mark III tube help

[theagentorange]

I've had this black stripe for about a year now, and i dont know how long the current tubes have been in use. So I figure i might as well give it a full retube.

Now does anyone have any reccomendations? I'm gonna likely go with eurotubes and grab one of the kits, but i really have no idea which set i should get. Closer to the LOG tone the better for me I like it as is, but i would have no problem with heavier, thicker, etc!

I also dont know much about this amp, i know it's early, black stripe 15xxx serial. so knowledge about it, i'd love and what are these worth these days? It's not going anywhere anytime soon, but it's nice to know!

 

[Skyless7620]

I got 2 RFTs in V1 and V3, 2 GT12AX7's in V2 and V4, and a GT 12AT7 in V5 (tames a bit of the harshness) in the preamp and standard Mesa STR440 6L6's and STR447 EL34's in the poweramp. No complaints here.

You can't go wrong with some NOS tubes. Though they aren't the best option if you are budget conscious

 

[CoG]

Many people disagree with me on this but I'd say that the Mark III, probably because it has a particular inherent voicing, is less sensitive to preamp tube changes than some other amps and pretty much all that I hear is different amounts of gain, not different tonal qualities. The same tube that makes a teeny difference in a Mark III makes a HUGE difference in a Roadster.

I know that all the NOS pre tubes I bought to roll through my Mark IIIs have eventually just ended up in other amps where they made a more audible difference. I'd say that you're not missing a life-changing experience by not shelling out for NOS.

Power tubes... since so few NOS power tubes remain in the world that's not really a big issue. I like TAD 6L6s and =C= EL34s; if you have a Simulclass be wary of EL34s that promise a thicker, fatter sound (which guys generally think they want) because the Mark II has a lot of low mids already and they can make it sort of "blurry."

 

[Facelift]

Gonna have to disagree with NOS tubes not making much of a difference in the Mark III. I have RFTs in all positions except V4 and V5. It originally had the stock Mesa tubes (Ruby?) and the difference was night and day when i put the RFTs in, especially in V1. The tone got thicker, heavier, more low end, more gain, more organic, clearer notes, jsut downright brutal. If I had to make a comparison of say cats, the stock tubes were a bobcat, and the NOS RFTs were a Lion. I prefer to use the term Fire Breathing Dragon though.

 

[ltd2recto]

Tungsrams in V1 -2 & RFT in V3.

Haven't even experimented with power tubes.

 

[Neptical]

I gotta say, ...there's a big difference using different combo 12AX7 tubes in my Mark III for sure, especially being that it *is* so sensative. I absolutely do not like using Mesa tubes at all. They sound thin and harsh. If not using a good set of NOS tubes (mullards,rft's,amperex,etc.), I'd throw in some new Tungsol 12AX7s and mix 'em with some good Winged =C= 34's/6L6s. That combo is very warm,rich, and big...definitely good for metal crunch and singing leads. Most of that LOG is Mark IV (aside from his use of V's), so the tone is definitely managable. Just got to pump those mids,throw alot of presence and do the GEQ 'V' scoop. A bit too raspy of a tone for me, but that's pretty much it in a nutshell.

~Nep~