the4thlast1
Well-known member
I agree the amp sounds its best at least 3 on the master volume which is band level. The fizz goes away for sure as long as the gain isn't set too high then it starts to get a little messy. Overall the 6505+ is one of my favorite amps even compared to amps that cost way more. Its an amp thats focused in the midrange so won't have the low-end of some others like Rectos and Wizards but it has enough.
As far as the transformers and adding a choke goes. I had a 6505+ with "upgraded" Mercury transformers and choke. I also had my stock 6505+ at the time. I tried them many times back to back and I preferred my stock one and sold the modded one. The modded one had a bit more clarity but the lost the balls. what it gained was not beneficial enough compared to what it lost.
Tubes are just preference of what you like. I dont think there is "cheap glass". However you can get a quad of power tubes that are not matched which can cause the amp to not sound its best. I actually prefer Soviet 6L6wxt+ in it. Its a less expensive set of tubes compared to some others but they sound excellent in the 5150 amps. I have compared original SED , TAD, Ruby , and several other 6L6s in the 5150s. At the end of the day it doesn't matter the cost of the power tubes it matters that they are matched. New production preamp tubes are mostly similar in price so again it comes down to preference. My 6505+ came new with JJ ecc83s and Ruby chinese in the phase inverter and loop position. After testing a lot of preamp tubes in it I stuck with mostly the same but put a couple of the old square getter chinese in the 1st and 2nd position which was what I settled on, the rest is still mostly JJs.
At low volumes there are ways to dial in the amp to sound better. Just have to experiment with different settings.
As far as the transformers and adding a choke goes. I had a 6505+ with "upgraded" Mercury transformers and choke. I also had my stock 6505+ at the time. I tried them many times back to back and I preferred my stock one and sold the modded one. The modded one had a bit more clarity but the lost the balls. what it gained was not beneficial enough compared to what it lost.
Tubes are just preference of what you like. I dont think there is "cheap glass". However you can get a quad of power tubes that are not matched which can cause the amp to not sound its best. I actually prefer Soviet 6L6wxt+ in it. Its a less expensive set of tubes compared to some others but they sound excellent in the 5150 amps. I have compared original SED , TAD, Ruby , and several other 6L6s in the 5150s. At the end of the day it doesn't matter the cost of the power tubes it matters that they are matched. New production preamp tubes are mostly similar in price so again it comes down to preference. My 6505+ came new with JJ ecc83s and Ruby chinese in the phase inverter and loop position. After testing a lot of preamp tubes in it I stuck with mostly the same but put a couple of the old square getter chinese in the 1st and 2nd position which was what I settled on, the rest is still mostly JJs.
At low volumes there are ways to dial in the amp to sound better. Just have to experiment with different settings.
