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Post by LVF on Jun 14, 2020 18:29:04 GMT -5
Well, after 18 years of service, I think it's time to replace all the tubes in my Blues Jr. Especially since one of my 12ax7's is going microphonic. It's been a long time since I replaced any tubes so, I was wondering what is the best tube set to put in this amp these days. I'm thinking I want to have a matched set of el84 although that probably goes without saying. what brand does everybody with this amp like? I was looking at some Mesa Boogies on Sweetwater. What do you think of those? Your opinion on this is much appreciated.
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Post by Vibroluxer on Jun 14, 2020 19:13:35 GMT -5
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Post by LVF on Jun 14, 2020 19:55:56 GMT -5
Thanks for the recommendation, Vibroluxer although they be out of stock at the moment. Hadn't thought about NOS tubes. I'm replacing all the tubes and some of those prices could reach almost as much as I paid for the amp new. Now, I'm curious to see if that's the case. Thanks! Also, I realized a little to late that I should have use the 'amp repair forum' for this. Oh well...
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Post by stratcowboy on Jun 14, 2020 20:05:08 GMT -5
Back when I had a Peavey Delta Blues and a Peavey Classic 30, I had settled on using the JJ EL84 tubes as working the best. For the 12AX7 tubes I either used the Electro Harmonix version or the Tung Sol versions. I like those 12AX7s in my Allen amps as well. Sound good and affordable as well. YMMV...
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Post by Sharkie on Jun 14, 2020 20:26:33 GMT -5
I re-tubed my Blues Jr with JJ’s and it sounds great.
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Post by LVF on Jun 15, 2020 9:59:15 GMT -5
As of now, I have done nothing and I thank you all for your opinions/comments. I'll be looking into to your recommendations. I looking strongly at a set of Mesa Boogies as replacements. I'd love to experiment with with different brands but, that highly impractical so, what I learn here will go a long way in what I choose. Thanks again for the recommendations! And thank you, Leftee for correcting my mistake in forum choices.
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Post by Leftee on Jun 15, 2020 10:14:41 GMT -5
It’s my job. 😊
You’re most welcome.
The Mesa tubes would be good. I believe they’re tested. There’s less chance of getting a dud or a microphone 12AX7.
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pdf64
Wholenote
Posts: 553
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Post by pdf64 on Jun 15, 2020 11:03:26 GMT -5
Ruby and Mesa both have industry leading 6 month warranties, even on power tubes! If NOS were certain to be as long lived as the lore / hyperbole says, how come none of the vendors warranties even just a 12AX7 beyond 3 months? My experience is that even then, tube vendors tend to really dislike honouring warranty claims, it’s done reluctantly, seemingly through gritted teeth. To be fair, they will probably have paid a lot for them, and they’ve got no come back on their supplier, hence if eg an RCA 12AX7 blackplate becomes microphonic, it’s a heavy loss for them to have to bear.
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Post by LVF on Jun 15, 2020 13:45:37 GMT -5
In my search for tubes, I ran across the 'Preferred Series' tubes from 'The Tube Store. They have a good review in the 'reviews section' done by one of their techs(?). Not to be confused with the reviews on the page I put up. There are none as of yet. Have any of you looked into these and used them. They sound like a good alternative.
Preferred Series set for Blues jr
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Post by Cal-Woody on Jun 15, 2020 15:58:05 GMT -5
You should check out EuroTubes. He sells JJ tubes and these last really well in an open back combo amp and resist rattling. They have great tone and excellent life also! He sells matching sets also. Check out his site and see all the other options for your amp. I think you can do better than the expensive ones that the Tube Store wants to sell you and get as good or better performance from those tubes. They handle high current well. So if you like to run your tubes a little on the warm side, they won't die prematurely either. You can also email him and he will respond but he offers many tube combinations for your amp and if you email him your desired tone/expectations, he will be glad to put together a tube package that will perform the best to your expectations. Good folks over there! He also sells those silicone rings to aid in the problems that are known with power tubes that can rattle in a combo amp.
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Post by stratcowboy on Jun 15, 2020 16:38:07 GMT -5
$150 to re-tube a Blues Jr. sounds a bit high to me. Maybe I just haven't bought tubes in a while.
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Post by Leftee on Jun 15, 2020 17:00:39 GMT -5
You can get a set of JJs for around $60 from Tubesandmore.com
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Post by larryguitar54 on Jun 15, 2020 17:16:13 GMT -5
Yup I"m seeing a set for $60 to $90 for the standard kit of JJs or Electros.
I suppose you can always spring for some NOS specialty stuff for more but I"m not sure the Bjr needs it. I still have the factory installed and they are just cruising along nicely.
I do have a vintage 66 Fender Pro Reverb and when I replaced the tubes on that amp I went with Mesa and have no regrets. However that was just because that was all I could get at the time and I might go back to vintage specs.
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Post by LVF on Jun 16, 2020 9:47:12 GMT -5
Thank you all for your input. Many good and different opinions. I haven't replaced tubes for any amp I own in many years and the Blues jr, being 18 years old, is still running with what it came with and just now showing signs of tired tubes. I run this amp at 'living room level' volumes and so, not very loud at all. So, my may concern is to set it up with the best tubes for low volume use. At the same time and upon occasion, I do take this amp out to jam with friends so volumes can get a bit louder but mostly, the former is more it's 'speed'. If I have to spend a bit more to achieve that, I have no problem. If I can achieve what I'm looking for with a cheaper set, no problem there either. The process of achieving this is made difficult because you can't just buy a bunch of different tubes and try them out so, it's more of a crap shoot when buying them. However, there are people who do this and make reviews and people like yourselves that have the experience in a collective way that is a good resource for someone like myself. I'm sure I'll end up with at least close to what I'm looking for and again, thank you all for your input.
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Post by Leftee on Jun 16, 2020 9:58:27 GMT -5
IMO...
Good tubes are all you need. The difference in tubes is often slight at best. 18 y/o tubes are likely tired. A good set of new tubes will probably improve the amp’s tone. No matter what they are.
Swapping out different 12AX7s in V1 can yield some subtle differences. I don’t know that in my “tube-rolling” experiences it’s made a *tremendous* difference.
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Post by LTB on Jun 17, 2020 2:32:17 GMT -5
Tung Sol 12AX7 JJ EL-84
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Post by saltyseadog on Jun 17, 2020 3:11:21 GMT -5
After doing a lot of work on my BJr' earlier this year I also changed out the pre amp valves. I bought the Russian made Electro Harmonix 12ax7/ECC83's and the difference is really noticeable, just so much smoother and warmer than the JJ's. At present the EL84 power valves in mine are both NOS ones I bought on Ebay a few years back but when they fail it will be the russian made Electro Harmonix replacing them. Don't have a dog in the fight but just really impressed with the ones I bought.
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Post by pcalu on Jun 18, 2020 19:17:55 GMT -5
Kinda also depends on how you use the Bjr. (as far as what tubes you use)
I found that when I dime the master it takes all the box'ness away from the tone. So, I use it as a single channel amp.
JJ 12ay7 in v1, JJ 12ax7 in V2 with some Mesa El84s (dead quiet power tubes) with the ever-popular Crex speaker, I get a nice quasi Tweed tone. Pretty decent amp for small venues.
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Post by Lesterstrat on Jun 18, 2020 20:15:48 GMT -5
I’ll need to double check when I get home, but I *think* I have a full set of JJs laying around that you can have (I don’t have any tube amps any more).
If you’re interested, I’ll check when I get home to see if I still have them. I haven’t looked at any of that stuff since we moved to Arkansas in 2017.
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Post by larryguitar54 on Jun 18, 2020 20:37:08 GMT -5
I agree with Pcalu except I will go further and say it depends a lot.
Typically first time users navigate volume-tone-master. The reason for that is everybody is looking for that sweet spot at low volume and the think they can raise the whole thing as a preserved setting with the Master.
But it doesn't seem to work that way. When you raise the Master it affects the tone unevenly. Really for the Blues Jr you should do it the reverse and either dime the master or almost dime it and then set your tone and then set volume last.
I'm not an engineer and can't say why that's true but my ears don't lie. The amp just sounds 'bigger' when you push that Master.
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Post by LVF on Jun 29, 2020 13:46:05 GMT -5
Well, with all this great advice on this subject, I made the decision to give the Mesa Boogie tubes a go. They should arrive in the next couple of days. I can at least, do an 'A B' thing with these and my current tubes, tired as they may be and see if this is the right direction. However, with the other suggestions made here, there's a base to go by and I may end up with a collection of tubes as time goes by. We'll see. Thanks again. You've all been very helpful.
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