EVH 5150 iii 50 watt power tube recommendations?

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Nigel said:
If you want full EVH tone, get Sylvania 6CA7's. That's what came in the block letter 5150's and why they sound different..............

I prefer JJ KT77's to the OG russkie but the OG russkie by leaps and bounds to the newer tig-weld "product." This is perhaps the origin of Mike Matthew's tube name game.
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I think you mean Sylvania 6L6GC in the early Block letters.
I hope you aren't running 6CA7's and KT77's in amps designed for 6L6's. The PT's usually can't handle the heater current draw among other issues created by doing this.
Howard Kaplan has specifically stated DO NOT put any EL34 variants in the EVH 6L6 amps, as you'll blow the PT.
 
fusedbrain said:
I think you mean Sylvania 6L6GC in the early Block letters.
I hope you aren't running 6CA7's and KT77's in amps designed for 6L6's. The PT's usually can't handle the heater current draw among other issues created by doing this.
Howard Kaplan has specifically stated DO NOT put any EL34 variants in the EVH 6L6 amps, as you'll blow the PT.
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You're right.
 
Has anyone tried 5881WXT's? I have them in a Tremoverb Recto and they sound nice - better presence than 6L6GC I find. Curious how they'd sound in a 5150 III.
 
WXT just means the base is different. Real difference is color of the plates (darker vs lighter gray) and tig weld vs tab in slot plate construction. The latter, lighter gray / tab in slot is the real deal.
 
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Popped this out of my new Stealth 50... WTF? Supposed to be Shuguang!

EDIT: these are afterall rebranded Shuguangs. GT relabels them. GT is also owned by Fender FYI.

A0B96D8D-EDCB-4A89-948A-FA33A341B1A8.jpeg
 
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Rex Rocker said:
That does look like a GT-relabeled Shuguang 6L6GC.
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I posted the same pic on the EVH 5150 III FB group and someone said the same thing. So that makes sense. Groove Tube is owned by Fender now, and they also don’t make tubes, just relabel others. (Like Mesa does I suppose).
 
While I had the back open I tried some 5881WXTs from another amp. Sounded pretty decent and smooth. Good if looking for something less agressive. Lacked a bit of definition though and for sure the bite of the GT/Shuguang 6L6GC’s. I put the latter back in.

EC768404-4B29-47E9-B082-C458B32852BF.jpeg
 
Got some JJ’s today. Sticking them. A little tighter low end and a little smoother than the Shuguangs/GTs. Biased to 44.

82B3ACF2-B3BC-4532-A01C-EBA7685CA7DD.jpeg
 
After trying JJ power tubes and swapping back and forth a half dozen times here’s my takeaway:

JJ: a bit tighter low end, little louder, shifts the mids up, more highs. Sounded cool at first but then kind of brittle and fatiguing after 20 minutes. Very percussive but kind of that hollow metallic sound (klang!) that some may like. I could not dial out the high mids and treble without it sounding either thin and dull, or boomy if I cranked up the bass. If you like chimey/bright percussive tone you may like them. Bit more output too.

Shuguang (stock): more grit and texture, more low mids, still tight lows but less than JJ. Found it less bright and more harmonic. Seemed a bit more responsive to pick attack. Easier to dial in EQ. Fun and addicting to play.

Biased each time I swapped. The JJs were reading higher so would dial it back down, and then back up when I swapped to the Shuguangs. The amp was at 44.5 when I checked it initially before any swapping or adjusting, so stuck to that. Measuring at the back bias ports in mV.

59E50E6E-1F02-4EA2-A9AC-C41F5C3FC458.jpeg
 
LCW said:
After trying JJ power tubes and swapping back and forth a half dozen times here’s my takeaway:

JJ: a bit tighter low end, little louder, shifts the mids up, more highs. Sounded cool at first but then kind of brittle and fatiguing after 20 minutes. Very percussive but kind of that hollow metallic sound (klang!) that some may like. I could not dial out the high mids and treble without it sounding either thin and dull, or boomy if I cranked up the bass. If you like chimey/bright percussive tone you may like them. Bit more output too.

Shuguang (stock:) more grit and texture, more low mids, still tight lows but less than JJ. Found it less bright and more harmonic. Seemed a bit more responsive to pick attack. Easier to dial in EQ. Fun and addicting to play.

Biased each time I swapped. The JJs were reading higher so would dial it back down, and then back up when I swapped to the Shuguangs. The amp was at 44.5 when I checked it initially before any swapping or adjusting, so stuck to that. Measuring at the back bias ports in mV.

View attachment 68613
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Interesting.. Mine read 49mA when I got it, and I thought that was a tad warm? I haven't checked the plate voltage yet, until my new Pro One gets here. There's not a lot out there on these Stealths, but I know the older/originals usually shipped around 30-32, (cold). That's quite a bit warmer.
 
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napalmdeath said:
Interesting.. Mine read 49mA when I got it, and I thought that was a tad warm? I haven't checked the plate voltage yet, until my new Pro One gets here. There's not a lot out there on these Stealths, but I know the older/originals usually shipped around 30-32, (cold). That's quite a bit warmer.
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Have not measured plate voltage either. So stuck with same measurement of how it came. It does suck that there no Stealth bias measuring instructions anywhere. Gotta be some Fender/EVH tech out there than can spill the beans and upload some PDFs ;)
 
LCW said:
Have not measured plate voltage either. So stuck with same measurement of how it came. It does suck that there no Stealth bias measuring instructions anywhere. Gotta be some Fender/EVH tech out there than can spill the beans and upload some PDFs ;)
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I'm going to try some TAD 6L6GC-STR's that seem to get alot of love. I know they're Shuguang, but I've heard many good things.
 
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napalmdeath said:
I'm going to try some TAD 6L6GC-STR's that seem to get alot of love. I know they're Shuguang, but I've heard many good things.
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Probably a solid choice. FYI - tubestore . com seems to not stock them anymore. Pointing people to their 'Preferred Series' which are also sorted Shuguangs.
 
LCW said:
Probably a solid choice. FYI - tubestore . com seems to not stock them anymore. Pointing people to their 'Preferred Series' which are also sorted Shuguangs.
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I got them from a Reverb store I've bought from for $64 shipped. Thats the best price I've found.

I've read a lot of reviews of people putting them in the Peavey 5150's, and most reviews say they're big, punchy, and percussive with great clarity. That's music to my ears!
 
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LCW said:
After trying JJ power tubes and swapping back and forth a half dozen times here’s my takeaway:

JJ: a bit tighter low end, little louder, shifts the mids up, more highs. Sounded cool at first but then kind of brittle and fatiguing after 20 minutes. Very percussive but kind of that hollow metallic sound (klang!) that some may like. I could not dial out the high mids and treble without it sounding either thin and dull, or boomy if I cranked up the bass. If you like chimey/bright percussive tone you may like them. Bit more output too.

Shuguang (stock:) more grit and texture, more low mids, still tight lows but less than JJ. Found it less bright and more harmonic. Seemed a bit more responsive to pick attack. Easier to dial in EQ. Fun and addicting to play.

Biased each time I swapped. The JJs were reading higher so would dial it back down, and then back up when I swapped to the Shuguangs. The amp was at 44.5 when I checked it initially before any swapping or adjusting, so stuck to that. Measuring at the back bias ports in mV.

View attachment 68613
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You were right. I got my new Pro One, and got 490 on the plate voltage. I tried the stock GT/Shuguangs again, and they actually DO sound better than the JJ 6L6's. I've never liked them, (usually Ruby labeled), but they do sound better in the Stealth! I biased it at 36mA.

Also, I tried a Mullard RI CV4004 in V1, and it really beefed up the blue channel! Nice and meaty!
 
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napalmdeath said:
You were right. I got my new Pro One, and got 490 on the plate voltage. I tried the stock GT/Shuguangs again, and they actually DO sound better than the JJ 6L6's. I've never liked them, (usually Ruby labeled), but they do sound better in the Stealth! I biased it at 36mA.

Also, I tried a Mullard RI CV4004 in V1, and it really beefed up the blue channel! Nice and meaty!
Click to expand...

What's a Pro One?
 
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