Tone is everything and when you find it nothing is the same again.
My Dogs Bollocks is all the things that might help you get your tone or put a smile on your face.
Don't know what tone is, then this page is just a load of BOLLOCKS.
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I have always sent my amps to a tech to have them retubed and biased....its not only a pain but its also expensive....But then I got my Egnater Renegade that has biasing probe points at the back and I wondered why if biasing was so easy don't all amps come with easy biasing set up points....Biasing seems very straight forward with the right know how and a multimeter and yet also a bit of a black art....
I started looking for something that would make the biasing process easy but strangely nothing is really out there....TAD "Tube Amp Doctor" make a biasing kit that only gives you one part of the equation....the Cathode Current....but you then need a multi meter to read the Plate Voltage....whats the point of the TAD kit if you have your multi meter out to read the PV you may as well read the CC while your at it....????....
Then I found this on Ebay....The BiasPro VI by AsharpFretworks....This not only gives you the PV but also at the flick of a switch the CC....all you then need to know is the Maximum Power Dissipation of your new tubes....that's easy with the internet....a bit of math....a twist of a screwdriver and your done....that all seems easy enough....
The BiasPro looks well made....all the lethal electrical power strays in the tube connecters plugged into your amp and sends Milli-Volts instead of the Volts to the Readout Module....this can only be a good thing as its these Volts that could kill you....and the reason why I don't want to mess with a multimeter in the internals of my tube amps....
"you will not see this video if you have signed up for this blogs email edition"
This video is a different kit from mine but made by the same guy....Ken Koga in Minnesota, USA
ps....I'm in the UK....the BiasPro was £73.00....Postage from the US was £14.24....and I should have paid a VAT/Duty/Handling Fee of £22.80....
....but for some reason I was never asked to pay the charge...."maybe someone at the Royal Mail reads this Blog"....gotta love the Royal Mail....So all in the BiasPro work's out at £115 here in the UK....and that's still cheaper than the TAD biasing kit that only does half the job....it was posted by Ken in the US on the 6th and I got it on the 13th here in the UK....
I'll have a play....bias some of my amps and tell you all how good the BiasPro VI is....k.j.
I've had my Evil Robot for a while now....so what have I found playing it over that time....
It's
a aggressive S-O-B in Phil X mode that benefits from a reduction in
gain that comes from changing the V1 12AX7 tube for a 12AU7. I have also
placed a modded BOSS GE-7
in the C-30's loop to allow me to tweak the EQ....the C-30 has a very
focused tone that sounds great with a drummer....but on its own can be a
little too much....the GE-7 lets you take the edge off....and that the
Vibrato only works with a 12AU7 tube....oh and that the footswitch is
rather piss poor....
The
C-30's cab is very tightly packed on the inside....changing the speaker
for something else is going to be a challenge....I found that the
magnet on a Vintage 30 too big to fit in-front of the transforms....To
make the fan work better it needs something to channel the air flow
upwards....
....and
that White Knobs look way more cooler than the standard black
one's....in the dark....black on black is really hard to see....
....not that my C-30 needs to stand out more....
My
C-30 is mainly for home use and is the best small amp I've ever
owned....I have played better amps....but they have all cost 5 times as
much so should be better....for the money the C-30 is an outstanding
little amp....
Over the weekend I started to hear a
harshness in the C-30's tone....the tell tail signs that the power tubes
were on their way out....I have been giving the 6L6's in the amp a real
pounding and decided to try out EL34's but then found a set of 5881's I
have had for years and had never used. 5881 tubes are lower powered
6L6's....6L6's give out a maximum of 30watts....24watts for the
5881....more importantly 5881's will break up earlier than 6L6's. I
found that with the 5881 tubes....the C-30 became very clean....too
clean with a 12AU7 in the V1 position....
With
my C-30 now back in Phil X mode with a 12AX7 in V1 and with the 5881's I
found I could drop the gain in the Pre Amp Channels and crank up the
Master Volumes giving as near as perfect home low volume tones....the
6L6's staying clean with louder Master Volume levels you have turn up
the gain in the Channels thus making standard Evil Robot tones too much
for my talents....but with the 5881 power tubes I seem to have found a
balance that I can work with....the C-30 still gets loud when you need
loud....and now runs a lot cooler than with the 6L6's....which is cool
also....k.j.
Unfortunately
new Sovtek 5881's are not the same as the old ones I had and the
Tung-Sol's that I hoped were going to be similar to the old
Sovtek's...."Sovtek and Tung-Sol are the same company....Tung-Sol is the
name given to their up market tubes"....were a bit disappointing so I
have gone back to 6L6's....
I thought I would give a full set of Tung-Sol's a go in the Evil Robot and again a bit disappointing....
Too warm....all the bite had gone....a very nice tone....but not enough top end for my liking....
For
the power tubes I have gone for a set of TAD 6L6's....these being the
best so far....After a lot of messing again with the tubes I have gone
with Tung-Sol's for the channel tubes and JJ's for the rest of the pre
amp tubes....the Tung-Sols warmth keeping all the harshness under check
with the JJ's keeping the presence and the bite from desapering through
the Loop and Phase tubes....
In
the Evil's V1 tube I have settled on a Tung-Sol EEC803S Gold Pin
12AX7....now before you say "gold pin bullshit"....the EEC803S has to be
the best sounding tube I have ever played through and all of my amps
are going to have one fitted....before you buy any other pre amp or
power tubes try one of these....this one little tube could very well
save you a load of cash....
I'm
still using a EQ pedal last inline in the loop to help shape the
overall tone....I not boosting or cutting any frequencies
massively....just tweaking the EQ more to what I think is sweet
sounding....
I have also found using a clean
boost....I'm using a Rothwell Atomic Boost....in the loop helps give you
a big sounding tone at home friendly volumes....you can get the same
tone from using the amps master volume but by the time you have dialed
in the same punch and power you have also turned up the amps overall
volume and are now playing at a home unfriendly volume....The Clean
boost also helps to keep the Evil Robot clean sounding....as you turn up
the gain in the pre amp your going to get more break up....more volume
and your tone is going to get fuller....using a clean boost your just
tuning up the volume and also end up having more control over keeping
the amp in the sweet spot at home lowwer volumes....I have always played
too loudly at home but with this set up I'm surprised at how quiet I
can play and still keep the amp in the sweet spot....
This
video is not the best sounding but you can hear what the EQ and Boost
pedals are doing....I will re-do the video first chance I get....For
home use this set-up is killer....
Remember....I'm
using this amp at home....If your going to want to Jam and do Gigs with
yours....I would stick to using a quad set of 6V6's....and get yourself
an EQ pedal for some extra tone shaping....but before anything else try
a Tung-Sol ECC803S Gold Pin tube in V1....Hope this helps....k.j.
I've had my Evil Robot for a while now....so what have I found playing it over that time....
It's a aggressive S-O-B in Phil X mode that benefits from a reduction in gain that comes from changing the V1 12AX7 tube for a 12AU7. I have also placed a modded BOSS GE-7 in the C-30's loop to allow me to tweak the EQ....the C-30 has a very focused tone that sounds great with a drummer....but on its own can be a little too much....the GE-7 lets you take the edge off....and that the Vibrato only works with a 12AU7 tube....oh and that the footswitch is rather piss poor....
The C-30's cab is very tightly packed on the inside....changing the speaker for something else is going to be a challenge....I found that the magnet on a Vintage 30 too big to fit in-front of the transforms....To make the fan work better it needs something to channel the air flow upwards....
....and that White Knobs look way more cooler than the standard black one's....in the dark....black on black is really hard to see....
....not that my C-30 needs to stand out more....
My C-30 is mainly for home use and is the best small amp I've ever owned....I have played better amps....but they have all cost 5 times as much so should be better....for the money the C-30 is an outstanding little amp....
Over the weekend I started to hear a harshness in the C-30's tone....the tell tail signs that the power tubes were on their way out....I have been giving the 6L6's in the amp a real pounding and decided to try out EL34's but then found a set of 5881's I have had for years and had never used. 5881 tubes are lower powered 6L6's....6L6's give out a maximum of 30watts....24watts for the 5881....more importantly 5881's will break up earlier than 6L6's. I found that with the 5881 tubes....the C-30 became very clean....too clean with a 12AU7 in the V1 position....
With my C-30 now back in Phil X mode with a 12AX7 in V1 and with the 5881's I found I could drop the gain in the Pre Amp Channels and crank up the Master Volumes giving as near as perfect home low volume tones....the 6L6's staying clean with louder Master Volume levels you have turn up the gain in the Channels thus making standard Evil Robot tones too much for my talents....but with the 5881 power tubes I seem to have found a balance that I can work with....the C-30 still gets loud when you need loud....and now runs a lot cooler than with the 6L6's....which is cool also....k.j.
In the never ending search for more tone the things that we change the least are our tubes. Most of us never giving them a second thought, a blown tube is replaced with the same make and model that the amp came with....easy....but the difference between tubes can be as stark as night and day....sort of....
Changing Pre Amp and Power Amp Tubes is never going to make a Fender amp sound like a Marshall or visa versa but they can make your amp sound and play more to your liking....just remember that 90% of how your amp sounds is in its design, not it's tubes.
12AX7 - ECC83
There are lots of big names in the tube world, Sovtek, Electro-Harmonix, JJ Electronic, Tung-Sol, but not all manufacture tubes. GT and Ruby don't make their own tubes, they buy in and re-brand tubes with their own logo. GT have recently been bought by Fender who only use GT tubes in their amps, a good way of keeping your amp sounding it's best is to use nothing but GT tubes....But talk to a lot of Fender amp owners and Tung-Sol tubes seem to be the preferred choice.
The GT Guess Who Hall of Shame
Tung-Sol have masses of musicality, I'd call them tight and airy. Electro Harmonix are very similar to Tung-Sol but break up sooner for better blues and rock tones. JJ's on the other hand are huge in the bass department with hard mids and clean highs, great for Marshalls and Humbuckers. I have a pair of GT 7025 that were the best tubes I had ever played but they don’t sell them any more. They still sell a 7025 but it's not the same long plate version and they don’t sound the same.
Tube Names - Gain Factors
From the above chart you can see the gain values of each tube and that a 12AX7 “US Name” is the same tube as a ECC83 “European Name”. I have always thought the euro names were misleading in that the ECC81 has more gain than a ECC82, so where does the ECC83 get it's name, it should be a ECC80?. I have put the 5751 in the 12AX7 line as its very closely related to a AX7, it's more closely related to a AX7 than it is to a 12AT7 or a 12AU7.
Pre Amp Tubes
JJ ECC803 - Slovakian - a very high powered 12AX7 tube, extra bite and shimmer in the high frequencies.
Tung-Sol 12AX7 - Russian - very powerful, ultra low noise. tight, punchy, articulate, a very musical tube.
Electro Harmonix - 12AX7 - Russian - easy break up, aggressive, very low noise. probably the best tube in the world and one of the cheapest.
JJ 5751 – Slovakian – low powered 12AX7, very low noise. has bite and shimmer with a good low end.
JJ ECC82 - Slovakian - the lowest output tube you can get. In the pre amp it will reduce gain and give a warm, smooth and balanced EQ out put.
Sovtek 12AX7-LPS - Russian - surprisingly smooth across the EQ response - great for gain but prone to micro-phonics in combo amps.
Glass Tubes of Power Perfection
Power Amp Tubes
6V6 Power Tubes have a vintage tone giving an even mix of lows, mids and highs. they have a lower power out put compared to 6L6's
6L6 Power Tubes have a very nice mix of tone. they sound tighter and warmer than 6V6's. a 5881 is basically a low power 6L6....20watt rather than 30watt. A KT66 has a smoother tone with tight lows.
EL34 Power Tubes have a harsher tone with more bass response than 6L6 or 6V6 tubes, more like a classic Marshall sound. a KT77 tight mids with more open highs than a EL34
KT88 Power Tubes similar to a smaller EL84 in the mids, but with more lows and highs for a modern Marshall sound.
Yellow Jackets tube converters allow EL84 power tubes to be used in place of 6L6, EL34, 6V6. EL84's have a lower power out put compared to EL34's but use a small 9 pin design rather than the 8 pin design of 6V6, 6L6, EL34 and KT tubes.
Changing Power Tubes....all 8 pin power tubes can be changed for any other 8 pin tube, "some tubes missing pins" but will involve re-baising of most guitar amps and should only be done by qualified technician.
My Egnater Renegade has a very modern sounding lead channel that I have lowered the gain on with the aid of a 12AU7 for a vintage Marshall, AC-DC tone. My clean channel, I have emphasized the US Fender tone with a JJ ECC803s for some extra grit in the top end.
The tubes that I have in the Renegade at the moment for home use are......
“Channel 1”
V1 - Tung-Sol 12AU7 "has a gain factor of 20%, this reducers the gain in both channels"
V2 - JJ ECC803S “for some dirt in the top end” (this is now a Tung-Sol 12AX7 - sounds better)
“Channel 2”
V3 - JJ ECC83S "12AX7" (this is now a JJ ECC82 - sounds better)
V4 - JJ ECC83S "12AX7"
“FX Loop”
V5 - JJ 5751 "low powered 12AX7, for giving the FX Loop a bit more headroom"
“Phase Inverter”
V6 - Tung-Sol 12AX7
"with these tubes Channel 1 is clean with a hint of break up when pushed, Channel 2 is very Vintage Rock sounding"
POWER TUBES
6V6's in the 6L6 side to reduce the volume a very small amount for a US Tone.
EL34's in the EL34 for the British Tone.
"the Renegade has 2 channel assignable Master Volumes, so I use the 2 MV to give the 6V6 tubes a boost to keep up with the EL34's"
The valves that I have in the Renegade for gig use are......
“Channel 1”
V1 - JJ ECC83S
V2 - JJ ECC803S “for some dirt in the top end”
“Channel 2”
V3 - JJ ECC83S "12AX7"
V4 - JJ ECC82 "12AU7" "to reduce the Egnater's Modern Gain Tone...."
“FX Loop”
V5 - JJ 5751 "low powered 12AX7, for giving the FX Loop a bit more headroom"
“Phase Inverter”
V6 - Tung-Sol 12AX7...."I also use a Tung-Sol 12AU7 to drop the power output through the floor for home use"
POWER TUBES
6L6's in the US Tone Side.
E34L's in the EL34 side for the British Tone.
"These tubes give a very tight powerful tone, Channel 2 has reduced gain to keep it sounding Rock not Metal. The 12AV7 in the PI position will help to get sustain and dynamics at a lower volume for home use."
Power Tube Distortion....the holy grail of tone....actually comes from the Phase Inverter tube breaking up. Fitting an 12AU7 tube will cut a amps rated power to about half....but a 100watt amp is not twice as loud as a 50watt amp, it's more like 100watt and 75watt and it's the same with valves. Fitting a 5751 in a 100watt amp will make it sound like a 90watt amp and fitting a ECC82 will make the 100watt amp sound more like 40watts....what the AU7 does is give you more sustain and playing dynamics at a lower volume. The AU7 will start to break up sooner than a AX7 would....your amp will still be loud....DRUM KIT LOUD.
GT 7025 - Tung-Sol 12AX7 - JJ ECC803S
A word of warning....
12AU7 and 12AT7 tubes have Plate Currents of about 1 milliamps where the 12AT7 and 12AU7 both have Plate currents of 10 milliamps and will draw more current. Modern high quality resistors will cope with extra heat but....not all amps are built to the same standard.
I contacted Bruce Egnater about using a AU7 in the PI position and this is what he said....
"You won't harm your amp by trying the 12AU7. The issue is that the AU7 draws more current. The Renegade uses 1 watt MF resistors in the critical locations. The 12AU7 will cause more voltage drop (more heat) on those resistors but should be just fine. The fact that the Renegade does not have a post phase inverter master and does have negative feedback in the poweramp, the audible change with the AU7 will probably be minimal and will not reduce the volume if that is your goal."
JJ ECC81 - Ruby 12AT7
The best way to evaluate what tubes will sound best for you is to buy a few and play and swop . Check forums to see what other users of your amp are playing through but remember that how you play will also have an effect, if you play heavy handed you will make a valve break up sooner than a softer player would. I have found that some tubes don't play nice with other tubes, bottom end can simply drop away with some combinations of tubes. 12AT7/ECC81 tubes can be cold and un-musical when compared to the lower powered 12AU7/ECC82 in the same positions.
A good tip when you buy balanced tubes for the FX Loop or Phase Inverter....mark them with a red Sharpie marker pen....because once out of the box you'll never know which ones which.
Spot the Difference Competition
I think my amp does sound better for changing it's tubes for my heavy handed style of playing....but it has been a pain in the ass if I'm being honest....
