I need to retube my studio preamp- any advice?

[myqqy]

Before i go and pull the pre out of my rack- what's the "standard" tube arrangement? Is it 4 12ax7's and 1 12at7? I looked at my studio manual, but it says nothing about the tube layout...

 

[myqqy]

No replies??? C'mon!!! I did replace the first preamp tube, and noticed an improvement in tone. I would like to get a set of NOS tubes for the 4 12ax7's, just to compare with mesas that are already in there. I'm still blown away by how much depth and hugeness i can get out of the lead channel of my studio pre by having the lead channel at 3 or 4!!

 

[Whoopysnorp]

The tube layout on mine is four 12AX7s in V1-V4 and then a 12AT7 in the reverb driver slot, but some Studio Pres seem to use a 12AX7 in the reverb slot.

 

[myqqy]

Mine specifies an 12at7 in the reverb slot, so i purchased a NOS rca for that- which hasn't arrived yet. I don't know if it will have any impact on the tone, but it only cost around $10...

 

[dmt]

I would make the investment into some decent NOS or used vintage tubes. They are worth every penny. You can get really good deals at Ham Radio Fests. Most people there have lots of tubes so you can get a bunch of different brands/types and the tubes will be well taken care of. Preamp tubes in Ham radios are typically not abused and have plenty of life in them. You can also find a tester there and test the tubes you find.

As far as brands, NOS RCA 12AX7's are great, so are Sylvania 12AX7's. Mullards, Telefunkens, Tesla, and the Goldpin Radioshack 'Realistic Lifetime' tubes are very good as well. Depends on the tone you are looking for.

The best advice I can give you is to go out and buy a bunch of tubes and try them all out. brands and years and types don't really matter as much as how the tubes will sound in your setup. Trust your ears. Don't let anyone tell you what kind of tubes to buy and believe the hype.

 

[myqqy]

Thanks for the tips, dmt!!