Retubed the Stiletto

[srf399]

Just did the retube on my Stiletto suggested by Doug's Tubes... Unbelievable ... Improved the amp 10X's Sounds very much like the Ecstasy 101B clips on the Bogner site now. Exactly what I was looking for. Vintage plexi sound.

A big thanks to Doug's Tubes

 

[if6was9]

What did you put in it?

 

[ANIMATED SUSPENSION]

Sounds to me like they were JJ's in the pre amp, they're lower gain and lack top end. I doubt they sound '10 x better' :shock: just 'different' and more to his personal taste. Each to his own I guess !

 

[srf399]

Preamp
(V1) Tung Sol 12ax7
(V2) High Gain JJ
(V3) Penta 12ax7
(V4) Shuguang 12ax7 9th gen.
(V5) Sovtek LPS 12ax7

Power Amp
STR 450 EL34's

True... it's subjective. I suppose you could also say that a Dr. Z isn't better sounding than a Traynor, just different, using that logic. To me there are different types of sounds which is subjective... but there are also different qualities of sounds. That's what I am referring to here. Doesn't matter... I'd still say... to me it sounds light years better.

A slight drop in gain with these tubes...but the character is massively improved. Before there wasn't as much difference between the Tite Gain and Fluid Drive... now they are very different. I'd say over all it's warmer sounding but it has a more 3 dimensional/Hi Fi compression to it. Very nice.

Basically what I asked them for was to help me get the Stiletto sonically closer to my favorite sounding amp (the Bogner Ecstasy). This went a long long way to doing that.

The Mesa preamp tubes seem to be picked to put out lots of gain and satisfy the distortion crowd.... these tube improved the quality of the tone and gave it a more vintage character... more mature sound. Hard to put into words... I guess what I mean is if your a sound freak and have been playing for more than 20 years... you should try these out. If you're into metal or punk... stick with the Mesa Tubes.

 

[Riff Blister]

Congratulations on the re-tube. What a difference it can make.
Doug set me up with a very similar configuration last fall.
I was looking for a vintage Marshall vibe myself and found it with the new arrangement.
I like to play classic rock and blues stuff so I am not a super high gain freak.
My band mate plays through a Bogner Shiva (I love that thing) and it really sounds good with the Stiletto.
We frequently get somebody coming up to us and confirming that.
That always feels good.

 

[otter5555]

doug also did a retube of my stiletto ace.

before the retube i was ready to ebay it.

dougs tubes transformed it from a very brittle sounding amp into a wonderfully warm amp.

and yes, it sounds at least 10x better.

otter

 

[hfisher3380]

If you want to try something a bit different you can also put a JAN Philips 5751 in either V1 or V2. A slightly lower gain tube than 12ax7 however I love what this tube does for my Stiletto Ace head - especially in Crunch mode - it removes some of the brightness and allows me to turn the treble up a shade higher, which helps the tone get "crunchy"...

 

[ANIMATED SUSPENSION]

Ok, I think we can all agree that '10x 'and 'light years' are 'slight' exaggerations !! Unless the standard Stiletto is really that bad ? I am a tone freak too, have been playing for over 30 years and indeed play amongst other things Dream Theater and Sex Pistols stuff. I can understand that the STR450's are great tubes, but if the amp sounds that much different/better why buy it in the first place ? :?

 

[otter5555]

"but if the amp sounds that much different/better why buy it in the first place ?"


hype

i bought my ace after watching a guitar player video demoing all the amps
various settings and modes.

the player used what appeared to be a stock gibson explorer for for all demos. the amp sounded warm, smooth and musical in all modes. the ultimate hotrodded marshall sound.

i bought a new ace, plugged in my stock explorer, and the sounds were

horribly brittle, harsh and very non musical.

i have heard cheap peavy transistor amps that sounded better.

i plugged my entire guitar collection into the amp with the same results.


i spent a week tweaking with no improvement at all. i was ready to puke and ebay the new ace.

then, someone in this forum reccomended i call dougs tubes. i did, and now my ace is warm with no brittleness at all.

it is possible that my ace was worse off than some of the others but i can tell you that after the tube change, my ace now sounds exactly like the demo video that persuaded me to buy it in the first place.


otter

 

[jab]

I have 450s in my Ace and like the tone inifinitely better than the stock tubes. A lot of that brittleness went away and it's fuller sounding.

I like the comment above how the preamp tubes you used are bringing more of a vintage feel. I am at the point where I can't put my gain much past 9:00 where it's really overdrives beyond my hard/classic rock taste. May have to try that. How much does it cost to replace preamp tubes with ones like you mentioned?

 

[dodger916]

I like the comment above how the preamp tubes you used are bringing more of a vintage feel. I am at the point where I can't put my gain much past 9:00 where it's really overdrives beyond my hard/classic rock taste. May have to try that. How much does it cost to replace preamp tubes with ones like you mentioned?

$60.95, or add $10 for balanced triodes:

http://www.dougstubes.com/tonekits.html

If you want to experiment with NOS tubes, here's a wealth of information :

http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?t=749&highlight=timbre+wolf

I re-tubed my IIC+ with these...wow! Made the gain smoother, more manageable and more vintage - I used to max the drive at 4! I also put a new balanced 12AT7WA (Doug's Tubes) in the phase inverter (V5) - made a big difference too.

The NOS tubes can be had from around $18 up to $50 each (including shipping). Got mine on e-bay. There are some very reputable dealers there. These will most certainly run you more than the preamp set from Doug's!

 

[srf399]

$76 including shipping.

I bought the stiletto Deuce because it was my second favorite sounding amp and I can't affort the asking price for the Bogner. Also I live about 5 hours drive from a dealer/service center and the Bogner's are a maintenance amp. I've never had a problem with any of the Mesas I've owned.... ever.

 

[jab]

srf399: I called Doug's and talked about the tube setup you mentioned. He believes it will provide a warmer, fuller sound than the stock Mesa preamp tubes. I already have the 450's in my Ace head. Do you agree or have any other input on tone since your initial post? I play classic rock with an edge so don't need over the top distortion. I may pull the trigger on these, sounds tempting.

Thanks.

 

[Moot]

I found my Ace sounded a lot better after changing the pre-amp tubes - I switched out the stock EL34s but found I liked them. But the pre-amp tubes made a huge difference. And breaking in those tight speakers.

 

[srf399]

Yeah I like the sound of these.... It sounds a bit more vintage and a little less gain. I want to swap them back to the Mesas after a while just to see cause I'm used to them now. But for $69.00 + shipping you should just try it.

 

[JOEY B.]

I put Doug's preamp tube set into a 1x12 Stiletto Ace and was pleased with the results. I chose to go with #5 GT-E34LS power tubes (because I happened to have a pair stashed away). The goal was to bring out the vintage tones and do away with some of the "grit" in the sound (plugged the speaker into the 4 ohm jack, spongy, tube rectifier). I also tried out another speaker (150 watt MS-12) just to see what that would do. The speaker swap did as much or more to the tone than the preamp tubes. :shock: