mesa mark iv- 6l6's or el34's??

[threemounts_1]

I just purchased a mesa mark iv medium head. its pretty sweet but ive seen other people that use a combo of el34 and 6l6. my amp has the quad 6l6's right now. how would the change to the 2 pairs alter the sound of my amp?

 

[avi8r2005]

it's kind of the best of both worlds. I'm running mine with 2 el34's in the outers and the 2 6L6's in the middles. It gives you a little brighter sound than all 6l6, but it's all up to your tastes and how you like it. It's not a super bright sound like you would have with an amp that is all El34's but if it gives it just a touch more high end to it. I think it's a pretty nice balance between them.

 

[chapelizod]

What about when you run in class A with just the el-34's? ParticulaRly with r2?

 

[threemounts_1]

Well I'd like a lil brighter sound but I'm wanting sum thing to pull just a bit of the bass out. Is it ok to run it in simulclass or class a...does it matter? Isn't this wat petrucci does?

 

[Dror520]

I just switched form 2 el34 and 2 6l6 to 4 6l6 and the sound is way better to me. The most obvious improvement is that the sound is fuller and less brighter. The clean channel is way better and so are the distortion channels. All I can say is 4 6L6 rulezzzzz !!!

 

[Tuna141]

I like all 6L6 in MarkIIC & Mark IV, but 6L6 & EL43 in Mark III for a slightly more Marshally flavor in Class A.

 

[6L6C]

I have been flip flopping for years but lately have settled on the 4x6l6c (SED =C= Winged) its all taste really there is no one is better than the other. So I recommend just get a pair of EL34's to have around if you do any recording it's only going to make the amp that much more versatile.

 

[Sebby123]

I agree with 6L6GC i have all 6L6 sed winged c's amazing 6L6's but for recording i would keep 2 extra EL34'S around.
I prefer 6L6'S Myself but thats just me , we all have different taste i would say just try them out yourself.

 

[pixy]

today i recorded some guitars and wanted to try some EL 34's in my markIV "A" .i popped out 2 mesa str442's (SED old el34 that mesa used to have) from a 2ch dual recto and give them a try. after hitting the standby i was kinda like :| is that all it can do?
so i return imediatly to 4 6L6's.dont know the exact reason why they didnt sound good but few guesses are:
-they were no matched colour-one green one gray;
-probably they were old and abused;
-i didnt spent too much time tweeking my amp to find out where they sound better (as in EQ, gain stages,power modes etc);


?

 

[MarkofXlnts]

I started with 4 6L6 tubes, then switched to the 6L6/EL34 combo. I agree that EL34's brighten the sound and I think I will be switching back to 6L6's. I really noticed the difference when comparing the clean sounds of my Mark I and Mark IV. The Mark I has more low end and is more balanced sounding. The Mark IV (with El34's) was a bit brighter. I think I will be using 6L6's exclusively in my Mark IV from now on.

Your guitar may determine which setup you prefer. I set up the Mark IV with EL34's when I had Les Pauls, so the brightness was not an issue. Now, my only guitar has single coils that are similar to P-90's and brightness is an issue (I have to run the treble and presence at zero). My guitar sounds better through the Mark I, so I will be going back to 6L6's in the Mark IV. Personally, I think single coils sound better with 6L6 tubes and humbuckers sound best with EL34's.

 

[pixy]

as and add to my previous post:
The guitar used was an Les paul custom shop brazilian rosewood with wcr goowoods so no brightness abusive in this cause from the guitar too, but still i prefered all 6l6's thou i do enjoy power amp distortion...
i guess its never a recipe , just judge with your years the setup combination.

 

[scottywompas]

I run the el34's in the outer sockets. It gives a bit of a different sound in class AB but it also allows me to get some super gritty distortion in Class A, tweed power. I love R2 in this set up.

Scott

 

[Boogie Woogie Man]

I use all 6L6's 'cos I prefer the sound. Seems to have more definition and more balls than the split option.

 

[mshifflett]

Another good combination to try is the 6L6 in the inners and KT77 in the outers. I use JJ tubes that I get from Bob at Eurotubes and have always been very happy with them. The JJ KT77 is a little tighter than an EL34. The 77's have even a bit more low end extension and they have a nice sizzle in the top end that is not brittle. The clean tone is very fat and full and the crunch has more of a chunk to it. A great tube for rhythm and solo work.

 

[billyg121]

could someone give me an example (song or artist)of a el34 type of tone.when you hear it,you think el34.

 

[edgecrusher]

Old school Van Halen, AC/DC, pretty much anything Marshall. Think JCM-800/Plexi tones.

 

[billyg121]

gotcha.does the el34/6l6 combo still help the overall tone to retain some of the 6l6 balls?

 

[cliffdove]

gotcha.does the el34/6l6 combo still help the overall tone to retain some of the 6l6 balls?

It's actually a yes and no. The tone is still there but some EQ has been sculpted out. Think of it this way, when you use this combo, the EL34's are taking away fair bit of low mids compared to 4 6L6's. The EL34's actually give u balls and crunch and make the overall tone much tighter.

The best is to just buy a pair and learn for urself what kinda results these tube configs will yield. I have since gone full circle and went back to all 6L6's. All that meat is there.

Some time back I did some test clips of a EL34 & 6L6 combination. You can check them out from my link below to get u an idea.

 

[deftone82]

Hi there
I recently became a proud owner of a Mark IV combo.

So I just found this one, because it's a third-hand amp, I'm thinking of switching the 6L6 tubes with EL34's and of switching the MC90 speaker with a V30.

I found your site Nitsuj, it's got some great tones. Is it possible to pass me those settings? Or do you use a shitload of effects/pedals/eq's....? And if so, what are some nice pedals?

Thanks a bunch dude!

 

[cliffdove]

Hi there
I recently became a proud owner of a Mark IV combo.

So I just found this one, because it's a third-hand amp, I'm thinking of switching the 6L6 tubes with EL34's and of switching the MC90 speaker with a V30.

I found your site Nitsuj, it's got some great tones. Is it possible to pass me those settings? Or do you use a sh!t of effects/pedals/eq's....? And if so, what are some nice pedals?

Thanks a bunch dude!

thanks for the comment.

here's a link to the amp settings. For heavy tones, I'd suggest you work towards getting a closed back 4x12 or 2x12. Tones from a closed back cab than the open combo 1x12 will make a huge significant difference.

http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=38644&start=15

I don't use any pedals or EQ except a Rocktron Hush to minimize the noise floor when miked up. Did try a tubescreamer type pedal like the Maxon OD280 Pro for test tones but the Mark is already tightly voiced you really dont need anything in the chain. Personally I don't like any form of coloration at the source unless its a Dual Rectifier that needs the low end tightened up with a TS pedal.

For rhythm tones, TAD 6L6 tubes or Ruby EL34's worked out best for me. For lead, I'll give points to Sed Winged C's 6L6s. Its one of the best finds I came across in this forum. Its definitely one step up from the stock tubes and you'll notice a positive difference in your sound.

Good luck.