Which EL34?

  • Thread starter Thread starter hthomas
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hthomas

hthomas

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Hey guys, been wanting to try out some new brands of EL34's. I've always used JJ's and think it's time to try new ones. What do you guys suggest? I play anything from Slash to AIC.
 
haha ok I dont know much about tubes but Sovtek seems to be another favorite.


Is there anything specific you dont like about the JJ's or a sound youd rather get closer to?

When I start messing around with tubes I think im going to try and find something that would be completely different than what I was using if that makes any sense.
 
SED Winged C EL34's are the shit.

Also the Ruby EL34B-HT and EL34B-STR are both killer sounding EL34's and very reliable too. About half the price of the SED's too.
 
MrDan666":2oguhxme said:
SED Winged C EL34's are the shit.

Also the Ruby EL34B-HT and EL34B-STR are both killer sounding EL34's and very reliable too. About half the price of the SED's too.
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thanks man. the Winged C EL34s were the only ones I remembered seeing people talk about how great they were.
 
hthomas":1zuu6vxc said:
those Ruby BSTR's look like a good option aswell!
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The B-STR's are killer! Believe it or not i have had a quad in one of my main amps for 3 years now and they still sound fantastic. They have a sweet top end and a hint of the 6L6 flavor in the low end. Very nice at gig volume too, they have a nice natural compression that sounds great.

The B-HT are the ones rated for the highest plate and screen voltages, they are great tubes too. I use both the B-HT and B-STR in my amps and they work out great for my needs.

Also for what it's worth, i started using the Ruby 12AX7 AC-5 preamp tubes in all my amps now with good results. Check those out sometime when you get a chance!
 
no bro.. JJ's blah .. tried and true at a great price electro harmonix, Rubys, a little more money re issue mullards, tung sols .
 
I've used Ruby el34-STR and EL34-BHT and also recommend them as an alternative to the JJ's.
 
winged cs are also really really good. usually more expensive too. one time I bought a huge lot of jj preamps and had about a 50% failure rate so...
the only reason the power tubes made it into so many amps is their campaign a couple years ago....dirt cheap swamp the market. I would choose almost anything in the same price bracket aside from them. lately Im really liking the good ole electro harmonix skinny little el34 from yen audio in tempe.. he ships them it huge amounts of bubble wrap. you could prob play wiffle ball with it and not destroy a tube..

laure valve queen has some premium tubes and she will work with you a little on prices. www.valvequeen.com i think
 
Another vote for Ruby EL34BSTR. I've moved to them from JJ E34L's. The JJ's had a big bottom and scooped mid flavor, whereas the Ruby's are much more balanced and sweet.
 
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