Is there much of a sound difference betwwen 6l6s, el34 tubes

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bermuda_

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Hey guys

I was just wondering, in terms of sound, how much of difference would switching from 6l6 tubes to el34 tubes make in a Dual Recto, because I heard from many people on the net, that the sound difference between these two tubes is very subtle, is this true?
 
Try that. It's not a Recto but it can help:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koN09Je2VsE&feature=PlayList&p=B230E1D1A8643CB0&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=20
 
That clip is not a fair comparison because it's a 100W 4-EL34 amp being compared to a 2-6L6 50W amp, which explains why a lot of the comments say the difference is the opposite to what they expected. The EL34 amp has more bass and thickness because it has bigger transformers and four tubes, and the 6L6 amp has more midrange and is smoother because it has smaller transformers and it's being driven slightly harder for the same final volume. You would get a similar result if you compared a 100W EL34 amp to a 50W EL34 amp. (Hence why some people prefer 50W Marshalls to 100s or vice versa, even when they are otherwise identical.)

If you know what to listen for you can hear the tube characteristics, but it's in the detail rather than the overall sound. The EL34s are skinnier sounding in the mids and have more bite and crunch at the top end, and the 6L6s are chunkier in the low-end and clearer and glassier at the top.

It's certainly not like the difference between a Fender amp and a Marshall amp (which is in the overall circuit design far more than anything to do with the tubes), but it does make quite a difference to the character of the amp. At very low volume it's pretty subtle, but as you crank it up you start to hear it more.
 
94Tremoverb said:
If you know what to listen for you can hear the tube characteristics, but it's in the detail rather than the overall sound. The EL34s are skinnier sounding in the mids and have more bite and crunch at the top end, and the 6L6s are chunkier in the low-end and clearer and glassier at the top.

....At very low volume it's pretty subtle, but as you crank it up you start to hear it more.


Just last night I did this comparison in a Frenzel 5E3 Deluxe that allows me to switch tubes. I went back and forth between two 6L6's and two EL34's. The difference is EXACTLY as 94Tremoverb has described. The 6L6's seemed fuller and more raw sounding, as if nothing was removed from the guitar sound, slightly louder and edgier, reminded me of a SRV sound. The EL34's seemed slightly softer, tighter, not as raw, more equally balanced all the way up and down the neck, and would seem to break up just slightly sooner. My overriding impression was that the 6L6's would be far better for solo guitar or a gig where the guitar is the leading main instrument, while the EL34's would be better for blending in with the band and being heard in the monitors. Since I was aiming to blend in with the church band, I left the EL34's in and went to rehearsal. The bass player and the drummer both heard the same difference described above, and commented on it right away without any cue from me. And the difference becomes easier to hear as you crank up the volume.
 
There is also a difference in feel and playability between them. Its difficult to describe.

btw, i totally miss my X100B head. my ******* wife made me sell it about 8 months ago. :(
 

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