EL34 Suggestions ??

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Big Rich

Big Rich

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im looking at getting another pair of EL34s for my bogner shiva combo. i dont have a problem with the amp and the way it sounds but i want to know if there might be a tube more suited for me. i play metal and my only complaint i have with the amp is if the bass isnt dialed in a certain way it tends to flub out and get muddy/mushy.

now yea i know the shiva isnt really intended for a person who plays metal, and the low end response is only the nature of the amp..... i know this ..... but which tubes are known to have a tighter more percussive bass response.

the amp has svetlana el34sv's in it now and i dont have any idea how old they might be so i just feel like doing a retube on it to freshen it up a bit. anybody ever try running kt77s in a shiva or know if they take it ???

just looking for a nice aggressive EL34 or kt77 with punchy lows
 
my fall back on el34 is EHel34..... great tube, great prices. I like rubys as swell.
 
You might wanna try JJ E34L's if need some more low end. FWIW, I love Ruby BSTR's. Very balanced tube. The JJ's will be more low-end heavy though.
 
i never really liked the jj e34l, i had them in my rectifier for a week and they started red plating on me. ive heard other reliability issues with those tubes as well. im thinking about gold lion kt77s right now but im not sure if they handle high plate voltages the bogners have
 
Ruby EL34BHT...made to handle high plate voltage & sound really good w/tight big bottom end. Doug's tubes stocks them.
 
I've never had those kinds of problems with the JJ's, they just seem blah overall to me. I hate their preamp tubes - dull and lifeless. Check out the BSTR's if you can. I love 'em.
 
Standard question, standard response:
EL34 = Winged C SED
KT77 = Gold Lion

:D
Mo
 
EL34 = Winged C SED, Best I've used and the only EL34's I use!
 
Yea I hate the jj preamp tubes as well. If you ever want to suck the life and character out of your amp put the jj pre tubes in it. Their 6l6s aren't bad though I have them in my mark 5 and their pretty sweet. I've always heard great things bout the sed's so maybe il go with them.

But I still wonder if my amp would take the kt77 well cuz I'd live to try those gold lions
 
Big Rich":2v6qw2jw said:
Yea I hate the jj preamp tubes as well. If you ever want to suck the life and character out of your amp put the jj pre tubes in it. Their 6l6s aren't bad though I have them in my mark 5 and their pretty sweet. I've always heard great things bout the sed's so maybe il go with them.

But I still wonder if my amp would take the kt77 well cuz I'd live to try those gold lions
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For the most part, KT77s are exchangeable within an EL34 socket. Best to ask the amp manufacturer before proceeding, but this seems to be the general case. In my experience, the KT77s were incredibly awesome as a step up from the otherwise incredibly awesome EL34s in my 20thA-X. Not sure if you'd find the same results, but that's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

And ya, mega props to the SED =C= EL34s. Totally sweet glass.
 
if money is no issue then yeah winged c. but for mid pricing to cheap the rubys kill and the eh's are like tanks I dont think ive ever fried one. Ive actually had good luck with valve art. but my go is the EH now. most of my vids re rubys if you want to go look...

siggy
 
Yea il check em out.

Money isn't really a problem, I'm only going to pick up a pair so it doesn't matter. I just emailed Bogner to see if I can do the kt77s in it. Can't wait to see if it makes the amp more beast
 
For the price of =C= you can get 2 quads of the Ruby BSTRs. I went with the Ruby's when I retubed my head.
 
If a tighter bottom is your primary concern, try out the EH 6CA7s. I prefer the overall tone from some of the other EL34 variants but these have the tightest lows that I've come across. I've never tried the JJ KT77 so I can't comment on those, but the 6CA7s are tighter than anything else mentioned in this thread.
 
SED's winged =C= :rock:
They are pricey, but they have consistantly been great sounding tubes that have held up better than expected ;)
I've had decent luck with JJ's but not as good as SED's, and had crappy results with EH's twice, and decent results with Rubys
 
RG955TT":2zzlwoky said:
Ruby EL34BHT...made to handle high plate voltage & sound really good w/tight big bottom end. Doug's tubes stocks them.
Click to expand...

+1
Just placed an order for some for my Herbert and they will be here Monday!
 
I had Gold Lion KT77s in my Twin Jet and they held up to the plate voltages in that (approx. 530 volts) just fine. I also am not a very big Winged C EL34 guy- the hot end sizzles too much for me, although otherwise they are very nice if pricey tubes. I do like JJ E34Ls, but as people have mentioned they have had reliability issues throughout the years.
 
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