 07:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Hey, those 6CA7's are like EL34's, not 6L6's. A 6CA7 is an American sub for a British EL34.

Oops. I may be wrong. I heard they are similar to another type of tube, not sure if it was EL34s. Something about not being pentodes, but beams. That's all I could muster up.

Jesstaa · 09-07-2009, 08:27 AM

Yo Marty, if I were to chuck some N.O.S KT66's in my amp, what kinda thing would I expect? I'm looking to experiment a little, and I definitely want some N.O.S tubes.

Also, what N.O.S KT66s kick the most ass?

RiverRatt · 09-07-2009, 10:06 AM

Can someone tell me when the St. Petersburg factory quit making EL34 tubes under the Svetlana brand? I have a set from around 1999 and was wondering if they are from the Xpo-pul factory or not.

My GTEL34M's are drifting way too much lately. I've rebiased them every week for the past month or so and they are always 4 or 5mV apart. I put in the Svets I was keeping for an emergency and they sound a lot better than I remembered.

I guess it's time to bite the bullet and pick up some RFT's.

Lespaulnmarshall · 09-07-2009, 10:12 AM

I Love the stock KT 66's in my Vintage Modern, And for a Plexi I like KT 88's ! The stock KT 66's in the VM are pretty good but maybe I'll change them for some Grove Tube KT 66's.

MartyStrat54 · 09-07-2009, 03:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jesstaa

Yo Marty, if I were to chuck some N.O.S KT66's in my amp, what kinda thing would I expect? I'm looking to experiment a little, and I definitely want some N.O.S tubes.

Also, what N.O.S KT66s kick the most ass?

Well, a 6L6 and a KT66 are both beam power tubes. There is a lot of history that ties these two tubes together. With that being said, the sound of a KT66 is very similar to a 6L6. There are a lot of good NOS choices for 6L6 tubes at a reasonable price. However, NOS KT66's are much rarer (in the USA) and they are very expensive. Based on that, I would probably go with current production if I wanted to try KT66's..

I think if my amp had 6L6GC's in it, I would find myself some NOS 6L6's and go that route.

Jae · 09-07-2009, 08:00 PM

Ok. Today I ended up purchasing an exact matched NOS pair Mullard xf2 El34s with double Os.. They look immaculate.

I'm going to have them installed and biased tommorrow on my JMP '78 Masterlead 50W head. The tubes in there now are GT EL34's.

I'll let you all know how it goes.

MartyStrat54 · 09-07-2009, 08:35 PM

Yeah, those xf2's are still for sale on EBAY. I thought that someone would have grabbed them by now.

Jae · 09-07-2009, 09:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Yeah, those xf2's are still for sale on EBAY. I thought that someone would have grabbed them by now.

Yeah, I got mine from a local here. They are new and have been tested and matched. The one still on ebay I was going to buy, but they don't ship to Canada. They seem like a good pair though and good price.

Jesstaa · 09-08-2009, 01:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Well, a 6L6 and a KT66 are both beam power tubes. There is a lot of history that ties these two tubes together. With that being said, the sound of a KT66 is very similar to a 6L6. There are a lot of good NOS choices for 6L6 tubes at a reasonable price. However, NOS KT66's are much rarer (in the USA) and they are very expensive. Based on that, I would probably go with current production if I wanted to try KT66's..

I think if my amp had 6L6GC's in it, I would find myself some NOS 6L6's and go that route.

Alright, I'll keep an eye out for some 6L6's, but in a month or so I'll be taking my amp to the shop, so I'll probs have it set up for EL34s with just a cheapish quad chucked in, until I can get some big guns in there, like some nice Mullards *drools*

Jesstaa · 09-08-2009, 02:37 AM

Oh and Marty, EH have a KT90 out.

Jae · 09-08-2009, 08:10 AM

Can't wait to get the Mullard pair in there today.

BTW, I've always been going to the amp tech to get power tubes biased. Does anyone here know what power tube biasing kits there are?

I know there is the weber bias rite. Is that any good?

I think if I'm going to swap some power tubes it's probably better for me to do it myself then go to the shop and pay $$$$ plus the gas and mileage.

Jesstaa · 09-08-2009, 09:57 AM

All you need is a simple multimeter which reads out in mV or mA, an octal base bias probe, and a small, insulated screw driver (And preferably an amp stand or vice or something to hold your amp firmly on it's side/upside down whilst you bias it, the 900 is really awkward for biasing unless you have a vice or some shit)

RiverRatt · 09-08-2009, 02:06 PM

You can take the back cover off the head, slip the chassis out and lay the head box face down, and the chassis will rest upside down in it nicely. It makes a good platform to work on the guts if you don't have access to a proper workbench, and you can still get to all the jacks, knobs and switches. It works with my DSL, and I would think the 900 is the same dimensions.

MartyStrat54 · 09-08-2009, 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jesstaa

Oh and Marty, EH have a KT90 out.

Thanks Jesstaa. I forgot about EH. There are several other companies that will be selling them soon including a KT100.

As I said, you have to have power to make power. Putting KT88's in an 800 isn't going to turn it into a 200 watt amp. The 88's will run under their rating at about 25 watts. Same with the KT90's and 100's. You have to have a massive power supply to get 200 watts out of four of these tubes. There are several power amps make in Hong Kong that use KT90's and KT100's. I guess that's why it is a Chinese company that is going to make these tubes. Anyway, the power transformer is the size of a shithouse. I wouldn't want to be bit by the high voltage of that amp. Probably running close to 600 on the plates.

I think 88's will be the biggest you will see in guitar amps since it is a replacement for 6550. I don't see anyone going bigger. If they do, it's just for show. It won't make the amp any more powerful.

Jesstaa · 09-08-2009, 06:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Thanks Jesstaa. I forgot about EH. There are several other companies that will be selling them soon including a KT100.

As I said, you have to have power to make power. Putting KT88's in an 800 isn't going to turn it into a 200 watt amp. The 88's will run under their rating at about 25 watts. Same with the KT90's and 100's. You have to have a massive power supply to get 200 watts out of four of these tubes. There are several power amps make in Hong Kong that use KT90's and KT100's. I guess that's why it is a Chinese company that is going to make these tubes. Anyway, the power transformer is the size of a shithouse. I wouldn't want to be bit by the high voltage of that amp. Probably running close to 600 on the plates.

I think 88's will be the biggest you will see in guitar amps since it is a replacement for 6550. I don't see anyone going bigger. If they do, it's just for show. It won't make the amp any more powerful.

Yeah, I wouldn't mind building a 50/50 HiFi power amp with some KT90's or 100's, I'm getting fed up with the thin sound from all my solid state stereos, oh well, at least the stereo I have next to me is fairly decent

MartyStrat54 · 09-08-2009, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jesstaa

Yeah, I wouldn't mind building a 50/50 HiFi power amp with some KT90's or 100's, I'm getting fed up with the thin sound from all my solid state stereos, oh well, at least the stereo I have next to me is fairly decent

I hear ya on the "thin sound." I have two, high end solid state amps (transistors, none of that IC shit). However, I like the sound of my little stereo EL84 amp. Man, my CD's sound so good through that. I have been thinking about getting an all tube amp like a Dynaco that uses two EL34's per side for about 35 watts per channel. However, it will make more power, but the THD goes up. Most HiFi amps are rated below one per cent THD. Even so, 35 watts of tube power sounds huge. I mean I don't even crank my EL84 amp up. The loudest I played it is around 3/4 of full volume. I picked that little amp up for $85 bucks. It needed a little work and I took care of that and put some modern inputs and outputs on it and an "On/Off" switch. It originally came out of a Wurlitzer organ. I changed the power filter caps out and the amp is almost dead quiet. I custom built some high efficiency speakers for it. What really makes it rock is when I use a powered sub with it. The sub goes up to 100Hz and the other two speakers take everything else. Man, it makes that 20 watt per channel amp sound frickin' huge.

Tube amps...you just got to love them.

Caseyguitar33 · 09-08-2009, 08:47 PM

I HAVE A JCM 2000 TSL and it does not sound as great as it use to . Should I replace only the pre and power tubes. The transformer?

I am looking for a very modern modern rock sound. The amp sounded awsome when I got brand new in in 2001. It is dull sounding compared to what it use to be or a new one at the store. I have had mullard tubes put in on the power amp section and groove tubes on the pre amp section 3 or 4 months ago. May amp sounds more ac/dcish instead of hard rock/ish?

Should I bias it hotter? Will the tubes have a shorter life if I do this?

What brand tubes (pre and power) can any one recommend? Transformer?
I have been told slavana tubes.(spelling?). I was told thats what Marshall mainly put those tubes in the JCM series for a while?

I need help. I tour and play about 200 shows a year so my amp sound is very important to me. I have about $500 or so to spend. PLeas let me know your recommendations.
Casey Prezioso

I play Marshall JCM 2000 TSL 100 triple lead
A custom shop Gibson Les Paul.
A fender Strat With Hot Rail pick ups in the bridge.
An Ltd mh401.An a few assorted Ibanez guitars.

Jae · 09-08-2009, 11:13 PM

Yeah, that's a good question. Whether biasing it hot will wear the tubes faster. Will it wear the preamp tubes faster too?? That question will be left for Marty.

I recently put my amp in for biasing. It's being replaced iwth two NOS Mullard xf2s with double o. I aksed the amp tech to specifically bias it hot or as hot as it could go so that amp will run safely. However, the xf2 are a really good pair and maybe it was not such a good iea to bias it a bit on the hot side. Would they in fact wear out REALLY fast? I wouldn't mind that if they were GT's or something like that, but Mullard xf2s? i'd like to have them in there as long as possible.

The amp tech told me he doesn't like to bias amps too hot anyway, because it might do damage to the OT. I'm sure he not going to bias it like that, hopefully just enough to have the tubes run safely and the amp run safely without wearing the tubes out in a year.

MartyStrat54 · 09-08-2009, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caseyguitar33

I HAVE A JCM 2000 TSL and it does not sound as great as it use to . Should I replace only the pre and power tubes. The transformer?

I am looking for a very modern modern rock sound. The amp sounded awsome when I got brand new in in 2001. It is dull sounding compared to what it use to be or a new one at the store. I have had mullard tubes put in on the power amp section and groove tubes on the pre amp section 3 or 4 months ago. May amp sounds more ac/dcish instead of hard rock/ish?

Should I bias it hotter? Will the tubes have a shorter life if I do this?

What brand tubes (pre and power) can any one recommend? Transformer?
I have been told slavana tubes.(spelling?). I was told thats what Marshall mainly put those tubes in the JCM series for a while?

I need help. I tour and play about 200 shows a year so my amp sound is very important to me. I have about $500 or so to spend. PLeas let me know your recommendations.
Casey Prezioso

I play Marshall JCM 2000 TSL 100 triple lead
A custom shop Gibson Les Paul.
A fender Strat With Hot Rail pick ups in the bridge.
An Ltd mh401.An a few assorted Ibanez guitars.

Hey Casey! Reading through your post I see that you used to like how your TSL 100 sounded. That being said, I think you don't need to do a transformer upgrade. I also see that you play 200 shows a year and you haven't changed your tubes since 2001. Any reason for this? Were you aware that tubes wear out and that a heavily gigged amp should have the tubes changed about every 12 months? You've been very lucky. Most people who tour as hard as you keep one or two spare sets of tubes and they or their soundman, knows how to bias an amp. When was the last time the amp was biased?

Let me know more about the amp and then I should be able to make some further comments.

Jae · 09-08-2009, 11:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Caseyguitar33

I HAVE A JCM 2000 TSL and it does not sound as great as it use to . Should I replace only the pre and power tubes. The transformer?

I am looking for a very modern modern rock sound. The amp sounded awsome when I got brand new in in 2001. It is dull sounding compared to what it use to be or a new one at the store. I have had mullard tubes put in on the power amp section and groove tubes on the pre amp section 3 or 4 months ago. May amp sounds more ac/dcish instead of hard rock/ish?

Should I bias it hotter? Will the tubes have a shorter life if I do this?

What brand tubes (pre and power) can any one recommend? Transformer?
I have been told slavana tubes.(spelling?). I was told thats what Marshall mainly put those tubes in the JCM series for a while?

I need help. I tour and play about 200 shows a year so my amp sound is very important to me. I have about $500 or so to spend. PLeas let me know your recommendations.
Casey Prezioso

I play Marshall JCM 2000 TSL 100 triple lead
A custom shop Gibson Les Paul.
A fender Strat With Hot Rail pick ups in the bridge.
An Ltd mh401.An a few assorted Ibanez guitars.

I think you meant Svetlana. They are Russian made tubes. You might like them.

I would throw in some NOS or vintage Mullards in there. I like the NOS better these days and it sound more warm. The OT, I wouldn't want to replace if I were you. You might want to try the flter caps, as they might be wearing down. The OT would be the last thing I'd want to change in any amp, just because. But who knows, someone else might have a different opinion.

solarburnDSL50 · 09-08-2009, 11:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Hey Casey! Reading through your post I see that you used to like how your TSL 100 sounded. That being said, I think you don't need to do a transformer upgrade. I also see that you play 200 shows a year and you haven't changed your tubes since 2001. Any reason for this? Were you aware that tubes wear out and that a heavily gigged amp should have the tubes changed about every 12 months? You've been very lucky. Most people who tour as hard as you keep one or two spare sets of tubes and they or their soundman, knows how to bias an amp. When was the last time the amp was biased?

Let me know more about the amp and then I should be able to make some further comments.

I was reading it again and it looks like he replaced them 3 or 4 months ago according to what he wrote. I missed it the first time through too.

[QUOTE]I have had mullard tubes put in on the power amp section and groove tubes on the pre amp section 3 or 4 months ago. May amp sounds more ac/dcish instead of hard rock/ish?/QUOTE]

Jae · 09-08-2009, 11:48 PM

Just thought I'd ramble about five Sylvania tubes I recieved today. I'm going to have them put in tommorrow into a '67 Superlead.

These are the Fat Boy Sylvanias made in the US.
The first four from the left have been used, but very low hours. The last one with the Sylvania box is NOS/NIB. That was a deal the guy gave me.

The last pic is a closeup of the NOS tube. They look good! Can't wait.

MartyStrat54 · 09-09-2009, 03:57 PM

Oh man those are beautiful 6CA7's (EL34's). Yeah, Sylvania had it going on when they made these tubes. RCA was already slowing their tube production down and sending it over to Japan. Not Sylvania. They kept their factories going until selling out to Philips in 1984. Sylvania made the standard Fat Boy, that was used in many Peavey amps and then the STR387 with the pink ceramic bases used as OE in certain amps and then the STR415 and 416. These were Fat Boy Black Plate tubes. The 415 was a 6L6GC and the 416 was an EL34.

Those are awesome tubes. Better than RCA and RCA bought most of their 6CA7's from Sylvania. I think they were the best American made 6CA7's.

Jae · 09-09-2009, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MartyStrat54

Oh man those are beautiful 6CA7's (EL34's). Yeah, Sylvania had it going on when they made these tubes. RCA was already slowing their tube production down and sending it over to Japan. Not Sylvania. They kept their factories going until selling out to Philips in 1984. Sylvania made the standard Fat Boy, that was used in many Peavey amps and then the STR387 with the pink ceramic bases used as OE in certain amps and then the STR415 and 416. These were Fat Boy Black Plate tubes. The 415 was a 6L6GC and the 416 was an EL34.

Those are awesome tubes. Better than RCA and RCA bought most of their 6CA7's from Sylvania. I think they were the best American made 6CA7's.

Yeah, I sent them over to the amp tech to get them installed (sorry, I don't know how to bias an amp yet).

It'll probably be a week cause that guy is booked to his neck right now.

I heard that these are actually a hybrid between a 6L6 and an EL34. Of course essentiall they are EL34's, right?

BTW, I got my '78 MV Marshall in today with the Mullard EL34 OO getters. I'll show yo some pics later!

Jae · 09-09-2009, 06:25 PM

These are the Mullard El34 xf2 with double OOs I got back today installed in my '78 JMP MV. These were supposedly NOS and matched, so I was excited about getting these in. The amp has got alot of that bottom end now. I don't know if it is these Mullards, but the amp is very warm sounding, which I like.

MartyStrat54 · 09-09-2009, 08:28 PM

You have good camera skills and that is always a plus on a thread. Yeah the Mullards look real nice in that amp. Sort of how it looked when it was a new amp with Mullards. Think about that for a while. Let all of these guys running the new tubes know how the old tubes sound.

Let's see...a real Mullard EL34 or a JJ? Which would I pick?

Oh, I meant to add that I run Mullard xf2's in my TSL602. I had all NOS preamp tubes in it, but the Mullard EL34's were the icing on the cake.

09-06-2009, 06:32 PM	#32 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Hey Marty, So I found out that at least one of the telefunkens I have is a smooth plate. I ended up getting a pair of ribbed plate Tele's and a separate smooth Tele. I haven't compared the two side by side, but will do so when I get the chance. From the looks of it the smooth plate was the better one. Another guy told me this was a good one.

09-06-2009, 06:42 PM	#33 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Sorry, the last post was psoted in the wrong section. Stupid me.

09-06-2009, 07:34 PM	#34 (permalink)
MartyStrat54 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Now in Muskogee, by Tulsa Posts: 18,271	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Hey, those 6CA7's are like EL34's, not 6L6's. A 6CA7 is an American sub for a British EL34. __________________ MARTY MARTIMUS MAXIMUS ONLINE TUBES AND OTHER STUFFHyperlink Wilder modded JCM 2204 (Sold my JMP to Joe.). Many other amps. Strats and Explorer are my main guitars.

09-07-2009, 08:27 AM	#36 (permalink)
Jesstaa Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Victoria, Australia Posts: 2,697	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Yo Marty, if I were to chuck some N.O.S KT66's in my amp, what kinda thing would I expect? I'm looking to experiment a little, and I definitely want some N.O.S tubes. Also, what N.O.S KT66s kick the most ass? __________________ GEAR LIST Amps 1983 JCM 800 2203 1960AX Guitars B.C Rich Bich Perfect 10 Jackson Kelly Basses Ibanez SR300 Stagg BC300 I'm not a tech, don't take my advice as fact, I just like to offer my views.

09-07-2009, 10:06 AM	#37 (permalink)
RiverRatt Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Between Memphis and Nashville Posts: 7,222	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Can someone tell me when the St. Petersburg factory quit making EL34 tubes under the Svetlana brand? I have a set from around 1999 and was wondering if they are from the Xpo-pul factory or not. My GTEL34M's are drifting way too much lately. I've rebiased them every week for the past month or so and they are always 4 or 5mV apart. I put in the Svets I was keeping for an emergency and they sound a lot better than I remembered. I guess it's time to bite the bullet and pick up some RFT's.

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09-07-2009, 10:12 AM	#38 (permalink)
Lespaulnmarshall Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Burning hell Posts: 5,576	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? I Love the stock KT 66's in my Vintage Modern, And for a Plexi I like KT 88's ! The stock KT 66's in the VM are pretty good but maybe I'll change them for some Grove Tube KT 66's.

09-07-2009, 08:00 PM	#40 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Ok. Today I ended up purchasing an exact matched NOS pair Mullard xf2 El34s with double Os.. They look immaculate. I'm going to have them installed and biased tommorrow on my JMP '78 Masterlead 50W head. The tubes in there now are GT EL34's. I'll let you all know how it goes.

09-07-2009, 08:35 PM	#41 (permalink)
MartyStrat54 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Now in Muskogee, by Tulsa Posts: 18,271	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Yeah, those xf2's are still for sale on EBAY. I thought that someone would have grabbed them by now. __________________ MARTY MARTIMUS MAXIMUS ONLINE TUBES AND OTHER STUFFHyperlink Wilder modded JCM 2204 (Sold my JMP to Joe.). Many other amps. Strats and Explorer are my main guitars.

09-08-2009, 02:37 AM	#44 (permalink)
Jesstaa Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Victoria, Australia Posts: 2,697	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Oh and Marty, EH have a KT90 out. __________________ GEAR LIST Amps 1983 JCM 800 2203 1960AX Guitars B.C Rich Bich Perfect 10 Jackson Kelly Basses Ibanez SR300 Stagg BC300 I'm not a tech, don't take my advice as fact, I just like to offer my views.

09-08-2009, 08:10 AM	#45 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Can't wait to get the Mullard pair in there today. BTW, I've always been going to the amp tech to get power tubes biased. Does anyone here know what power tube biasing kits there are? I know there is the weber bias rite. Is that any good? I think if I'm going to swap some power tubes it's probably better for me to do it myself then go to the shop and pay $$$$ plus the gas and mileage.

09-08-2009, 09:57 AM	#46 (permalink)
Jesstaa Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Victoria, Australia Posts: 2,697	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? All you need is a simple multimeter which reads out in mV or mA, an octal base bias probe, and a small, insulated screw driver (And preferably an amp stand or vice or something to hold your amp firmly on it's side/upside down whilst you bias it, the 900 is really awkward for biasing unless you have a vice or some shit) __________________ GEAR LIST Amps 1983 JCM 800 2203 1960AX Guitars B.C Rich Bich Perfect 10 Jackson Kelly Basses Ibanez SR300 Stagg BC300 I'm not a tech, don't take my advice as fact, I just like to offer my views.

09-08-2009, 02:06 PM	#47 (permalink)
RiverRatt Senior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Between Memphis and Nashville Posts: 7,222	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? You can take the back cover off the head, slip the chassis out and lay the head box face down, and the chassis will rest upside down in it nicely. It makes a good platform to work on the guts if you don't have access to a proper workbench, and you can still get to all the jacks, knobs and switches. It works with my DSL, and I would think the 900 is the same dimensions.

09-08-2009, 08:47 PM	#51 (permalink)
Caseyguitar33 Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 1	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? I HAVE A JCM 2000 TSL and it does not sound as great as it use to . Should I replace only the pre and power tubes. The transformer? I am looking for a very modern modern rock sound. The amp sounded awsome when I got brand new in in 2001. It is dull sounding compared to what it use to be or a new one at the store. I have had mullard tubes put in on the power amp section and groove tubes on the pre amp section 3 or 4 months ago. May amp sounds more ac/dcish instead of hard rock/ish? Should I bias it hotter? Will the tubes have a shorter life if I do this? What brand tubes (pre and power) can any one recommend? Transformer? I have been told slavana tubes.(spelling?). I was told thats what Marshall mainly put those tubes in the JCM series for a while? I need help. I tour and play about 200 shows a year so my amp sound is very important to me. I have about $500 or so to spend. PLeas let me know your recommendations. Casey Prezioso I play Marshall JCM 2000 TSL 100 triple lead A custom shop Gibson Les Paul. A fender Strat With Hot Rail pick ups in the bridge. An Ltd mh401.An a few assorted Ibanez guitars.

09-08-2009, 11:13 PM	#52 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Yeah, that's a good question. Whether biasing it hot will wear the tubes faster. Will it wear the preamp tubes faster too?? That question will be left for Marty. I recently put my amp in for biasing. It's being replaced iwth two NOS Mullard xf2s with double o. I aksed the amp tech to specifically bias it hot or as hot as it could go so that amp will run safely. However, the xf2 are a really good pair and maybe it was not such a good iea to bias it a bit on the hot side. Would they in fact wear out REALLY fast? I wouldn't mind that if they were GT's or something like that, but Mullard xf2s? i'd like to have them in there as long as possible. The amp tech told me he doesn't like to bias amps too hot anyway, because it might do damage to the OT. I'm sure he not going to bias it like that, hopefully just enough to have the tubes run safely and the amp run safely without wearing the tubes out in a year.

09-08-2009, 11:48 PM	#56 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Just thought I'd ramble about five Sylvania tubes I recieved today. I'm going to have them put in tommorrow into a '67 Superlead. These are the Fat Boy Sylvanias made in the US. The first four from the left have been used, but very low hours. The last one with the Sylvania box is NOS/NIB. That was a deal the guy gave me. The last pic is a closeup of the NOS tube. They look good! Can't wait.

09-09-2009, 03:57 PM	#57 (permalink)
MartyStrat54 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Now in Muskogee, by Tulsa Posts: 18,271	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? Oh man those are beautiful 6CA7's (EL34's). Yeah, Sylvania had it going on when they made these tubes. RCA was already slowing their tube production down and sending it over to Japan. Not Sylvania. They kept their factories going until selling out to Philips in 1984. Sylvania made the standard Fat Boy, that was used in many Peavey amps and then the STR387 with the pink ceramic bases used as OE in certain amps and then the STR415 and 416. These were Fat Boy Black Plate tubes. The 415 was a 6L6GC and the 416 was an EL34. Those are awesome tubes. Better than RCA and RCA bought most of their 6CA7's from Sylvania. I think they were the best American made 6CA7's. __________________ MARTY MARTIMUS MAXIMUS ONLINE TUBES AND OTHER STUFFHyperlink Wilder modded JCM 2204 (Sold my JMP to Joe.). Many other amps. Strats and Explorer are my main guitars.

09-09-2009, 06:25 PM	#59 (permalink)
Jae Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 261	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? These are the Mullard El34 xf2 with double OOs I got back today installed in my '78 JMP MV. These were supposedly NOS and matched, so I was excited about getting these in. The amp has got alot of that bottom end now. I don't know if it is these Mullards, but the amp is very warm sounding, which I like.

09-09-2009, 08:28 PM	#60 (permalink)
MartyStrat54 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Now in Muskogee, by Tulsa Posts: 18,271	Re: Power tubes?? Who, What, When Where how?? You have good camera skills and that is always a plus on a thread. Yeah the Mullards look real nice in that amp. Sort of how it looked when it was a new amp with Mullards. Think about that for a while. Let all of these guys running the new tubes know how the old tubes sound. Let's see...a real Mullard EL34 or a JJ? Which would I pick? Oh, I meant to add that I run Mullard xf2's in my TSL602. I had all NOS preamp tubes in it, but the Mullard EL34's were the icing on the cake. __________________ MARTY MARTIMUS MAXIMUS ONLINE TUBES AND OTHER STUFFHyperlink Wilder modded JCM 2204 (Sold my JMP to Joe.). Many other amps. Strats and Explorer are my main guitars.

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