Current Production State of the Union as told to you by Beaz

Im gonna take this piece one at a time so as not to overload my brain.

Reviews are to follow not limmitted to JJ Tesla, Ruby, GT, EH, Sovtek, EI, Tung Sol, Mullard, Mesa Boogie, and any others I have tried.

NOS dosnt apply to this thread . I'm concerned with what is currently being produced.

Fine. Just when you're talking about Ruby, GT and Mesa, be sure to mention who really made the tubes.

Oh, FYI, there is a 6V6 comparison thread ongoing now over at the Amp Workshop board. Good photos of current production 6V6s along with some NOS.

Yes concerning the rebranders I plan on telling it like it is.

OK Lets talk JJ Tesla

ECC83 Good Tube a little dark for my taste in some amps. Occasionally I get one that is microphonic most of the time they are good and last a lot of time.

ECC803 Amasing Tone. Really warm and round sounding. Somtimes they can tend to be a bit microphonic (as is any Long Plate) in V1. Not had a bad one yet.

EDIT EL84 Though I like the JJ's their EL84 just dosnt do it for me. They hold up OK but I just cant seem to dig the tone of em.

6V6 IMHO The best 6V6 Tube that has ever been manufactured (including NOS). Like a miniature 6L6. Warm robust bottom end silky smooth when overdriven.

6L6 Really fine sounding. One of the coolest things I've ever done with these is drop a set in a Marshall to round out the Tone a little. Not had a bad one yet.

EL34 Perfect in a bright Marshall. Dang good tube. Must be why Marshall is putting them in the HW 1959 Series. Thats what mine came with.

E34L A lot like the EL34's they Bias different and have a slightly different tone because of it.

KT77 Very smooth and creamy. Dang good Tube. They should get a lot of miles out of these.

GZ34 Classic rectifier sound. I hate it when you buy a modern rectifier and it acts like a Solid State. This one sounds like the real dela. Some may argue you cant hear the way a rectifier sounds. I can when its sagging. Very reliable.

These are the only JJ Tubes I have used.

One of the things that make me proud of JJ's is they arent trying to pull the wool over anyones eyes with phony marketing ploys. They are simply building tubes and shipping them. I support JJ in all they do. In a world full of crooks and BS Artist its refreshing to see someone that expects an honest days pay for an honest days work. Old School boys those JJ folks are.

All in all they can be a bit dark sometimes in some amps but seem to be very high quality and very reliable. I'll go to some other brands shortly taking them one at a time.

Who wants to hear MY... that's MY... theory on amp contorl knobs? Oh, control switches? That's another thread so keep 'em out of here.

I think it is possible to post a topic without trying to cram 20 tons of attitude into a 2 ton bag.

Now... control knobs here I come. SMILE (If I used emoticons I would, but I never have, not once).

Paul Green

Control Knobs dont interest me. :lol:

Attitude removed.

Me too - I never used an emoticon in my life! But I might try some of those JJ 6V6s. Do you think that they would satisfy a guy who's been running 6L6s in a Deluxe Reverb?

Yes. Definitely. Been there, done that, like them alot.

The following 12ax7, 6V6, 6L6, tubes purchases competed w/ a good supply of old stock. EL34 & EL84 were all current production.

These tube were used in a combination of guitar & hi-fi amps.

My thumbs up goes to:

12ax7 - EH, Tungsol, Sovtek (LPS)
EL84 - Sovtek (M)
6V6 - JJ, EH, Tungsol
EL34 - SED
6L6 - SED, TAD, GT(GE)

Will be testing some current production KT66, 12at7, 12ay7, 12au7 in the near future.

kcp ofered his opinion on a number of tubes:

12ax7 - EH, Tungsol, Sovtek (LPS)
EL84 - Sovtek (M)
6V6 - JJ, EH, Tungsol
EL34 - SED
6L6 - SED, TAD, GT(GE)

This information might be really useful and interesting to someone who is about to buy some tubes. But it would be more useful if we knew what the heck he was talking about! Is there a glossary somewhere on the TDPRI that lists all these variations? I'm wondering what is an SED? what is the difference between a Sovtek LPS and a Sovtek M?

Thanks to you tube-heads for sharing your opinions. But please try to help the rest of us figure out what you're talking about. Otherwise you're just challenging the other tube-heads to disagree with your opinions and this will degenerate into another esoteric tube designation and labelling thread.

OK Lets talk JJ Tesla.....

What are the amps used? Did you have the time to try each tube with different amps? Thanks.

Regarding 6V6s, the JJs are the ones to buy. I specifically do NOT recommend either the Russian EH or Tungsol. Why? Look at my thread on Amp Workshop comparing 6V6 designs, along with numerous closeup photos.

where does one find the Amp Workshop board?

kcp ofered his opinion on a number of tubes:

12ax7 - EH, Tungsol, Sovtek (LPS)
EL84 - Sovtek (M)
6V6 - JJ, EH, Tungsol
EL34 - SED
6L6 - SED, TAD, GT(GE)

This information might be really useful and interesting to someone who is about to buy some tubes. But it would be more useful if we knew what the heck he was talking about! Is there a glossary somewhere on the TDPRI that lists all these variations? I'm wondering what is an SED? what is the difference between a Sovtek LPS and a Sovtek M?

Thanks to you tube-heads for sharing your opinions. But please try to help the rest of us figure out what you're talking about. Otherwise you're just challenging the other tube-heads to disagree with your opinions and this will degenerate into another esoteric tube designation and labelling thread.

Here are some reviews & explainations of the various audio tubes I mentioned

http://www.thetubestore.com/12ax7review.html

http://www.thetubestore.com/6l6review.html

http://www.thetubestore.com/6v6review.html

SED Winged "C" tubes are made by SED SPb, a division of J.S.C. Svetlana in St. Petersburg, Russia.

GT=Grove Tube, who is making a GE (General Electric) version (6L6GE)

TAD=Tube Amp Doctor, a rebrand, making both long & short bottle 6L6 black plates

As for the Sovtek 12ax7-LPS, my guess is it stands for long plate.

One thing about the JJs that I never see anyone mention is that they are physically larger than most other 6V6 tubes. They will not physically fit in my 65 Vibro Champ with a Weber 8A125 unless I remove the bell cover. The EH and old RCA tubes work fine.

The EH 6V6 tubes are a hit or miss proposition in my book. I've found that even tubes that have been measured to have equivalent current draw can sound totally different in the same amp.

where does one find the Amp Workshop board?

http://p210.ezboard.com/bampworkshop

Tubes forum.

Here are some reviews & explainations of the various audio tubes I mentioned

http://www.thetubestore.com/12ax7review.html

http://www.thetubestore.com/6l6review.html

http://www.thetubestore.com/6v6review.html

SED Winged "C" tubes are made by SED SPb, a division of J.S.C. Svetlana in St. Petersburg, Russia.

GT=Grove Tube, who is making a GE (General Electric) version (6L6GE)

TAD=Tube Amp Doctor, a rebrand, making both long & short bottle 6L6 black plates

As for the Sovtek 12ax7-LPS, my guess is it stands for long plate.

Oh come on, the guy is a dealer. He's trying to SELL the stuff. Dealers will whitewash a turd if it will make them money. Come up with independent evaluations, not dealer or advertiser hype.

that helps me sort out all the info

One thing about the JJs that I never see anyone mention is that they are physically larger than most other 6V6 tubes. They will not physically fit in my 65 Vibro Champ with a Weber 8A125 unless I remove the bell cover. The EH and old RCA tubes work fine.

They're an interesting tube. The best description I've heard is a "mini-6L6" due to their shape and toughness.

He He He He He. Look for some interesting tube results to follow soon. Maybe not the kind of testing you would normally expect. :mrgreen:

He He He He He. Look for some interesting tube results to follow soon. Maybe not the kind of testing you would normally expect. :mrgreen:

Can't wait. Don't forget to wear goggles. ;)