Current EL34/6CA7 reliability.

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tlp1234

tlp1234

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This is a moving target and has been for years.

I should have bought a bunch of Winged C/SED EL34 back when they weren't $150-200 a pair. I really liked those tubes back in the day before the St. Petersburg factory quit making the real ones. What is selling as Svetlana EL34 are NOT that tube.

JJ's were pretty good for a while, but I've had a rash of bad ones over the past couple of years.

To my ear the difference in sound is so subtle, I don't care so much about that as I do something that lasts a while.

What's worked good for you lately?
 
Beat the bushes for some old Sylvanias. They have a lifespan that is WAY beyond any new 6CA7 that you can buy today.
 
I was using JJ 6CA7s for a while, years ago (9-10 maybe) and they were by far the best sounding current production tubes I tried. I was having some failure issues so I switched to Ruby BSTRs. They are great as well. I am about to put a fresh quad of JJ 6CA7s in my 1959 Superlead today actually!
I'm ready to give them another shot.

I tried wing Cs about 10 years ago in my Supperlead and they were just OK, nothing spectacular. The JJ EL34s I replaced them with blew them out of the water as far a sound goes. I personally think they are the most over rated EL-34s. Just my humble opinion. I want to try the EH 6CA7s too.
I hear they are great as well.....
 
matttornado said:
I was using JJ 6CA7s for a while, years ago (9-10 maybe) and they were by far the best sounding current production tubes I tried. I was having some failure issues so I switched to Ruby BSTRs. They are great as well. I am about to put a fresh quad of JJ 6CA7s in my 1959 Superlead today actually!
I'm ready to give them another shot.

I tried wing Cs about 10 years ago in my Supperlead and they were just OK, nothing spectacular. The JJ EL34s I replaced them with blew them out of the water as far a sound goes. I personally think they are the most over rated EL-34s. Just my humble opinion. I want to try the EH 6CA7s too.
I hear they are great as well.....
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Thank you very much!

I respect and believe what you say. I've read/heard from several the same.

But for whatever reason the difference in sound that I could hear was not that striking. But, again I believe you. We all have different hearing.

The only reason I stuck with the Winged C/SED is that batches in those days took lots of abuse in amps I was using.

They lived in my hot/cathode biased Matchless Amps (specifically the Clubman) for a loooooooong time.

Then when I decided I wanted some more, the factory in St Petersburg, RU stopped production. And of course as their "unobtainum status" increased the market price shot up precipitously.

Even today I'm reluctant to pay what people are charging for them (Winged C/SED's that is) only because many of the tube shysters are selling seconds and thirds as good, supposedly fully burned in and tested satisfactorily tubes. Been burned on that.

I too used JJ's for a long time, and was really pleased with them. Had extremely few failures. But in the past couple years, I've had a rash of failures with them, and not just the EL34'/6CA7 types. Been really bummed about it. They weren't very expensive and very dependable for quite a while. Don't know what happened.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Also wondering how the TAD EL34 are as far as reliability. Been having great results with their 6V6 and 6L6's.
 
I run JJ KT77’s cathode biased at 30 watts each for hours on end for the last 2 years and have had no problems. The key is using ones that have low plate AND screen current draw. Those are the most robust tubes. High draw tubes distort early and burn up fast.
 
Nigel said:
I run JJ KT77’s cathode biased at 30 watts each for hours on end for the last 2 years and have had no problems. The key is using ones that have low plate AND screen current draw. Those are the most robust tubes. High draw tubes distort early and burn up fast.
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Great information!

Thank you Nigel!
 
matttornado said:
I was using JJ 6CA7s for a while, years ago (9-10 maybe) and they were by far the best sounding current production tubes I tried. I was having some failure issues so I switched to Ruby BSTRs. They are great as well. I am about to put a fresh quad of JJ 6CA7s in my 1959 Superlead today actually!
I'm ready to give them another shot.

I tried wing Cs about 10 years ago in my Supperlead and they were just OK, nothing spectacular. The JJ EL34s I replaced them with blew them out of the water as far a sound goes. I personally think they are the most over rated EL-34s. Just my humble opinion. I want to try the EH 6CA7s too.
I hear they are great as well.....
Click to expand...
Great to hear on the Electro Harmonix valves!

Thank you Matt!
 
I believe Tesla bought the old Mullard tooling and JJ uses it today, hence the great tone. Metals/chemicals are different as are the people so they aren’t the same level of excellence overall. Therefore old stock Teslas sound better than JJ’s but both are eclipsed by the “Master Valve.”
 
As far as modern post-Gorbachev Russian valves go, they have never done it for me. That said, the 80’s and older old stock military 6p14p/6n14n EL-84 and 6P3S-E “5881” which works in EL34 and 6L6 circuits are fantastic. So much so Ken Fisher used their EL84, Dr. Z ships them stock in the Z-Wreck, and the old Sovtek rebranded military “5881” sound superior to the new production.
 
Nigel said:
As far as modern post-Gorbachev Russian valves go, they have never done it for me. That said, the 80’s and older old stock military 6p14p/6n14n EL-84 and 6P3S-E “5881” which works in EL34 and 6L6 circuits are fantastic. So much so Ken Fisher used their EL84, Dr. Z ships them stock in the Z-Wreck, and the old Sovtek rebranded military “5881” sound superior to the new production.
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Great stuff! Keep it coming.
 
Only 34 I’ll put I’m my Marshalls are one of 3 choices...Winged C, Siemens or the GT el34LS. The GTs are basically the JJ el34L with bigger heat wings. Not made anymore but can be found fairly cheap nowadays. Those are all heads/tails above the JJ L, B, 6CA7 or anything else I’ve tried in any JMP or JCM I’ve owned. I’ve had XF1-2 Mullards and the Winged C or Siemens sounded better to me.
New production I’d roll with the Tung Sol EL34...came with a 2555x I had a few yrs ago and I put them in a 74 Superlead I had and they sounded close to the Siemens.
 
Racerxrated said:
Only 34 I’ll put I’m my Marshalls are one of 3 choices...Winged C, Siemens or the GT el34LS. The GTs are basically the JJ el34L with bigger heat wings. Not made anymore but can be found fairly cheap nowadays. Those are all heads/tails above the JJ L, B, 6CA7 or anything else I’ve tried in any JMP or JCM I’ve owned. I’ve had XF1-2 Mullards and the Winged C or Siemens sounded better to me.
New production I’d roll with the Tung Sol EL34...came with a 2555x I had a few yrs ago and I put them in a 74 Superlead I had and they sounded close to the Siemens.
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Dimple top Seimens have great lead tone but don’t like being cranked.
 
Nigel said:
Dimple top Seimens have great lead tone but don’t like being cranked.
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??? That's where they shine, to my ears anyway. My 72 SuperTrem came loaded with them; it only has one volume-LOUD lol. Killer tone. They handled high PV too in the Wizard I had..540 on the plates. Never had any failures with them and they've all been used, no NOS for me.
 
Weird. I could always open up JJ E34L’s in a Rivera but the stock Seimens wouldn’t bloom when cranked. Odd.
 
Nigel said:
Weird. I could always open up JJ E34L’s in a Rivera but the stock Seimens wouldn’t bloom when cranked. Odd.
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Maybe they were on their way out? Or the bias was too low? I had a Rivera TBR 1 SL and it also came with Rivera labelled Siemens 34s. Sounded glorious.
On the other hand, the only amp that didn't sound like tubby mush with those JJ EL34L was the Wizard MC100...came stock with them. Any Marshall I've owned was tub city with them.
 
Racerxrated said:
Maybe they were on their way out? Or the bias was too low? I had a Rivera TBR 1 SL and it also came with Rivera labelled Siemens 34s. Sounded glorious.
On the other hand, the only amp that didn't sound like tubby mush with those JJ EL34L was the Wizard MC100...came stock with them. Any Marshall I've owned was tub city with them.
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This is why I come to Rig Talk. Thanks for the perspective man! Yeah those tubes were the originals...I always bias hot so I don't think that was the issue. Got KT77's in there now so it's a non-issue for me. Nothing gets me happy like those 77's...kinda glad I haven't heard the GEC's because I have expensive taste and will have to have them lol.
 
I haven't tried KT 77s...with all the tube rolling I've done I better get me a quad.
 
harddriver said:
I bought a brand new quad of real Gold Lion KT77's in 1989/90. Installed them in my 2203 and man was that a killer sound.
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Obligatory "fuck you" for being so goddamned cool, and all. Thank you, drive through...ungh. JELLY
 
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