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braintheory
Well-known member
Wondering have any of you guys with a KT150 model Wizard tried 6550’s in it? If so, how did you like it? Did you bias the tubes to the same values as KT88’s?
shar-vell Dan
Well-known member
Man thats alot of horse.
the4thlast1
Well-known member
I went though a time where I had a couple amps with Kt88 power sections and tried several KT88 and 6550s. I would give EH KT88s a try if you have not yet. Those were my favorite in several amps.
WizardSouth-JP
Well-known member
Rick once told me that he doesn't like 6550's - the big grunt amps are KT88 or KT120 tubes, he said they're more musical than 6500.
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Racerxrated
Well-known member
You should be able to bias them just like 88s. One is interchangeable for the other.
A quad of GEs would destroy a quad of the best 88s IMO.....even the Genelex. Way better mids in the 6550s.
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braintheory
Well-known member
Can the amps at least safely take them and would you know where to bias them at? I agree KT88’s sound bigger/more powerful, but at least in the amps I’ve tried so far I liked the tone of 6550’s more (more 6L6 character), so I’d like to try it and see for myself what I think as long as I can safely do so
WizardSouth-JP
Well-known member
Wouldn't know for sure, as long as they can take the higher plate voltage and bias within range you should be able to run 6550. @RedB4Black would surely know as he's owned several KT88 Wizards, so maybe he tried 6550's in them.
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braintheory
Well-known member
While I agree that I like the tone itself and mids more of 6550’s (GE especially) and can see my Wizard benefiting a lot from that, I can promise you’d be in for quite a rude awakening if you heard my GEC KT88’s, Tesla KT88S’s and by far the best yet the TT21 GEC KT88’s. The latter 2 sounded bigger than my KT120’s when compared in the same amp and the GEC’s (TT21’s more so) are as 3D tonally as anything (Tesla’s admittedly not so much, but sound massive). If we’re talking just power/punch/thump when when compared to my GE 6550A’s, as much as I love them, are outclassed by these tubes in those particular departments (not tone though, I like GE’s there) when I compared in my amps. I should eventually try them in the Wizard too, but I do still like the flavor of 6550’s more and wanna start there. I also like my RCA 6550’s just as much fwiw. I love all my vintage US 6550’s (also Sylvania, JAN Philips and Coke Bottle US Tung-Sol’s)
Guys on here (mistakenly) only mention the known stuff like GE 6550’s, Sylvania 6L6’s, 6CA7’s, Mullard, Siemens and WC EL34’s and while those are all great classics, there’s others as good or sometimes better. Just gotta dig in the rabbit hole
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braintheory
Well-known member
Cool, I I’ll probably email Rick too, but something tells me he’ll say something like “stay with KT88’s” and that doesn’t help me lol
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braintheory
Well-known member
I may check them out, although I do have what I feel are the best vintage KT88’s. In most amps I just generally like the flavor more of 6550’s even though they’re not as powerful sounding, so I’d like to try it in my Wizard and see how it is. Maybe I’ll still like the KT88’s more, hard to predict. I do also have EHX KT90’s that are cool and can try (if it’s safe to)
Techdeth
RESIDENT ROCK PROFESSOR
I still think Rick creates his best work with el34s .
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braintheory
Well-known member
Part of why I’m also asking this question is that for some amps like my Alessandro DAZZ (200 Watts) George Alessandro says to only use KT88’s in it and that 6550’s can’t handle it. Not sure what’s the case with Wizard KT150’s
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braintheory
Well-known member
I love them too, but again I’ll say if you heard the HR KT150 you may possibly get converted like me lol. For me it smokes the MTL & MC EL34’s I had and as awesome as these amps are none of them have good tone in the midrange and I feel while EL34’s help a bit, they still can’t redeem their Achilles heel, while KT88’s at least I find nurture the amp’s real inherent strengths: punch, power, clarity and definition. I am though partly interested in trying KT90’s and 6550’s since those tubes I find respectably sound a bit like bigger EL34’s and 6L6’s. Could be interesting
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braintheory
Well-known member
I usually find 6550’s more musical than KT88’s and really all KT tubes I’ve had, but not sure how it translates in wizards. I will admit even most great vintage EL34’s I had didn’t seem to sound as good as the mediocre JJ E34L’s the MTL I had came with, but it was designed around I guess to work well
shar-vell Dan
Well-known member
6550 is not an "audio" tube. It was created for servo amps in B-52 Bombers.
They're not bad in 50 watt JMP's but are sterile, brittle & harsh in 100 watt guitar amps.
TheGreatGreen
Well-known member
Just curious, have you ever tried an amp that uses a quad of KT120's?
Seems like an amp with those things would cost as much to retube as most normal amps would cost to buy, and would generate enough power to kickstart a dead planet.
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braintheory
Well-known member
Yes I’ve had 2 amps that came with them (Schroeder Dozer and Alessandro Red Bone). To me they sounded a little bit bigger/more headroom than KT88’s when compared in the same amp, but not by a ton and the tone itself I thought was a bit more sterile and distant sounding. I didn’t love them
The Wizard KT200 models use KT120’s, probably also with transformers designed around them I’d think, but Rick told me to stay with the KT150 model. There are also KT150’s and KT170’s. I heard one guy say he didn’t like the KT150’s tone. My Tesla KT88S’s and TT21 GEC KT88’s sounded a bit bigger anyway than the KT120’s I had and more importantly the tone itself was far superior
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Racerxrated
Well-known member
Any KT88 amp can take 6550s, and KT90s according to VHT when I emailed them long ago about putting 90s in a D60.
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braintheory
Well-known member
I thought so too, but Alessandro said only use KT88’s not 6550’s in my DAZZ. It is though rated 200w vs 150w for this Hell Razor, so not sure. I’ll email Rick I just hope he at least doesn’t act like a hot girl from a dating app with brief idgaf responses lol, but I guess his amps are great enough to warrant that
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Racerxrated
Well-known member
He'll of course say WTF ARE YOU THINKING STAY OUT OF MY i mean YOUR AMP!!!
In a Euro amp, it's KT88...same amp here, it's 6550...just like 6CA7s and EL34s are interchangeable. KT 90s, supposed to be but see what he says.
In a Euro amp, it's KT88...same amp here, it's 6550...just like 6CA7s and EL34s are interchangeable. KT 90s, supposed to be but see what he says.