el84 tubes

[guitarzan]

I just did a little unofficial tube shootout at my house on a few different brands of el84 tubes. I tried the Sovtek El84, the Sovtek el84M, and the JJ/ Tesla El84. I paid about $13 for the matched pair of SO-el84's and about $15 for the matched pair JJ-El84's. Each one has about 45 seconds of playing time on them. I'd take $24 for the two pairs shipped or $11 for the Sovteks and $13 for the JJ's (shipped).

Of course, if anyone's willing to trade a Hollow T Classic, Alder on Alder, Tobacco Fade, with three mini's on a tortoise shell pickguard and the piezo Powerbridge- in mint condition (of course) with a born-on date of 2004, I'll consider a straight up trade. The guitar for the tubes. As expected, I'd need to see pictures of the guitar first.

thanks.

[tom]

dang, you almost had me, mine doesn't have the powerbridge, so i guess no deal:)

[guitarzan]

don't feel bad, tom. I'll probably get some more tubes... and when I do, I'll consider a trade for your guitar.

[bruce]

I'm really curious as to your results in your tube test. I had heard that the JJ's are really good and have a bit more headroom since the are able to handle more voltage. Tell us what you tried it with and your results. Thanks!

[guitarzan]

Now for starters, the Velocette sounds very much like a Gibson amp (which it is now, being the ancestor to the modern day Goldtone line after Gibson bought Trace Elliot) so it's heavy in the mids and has a little bit of what I call a closed-mouth honk. To me, it is to amps what the telecaster is to guitars, sonically speaking. It is, however, a low-wattage, 1x10 configuration, so that colors the tone as well. My take on this amp is that it's got just the right amount of hair on it and the darker color adds some depth but, because of some sort of derailed childhood, I can't let a good thing be... so I tried to improve on something I'm already completely happy with.

well, the el84M is rumored to be the military version of the sovtek tube. It's what came in my Trace Elliot Velocette when I bought it from ebay and I immediately loved how smooth this tube sounds. It's not particularly gainy, but it has a smooth buttery drive when pushed. I tried the Sovtek standard el84, which is described as a higher gain tube, but not as long lasting. The matched pair made the Velo feel very similar to a pushed Peavey Classic. It had more of a rolling spongy overdrive with loads of natural compression. However, it made the amp feel like a really big, bulky, green, overdrive stompbox. I'd recommend this as a possible option for anyone who wants to goose their amp a bit into breaking up a couple numbers lower on the volume knob. I think the pleasantries of a syrupy tube tone were gone and replaced by an arrogant snarl. And all that is fine and good, but I already have a Peavey Classic 20 and I want this amp to respond as differently as possible from that one.

The JJ's were purchased only because the reviews I've read talk of that high headroom you mentioned, Bruce, and the fact that they can add a little more glassiness to an amp that feels like it's being greedy with the frequency response. With the Velocette having that closed-mouth sound that I mentioned above, I wondered how a tube like this one might color the tone or elaborate on what is missing sonically. The JJ tried to add aristocratic class to an amp that is thoroughly English blue collar. I definitely noticed the glassiness, and it definitely was smooth, but it made the Velocette a little snorty. I say that it made it "snorty" because it took that full, mid range honkiness and added some shimmer in the upper end but without adding any support in the bottom (which could be a result of the 1x10 configuration). If the tube is going to add shimmer, it's gotta add something in the bottom to WIDEN the frequency range and open up the sound. To me, it's like EQ'ing in more high end if you're playing a telecaster in the middle position. I'd actually like to hear those JJ's in some of the boutique amps that are around these days. You know, more of a hi-fi sound for a hi-fi flavored amp.

If you're curious what the amp sounds like with the sovtek el84M's, check out this video at xotic effects of paul jackson jr.

http://www.prosoundcommunications.com/english/video/paul_jackson/paul_rc.html

Depending on how much you're driving the amp, most of the tones he's getting (with and without the RC booster) can be acheived from this amp. Especially towards the end, where the throatiness of his Goldtone comes out a bit, you hear the smoothness of the Velocette.

I know I talked a lot about the sound of tubes and really didn't use any good guitar-talk adjectives. I describe things like I feel stuff, not in schematic references. I hope it makes sense.



...and don't forget the trade option, guys. I'm still open if the right Hollow T Classic shows up.

[bruce]

I am a little confused to which set had more gain. The Sov EL84 or the Sov EL84M...I'd be interested in the set that had more gain if you care to part with just one set.

Thanks for the writeup.. I enjoy hearing people thoughts as opposed to reading schematics anyway.

[guitarzan]

the el84's definitely had more gain. I'll call the shop this afternoon to work out details.