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kick_the_reverb Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 1339 Escondido, CA	Posted on May 16 2007 02:29 PM In an amp, the most important pre-amp tube is the V1 position, which is the far right. I think i have the Telefunken in V1 and the Mullard in V2. So when you swicth stuff around, play with V1 first, as the change is more noticeable in it. Ran — The Scimitars Top
kick_the_reverb Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 1339 Escondido, CA	Posted on May 16 2007 02:38 PM ajarvez I haven't had any issues with the Sovtek 5881WXT's myself -- the ones I've used sound great... But I wouldn't call the WXT a bad tube by any means, especially for the price. It all depends what you want to do with your amp. When I think of surf sound , I mean loud, clean and tights lows. The Sovtek 5881WXT's give you none of that. In fact they're reccomended when you want to lower your amp's output by about 25%. I have had bad experiences with them - mushy overdriven sound, and tubes going bad very early. Reading your later message I also see that you like P90s in your guitars, and it makes sense that if you want overdriven sound than P90s and those tubes might work well together. Of course in low volume, all things can change, but when I had them, the amp couldn't keep up with the band. Tubes are a matter of taste, so I'm not arguing, just stating my observations. Ran — The Scimitars Top
IronMaiden Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 564 Virginia Beach	Posted on May 16 2007 06:13 PM diceophonic Chris I do recomend a NOS 12AX7 in the preamp section that's if you dig vibrato, here's the line up or lay out of tubes so you can see what I'm talking about and where this 12AX7 tube for vibrato goes, here's the lay out as if your looking at the back of the head, the 12AX7 with stars is the one you need NOS for Vibrato 6L6 6L6 6L6 6L6 12AT7 12AX7 12AX7 12AX7 You can put what ever tubes you wish but for that 1 12AX7 go NOS your Vibrato will sound killer with less poping and smooth vibrato Is the 12AT7 supposed to be a 12AX7 (ie is it a missprint?) Top
Redd_Tyde Joined: Apr 23, 2006 Posts: 260 Oceanside, CA	Posted on May 16 2007 07:06 PM IronMaiden diceophonic Chris I do recomend a NOS 12AX7 in the preamp section that's if you dig vibrato, here's the line up or lay out of tubes so you can see what I'm talking about and where this 12AX7 tube for vibrato goes, here's the lay out as if your looking at the back of the head, the 12AX7 with stars is the one you need NOS for Vibrato 6L6 6L6 6L6 6L6 12AT7 12AX7 12AX7 12AX7 You can put what ever tubes you wish but for that 1 12AX7 go NOS your Vibrato will sound killer with less poping and smooth vibrato Is the 12AT7 supposed to be a 12AX7 (ie is it a missprint?) 12AT7 is correct. Common for reverb. _RT Top
LHR Joined: Aug 23, 2006 Posts: 2123 The jungle	Posted on May 16 2007 09:10 PM kickthe_reverb_ In an amp, the most important pre-amp tube is the V1 position... Ran Well, sorta. Unless you play through channel 2, then V1 is not doing much of anything. The V2 is the first gain stage for the "Vibrato" channel. (If you remove the V1 tube in the Fender Twin Reverb, for example, the amp will still play. Although it will have a different gain profile.) Someone earlier had mentioned the KCA NOS tubes link and it is very nice, especially the Fender Amp Preamp Tube Layout and Recommendations. His advice seems very well-reasoned (with the exception of changing the phase-inverter when replacing the power tubes...an old wive's tale so entrenched in tube lore that you can hardly blame him for including). — SSIV Top
kick_the_reverb Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 1339 Escondido, CA	Posted on May 17 2007 09:31 AM LHR kickthe_reverb_ In an amp, the most important pre-amp tube is the V1 position... Ran Well, sorta. Doh, I meant V2 or V1 as opposed to V4, but didn't refresh my memory before posting. Thanks for pointing out my mistake. Of course, I have the Telefunken in V2 and the Mullard in V4. I don't remember what I have in V1. Maybe a Mullard. LHR Someone earlier had mentioned the KCA NOS tubes link and it is very nice Thanks, that was me. I didn't fall for the phase inverter hype, either. Not saying there's no difference, I just doubt it's very noticeable. BTW - I tried Mullards in my reverb unit, and indeed it made it less surfy. Of course, I went back to RCA. — The Scimitars Top
IronMaiden Joined: Nov 02, 2006 Posts: 564 Virginia Beach	Posted on May 17 2007 10:18 AM OK this is starting to make sense. One question though, My amp doesnt have reverb so my preamp layout is as follows (correct if wrong): (from left to right looking at back of amp) V4 V3 V2 V1 where: V4=phase inverter V3=tremolo V2=first gain stage ch. 2 V1=first gain stage ch.1 So if this is correct then the most imporatnt tubes for me would be the V3 (trem) and V2 (I dont use ch. 1) Top
Noel Joined: Mar 15, 2011 Posts: 8528 Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.	Posted on Nov 03 2012 02:42 PM I'm reviving this old thread because my question is so related to it and the above information was already pretty helpful. I blew the reverb side of my JJ 12AX7 Gold tube. (I used the footswitch a lot and it's kinda hard on the tube.) The Texotica uses these tubes: 6K6GT, 12AT7 and 12AX7. I've already ordered a replacement JJ 12AX7 Gold for now. My question is, for those who've really lived with reverb tanks a long time, which tubes do you prefer if not JJs? And, does anyone mix and match based on function or use all from the same manufacturer? Thanks. — This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got. Last edited: Nov 03, 2012 14:43:06 Top
Bob_Kennedy Joined: Feb 27, 2012 Posts: 316 Mesa, AZ.	Posted on Nov 03 2012 07:55 PM Noel, try to find a NOS JAN Phillips, GE, RCA, Sylvania, etc. 12ax7, 5751, or 7025. From what I understand, they are more durable than anything made today. I put a JJ 12ax7 in my tank after I built it & it quickly went microphonic. I replaced it with a GE 5751 & haven't had any problems with it since. As far as mixing brands, it really doesn't matter with preamp tubes. I've got a JJ 12at7 alongside the GE & the preamp tubes in my Showman are all different brands. You should always keep your power tubes the same though, or so I've been told. — Otto & The Ottomans Kennedy Custom Guitars Last edited: Nov 03, 2012 19:59:22 Top
Noel Joined: Mar 15, 2011 Posts: 8528 Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.	Posted on Nov 05 2012 01:41 PM After a very interesting email conversation with Jon from thetubestore.com, my order was changed to a TAD 7025S. He explained that most modern 12AX7 tubes, including the JJ Gold, use a spiral heater filament that may not be heavy-duty enough to use in a reverb tank which puts a lot more demand on that circuit. The GE's were just too expensive this close to Christmas. I'll have the new tube by Thursday. And I'm very curious about how it will sound. — This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got. Top
tubeswell Joined: Sep 24, 2011 Posts: 1424 Wellington, NZ	Posted on Nov 07 2012 12:25 PM Keep your eye on flea-bay for the occasional good deals on NOS tubes for your stash esp 12AX7s for your reverb unit. I've noticed with my own amps (and from a lot of reports on several tube amp junkie forums) that the quality of the heather-to-cathode insulation is definitely more variable in modern production tubes (including 12AX7s) than tubes made a few years back. This appears to be because of a general decline in quality control in the production process across the tube manufacturing industry. The quality of the heater-cathode insulation is important where any tube is used in an application where the cathode voltage is high w.r.t. to heater voltage's ground-reference voltage (like in a cathode follower stage, which is what 1/2 of the 12AX7 is used for as the dry/bypass stage in a reverb unit). Without good heater-cathode insulation, then higher voltages on the cathode cause the insulation to quickly break down which produces a short from the heater circuit to the signal circuit, causing unwanted scratchiness, cracking, buzzing etc. (If your new tube does this soon after installing it in the reverb unit, it is quite likely that this is what the cause is FWIW, especially if the reverb unit otherwise had been operating normally prior to needing to change the tube) — He who dies with the most tubes... wins Surf Daddies Top
Noel Joined: Mar 15, 2011 Posts: 8528 Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.	Posted on Nov 07 2012 01:32 PM That's great info Pete. I appreciate it. I'm not reassembling the cab for a few days to give the new tubes time to fail. I had to replace the 12AT7 as well! It sounds just fine right now. I'm also going to put the resistor in the footswitch jack to help prolong the life of the 12AX7s. Billy's made this a running change and all new Texotica reverbs come with them. The fact that the Music Man 212-HD I'm drooling over has five tubes in it isn't giving me warm and fuzzy feelings right now. But who knows? — This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got. Top
Noel Joined: Mar 15, 2011 Posts: 8528 Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.	Posted on Nov 07 2012 03:14 PM One of the things that I learned the hard way is that 12AX7, ECC83-S and 7025-S tubes are all considered interchangeable. But they aren't exactly the same size with the ECC83-S (what the Texotica reverb is designed around) are the narrowest and shortest. Yes, that proved to be a complication. I didn't know all the questions to ask and got surprised twice. — This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got. Top
Noel Joined: Mar 15, 2011 Posts: 8528 Back in Piitsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I grew up.	Posted on Nov 08 2012 10:18 AM One more discovery that may be of interest to owners of Fender RI reverbs. The TAD 7025 S really takes the edge off the sharp overtones. I used to run the Tone on my Texotica at 3 or 3.5, depending on guitar, to balance out the low, mid and overtones. But with the TAD, I have to go to 6 on Tone for it to sound the same, and it really sounds great. So I wonder if using a TAD 7025 S in the Fender RI Reverb will do the same thing? — This is Noel. Reverb's at maximum an' I'm givin' 'er all she's got. Last edited: Nov 08, 2012 10:19:13 Top

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