Tube Tone Talk - guitar amp tubes - EL34 KT77 KT66, 6L6, Genalex, Mullard, vintage vs. modern tubes
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 พ.ย. 2019
- Bob gets a lot of questions about tubes for guitar amps, and he knows a lot about the tubes, having tried and tested them out over decades. Using vintage "unobtanium" tubes in designing amps is one thing that is discussed, as well as the practicality of using modern tubes as opposed to Mullards, Genalex, etc, since there are not many of them around anymore - Bob Gjika - Tube Tone Talk - Dispelling some misconceptions about guitar amp tubes - EL34 KT77 KT66 6L6 Mullard Genalex vintage vs modern new tubes guitar amps
- เพลง
![[UNCUT] ฝันรักห้วงนิทรา | EP.9 (3/4)](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ikd1tEhXbp8/mqdefault.jpg)
Man these videos are pure gold! How truly invaluable to have a genuine master of his craft not only share his thoughts and knowledge but, the real litmus test and where the put up or shut up comes in is to hear the man himself demostrate his superb tone, touch, and feel. Someday (hopefully much sooner rather than later) people are going to look back at these videos and be shocked they weren't aware of them when they were happening. Cheers sir for following your passion in life and becoming a supreme example of a master craftsman
Well said.
Great stuff Bob....Thank you!
Great info and knowledge as always !
Learning a lot from watching your videos for the first time today! Thank You, Bob!
Big thanks on explaining and hope you give more vintage info videos thanks again so awesome.
Thank you kindly for sharing your knowledge and experience sir.
This is gold to me.
Excellent info, Bob.
I know absolutely nothing about guitars and amps, but I find this video fascinating the passion you have for your craft. The sounds coming from that guitar are gorgeous. I watched the video all the way through without having a clue what most of it meant. I have KT77 and Mullard bouncing around in my head :) Keep up the great work and that guitar is simply the best mate.
thanks Jimmy
Mr Gjika ,............I could listen to you all day long Sir !!..........totally agree with @Wyatt Willis.........Thanks for your passion !
Bob,you have the Midas touch with all of your creations!!
Pick attack is pretty killer here Bob!
Nice tone.
Sometimes i want to sell my gear and step it up to some serious tone like a Gjika. The conundrum is i love my old gear and the thought of parting with it is confounding. I can tell you this, if i was just starting out id be all over one of these rigs. I keep dreaming!
Amps will never be dead
I hear the sound your getting.You have to be in that room to really hear it but I remember what my marshall major sounded like with Mullard KT88 back in the 70s. Through the years it was hard to find a tube that could come close but the new gold lions with the 3 gathers seem to do the job. Enjoyed your Licks also. c];-)
Bob, were you saying that Genelex Gold Lion KT77 are the tubes that you use in your amps? I guess I didn't quite understand.
What brand tube is he holding? I've watched this video twice and I keep missing it.
I'm considering "Kt77"s for my Laney Supergroup because of the higher max. Grid voltage rating.
what's the kt77 you use
i heard holland made some fine tubes back in the 60,s & 70,s but ive just brought 2 tube amps a 1967 fender black face 20 watt & a fender vibe trem 6 watt from 77 all original except 4 blue caps have been changed on the blackface.but ive also been offered some blue ajax caps as well so im about to get a stash of old blue caps they are tested & they all work perfectly so i need to find out what the uf is & if they are 150 v 200v or 400v he has got 150v 200,v 600v,s & some 800,s & quite a few white ones that are 1000v but the uf is different so i need to get a closer look inside the tray.i also have a watkins tremolo amp with a webber 8 " speaker thinking of throwing some blue caps in that as well lol.but the 77 amp has a really nice old vintage speaker put in it so im thinking will it have red or blue caps & if they are red im putting blue caps in.also ive just got a pedal with 3 spring reverb tanks that is analogue really nice anasounds bundle to make my deluxe & vibe trem sound like a twin.add a few old fuzzes 2 fuzz wah,s an old 8 track tape echo unit as well & im nearly ready to record.i love old analogue records but im also a collector of the finest & rarest 60,s garage punk psych 60,s & early 70,s soul,60,s to early 70s funk,late 60,s to early 70,s jazz funk fusion,late 60s to early 70,s progressive psych,50 s 60s & ealry 70,s blues & rare live gigs.but the soul funk & garage is mostly from small independent labels & unknown to the masses.so im inviting you to check out my created playlists i shit you not you will be amazed my 60,s garage punk psych rarities list got 1.8 million views with mostly unknowns your find top quality talent & originality on my created playlists that you have never heard & ill bet my life your agree.along with some of the finest fuzz tones & some use a psychedelic machine made in 1968 & hendrix never got his hands on one.ive heard 2 makes but man top quality kit.another fascination pedals lol.great post though most interesting & ive seen some new tubes make old amps run massively over the max wattage output.which might make the tubes sound better short term but it burns the tubes out much quicker & could damage the amp.so im always worried about combining new tubes with old amps but at some point the stash will be gone so this is vital info peace...
So Bob what parameters do you choose in plate current and TC for a JJ 6l6gc? And the KT 77s? I use Tubes and more as a vendor, there middle starts at 29-to 32 ma but what you choose in Transconductance? Is it more dynamic the higher you select? Is there a limit in higher transconductance? My amp uses 6l6gc but I was curious as well what parameters you choose for KT77s... Love this vid but wanted to know you pick.
Please update if you've found out !
how can i buy the Genalex kt77 right?(numbers)
Hey Bob ! How about EL-84's against Russian 6N14N MilSpec ? Worth it ? Cheers !
Hey Bob, always dig your videos and insight. What's your thoughts on old GE 12ax7 long/short gray plate tubes?
they are not my favorite sounding tubes, but they are very good, certainly better than anything available today - the reason they are not my favorite is that they are a little light on the midrange bloom, but maybe gold to someone else's ears
i love to use ge 12ax7wa shortplates at v2 of a blackface amp. they are very clear and sweet sounding with good air amazing for clean sounds and humbucker pickups, and amps that breakup too soon or need some taming without lowering the gain which is a common mistake. the tube king defines them as an " all around nice guys" nothing to offend anyone .for a warmer american more tweed like tone rca's are great,not nice but angry...old brimars have a special warmth that no tube can match and mullard i61's are smooth with lots of low mid and good air . longplates are the next audiophile level basically the tone is similar to the shortplates version of each maker but you get more gain and air with a bit less noise
enjoy
Never even an ounce of bullshit with you, Bob. Always real.🤙🏻
Guitar sound really good. I'm designing and making replicas of tube pro audio gear (a few git amps too), experiences show it makes no sense designing something on NOS tubes if it then uses new tubes. Look at datasheets and also think how much NOS tubes degraded since they were made 50 years ago or more. Some people in our circle explained without doubt NOS isn't the same as was when built. It makes some sense trying NOS in the same circuit but that's all. Also, i wonder how one knows which new tubes were made on new tools because such information is rarely available. Manufacturers can tell you about it if you believe them, but one would have to buy LOTS of tubes to get exactly what they want. Someone who build a few amps per month certainly can't get this information.
Hi Bob, I'm an old guy now who still loves playing guitar. Gets in your blood for a lifetime. My question to you is, what do you think of the Svetlana winger c EL34 valves? We're they any good or was that just more hype. So the modern valve you would recommend is the JJ KT77's?
Hi Michael, the Winged C is generally a very well-liked tube; I still have a small private stash of them... I did use them "in the day" and at that time , they were probably the best made 34 of that time's available tubes. But, after saying all that, and also that the quality was very good on those, I just was not crazy about the tone. I generally found them to be a bit laid-back and lazy sounding (trying to invent language to describe the sound... lol) I thought that the laid-back sound was not a hindrance in an audio amp, but in a guitar amp I'm always looking for a little more life than that. I do like the JJ KT77 for a current available tube, but not too high or low on the current range. Thanks for your comment/questions
@@BobGjika , Let me say, I find your videos very interesting. I did have 4 of those KT77'S in my Mesa Boogie Tremoverb amp combo. I don't know for sure but one of my screen resistors cracked and burned. I had some carbon comp screen grid resistors. I don't know if the one on that socket went bad and caused that or if it was just a bad resistors. I really need to change those out to those flameproof resistors. I had changed rectifier valves to GZ34 rectifiers from the factory 5U4GB rectifier valves. One of them blew up. Had to wind up sending that amp all the way back to California. Cost me a king's ransome. I was crazy years ago when I bought that amp. Nothing but trouble. I also sent it to Voodoo amps in New York and that wound up costing me more than it was worth. Total here in Canada, the original price of the amp was $2400.00 Canadian dollars plus $1000.00 to Voodoo amps. I really got screwed on this amp and it still doesn't sound all that great. Although you read on the net that a lot of people think It's the best thing since sliced cheese. I would never buy another Mesa amp. Your amps do sound great. I've got a Brian May Special Edition amp from 2005 that is on the bum. Going to have to send it to someone in the States to repair it. I just never seem to have much luck with amps. I watched your video on variacs. Would you recommend using a variac at home to lower voltages in my amps to say 118 just to go a little easier on the valves and components? My wall voltage fluctuates between 119 and 123 volts. Any advice Bob. This guy at Kruse amplification in California said to ace the variac completely. He said it would screw up my amps lowering the voltage to 115 or so. I have one of these SC-5M RED Chinese variacs 5Amp 500 watts. Don't if this thing is even reliable.
@@michel333100 Chinese Variacs are usually not very reliable. You really only need to lower your voltage to what is specified on the back panel of your amp. In most modern amps, that is 120V. You may not like the tone you wind up with from those flameproof resistors. I bet your carbon resistors are only one watt. Put the time in to find them in 2W carbon comp version, but sounds like you really don't like the amp anyway, so that might be a waste of time. But you will find the amp to be more harsh than it is now with those flameproof resistors.
@@BobGjika, hi Bob, I'm sorry to bother you again. I have just one question for you. On this Red SC-5M model Chinese variac. I opened up the housing on this thing. I notice that from the wire that you connect to your AC outlet that the ground is connected directly to the ground of the input receptacle. I don't know but I would assume that since this ground is connected directly to the input receptacle that anything you plug into this variac is fully grounded. The reason that I'm asking this is, I saw this guy on TH-cam that connected a second ground wire to the actual chassis of the variac. He said, it should also be grounded to the chassis. Just wanted your opinion on this. Thanks Bob
Jeep going 👍
So what numbers should we go for on the JJ KT77?
I want to know as well, thanks !
Bob> I am Albanian. I live in Chicago. After 10 years, I brought my fender "The twin" from my country here but I did not think about the transformer . I have a 220/240 V version for Europe, does not have the 120 V option. To replace the transformer is expensive. Do you know any way to modify/adopt the 220/240 50 Hz transformer to 120 V 60 Hz?
Hi Fatmir, sorry I missed your comment earlier - you can use a step-up transformer, but that is a large heavy object to move around with the amp - and will probably cost as much as changing the transformer. I don't really remember a Fender twin ever having that 220V transformer, perhaps it was modified? But, whatever the case, a power transformer for that amp is not very expensive. Any qualified technician can obtain a clone of the 120 V version for around $100, but just make sure they are qualified enough to replace it - it's not that big of a job.
@@BobGjika Thanks Bob. No, it is the twin red knob, export version. I bought it in Europe 30 years ago. I bought the power transformer here. It was 150.
Maybe I’m really slow or hard of hearing, or a combination of both… Is Bob talking about the current JJ KT77?
That is the tube that is in the 10^n
what kind of speakers do you use Mr. Gjika?
Big Boss C90s
smokingowl is correct - Celestion C90 is what I'm playing through (what I put in my cabs that I sell) and also, I have a collection of vintage speakers I play through as well. There is a q&a video we made where I discuss speakers and cabs th-cam.com/video/c1PB8RYZCAY/w-d-xo.html if you would like more of me talking about such things... there is the link.
👍
Genelex "Gold Lion" KT77 are the finest power tubes available for guitar amps, period. They even stand up to NOS Millard, Winged C Svetlana, etc
My general opinion as well. I've tried tons of tubes, mostly current production over the past nearly two decades. I just received a quad of Genelax KT-77s...and they are imo, the best sounding power tube out there... it even outperforms the now no longer made Winged C.
@@AdrianRP1 Can you describe their character compared to others, such as Winged C!
Based on this, I just may try a set.
Thanks.
@@qua7771 Revisiting I now do not recommend them. The quad I have lasted only about 20hrs and got funky sounding. My new favorite very affordable tube is the EH EL-34! It took me forever to discover those.
@@AdrianRP1so gold lion genelax are a no go?
Mr Gjika, me and my infinite wisdom 😂🤣, I own a Peavey VB-3 bass amp. It is a 300 watt, el34 bassed, with a amps weighing in at 37lbs. Sadly, the factory tubes are Chinese "high plate voltage" el34's. The voltage sits at ~510v. I have been struggling to find something better. Would a modern "Kt77" stand up to the bass frequencies?
Reason for asking, one of the factory tubes self destructed, I love the mid range and upper end especially when using the high gain channel, but the bottom end is too loose. I've tried what was recommended by the engineer *who has since left peavey*, the EH 6ca7. I found it to be much better on low end, but it has no upper end what so ever. Playing a 65 thunderbird and other tbirds with vintage type pickups, I like having the open air while still filling everything out.
My bass cabinet is a 15/10/6 made by LDS for me.
they basically sound like El34's. I just find them to be best available modern El34's. you would just have to try them.
@@BobGjika I take it you are referring to the one in the blue and yellow box, not the one with the gold . 🤣
now we are getting somewhere! the humbuckers make the amp sound great. i didnt care for the strat thing on another clip.
i,m an old guy. tubes have come a long ways, we would run our tubes 3 to 5 nights a week for years and years with no problems. my 57 bassman was pulled out of a junk shop in 1975 for 30 dollars. it probably has thousands of hours on it and ive never changed a tube. and i run it full open. i havent used it regularly since around 84. one time my brother borowed it and did a 5 nighter for 2 years straight.
how much i wonder was it used from 57 to 75?
my other brother repairs amps he said the new tubes are junk he is replacing them in newer amps all the time.
It seems like NOS power tubes are getting unobtainable. We can still find preamp tubes, and they last a lot longer. A lot of used ones I have gotten measure better than new production. Output tubes wear much quicker.
If JJ tubes only sells 20% of the tubes they make, and disregards the 80%.. are they still just imitating the sounds of a real EL34? And if my amp says EL34 can I put one of those kt77’s in it’s place? Thx
hi Joaquin. I'm not sure I understand the first part of your question but yes you can use a kt77 in place of an el34
@@BobGjika I herd that JJ tubes throws away 80% of the tubes they produce and only sells 20%. Why do they do that? I mean if they know that they won’t sound like the originals tubes like the Mulurd, what’s the point.
Thought you were tommy Chong at first lol
Im back buggin ya man. Istill aint got enough bread together .
Thank you sir!!! And I do like your tube works too. I cant understand tho when ive made guitar amps out of a couple old tube silvertone hifi's why Im so enthralled with the clean smooth sound?????
Wow that's a 70,s guitar,,, vary Kew.
just bought a set of Genelax Gold Lion tubes for my JCM800 2003x. I got a quad set of Genalex Gold Lion KT77 and 3 Genalex Gold Lion ECC83. The set was $550 (with shipping). Decent Tubes are getting harder and harder to find and the price difference between the middle and top brands is $100. Seems pointless to not buy the high end tubes when you're only talking about 25% more.
I honestly could care what name is on the tube. According to Genelax, this reissued tube is a faithful reproduction of the original. Maybe that's pure BS..seems that way according to Bob, but it's irrelevant. I've tried tons of different power tubes over nearly two decades. These Genalex KT-77s are the best sounding/performing tubes I have yet to try. They, imo, are just as good, or even better sounding then the now discontinued Svelanta Winged C tube, and a set of Tesla EL-34s I acquired in a Marshall 2204 from 1989.
Awesome heads up..., one thing. If that's your wife throwing in her 2 cents..., she has to be related to my wife.
the truth at last. after watching so many misleading " tube comparisons" on youtube
Sir , the other day I asked about what is the right range for a particular amp but it was a dumb question and I'm sorry !
Would you have a video on this subject that would explain a little more about the importance of the right current range when selecting tubes ? Best regards!
Oh and btw, you have some great stories about Ken Fisher , love the no handle story and the radiator cover head box look !
To you guys wondering which one , here's the link below , loved it !
th-cam.com/video/mM6mA04sVxQ/w-d-xo.html
it depends if you build tha amp 1. in a life time or 1000 . difference be you need 2 tubes or 2000 tubes . vice verese .
my guess would be from 2000 by testing them there could be some better than others
The extra cost payd is … they are tested & rebranded by tester company ..
btw
all tubes nowdays are made in China . Russia borders are closed as for now .
So .. not so brigth futture for kt77
Guitar and amp ,you probobly only sleep 4 hours a nite
F modeling