Hey_bert_whtcha_doin_bert
Active member
OKE DOKE 
for a Herbie.
Rating:1-5
EL34BSTR (I've tried many different bias settings from 58ma to 70ma and this all is an average of those settings and the tweaking was done on the last set I had because the first sets didn't really last long enough to let me try different settings)
Reliablity: 3.5 (I've had worse but the first 3 sets of these I had died WAY sooner than they should have, one even dropped the grid two hours into playing them, I mean dropped it too, took out a bias resistor and shattered two or three fuses, and this was after Peter installed them while he was at Namm last year, so it wasn't my error. However the last set I had, which I just swapped out, was still going strong after a year and a few months and they still sounded GREAT!)
Harmonic content: 4 (while it's certainly better than most tubes, I still found it lacking a little bit of that swirl during chording and getting actual harmonics out of it, unless the gain was up a lot higher than I wanted. [we're talkin 3 o'clock on channel 2, were I like it about 2 o'clock or under slightly, so harmonic content shouldn't be a problem at these levels, which it wasn't really, just sometimes])
Clarity: 5 (For an EL34 type, damn these puppies we're clear, all I got to say really.)
Low end: 5 (Very fat and deep low end with great tracking/clarity, tight but not very tight)
Midrange: 5 ( Really spread [like a wall of sound], with a great spank on the high mids [awesome for funk].)
High end: 4 ( It's really gritty but flat, if you need high end cut for leads on channel 2 they don't work so well, but if using channel 3 for leads and you reduce the treble [weird I know] the high mids take over and you get a really great creamy lead that cuts just enough and is really...I dunna...sexy
, but still might not be enough, this is were the SED's have a better advantage IMO)
Cleans: 5 ( closest to a 6L6 you can get, chimey and bouncey )
Overall: 4.5
SED EL34's =C= ( I have used this tube in MANY amps. )
Reliablity: 4 ( While I have never had one drop the grid, I have had two sets go microphonic earlier than they should, but I've had MANY sets, as well as friends that use these and we've had very few problems, but will have the occasional set go micro too fast. )
Harmonic content: 5 ( The swirl and harmonics you can get out of these is a thing of beauty, no contest between the two, they're alive in this area. )
Clarity: 5 ( They're dead even as far as a Herbert goes. )
Low end: 5 ( This is just a matter of taste, were one fails the other excels or runs even, SED's are tighter, little bit more slender but hit harder and they both track very well. )
Midrange: 4.5 ( Not quite as "wall of sound" but articulate and full of harmonic content and single note punch, not as much spank but enough, I like the spank better in the EL34B's. )
High end: 5 ( This is were the B's get left in the dust, very fluid, smooth but cutting, and articulate. Even though they're smooth they still do GREAT with extreme metal and this to me, actually makes the mid cut better, even though I only use it on clean, if you like the mid cut these tubes make it sound better IMO, less pissed off bees on extreme mid cut use. )
Cleans: 4 ( Great for an EL34 and can even sound just like the B's with heavy midcut, but if your using alot of midcut or don't want to change the way the OD's sound, then it lacks some. )
Overall: 4.6
Conclusion: I like the SED's better just because of the high end and much tighter low end, and I only use mid cut on cleans, so I'm not missing anything on cleans. As you can see they rank very close though in my opinion, and really boils down to taste, and to an extent how you like your leads to sound, besides the tightness on the rhythm, the SED's have an AMAZING lead sound that is smooth but cuts. Both great tubes really.
Thanks for reading,
-Nick
for a Herbie.Rating:1-5
EL34BSTR (I've tried many different bias settings from 58ma to 70ma and this all is an average of those settings and the tweaking was done on the last set I had because the first sets didn't really last long enough to let me try different settings)
Reliablity: 3.5 (I've had worse but the first 3 sets of these I had died WAY sooner than they should have, one even dropped the grid two hours into playing them, I mean dropped it too, took out a bias resistor and shattered two or three fuses, and this was after Peter installed them while he was at Namm last year, so it wasn't my error. However the last set I had, which I just swapped out, was still going strong after a year and a few months and they still sounded GREAT!)
Harmonic content: 4 (while it's certainly better than most tubes, I still found it lacking a little bit of that swirl during chording and getting actual harmonics out of it, unless the gain was up a lot higher than I wanted. [we're talkin 3 o'clock on channel 2, were I like it about 2 o'clock or under slightly, so harmonic content shouldn't be a problem at these levels, which it wasn't really, just sometimes])
Clarity: 5 (For an EL34 type, damn these puppies we're clear, all I got to say really.)
Low end: 5 (Very fat and deep low end with great tracking/clarity, tight but not very tight)
Midrange: 5 ( Really spread [like a wall of sound], with a great spank on the high mids [awesome for funk].)
High end: 4 ( It's really gritty but flat, if you need high end cut for leads on channel 2 they don't work so well, but if using channel 3 for leads and you reduce the treble [weird I know] the high mids take over and you get a really great creamy lead that cuts just enough and is really...I dunna...sexy
, but still might not be enough, this is were the SED's have a better advantage IMO)Cleans: 5 ( closest to a 6L6 you can get, chimey and bouncey )
Overall: 4.5
SED EL34's =C= ( I have used this tube in MANY amps. )
Reliablity: 4 ( While I have never had one drop the grid, I have had two sets go microphonic earlier than they should, but I've had MANY sets, as well as friends that use these and we've had very few problems, but will have the occasional set go micro too fast. )
Harmonic content: 5 ( The swirl and harmonics you can get out of these is a thing of beauty, no contest between the two, they're alive in this area. )
Clarity: 5 ( They're dead even as far as a Herbert goes. )
Low end: 5 ( This is just a matter of taste, were one fails the other excels or runs even, SED's are tighter, little bit more slender but hit harder and they both track very well. )
Midrange: 4.5 ( Not quite as "wall of sound" but articulate and full of harmonic content and single note punch, not as much spank but enough, I like the spank better in the EL34B's. )
High end: 5 ( This is were the B's get left in the dust, very fluid, smooth but cutting, and articulate. Even though they're smooth they still do GREAT with extreme metal and this to me, actually makes the mid cut better, even though I only use it on clean, if you like the mid cut these tubes make it sound better IMO, less pissed off bees on extreme mid cut use. )
Cleans: 4 ( Great for an EL34 and can even sound just like the B's with heavy midcut, but if your using alot of midcut or don't want to change the way the OD's sound, then it lacks some. )
Overall: 4.6
Conclusion: I like the SED's better just because of the high end and much tighter low end, and I only use mid cut on cleans, so I'm not missing anything on cleans. As you can see they rank very close though in my opinion, and really boils down to taste, and to an extent how you like your leads to sound, besides the tightness on the rhythm, the SED's have an AMAZING lead sound that is smooth but cuts. Both great tubes really.
Thanks for reading,
-Nick
