Mullard reissue & RCA

[jhguitar1]

Are the Mullard ecc83 reissues good tubes? I was thinking of trying a Mullard, but don't know where to start and don't want to break the bank.
I had bought a RCA 12ax7a for V1 and don't care for it so much. I read that it worked well in V5, does anyone agree with that?
Oh yeah, I have a Roadster head.

Thanks

 

[MusicManJP6]

I thought the RCA in V1 sounded marvelous. My amp was sterile sounding in comparison (with the stock Mesa tube in V1)...

 

[domct203]

I thought the RCA in V1 sounded marvelous. My amp was sterile sounding in comparison (with the stock Mesa tube in V1)...

+1

I've tried the Jan Philips 12AX7, RFT 12AX7, GE 12AX7 Long Plate, and RCA 12AX7 Short Plate Halo Getter with the RCA my fav in V1. With my setup it has alot of punch and well balanced mids, and really brought the Roadster to life. All the above tubes were a HUGE improvement over the Tung-Sol reissue, EH & JJ I tried there.

Right now my preamp looks like this:

V1 = RCA 12AX7A
V2 = RFT 12AX7
V3 = GE 12AX7 long plate
V4 = JAN Philips 12AX7WA
V5 = EH 12AX7
V6 = Sovtek 12AX7 LPS

I have two Mullard CV2024 (12AT7WA) on the way, which I will try in V4 (Reverb) and V6 (PI). I'll most likely move the JAN Philips over to V5 (FX Loop) to give it a try there.

I also want to get a Mullard 12AX7 (Blackburn) to try in all positions as well.

Dom

 

[212Mavguy]

Hi jhguitar61,

Just a quick comment for what it's worth, PLEASE try the original before the reissue, your ears will thank you. I'm speaking of the Mullard and Tung Sol. The Mullard longplate reissue is NOT the tube it's forbear was, and the same goes for the original Tung Sol and the Reissue. If you were to look at the reissue Tung Sol in particular, you would see vastly different looking guts inside the bottle from the original. As far as Mullards go, you might like the shortplate version, they tend to be less expensive than longplate ones. Don't be afraid to buy at least three of any vintage tube, you need to have some sack and roll the dice. Sometimes you can get one that is microphonic if well used. C'est la vie. Still, it's worth it to find some on eBay. Take Shredd6 up on his offer, his advice is golden. Peace.

 

[jhguitar1]

Here's the description of the RCA I bought, is it a good one? As far as the tone I am after, I am just looking for a good high & medium gain tones that sounds full, not thin or brittle, especially for leads. I don't play screamo metal, but a wide variety of music. Does that make sense? I'll try the RCA again in V1.

Here is a NOS/NIB RCA 12AX7A tube with small halo getter, short grey plates, factory code CK that tests new at 1525/1750 where 1040 is minimum. This tube has good printing with red logo. The average new 12AX7 tests 1500-1700 on my tester. All tubes tested on a regularly calibrated, factory assembled Heathkit TT-1A tester. The Heathkit tester tests at higher plate voltage than most other testers, giving results more comparable to actual use. Tubes are free of electrical defects.
good one?

Thanks for your help.

 

[domct203]

Here's the description of the RCA I bought, is it a good one? As far as the tone I am after, I am just looking for a good high & medium gain tones that sounds full, not thin or brittle, especially for leads. I don't play screamo metal, but a wide variety of music. Does that make sense? I'll try the RCA again in V1.

Here is a NOS/NIB RCA 12AX7A tube with small halo getter, short grey plates, factory code CK that tests new at 1525/1750 where 1040 is minimum. This tube has good printing with red logo. The average new 12AX7 tests 1500-1700 on my tester. All tubes tested on a regularly calibrated, factory assembled Heathkit TT-1A tester. The Heathkit tester tests at higher plate voltage than most other testers, giving results more comparable to actual use. Tubes are free of electrical defects.
good one?

Thanks for your help.

Ask the seller if it has been checked for noise and microphonics in a guitar amp. Especially if you want to try/use this tube in V1, it needs to be quiet.

Dom

 

[trem]

The guy who sold me my RCAs tested the tubes for noise in a phono stage of a hifi preamp. He tapped on them lightly with the eraser end of a pencil and listened for prolonged noise. They're quite in my Mark IV FWIW.

And it's even better if the seller can provide some kind of warranty. Mine gave me 7 days.