Preamp Tubes? - Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How?

[MartyStrat54]

I did some major editing here. I spent a shitload of time trying to get a nice pic, but after about 40 shots it was a no go. Time to get out the owners manual. While I had it on "AUTO," it still needed to be on "Close Up." Gee...what a difference it makes. Know I have the knowledge to do it over and over. Whah ha ha!

From left to right is a 1960 RCA/Mullard 12AX7, a 1959 RCA Gray Plate and a 1959 Amperex Bugle Boy. Three really sweet V1 tubes.

It's so nice that I was able to take that shitty picture down and replace it with this shot. These are just three of the many super tubes that I have. Notice the "D" Getter on the middle RCA. These are highly desirable.

 

[RiverRatt]

Heading off in a completely different direction:

Did Marshall use preamp tubes made by Ei in the late '90s? I've got a Marshall-branded ECC83 here and it looks just like the Ei at thetubestore. It has smooth plates and a pinched top. If it is an Ei, are they any good?

 

[wegman]

Yes you can, but these tubes are not going to help you out. Sort of like a 20 watt light bulb versus a 100 watt light bulb. The tubes you have are very common and as Alan (RATT) said, you can give them a try, it won't hurt. However, they are very low gain and it will take you backwards instead of forward on trying to get better sound out of your amp.

Yep, right on the money Marty those tubes were a bust. Made my amp sound even more like AM radio then it does.

I'm not done. I have some other sources I have employeed to see what they can find.

 

[MartyStrat54]

Yes. Yes and yes. Ei was a Godsend for Marshall and they bought a boatload of tubes from them. I guarantee that Marshall was sad to see them go. My 1999 401 had all Ei tubes in it. Some places are wanting as much as $30 for an Ei 12AX7. That's a little too much for me when I can shop and buy something better. However, the Ei 12AX7 was probably the best made CP tube. How does it sound in V1?

 

[MartyStrat54]

Yep, right on the money Marty those tubes were a bust. Made my amp sound even more like AM radio then it does.

I'm not done. I have some other sources I have employeed to see what they can find.

Do you not have any good tubes right now? Are you running the originals in your amp? Yeah, you need to hit a big flea market and see what you can come up with. You need some good "TOOBS."

 

[wegman]

Do you not have any good tubes right now? Are you running the originals in your amp? Yeah, you need to hit a big flea market and see what you can come up with. You need some good "TOOBS."

I am running my old tubes which for all I know are original from 89. They still sound better the GTs. They are just aweful. The GTs make the amp super thin and harsh.

The problem I am having is that when running scales there is no seperation between the notes if that makes sense. Everything kind of runs together. There is also alot of background noise. Nothing is crisp and sharp.

IF you know what I am saying can you recommend a tube?

 

[ken361]

I dropped one of my GE jan 12ax7WA in the PI, its seems to smooth and help the crunch more then the stock one.

 

[solarburn]

Joe...

I'm glad you like you new CP Power Tubes. Hey...maybe they finally got it right. Now I won't put them on the same level as a dual getter, black plate, Fat Boy. These tubes can take more power than any other 6CA7's, EL34's and KT77's. There are even some that are more rare than a regular Fat Boy. However, if these tubes can handle the plate power of my 602's (500VDC+), I will have to look strongly at them.

My main thing is I want to hear your review with the tubes at volume.

Yeah. Stay tuned...I'll get a chance to crank soon. The father-in-law has been go'n out pretty regular lately. I missed it the first day I got them. I didn't get the tubes till later in the day after he had gotten back. Bummer.

I'll let ya know. I hope they turn out to be a viable option...

 

[MartyStrat54]

I am running my old tubes which for all I know are original from 89. They still sound better the GTs. They are just aweful. The GTs make the amp super thin and harsh.

The problem I am having is that when running scales there is no seperation between the notes if that makes sense. Everything kind of runs together. There is also alot of background noise. Nothing is crisp and sharp.

IF you know what I am saying can you recommend a tube?

Well I hope that some of that noise isn't coming from bad filter caps. By what you describe, I wonder if that isn't what it is. If you could do a complete retube, then you would be able to tell if it was still having noise and blurry sounds. That's the down side to some of the older amps. You never know when a filter cap will go bad. Your amp takes a lot of tubes. I was hoping you could get at least a couple of NOS or ANOS tubes and see how that sounded. However, now I'm wondering if you don't have other problems.

 

[wegman]

Well I hope that some of that noise isn't coming from bad filter caps. By what you describe, I wonder if that isn't what it is. If you could do a complete retube, then you would be able to tell if it was still having noise and blurry sounds. That's the down side to some of the older amps. You never know when a filter cap will go bad. Your amp takes a lot of tubes. I was hoping you could get at least a couple of NOS or ANOS tubes and see how that sounded. However, now I'm wondering if you don't have other problems.

I don't want to pollute this excellent thread with my amp problems. I will just say that my problems started after I had the amp retubed, so I figured it is the tubes or maybe the bias.

 

[racko7566]

I just won two tubes on Ebay and was wondering if you guys could tell me if they are good ones. One is a 1952 RCA Black Plate JRC 12ax7, and the other is an RCA 12ax7a with short grey plates.

 

[MartyStrat54]

I just won two tubes on Ebay and was wondering if you guys could tell me if they are good ones. One is a 1952 RCA Black Plate JRC 12ax7, and the other is an RCA 12ax7a with short grey plates.

Boy that 52 is an old one. I'm assuming the seller listed the test results? An old RCA black plate is a dandy as long as it's good. The AX7A is a great tube and a favorite of SolarBurn (Joe). They are usually as quiet as a 7025. The short gray plates are a sweet sounding tube. Looks like you have a couple of winners.

 

[MartyStrat54]

I don't want to pollute this excellent thread with my amp problems. I will just say that my problems started after I had the amp retubed, so I figured it is the tubes or maybe the bias.

Well with that in mind, we just need to get you set up with some decent tubes. What's your game plan? What kind of a budget do you have? You might have to go with part NOS and part CP.

 

[racko7566]

This is awesome. With the four NOS tubes from Marty, And two more on the way I'll be rollin for a while. Was wondering, if I have 6 tubes and 4 available positions , is that 24 tone possibilities or am I thinking to easy on this? PS. Marty, its test results said closely matched 50-51

 

[wegman]

Well with that in mind, we just need to get you set up with some decent tubes. What's your game plan? What kind of a budget do you have? You might have to go with part NOS and part CP.

Funds are pretty tight. I am hoping to get lucky and come up with something. Another guy I work with said his brother has all kinds of old electronic stuff like the old console stereo's etc. So he is going to see what he can come up with. Basically I am hoping to get lucky. I already dropped like $100 in GTs. Stupid I know.....now. Wifee will hit the ceiling if I do it again.

I tried to get a shot of the current tubes I am using but I can't get a decent picture. If anyone knows how I can get a decent shot please let me know.

Geez I am needy.

 

[MartyStrat54]

This is awesome. With the four NOS tubes from Marty, And two more on the way I'll be rollin for a while. Was wondering, if I have 6 tubes and 4 available positions , is that 24 tone possibilities or am I thinking to easy on this? PS. Marty, its test results said closely matched 50-51

Sounds like it was tested on a TV-7. If so, that's a good, solid tube.

As far as rolling possibilities, it depends on what you're rolling? If you are talking tubes, I can put it this way. 6 tubes plus 4 slots equal a whole lot of rolling.

(Don't burn your fingers...oh but you're probably used to that, those little roaches can bite sometime.)

 

[RiverRatt]

Yes. Yes and yes. Ei was a Godsend for Marshall and they bought a boatload of tubes from them. I guarantee that Marshall was sad to see them go. My 1999 401 had all Ei tubes in it. Some places are wanting as much as $30 for an Ei 12AX7. That's a little too much for me when I can shop and buy something better. However, the Ei 12AX7 was probably the best made CP tube. How does it sound in V1?

Cool. My DSL was made in 2000 and had two of them in it. The others were Svetlanas. I thought were the cheap Chinese tubes and took them out. I don't know about V1 - I haven't had them in the amp since when I bought it. I'll give them a test this weekend. I'll bet they won't sound as good as the Tele/Raytheon combo.

 

[racko7566]

Yes. and the tubes are hot 2

 

[MartyStrat54]

Cool. My DSL was made in 2000 and had two of them in it. The others were Svetlanas. I thought were the cheap Chinese tubes and took them out. I don't know about V1 - I haven't had them in the amp since when I bought it. I'll give them a test this weekend. I'll bet they won't sound as good as the Tele/Raytheon combo.

No sorry, they won't sound as good as the Tele/Raytheon. That's a hard act to follow.

 

[MartyStrat54]

Yes. and the tubes are hot 2

Well there you go. I knew I could count on you to "finger" it out.