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

[superimposedmedia]

Well since you might be picking up a 7 string, I would have to say that you might want to go with a hotter medium gain Black Plate and a high gain Black Plate. This would bring out the bottom end that the 7 string will produce.

Plus a Black Plate can get as crunchy as any other tube out there, so you could go from a well rounded clean to a heavy crunch.

Sweet! I'll start shopping for a set after this weekend. Now, is that split for "Classic Gain tubes=medium gain Black plate" "Ultra Gain tubes=high gain Black Plate" Forgive my ignorance. This really is my first Marshall Tube Amp

 

[MartyStrat54]

Some of the signal paths are odd on a Marshall. There are two triodes in each 12AX7. Each half has its own gain capability. On your amp, I believe on clean it goes through the two gain sections on V1 and for Ultra it adds the two gain sections on V2.

If you are in the market for tubes send me a PM.

 

[RiverRatt]

With Superimposedmedia and Marty talking about guitars, I realized that except for a couple of signatures that have an itemized list, we've never discussed the first link in the tone chain. What are you guys pushing those preamp tubes with? Here are my girls - a 2006 Gibson LP 1958 reissue with Wolfetone Dr. Vintage pickups and a Strat that I had to walk out of GC with on an impulse buy. The LP gets about 99% of the playing time. Here's my little corner of the laundry room:

 

[ToddOwnz]

I'm lookin for an RCA 7025 and was wondering if this is the same thing I'm lookin for:
RCA 7025 w/dots Stereo Tube radio tube - eBay (item 280397979314 end time Sep-18-09 18:05:45 PDT)

Thanks!

 

[solarburn]

1600 Joe

900 mate hehe.

 

[Jae]

Ok. I'm going to be on a hunt for some Amperex Bugle Boy preamp tubes. I saw a pair bid up for over $300. These must be good tubes (also according to Marty).

I know Amperex makes the 12ax7 without that picture of the "Bugle Boy", but does that make a difference?

I think it's best to go for the NOS,right? The last pair I saw for NOS was over $300!

 

[MartyStrat54]

To be blunt, the non-Bugle Boy tubes made by Amperex during the 60's are IMO, just as good as a Bugle Boy. Here again, we have fanatics who will bid these tubes up in price. Hell, regular Amperex tubes (relabeled) will go for $40 or more a piece.

Some audiophiles consider an Amperex a step above a Mullard. Just remember, in Hi Fi equipment, it is easier to hear sonic differences compared to a roaring guitar amp. IMO, a Mullard sounds pretty damn good in a guitar amp.

And it really isn't about the brand. You can have two Telefunkens and one sounds good and the other not as good. You can have a Sylvania that sounds better than a Black Plate.

So the bottom line is that when you buy used tubes, you hope that they pass the "ear" test and that they sound smooth and sweet in your amp. Certain brands just ensure that this will happen, but it's not a given.

 

[MartyStrat54]

900 mate hehe.

Hey Joe...my man! I was just seeing if you were paying attention. I didn't mean to do a double post, but it was late and I hit the "Quote" icon and didn't realize that I was quoting myself. Ahh, the joys of staying up late to catch you for about an hour. You're on when most of the Aussie's are. I see they all start popping in about the same time as you. Anyway, cheers to your 900. We'll go out for beers when you hit 1000.

 

[MartyStrat54]

I'm lookin for an RCA 7025 and was wondering if this is the same thing I'm lookin for:
RCA 7025 w/dots Stereo Tube radio tube - eBay (item 280397979314 end time Sep-18-09 18:05:45 PDT)

Thanks!

Todd, just some tips. The seller states he has a tester, but he doesn't state the test results. The tester he is using is an Emissions tester. It is not as accurate as a Mutual Conductance tester. However, If you can get it cheap, it is worth the gamble.

If you are having trouble getting a 7025, I have some for sale. Just send me a PM for details.

 

[solarburn]

Hey Joe...my man! I was just seeing if you were paying attention. I didn't mean to do a double post, but it was late and I hit the "Quote" icon and didn't realize that I was quoting myself. Ahh, the joys of staying up late to catch you for about an hour. You're on when most of the Aussie's are. I see they all start popping in about the same time as you. Anyway, cheers to your 900. We'll go out for beers when you hit 1000.

I know man. On my days off I'm all over the place cause I sleep here and there while I'm trying to do stuff and have some fun. I never thought about being on the same time as the Aussie bro's but hey that's pretty cool how that works out.

Some internet beers and a couple internet hotties(you should get a hottie too)will make for a "Grand" lil' partay!

Toobs and Boobs Bruther!

 

[MartyStrat54]

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[superimposedmedia]

Look Alan, this guy has some whacky Tungsrams for sale. Tested on the same tester I have. Look how W*I*D*E the tubes test.

Alright, let me pose this question. The readings on four different tubes are 23/30, 50/32, 33/52 and 50/35. With the type of tester that you have, what numbers would be relevant to the strength of the tube circuitry and longevity of the tube?

 

[MartyStrat54]

Content removed by Marty.

 

[superimposedmedia]

Interesting, do those numbers represent anything considering how many more hours of use they should have left in them? With results that are so disproportionate, it seems to me that they won't live very much longer anyways.

 

[MartyStrat54]

Content removed by Marty.

 

[superimposedmedia]

Dually noted. It's too bad the amps don't have a "work hours" monitor in order to calculate how long a tested tube should last. After reading some of the tube prices in this thread, I'd be upset to get a high dollar set of useless glass that won't even light my room, DOH! I guess that's the chance you take though.

When you guys sip virtual beer for SB's 1,000 post, I want a seat at the B00B table

 

[Jae]

Ok, check this out. I got these 12ax7 quad closely matched smooth plate Telefunkens in this week. They sound really good. Very even sounding to my ears with alot of sustain.

I did notice something I never saw. Well two things. First these were originally for some medical equipment, but these are supposedly NOS. They have BLUE dots on the top!??
The second thing. Have you ever seen a Telefunken that flashes when put in? That was the first time I've ever seen that. First I thought I was mistaken for another Mullard tube, but I tried it again this evening and when I put it in the V2 slot it flashed just like a Mullard. What is strange is that these are made in Germany like the other Tele's, so I don't think it may be associated with Mullards, but it flashes like the Mullards.

So far these are my favorite ones. Check out the pics and tell me what you think:

 

[RiverRatt]

This guy does have the same tester I have. A B and K 707 Dyna Jet. 22 represents a new, nominal tube and would roughly be around 80 on a different tester. Keep in mind that some testers go to 120 or 130.

Well through our testing, a tube with a triode reading over 31 is starting to push it. I sent one of the members a 35-35 Black Plate and it was too much. He couldn't get a clean channel and the amp was near feedbacking on its own.

Generally, when I sell tubes, V1 is around 25-25 and V2 is about 29-29.

I do make exceptions. Some people don't care about a real clean channel. They want more gain. This is especially true with people who own 800's. Most of them want more crunch and therefore they get like a 27-27 and a 31-31.

Also, when a preamp tube is that lopsided, it is hard to figure out how the amp will sound. I try to sell tubes that are somewhat close together, like 23-25. That's not bad, but 50-32...that's a real wide spread.

The wild thing is he said he put all of them in his amp and it made it "dark" sounding. That sounds like a giant crock of shit to me.

Um, actually, that's my auction, and it is not a giant crock of shit. I PM'ed you a couple of times about the Tungsrams and asked why the numbers would be so high and the tubes still sound good. I have used each tube in V1 on my amp with my current setup, which should give an accurate idea of the musical quality of each tube, both on the ultra gain and the clean/crunch channel, and they are each and every one a nice, warm sounding tube with no noticeable difference between any of them. I've also used all four Tungsrams at once in the amp and switched the positions around several times. The only detrimental quality that I can find is a slight drop in volume compared to my RCA/RFT setup. Actually the tone is very similar to my RFT 7025A, with a little less gain, which is in-line with what I have read in my online research of Tungsrams. Maybe "dark" wasn't the best word - "warm" or "clean" would have been good choices as well... it's hard to describe a tone accurately, but I tried to do my best. I have probably spent a couple of hours giving those tubes a workout, even tapping on them to see if they rattled or were microphonic, and I stand by my description. They are used tubes. They still sound good. I thought my starting price ($5 per tube) was more than fair, even if they aren't pristine. I wish you had been able to test them in your own equipment, and then I would have had a second opinion to base my assessment on. The only other amp the tubes have been used in is the Laney that I mention in the auction. In that amp, they sounded brittle and harsh, which is probably why I wasn't taken with them at first. As I said about that amp, looking back, it probably was in need of a cap job. It always sounded harsh no matter what tubes I used.

I don't sell on eBay often, but I don't sell shit (check the 100% postitive rating... most of that was back when feedback mattered), and I wouldn't have listed the tubes if I didn't think they still had some life in them.

 

[MartyStrat54]

Well this isn't the first time that I've put my foot in my mouth. I sent Alan (RATT) a PM letting him know that I apologize for ragging on his EBAY listing. I should have realized it was his listing, because he told me he was going to list them. I just didn't put 2 and 2 together.

I apologized in private and now I am doing the same here on the thread. I hope that we can remain friends.

 

[MartyStrat54]

Well I lost overnight on EBAY. I couldn't stay up, so I had to place bids with 4 hours left to go. The seller had three listings with a start price (cheap) and a "Buy It Now." I ended up winning two RCA 7025's for $29 and two 1959 RCA short plates for $19. What I was really interested in was his listing for four, RCA, Made in Gt. Britain tubes. Okay, so you would think they would be Mullards. I have several of them. However, it was brought up by another EBAYer that these were in fact RFT tubes. Now that is just crazy. Mullards made by RFT and relabeled RCA. Wow! I wonder what year this all took place in. Well, my bid held up until about 2:35 AM and then I was outbid and lost, so I will never know. These were really weird looking 12AX7's. They had what looked like a small cup up above the plates with the getter mounted inside of that. None of my RFT's have that, but neither does my Mullards. Take a look while the picture is still posted and see if you have ever seen one like this. I tried to copy the picture, but EBAY won't let me.

Lot of 4 Mullard 12ax7 - tested - branded RCA - eBay (item 130330496087 end time Sep-19-09 00:39:15 PDT)

He changed his listing to Tungsram at the last minute down below the picture. It did say RFT and now it says Tungsram.