Members bmast160 Posted April 11, 2008 Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 I need recommendations on tubes for both of my amps. Right now they both have stock tubes in them. I use a deluxe american strat(rosewood neck), deluxe american tele(maple), and a gretsch anniversary. I run thru a lot of effects but they are in true bypass loops. I also use a buffer in the beginning of the signal chain. I use a Vox AC30 CC2 for clean tones(I replaced the wharfedale speakers with the alnico blues Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bmast160 Posted April 11, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 bump Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tarl-Saxon Posted April 11, 2008 Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 I have a Crate VFX5112 and found that I like JJ 12Ax7s the best in the pre amp. GTs or Svetlana el34s for the power tubes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Brick Posted April 11, 2008 Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 ya I would go with dougs suggestion. He knows his tubes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members code_blue Posted April 11, 2008 Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 I contacted dougstubes.com and they suggested JJ EL84's for vox power tubes and for the crate these preamp tubes...tungsol 12ax7 reissue in V1, penta labs 12ax7 in V2, and EHX 12ax7 in V3...What do you think!? Most of the people here don't even know what that {censored} means, so its probably a decent suggestion. Because of the wide spread ignorance on this subject, I would keep an eye on how much you spend, and see what the details of the return policy are. I don't trust tube pushers, the opportunities for the seller to scam the buyer are all over the place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted April 11, 2008 Members Share Posted April 11, 2008 I prefer Ei EL84s if you can find some good ones with the right parameters. Doug did have a pretty good supply. As far as Code Blue's accusation, I think Doug's and Lord Valve's stellar reputation is too important to them to try and scam many buyers. Certainly there will be times where people disagree but I doubt that either of them will purposely mislead a customer just for a few extra bucks. As for 12ax7's, I'm fine with the Tungsol, E-H, and most 9th Gen Chinese. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bmast160 Posted April 12, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 talked to him again and he said jj el84's in both amps. anyone know the difference between jj el84's and mullard ones? also he said he likes the chinese ones for the vox preamps? what are "the chinese ones"?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bmast160 Posted April 12, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 I prefer Ei EL84s if you can find some good ones with the right parameters. Doug did have a pretty good supply. As far as Code Blue's accusation, I think Doug's and Lord Valve's stellar reputation is too important to them to try and scam many buyers. Certainly there will be times where people disagree but I doubt that either of them will purposely mislead a customer just for a few extra bucks. As for 12ax7's, I'm fine with the Tungsol, E-H, and most 9th Gen Chinese. what you like better about the Ei's as opposed to the mullard or jj? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bmast160 Posted April 12, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 bump what you like better about the Ei's as opposed to the mullard or jj? talked to him again and he said jj el84's in both amps. anyone know the difference between jj el84's and mullard ones? also he said he likes the chinese ones for the vox preamps? what are "the chinese ones"?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted April 12, 2008 Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 what you like better about the Ei's as opposed to the mullard or jj? I guess my amps just sound more alive with the Ei's vs JJs. I actually thiought the E-H EL84s sounded at least as good as JJs. JJs aren't bad by any stretch, just kinda ordinary from my experience. No idea on Mullards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted April 12, 2008 Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 bumpwhat you like better about the Ei's as opposed to the mullard or jj?talked to him again and he said jj el84's in both amps. anyone know the difference between jj el84's and mullard ones? also he said he likes the chinese ones for the vox preamps? what are "the chinese ones"??Probably the 9th gen. Chinese that I mentioned earlier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members danbuc Posted April 12, 2008 Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 Called Eurotubes and spoke to Bob and ordered a matched set of JJ's for my Crate V3112. They definitely improved the tone - made it smoother and kinda more responsive. Have em in still a year later and still sound good. Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bmast160 Posted April 12, 2008 Author Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 Called Eurotubes and spoke to Bob and ordered a matched set of JJ's for my Crate V3112. They definitely improved the tone - made it smoother and kinda more responsive. Have em in still a year later and still sound good. Dan did you have to get the amp rebiased for the tubes? ive heard that you're supposed to if you change the power tubes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AaronF Posted April 12, 2008 Members Share Posted April 12, 2008 JJ EL84s are great, and Groove Tubes are great too. Both sound different, so it becomes a matter of preference, but I've had great luck with both. EF86s are fun to experiment with. I find JJs to be pretty good, consistent, reliable tubes; and when you buy from them you know you are going to get something good, but I'm sure there is better out there. All of the components of your amp, especially the speakers are what are going to account for your tone, and they all have to interact with your tubes well, so every amp is different. I speaker change will yield the biggest change in tone, but if you are only looking for a small change, a tube change will do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members meringue Posted April 17, 2008 Members Share Posted April 17, 2008 From my experience, JJ's are far better than Sovtek's in the V3112. I would not use The Tungsol considering that when I tried it in my V3112, I found it sounded a little bright but I really liked it. I found that the JJ 12ax7 gold pins was the smoothest and darkest sounding. A NOS Sylvania which sounds quite medium could suit you too. The reissue Mullard 12 ax7 sounds a bit harsh in the V3112. I don't know about the reissue Mullard EL84's but they seem to get good reviews from what I have read on the web. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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