NAD: 5150 (mk1) and need some tube suggestions

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Tried rolling the same preamp tubes through v1 only on the Wizard yesterday to see if I'd hear anything differently. Well...this time I did hear variations between tubes. I set the amp at fairly low volume and sat right in front of the cabs. I also left all controls on the amp set the same for every tube. I think this was part of the reason I previously perceived little difference between them.

I was inadvertently compensating with eq each time I swapped a tube previously allowing each tubes slight difference to be negated. This time I could hear/feel definitive changes in mid content, compression, pick attack. That said, it's still not earth shattering, life changing differences between them here.

The NOS tubes (6n4 square getters, and RCA AT7) had the least gain/compression and the most open gain structure and the most woody tone for lack of a better word. Still plenty of pick attack and a fairly aggressive tone.

The Tungsol seemed the most hifi for lack of a better word, had significant compression, and lacked some of the pick attack many others had. Somewhat smooth, but very articulate.

The JJEcc803s surprisingly had the most aggressive attack in the upper mids/treble; in this amp anyway.

The Chinese 12zx7B were very aggressive with loads of pick attack; I like these a lot in this amp"s v1 slot.

The made in Poland "Real time" labeled ECC??? was the most compressed smoothest tube of them all but still aggressive and tight.

The TAD 5751 didn't yield that much gain reduction but was slightly clearer.

TAD 7025s what my least favorite; just seemed to lack the pick attack the others had.

TAD 7025 was very similar to the 7025s but a touch more pronounced pick attack.

Tried a JJ ECC81 (AT7), RCA AT7, JJ ECC803S (supposedly balanced for PI) & a Sovtek LPS in what I assume was the PI slot(v6) and like the JJ ECC803s the best I think.
 
MetalHeadMike":zmdk2dy7 said:
The made in Poland "Real time" labeled ECC??? was the most compressed smoothest tube of them all but still aggressive and tight.
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RFT maybe?
 
Tried a Mesa branded AT7 in the V1 and V2 position, but I didn’t really like it. It cuts Some bass and sounds a bit tame. This amp is designed for 12ax7 so that makes sense. I have a Tung sol and Sovtek lps on order. To be continued.
 
dont use at7 , if you want to down the gain 5751 are the ones, or even better just the gain knob
 
You will love the sovtek LPS in PI. I can almost promise that you will. They are my general go-to in the PI for high gain amps.
 
swamptrashstompboxes":37c3litk said:
You will love the sovtek LPS in PI. I can almost promise that you will. They are my general go-to in the PI for high gain amps.
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Thanks. We will see in a few days. How much has the PI (or a different tube in it) influence on the tone? I always thought that it should be a balanced preamp tube to drive the power section correctly. Other than that, I have no clue.
 
I spend a lot of time rolling tubes with the amps I do and can tell you the best and most reliable tube I’ve found is the jj83s, they sound good in every spot for high gain, the 803s sounds very good too but most of them are microphonic, the 12ax7b white label small print is really good but you have about a 50/50 chance with them too. Good luck.
 
psychodave":1ed38ckk said:
MetalHeadMike":1ed38ckk said:
Every once in a while I get the urge to roll preamp tubes & see if the current line up of amps yields significant changes in tone/feel. Just finished rolling 7-8 different brand/type preamp tubes in several amps and it's the same as usual for me: no significant change. The only amp I've ever owned that I noticed a significant change was the JJ Jr.

Others will have different experience, but to me they all sound/feel pretty much the same regardless of cocktail. From here on out I'm sticking with the cheapest tubes I can find Lol!
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For the topic, the 5150 came with Sylvania 6L6’s and 8th generation preamp tubes.
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Yep and if I still owned a 5150 I would shoot for the next best thing.

If you can't find the 8th gens go with the C9's or 9th gen. If you don't want to drop the coin on NOS Sylvania's I'd check out the RUBY 6L6GCBSTR's. I rolled alot of pre-amp tubes back in the day with my 5150's and always stuck with the 8th or 9th gens. I can't remember what I used power tube wise once the Sylvania's gave up the ghost but I know they were Groove Tube's rebrands. I never liked anything JJ at that time but it's been well over a decade since I owned the 5150s or played anything with 6L6's.
 
Monomyth":37hksr4j said:
I spend a lot of time rolling tubes with the amps I do and can tell you the best and most reliable tube I’ve found is the jj83s, they sound good in every spot for high gain, the 803s sounds very good too but most of them are microphonic, the 12ax7b white label small print is really good but you have about a 50/50 chance with them too. Good luck.
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I bought 100 JJECC83's a few years ago and use them a lot. I got them for $6 a pop. Hard to beat for a general application, but not ideal for everything. But they are consistent and reliable all across the board.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions! After some swapping (with new Sovtek, Tung Sol etc) I settled on the original Chinese preamp tubes in V1,V2 and V3 (in the first gain stages, not the Peavey numbering). As I have no original Chinese left, V4 is a JJ and V5 (PI) is a TAD 12AX7-C that I had lying around. The TAD is supposed to be 9th gen China. So I guess I favor the Chinese ones. I love that aggressive sound. I didn't check out a 5751 though.

For power tubes, I picked the TAD 6L6GC-STR. This is supposed to be a sort of remake of the Sylvania tubes. At the end of the day, I believe this set up is the next best thing to the original tubes. TAD has good availability around here. That is important to me.

The amp is a chugging machine for sure. Quite pleased with it. Perhaps I'll hunt down some more Chinese 8 or 9th gen preamp tubes.

All the best for 2020 and I really hope this forum stays this helpful!

FYI, on the website of TAD:
"TAD has the remakes of the all time favorite 6L6 classics by RCA and GE. The TAD 6L6GC-STR is your perfect choice if you are up for the sound of the rock legends. It provides the low end with the right amount of pressure, as known from the famous RCA tubes. It has clear, transparent but unobstrusive highs and exactly the right bite to provide you with all those classic 6L6 sounds from big warm cleans to modern hard rock sounds.

This TAD 6L6GC-STR combines the famous reliability of the american made Philips/Sylvania STR series (also known as MESA 6L6GC-STR415) with the black-plate system of the highly regarded vintage RCA 6L6GC tubes. We joined best of both worlds! Silky top end, combined with deep bass response and lots of headroom make this tube a living classic. Our choice for lively clean sounds and powerful broadband multichannel amps."
 
Laurens":adyd2h8r said:
Thanks for all the suggestions! After some swapping (with new Sovtek, Tung Sol etc) I settled on the original Chinese preamp tubes in V1,V2 and V3 (in the first gain stages, not the Peavey numbering). As I have no original Chinese left, V4 is a JJ and V5 (PI) is a TAD 12AX7-C that I had lying around. The TAD is supposed to be 9th gen China. So I guess I favor the Chinese ones. I love that aggressive sound. I didn't check out a 5751 though.

For power tubes, I picked the TAD 6L6GC-STR. This is supposed to be a sort of remake of the Sylvania tubes. At the end of the day, I believe this set up is the next best thing to the original tubes. TAD has good availability around here. That is important to me.

The amp is a chugging machine for sure. Quite pleased with it. Perhaps I'll hunt down some more Chinese 8 or 9th gen preamp tubes.

All the best for 2020 and I really hope this forum stays this helpful!

FYI, on the website of TAD:
"TAD has the remakes of the all time favorite 6L6 classics by RCA and GE. The TAD 6L6GC-STR is your perfect choice if you are up for the sound of the rock legends. It provides the low end with the right amount of pressure, as known from the famous RCA tubes. It has clear, transparent but unobstrusive highs and exactly the right bite to provide you with all those classic 6L6 sounds from big warm cleans to modern hard rock sounds.

This TAD 6L6GC-STR combines the famous reliability of the american made Philips/Sylvania STR series (also known as MESA 6L6GC-STR415) with the black-plate system of the highly regarded vintage RCA 6L6GC tubes. We joined best of both worlds! Silky top end, combined with deep bass response and lots of headroom make this tube a living classic. Our choice for lively clean sounds and powerful broadband multichannel amps."
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The 8th and 9th gens in the gain stages are the way to go...at least for me. They just let the amp grind more. Sounds like you dig them as well.
 
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