Full Retube with JJ's from eurotubes

[Red Barchetta]

After consulting with knowledgeable member of our esteemed forum, (thanks Nathan28) and doing some research, I've decided to go with a full retube kit, including rectifier updates from eurotubes. (JJ's) I'll post later with my opinion.....stay toooooned.


RB

 

[R_ADKINS80]

I would love to hear some of the amps in person that you guys retube with JJ's and love. The dozen amps I have heard with them sound like pure asss.

 

[Red Barchetta]

I would love to hear some of the amps in person that you guys retube with JJ's and love. The dozen amps I have heard with them sound like pure asss.

Yeah...but the name of my band is the "Pure Assss Tones"


RB

 

[Jak0lantern01]

My JJ pre-amp tubes made my Recto sound just.....wrong. There was a certain harshness that I could not dial out. I switched back to my Doug's combo, and the amp turned back to its normal liquid state. JJ power tubes are decent, though. I'm running EL34L's in my Recto and may put them in my Stiletto, too.

 

[MusicManJP6]

I agree with Jak0lantern. JJs in my old Rectoverb combo sounded terrible. The same tubes sounded spectacular in my F-30 combo though.

Now, i've got the new Mesa relabeled JJ tubes in my Stiletto and love them. I'm running the Tung Sol EL34B power tubes and really like them compared to the Mesa EL34s. Wouldn't mind to try some JJ E34Ls though...

 

[EleventhHour2139]

Got a full set of high-gain JJ's (called and spoke with them about it) in my preamp, and Mesa Str-440 power. I don't really have enough experience with tubes to know if they're better then this or that, but I enjoy them, sound better then what was in there when I bought it anyway, which I believe were Mesa branded 12AX7's. YMMV

 

[rocksalt7]

Hey MusicMan....glad to hear you like the EL34B's. I got mine in the mail yesterday, into the Ace tonight. Tomorrow...I'm going to the farm and let it all hang out. :twisted: I can't wait to hear this thing w/ the new glass in it.
I've also tried JJ's in some of my previous amps and they're OK, but only that. They just sounded kind of flat to me. Overall I like the TungSol's much better. Fuller, rounder, richer...all that stuff... :shock:

 

[R_ADKINS80]

My Randall had al JJ tubes in it and it was baaaaad. Sounded killer as soon as I put all EH tubes in it.

 

[MusicManJP6]

I have used JJ KT77 and E34L and I like them a lot (in marshalls and mesas) as well as svetlana =C=.

I didn't know Mesa had begun to use/re-label JJ's...

Yeah, they JUST started using JJs. The tube is just blank where they used to say "chinese" or "russian". I'm guessing they switched tubes to get rid of the confusing problem with the chinese/russian tubes needed for certain slots due to the cathode follower positions - blah blah. The JJ/Mesas work in any slot and they sound awesome IMO.

The real test of the new Mesa tubes will be to use them in a Recto and see if they still sound harsh...

I'd love to hear some KT77s and E34Ls in my Stiletto! I wonder how the increased bass ouput would effect tone since I wouldn't have to run the bass so high? Seems like it would be a tighter bass... hmmm...

 

[Big Harry]

I replaced original tubes with full JJ's High Gain kit from Bob in my Road King II combo.
I did couple of records with old and new tubes ,so anyone can hear and "see' the difference.
Difference is HUGE ! (in a benefit of JJ's ! ) .
No more nasal, muddy in the bass, lots more higher mids and very nice defined highs , simply ,it is a new amp. No more fuzzy ,btw .
I enjoy my RK at full speed .

So,I don't know about the other Mesa's ,but for Dual Rectifier Road King II JJ's are right tubes.
Cheers,
BH

 

[Red Barchetta]

Well, I got the tubes in, but when I installed them, I somehow managed to break 2 of the preamp tubes putting on the metal retainers. Couldn't figure out why no sound until I checked. Put the old preamp tubes back in, but then had that horrible whooshing, crackling static. I took out all the JJ tubes and put the old Mesa's back in, but the damage is done. I must've screwed something up turning on the amp with broken preamp tubes. Looks like a call to the repair shop.

So, until then, I'll hold off on my review. Gotta say, though, what I heard while playing thru the static was much punchier and louder....aside from what I must've broke on the amp, the JJs seemed to sound better....we'll see.


RB

 

[MusicManJP6]

Oh no, Red Barchetta! I hate to hear that... Keep us informed...

 

[rocksalt7]

Ohhh...that really sucks for Red B...Best of luck there dude.
It's really tight in there I almost bollicksed mine up too, but I stopped. looked and then tried again and was OK. Just gotta be careful.... :shock:

 

[Red Barchetta]

Yeah, I feel pretty stupid for doing that....and now I'll have to pay for it. I don't exactly know how that screwed something up, but I've heard that sound before, and if I remember, it was a capacitor or something that had gone south....we'll see when I get it checked out.


RB

 

[Red Barchetta]

For those of you following the busted tube screwup saga...I have an appointment for NEXT WEEK with my Boogie repairman. Of course, he's going out of town for the Thanksgiving Holiday....so....no Boogie for a while.....at least I've got my Line 6 Spider II to fall back on :roll:

RB

 

[rocksalt7]

Best of luck Red Barchetta...hopefully he can get you up and running again easily. Sometimes it's good to have to fall back on an old amp. The one time it happened to me made me REALLY appreciate my Mesa when it came back. I'm just so enamored of my Ace right now it's crazy!!! I fell like I'm 19 or 20 years old again .

Let us know how it goes...and what happened, too.

 

[Red Barchetta]

Another update....my beloved Road King was dropped off with my authorized Mesa repairman. Both he and Rich at Mesa service don't think my turning it on with a broken tube did anything bad...just a coincidence, possibly that something went south....I dunno...I still think I mucked something up. Anyway, I ordered a new set of preamp tubes from eurotubes to replace the 3! I broke. I'll have them delivered and in my repairman's hands by Friday...so....we'll see.

More to come...

RB

 

[Red Barchetta]

Okay...got the amp back last week, turned out I burned up a couple of plate resistors....told ya I fouled up! Anyhow, with two rehearsals in the bag with the freshly JJ retubed RK, I can honestly say that the JJs make a big difference. The amp is more open sounding...absolutely smoother...the overdrive lost all the "fizz" and harsh upper end. The gain structure is a little less aggressive, but still has gobs 'o gain on tap. The amp seems a little brighter than with the Mesa tubes, but that may just be the freshness of the tubes I'm hearing. These tubes seem to have a sweeter natural compression than the Mesas. So far, I'm very happy...even my repair guy made a point of commenting on how great these tubes sounded. He told me that he really didn't think they would make that much of a difference, but he said he was pleasantly surprised...he then asked for the website, so I think I may have converted him over to eurotubes.

If I notice anything else, I'll post more...next rehearsal is Tuesday night, so we'll see....

RB

 

[skyshark5858]

I just bought a full retube kit from Eurotubes!!!!

The high gain KT77 package, with GZ34's. The whole thing.

I cant wait to hear how they sound. I also ordered 3 preamps from dougs tubes (tungsol 12ax7 reissue, pentalab 12ax7, and a Shuguang 8th gen 12ax7) I figure if im not happy with the JJ's (3 high gains, 1 reg, 1 reg balanced) Ill start replacing as needed to get what im after. (tungsol in V1, then the penta in V3....etc)

Does anyone have the KT77's in a dual rect and could tell me exactly how they will sound. I get mixed reviews on this. It was a very tight race between that and the JJ E34L's. In the end I decided on the KT77.

I currently have all GT's in the amp. preamps and GT EL34's (8-10 rated i think) .. I was really ignorant when I got them from guitar center and didn't know what I know now.. I LOVE FORUMS!!!!

Ill get you guys know how they come out. Ill prob do some youtube of the before and after....then maybe some each time I change a preamp... I haven't found ANY videos of a dual with KT77's in it.... I figure Ill help the next guy make a decision.

 

[Red Barchetta]

An interesting note from last night's rehearsal...we were adding some Beatles tunes to the set, and I was getting my tones together for the songs. As I mentioned in another post, we have some really cool vintage gear, including a 64 Vox AC30 with the top-boost add on and a couple of mid 60's Vox AC50's....the real tube ones, not the solid state crap.

I was setting the sounds up on the Road King, because that's what I use live playing out....and I got a REMARKABLE Vox tone out of the ol' RK...using the 6L6's, of all things! I don't think this would've been possible before the JJ re-tube...we plugged up the AC30 and did an A/B comparison, and I was really impressed by the sound. Of course, the Vox was a bit better, but I am really impressed by how close the RK with the JJ's copped the tone....


Just one of my observations....we now return to your regularly scheduled....um....whatever that was you were doing...

RB