Ultimate Stage I Stiletto Tube Compliment

[willakalliw]

Greetings all. I've had my stage I Stiletto for a little over two years, so I figure it's about time for a retubing. I would like a little more sustain, warmth (as in fuzziness, not lack of brightness/top end), and I guess slightly hotter biased power tubes. I've heard good things about tung-sol's for v1-v3, and Shuguang EL34B's for a good well-rounded tone. Anyone have suggestions for the ultimate tube compliment?

This is my first time retubing, so I have some basic questions too: Should I replace all 5 preamp tubes, or just the first 3? Should I replace the 5U4 rectifier tubes? Is it easy to swap the tubes out myself, or should I consider going to an amp tech? I'm planning on buying from dougstubes or thetubestore, so I'm assuming they will take care of any biasing or matching issues.

Muchas Gracias.

 

[ks67gp]

I've had my Stiletto for a little over 2 yrs too. I just recently retubed it with JJ EL34L's and the high gain front end from Eurotubes. Some people don't care for the JJ's but I am quite happy with mine. They added a little bit of gain and took away some of the ice pick high freq's that people have complained about. They also warmed up the amp a bit. It wasn't a drastic change but it was noticeable. They, however, did not add much sustain to the amp. The only way that I've found to do that is to crank the **** thing! This will bring the amp to life! You gotta really push those EL 34's hard. It's amazing how different the amp reacts when you push it really hard. As far as whether or not you should change all or just some of the tubes, I would go ahead and change all of them. Especially if you play a lot. I hope this helps!

 

[mightywarlock]

I absolutely HATED the way my ACE and Deuce II sounded with the jj EL34L's.

I spent the $$ on the STR-450's, and am very pleased.

 

[secretsoundz]

This is my first time retubing, so I have some basic questions too: Should I replace all 5 preamp tubes, or just the first 3? Should I replace the 5U4 rectifier tubes? Is it easy to swap the tubes out myself, or should I consider going to an amp tech? I'm planning on buying from dougstubes or thetubestore, so I'm assuming they will take care of any biasing or matching issues.

Muchas Gracias.

I always change all of the tubes when retubing. Since it's fixed bias all you need to do is order a tube kit and do it yourself. I personally like Eurotubes. Bob is a great guy, always helpful and very knowledgable. The JJ tubes he sell sound awesome. Try some KT77's for power tubes, they sound badass.

 

[xnatex]

howw do the KT77s sound compared to EL34s?

 

[thesockmonster13]

Gorgeous. Just like Bob's description on Eurotubes. They've got the bass of a 6l6 (that "oomph" when you palm mute and such), but the midrange has a lot more character, more like classic Marshall bite. It's a solid midpoint between the two worlds. I run 2 in a Single Rec, and love them - much more cut, and better overall character.

 

[willakalliw]

any thoughts on the tung-sol preamp tubes? will they get me better sustain? Should I use them and another type?

And what about rectifier tubes?

 

[thesockmonster13]

Personally, I would ask Shredd about that. He's a tube guru, man.

Cheers!

 

[xnatex]

I did alot of tube swapping when i got my Stiletto a few months ago. For what i play this is the best combo in my Deuce I.

Preamp Tubes:
V1-Tun Sol reissue 12AX7
V2-Mesa STR SPAX7-A
V3-JJ ECC83 S
V4-Mesa Russian 12AX7-A
V5-9th Gen Shuguang Chinese 12AX7 (balanced for phase inverter)

Power Tubes-JJ E34L

and i still have the stock Mesa 5U4GB Rectifier Tubes