I have a JVM 210, with a Marshall 1960V 4x12 cab. Loaded with Vintage 30 speakers. Playing a wide range of music. Hard Rock, Classic Rock, and some modern Country.. Using Les Pauls, What is the best sounding tube to run, Power, and Preamp ? Currently Using JJ E34L.
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Best Tubes For JVM 210h
- Thread starter JVMRoy
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Do you dislike the sound of the ones you have?what genre are you into?
If so, what is it you dislike about your amp tooonnneee?
Also, there is NO best tube(are you asking about reliability?),you either like the sound of the ones you have or you dont BUT if you just want to "tweak" it for the hell of it,i suggest you go blow as much money on tubes as you can afford and that should keep you occupied with plenty of geekdum for sometime.
To ask a forum,of people who are into different genres of music, what is the BEST tube,your only going get useless information and a "this is best" "that is best" scenario based on personal preference.
But i will offer, i personally prefer EL34's in Marshalls,except majors & 45's.
If so, what is it you dislike about your amp tooonnneee?
Also, there is NO best tube(are you asking about reliability?),you either like the sound of the ones you have or you dont BUT if you just want to "tweak" it for the hell of it,i suggest you go blow as much money on tubes as you can afford and that should keep you occupied with plenty of geekdum for sometime.
To ask a forum,of people who are into different genres of music, what is the BEST tube,your only going get useless information and a "this is best" "that is best" scenario based on personal preference.
But i will offer, i personally prefer EL34's in Marshalls,except majors & 45's.
Let me rephrase the "Thread to what are some of you all using and why ?" Ive had several Marshalls, and used several brands, Groove Tubes, Ruby Tubes, JJ, Sovtec, Svletlana...El34's, E34L's, 5881, and 6l6's I was strictly looking for some experiences some users have had with this model amp. I too ran a JCM 900, TSL601, and other Brand Tube amps, and to me , the JVM is warmer, but the JCM had more Over the top cutting volume.
I like the JCM 800 tones, and punch. Mostly just getting thoughts. I DO like the JJ's, they just seem to not last.
I like the JCM 800 tones, and punch. Mostly just getting thoughts. I DO like the JJ's, they just seem to not last.
chiliphil1
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I cannot speak from personal experience. However, I have read up over on the JVM forum about tubes. My plan is to do this.
V1 Genalex gold lion
V2 Shuguang
V3 TAD 7025s
V4 JJ
V5 Electro harmonix, probably gold.
Power section, JJ KT77's
From all the things I have read this is an awesome combo, so it's my plan to go with it when I re tube here in a few days! From what I gather V1 is the most important and then V3 after that.. The rest do color it but those are the ones that really matter, hence the "better" tubes going in those slots. The 77's are supposed to add some beef. I'll see how it works and if I don't like it I may do some swap a roos on there.
V1 Genalex gold lion
V2 Shuguang
V3 TAD 7025s
V4 JJ
V5 Electro harmonix, probably gold.
Power section, JJ KT77's
From all the things I have read this is an awesome combo, so it's my plan to go with it when I re tube here in a few days! From what I gather V1 is the most important and then V3 after that.. The rest do color it but those are the ones that really matter, hence the "better" tubes going in those slots. The 77's are supposed to add some beef. I'll see how it works and if I don't like it I may do some swap a roos on there.
I am trying to get the best all around performance. What I lack is a good solid way to boost for leeds. I run the Master Volume 2 for this function, but still seems to lack that DB needed, without changing the tone. And I hate volume pedals. Although if needed, I could and would consider it. I love the amp.
SG~GUY
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MonstersOfTheMidway
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I don't own the 210H, but I've played various JVM2 amps, each with different brand tubes, tube types, and speakers-JVM2 amps are incredible, but I do favor the 210H. I do own a stock 410H to which I've used different brand tubes, tube types, and speakers as well.
For me, sound quality and reliability are important details, followed by price. I can live with the fact that some tubes might emphasize certain frequencies more than others, so I've learned to appreciate the differences and just select whatever I want to hear for a particular recording or performance. But reliability is a detail I can't waiver. Closely related to both sound quality and reliability in a tube is noise. I need all my tubes to have the lowest noise floor as possible, and with a high gain amp like the JVM, noise control is paramount. Again, I can live with the fact that all tubes will probably produce some degree of noise, but I do need it to be as low as possible, which I don't think is an unrealistic expectation.
For power amp tubes, I favor the SED Winged =C= EL34. The reliability and sound characteristics are perfect for what I need from my 410H (early production JVM410H amps shipped out with relabeled SED Winged =C= EL34 from the factory but Marshall switched to a different brand a few years later). Winged =C= EL34 power tubes seem to not make the amp sound too bight or too dark, but right in the middle with a great balance of low, mid, and high frequencies. The low end frequencies stay nice and tight, which is an important detail for my purposes. The noise floor for these tubes is the lowest I've experienced from current production and and as low as any NOS I've tried. The reliability is excellent (I still have the original relabeled Winged =C= tubes packed away for save keeping as backup. SED Winged =C= EL34 tubes were once available at a fairly reasonable price, but their price skyrocketed a few years ago. I'm fairly certain you can still find these for your 210H, but if you're gonna consider the SED Winged =C= EL34, you might as well also consider NOS power tubes because the prices might be fairly close.
I also like the JJ EL34 power tubes you mentioned. IMO, the JJ EL34 power tubes seem to curtain a little of the higher frequencies, giving the impression of a "darker" sound at times, but for me that's not a bad thing. As for reliability, I'd say they're about as reliable as the SED Winged =C= EL34 in my experience, though I think some specs of the JJ EL34 that might give it a little big of an advantage if my memory serves me correct. The noise floor is very low.
The Electro-Harmonix EL34 is also a favorite of mine. To my ears, a nice balance of sound frequencies are projected though the bottom end doesn't seem as tight as with the Winged =C= or the JJ previosly mentioned (EH EL34 low end doesn't become "flubby" or excessively loose, but just not as tight as I'd like). Noise floor is also low for the EH E34. For the price, this is a very good power tube with good reliability in my experience.
For preamp tubes, I use a variety of brands though the tube types usually stays the same. For current production, I tried and liked Electro-Harmonix 12AX7, JJ ECC83-S, Shuguang 12AX7-A, Genalex Gold Lion ECC83/B759, Tung-Sol 12AX7, and Mullard 12AX7. For NOS, I like JAN-GE 12AX7WA. The only preamp tube that I like which isn't 12AX7/ECC83 type is the 7025-S from Tube Amp Doctor (TAD). The noise floor is very low for all these preamp tubes, but I did notice that the Shuguang seemed to go microphonic a little quicker than the rest. The Tung-Sol is great for getting real throaty tones. The JJ ECC83-S also gives great throaty lead tones, but a tiny bit "dark." The Electro-Harmonix and the Genalex seems to be have the best balance of frequencies (I don't use these at the same time in the gain stages), but if I use the Tung-Sol and the JJ together, I usually get a nice balance that gets close to the EH.
In summary, I think it's fair to say that you might get something different from each of these brands and types in regards to sound characteristics. All these tubes mentioned have proven to be reliable and low noise floor, though I feel some have an edge on other brands.
Good luck with your search and feel free to try different brands and tube types (so long as the tube types are compatible.
For me, sound quality and reliability are important details, followed by price. I can live with the fact that some tubes might emphasize certain frequencies more than others, so I've learned to appreciate the differences and just select whatever I want to hear for a particular recording or performance. But reliability is a detail I can't waiver. Closely related to both sound quality and reliability in a tube is noise. I need all my tubes to have the lowest noise floor as possible, and with a high gain amp like the JVM, noise control is paramount. Again, I can live with the fact that all tubes will probably produce some degree of noise, but I do need it to be as low as possible, which I don't think is an unrealistic expectation.
For power amp tubes, I favor the SED Winged =C= EL34. The reliability and sound characteristics are perfect for what I need from my 410H (early production JVM410H amps shipped out with relabeled SED Winged =C= EL34 from the factory but Marshall switched to a different brand a few years later). Winged =C= EL34 power tubes seem to not make the amp sound too bight or too dark, but right in the middle with a great balance of low, mid, and high frequencies. The low end frequencies stay nice and tight, which is an important detail for my purposes. The noise floor for these tubes is the lowest I've experienced from current production and and as low as any NOS I've tried. The reliability is excellent (I still have the original relabeled Winged =C= tubes packed away for save keeping as backup. SED Winged =C= EL34 tubes were once available at a fairly reasonable price, but their price skyrocketed a few years ago. I'm fairly certain you can still find these for your 210H, but if you're gonna consider the SED Winged =C= EL34, you might as well also consider NOS power tubes because the prices might be fairly close.
I also like the JJ EL34 power tubes you mentioned. IMO, the JJ EL34 power tubes seem to curtain a little of the higher frequencies, giving the impression of a "darker" sound at times, but for me that's not a bad thing. As for reliability, I'd say they're about as reliable as the SED Winged =C= EL34 in my experience, though I think some specs of the JJ EL34 that might give it a little big of an advantage if my memory serves me correct. The noise floor is very low.
The Electro-Harmonix EL34 is also a favorite of mine. To my ears, a nice balance of sound frequencies are projected though the bottom end doesn't seem as tight as with the Winged =C= or the JJ previosly mentioned (EH EL34 low end doesn't become "flubby" or excessively loose, but just not as tight as I'd like). Noise floor is also low for the EH E34. For the price, this is a very good power tube with good reliability in my experience.
For preamp tubes, I use a variety of brands though the tube types usually stays the same. For current production, I tried and liked Electro-Harmonix 12AX7, JJ ECC83-S, Shuguang 12AX7-A, Genalex Gold Lion ECC83/B759, Tung-Sol 12AX7, and Mullard 12AX7. For NOS, I like JAN-GE 12AX7WA. The only preamp tube that I like which isn't 12AX7/ECC83 type is the 7025-S from Tube Amp Doctor (TAD). The noise floor is very low for all these preamp tubes, but I did notice that the Shuguang seemed to go microphonic a little quicker than the rest. The Tung-Sol is great for getting real throaty tones. The JJ ECC83-S also gives great throaty lead tones, but a tiny bit "dark." The Electro-Harmonix and the Genalex seems to be have the best balance of frequencies (I don't use these at the same time in the gain stages), but if I use the Tung-Sol and the JJ together, I usually get a nice balance that gets close to the EH.
In summary, I think it's fair to say that you might get something different from each of these brands and types in regards to sound characteristics. All these tubes mentioned have proven to be reliable and low noise floor, though I feel some have an edge on other brands.
Good luck with your search and feel free to try different brands and tube types (so long as the tube types are compatible.
renips
Well-Known Member
I changed out my el 34’s in my 410hjs to sovtek 5881’s because I wanted to try something a bit different not because the amp was lacking. Thats the fun part about tube amps. They sound killer. Not a popular choice for most but it is killer.
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