EVH 5150 III 50 Watt Red Channel Comparison

[Bad.Seed]

EVH 50 Watt Red Channel Comparison:

I had some time on my lunch break so I quickly threw an SM57 mic on my mesa cab and recorded all 3 amps on the red channel with the same settings to show the differences, and that they're certainly all capable of death metal. See the links below:

https://soundcloud.com/kyle-bull-760574 ... tealth-red
https://soundcloud.com/kyle-bull-760574723/5150-6l6-red
https://soundcloud.com/kyle-bull-760574 ... 0-el34-red

 

[fearhk213]

Cool. I'll definitely check this out when I get home and have my good headphones. Is the picture where you had the gain set?

 

[Bad.Seed]

Cool. I'll definitely check this out when I get home and have my good headphones. Is the picture where you had the gain set?

Yes sir. Settings between the 3 amps were identical on the red channel.

 

[fearhk213]

Cool. I'll definitely check this out when I get home and have my good headphones. Is the picture where you had the gain set?

Yes sir. Settings between the 3 amps were identical on the red channel.

Right on. Are they boosted or just straight in?

 

[Bash_Man]

Very nice.. thanks for doing that. Me my ears, the Stealth and the 6L6 sound very very similar. EL34 however I find has a touch bit of warmth and that fizzy/hairy top end to it. that's what I hear.

Cheers

 

[romanianreaper]

Sounds awesome! I just got the EVH 5150 III EL34S combo. Can you tell me what the "S" stands for? I thought it was "Stealth" but doesn't have that all black look, etc.

 

[fearhk213]

Sounds good. For me the Stealth is the winner here. It has better clarity in that tricky low mid region.

 

[Rex Rocker]

Digging the Stealth here as well.

All of them sound great, TBH.

 

[Bad.Seed]

Sounds good. For me the Stealth is the winner here. It has better clarity in that tricky low mid region.

That's exactly what I notice in the room. Less congested in the mids, chords ring out a little more clearly, etc.

 

[Bad.Seed]

Sounds awesome! I just got the EVH 5150 III EL34S combo. Can you tell me what the "S" stands for? I thought it was "Stealth" but doesn't have that all black look, etc.

The EL34 100 watt is technically considered a "Stealth" and I guess the combo is too? The 50 Watt didn't get that designation for some reason. Maybe there's a stealth circuit that applies across the board, as well as a regular circuit?

 

[david(j)]

Sounds good. For me the Stealth is the winner here. It has better clarity in that tricky low mid region.

+1. I didn't think there'd be much difference, and they all do sound pretty close, but the Stealth wins.

 

[311splawndude]

I liked the EL34 version the best but my ears may have been playing tricks on me. Subtle. They all sound good.

Yeah 'S' is for Stealth (more gain -EVH web site references 'stealth sauce' as having 7 preamp tubes). Now I see why it is so confusing. The EVH web site is not clear.

 

[Racerxrated]

Sounds awesome! I just got the EVH 5150 III EL34S combo. Can you tell me what the "S" stands for? I thought it was "Stealth" but doesn't have that all black look, etc.

The EL34 100 watt is technically considered a "Stealth" and I guess the combo is too? The 50 Watt didn't get that designation for some reason. Maybe there's a stealth circuit that applies across the board, as well as a regular circuit?

Long ago I remember hearing that the new combos (first version combos) sneakily came with the newer 6L6 black stealth circuit. So you could buy the combo for 1200 instead of forking out 2200 for the same Stealth circuit. Maybe the EL34 combos now have the same EL34 Stealth circuit?

 

[Speeddemon]

Sounds good. For me the Stealth is the winner here. It has better clarity in that tricky low mid region.

Not only that, the highs seem more open as well, compared to the 6L6 (which I have).

 

[fearhk213]

Sounds good. For me the Stealth is the winner here. It has better clarity in that tricky low mid region.

Not only that, the highs seem more open as well, compared to the 6L6 (which I have).

I agree with your assessment of the top end as well.

 

[Fragglerick]

I like the Stealth. Seemed to have more growl to my ears.

 

[D-Rock]

I liked the EL34 and the Stealth. I own the 6L6 and I liked it least.

 

[jeff5]

The Stealth definitely has a bit more low mid and deeper tone in general. The regular 6L6 sounded good, just a bit brighter and thinner. The EL34 was very different, definitely looser with a bit more hair. They all sounded killer though.

Oh, this is relevant to me because I am going to get my 6L6 50watt modded to a Stealth soon =D.

 

[TheGreatGreen]

I also own a 50w 6L6 and preferred the sound of the 50w Stealth and 50w EL34 over it.

EVH 50 Watt Red Channel Comparison:

This might be asking a lot, but would you have any interest in doing a similar comparison of the Blue channels?

The Red channels of all three 50w amps are supposed to be "the same" but the Blue channels on these amps each have their own distinct character and it would be interesting to hear them back to back with the same settings as well.

Oh, this is relevant to me because I am going to get my 6L6 50watt modded to a Stealth soon =D.

How?

 

[jeff5]

I also own a 50w 6L6 and preferred the sound of the 50w Stealth and 50w EL34 over it.



This might be asking a lot, but would you have any interest in doing a similar comparison of the Blue channels?

The Red channels of all three 50w amps are supposed to be "the same" but the Blue channels on these amps each have their own distinct character and it would be interesting to hear them back to back with the same settings as well.



How?

From Kruse Control amps. He does a full Stealth conversion. He's also adding a few more mods for me. (Fender cleans, splitting out the EQ fully on Blue/Green, Super Sonic mod)

I have the 50 watt combo and sent him just the head portion. I want a Stealth, but this netted out better for me. I figure the cost of the head, plus then having to buy a cabinet for it, combined with the PITA of selling the combo (which I won't get that much for), if you add that all up, cost wise this is more economical. Plus, I'm getting a Stealth plus some other features =D.