yellow jackets in a single recto, anyone!?

[andershoeg]

Hi all!
Was wondering if any of you have tried using EL84 yellowjackets in your rectos? Was thinking about how it would sound if I pulled out the 6L6's and put some EL84 in it, really get the amp to cook the tubes Has anyone tried!??
B.R. andershoeg

 

[Platypus]

I use them in my Dual Rec currently and love them! I pair them with two EL34L's for a totally british power section.

There are sound clips in the thread I made in the rigs/tones forum if you're curious.

 

[Scary Guy IRL]

I've read that Yellow Jackets cut the power down, but is this only by tube swapping (ie 6L6 to EL84) or if i put Yellow Jackets w/ 6L6's into a 50watt tube up (That has 6L6's in it) would this cut it down?

Thanks

 

[musicbox]

yellowjackets can only run el84's unfortunately. the power loss occurs because they can only handle so much voltage, the the yellowjacket limits most of it and converts it to class-a operation

 

[Platypus]

I use them in my Dual Rec currently and love them! I pair them with two EL34L's for a totally british power section.

There are sound clips in the thread I made in the rigs/tones forum if you're curious.

Have you tried running just two yellow jackets on your DR or 4 yellow jackets? I read on there website it would cut it down to 20 watts for 2 tubes installed? can't play your clips for some reason are they in mp3 format?

I run them in V1 and V4 and I use JJ EL34L's in V2/V3. I only run two of them, I doubt I'd like all 4. Yes it cuts the power section by about 20 watts with 2 I believe.

They are in .avi format, crappy video cam is the only way I have to record at the moment. You can play them with WMP with divx installed.

I really should update those with something when I get time, I've changed my EQ around and am using a totally different OD pedal now, the sound is drastically different though the clips still sound ok and give you an idea of the sound you can expect.

 

[redmax61]

I've been running pretty much the same setup as Platypus for several years. He's right on the money.

YJ's only work with EL84's installed. And the EL-84's do run in class "A" operation. The output of a pair of 84's is about 20 watts. In reality, you'll only notice a slight drop in volume, but the tone changes dramatically. In the variation that Platypus and I are using, we are putting out about 70 watts.

If you are only using a pair of YJ's the amp will take on a very Voxy kind of sound. Of course you can play with that a bit by using the bold/spongy switch. If you have a DR, the tube/ss switch will give you further variation.

Of course, where YJ's really shine is in amps where you can combine them with another type of tube. You really do get the very best of both worlds. I haven't tried the YJ/6L6 combination, but YJ's with EL-34's is over the top!

 

[Hoove_Dogg]

If you are only using a pair of YJ's the amp will take on a very Voxy kind of sound. Of course you can play with that a bit by using the bold/spongy switch. If you have a DR, the tube/ss switch will give you further variation.

Of course, where YJ's really shine is in amps where you can combine them with another type of tube. You really do get the very best of both worlds. I haven't tried the YJ/6L6 combination, but YJ's with EL-34's is over the top!

Interesting points, however doesn't really apply to the Single Rectifier configuration that he is wondering about. Unfortunately we don't have rectifier tubes or bold/spongy switches.

Can you DR users run just 2 of the power tubes at a time, or do all 4 have to be plugged in? I am also very curious to hear the difference that these would make in a single recto! Maybe I'll have to be the one to do the experiment and let everyone else know what it's like!

IF ANY SINGLE REC USERS HAVE USED THE 84'S PLEASE SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCES!!!!

 

[GuitarCarr]

I'd also be interested in hearing this.

 

[MasterTrax]

A bump for the YJ thread.

Being a single rec owner myself, I might just try this out. I know my local dealer has Yellowjackets in stock. I have plenty of decent EL84s here already. I might as well....

M

 

[AMP-BLACKOUT]

I hope you guys mean EL-34's , for heaven's sake DO NOT put EL84's in any recto (doubt they would fit actually)

 

[Platypus]

I hope you guys mean EL-34's , for heaven's sake DO NOT put EL84's in any recto (doubt they would fit actually)

The 'yellowjacket' device that this thread is about is an adaptor that lets you put EL84 tubes into the EL34/6L6 slot.

 

[AMP-BLACKOUT]

Yep, just wanted to make sure no one was going to try to put an EL84 directly in the socket.

 

[GuitarCarr]

Hey, I'm still kinda hoping someone will let us know how they sound in a rectoverb........lol.

 

[nocluejimbo]

Yep, just wanted to make sure no one was going to try to put an EL84 directly in the socket.

They wouldn't even fit.

 

[oyster]

I hope you guys mean EL-34's , for heaven's sake DO NOT put EL84's in any recto (doubt they would fit actually)

The 'yellowjacket' device that this thread is about is an adaptor that lets you put EL84 tubes into the EL34/6L6 slot.

Incidentally, when you plug these in, which bias setting should you use (el34 or 6l6)?

 

[MasterTrax]

Ok, I got a pair of GT power reducers. They didn't have the THD brand at the store.

I pulled the 6L6s out of my single rec head and installed the PRs and EL84s. Powered up and checked to make sure the bottles lit up, and holy crap those things burn brightly in there.

For this experiment I am interested in getting smooth high gain tone with much sustain. My amps are used for recording.

First I played through channel 2, like this:

Ibanez Strat bridge HB>Boss EQ>Fulltone OCD>amp, chan 2

The first thing I noticed was a reduction in low end muddiness. The inherent hair and fizz of the channel 2 preamp gain was still there in spades when I pushed it, so I dialed some of it out with the eq and got a fairly creamy lead tone and decent high gain chords. Much less difference in vintage and modern settings with the EL84s! Overall, it wasn't magic, but it was good enough to get me thinking I might be onto something.

Then I did this:

Ibanez Strat bridge HB>Boss EQ>Fulltone OCD>Ibanez Tube King overdrive>amp, chan 1

Much better. Clearer gain tone by far and a much more articulate attack. The bottom is still very present but greatly tightened and quicker. The EL84s really sang when I used this setup. Good chording even when doing palm muting styles. Excellent single note tone, high notes are vocal in timbre with a lot of harmonic content right up front. Also, the slight two-dimensional quality the single rec head usually displays does not present itself with the EL84s. I ran the output at about 1 o'clock and the channel at about noon. I hit the front end very hard with the Tube King. The power tubes in the amp were working quite hard and the effect was excellent. Backing off the guitar cleaned up pretty good, and when opened up it would get as wild and brutal as I wanted, keeping all the while that bell-like singing layer from the high mids to the top.

I'm just getting started. I will tweak settings and rearrange things for a couple more days, then I'll know if my first impressions are infatuation or lasting lust. I tend to favor EL84 amps, I have several and love the singing quality of the little bottles. It was a great evening.

Thanks for posting this thread. This is something I have really been wanting to do.

M

 

[Russ]

It is good to hear that the GT offering is a hit too. I had thought about purchasing those but wanted to hear a good review from someone not writing it in a magazine or over at HC where everyone glorifies or slams whatever they are writing about. I might slip some in my JMP for a little twist. It would be nice to be able to get more out of it without killing my hearing as badly. Besides, I have some old black plate EL84s that I have been wanting to use. I think that they should fit the bill nicely. I did hear that they have a couple different versions of the GT though according to the type of bias you have.

 

[GuitarCarr]

Ok, I got a pair of GT power reducers. They didn't have the THD brand at the store.

I pulled the 6L6s out of my single rec head and installed the PRs and EL84s. Powered up and checked to make sure the bottles lit up, and holy crap those things burn brightly in there.

For this experiment I am interested in getting smooth high gain tone with much sustain. My amps are used for recording.

First I played through channel 2, like this:

Ibanez Strat bridge HB>Boss EQ>Fulltone OCD>amp, chan 2

The first thing I noticed was a reduction in low end muddiness. The inherent hair and fizz of the channel 2 preamp gain was still there in spades when I pushed it, so I dialed some of it out with the eq and got a fairly creamy lead tone and decent high gain chords. Much less difference in vintage and modern settings with the EL84s! Overall, it wasn't magic, but it was good enough to get me thinking I might be onto something.

Then I did this:

Ibanez Strat bridge HB>Boss EQ>Fulltone OCD>Ibanez Tube King overdrive>amp, chan 1

Much better. Clearer gain tone by far and a much more articulate attack. The bottom is still very present but greatly tightened and quicker. The EL84s really sang when I used this setup. Good chording even when doing palm muting styles. Excellent single note tone, high notes are vocal in timbre with a lot of harmonic content right up front. Also, the slight two-dimensional quality the single rec head usually displays does not present itself with the EL84s. I ran the output at about 1 o'clock and the channel at about noon. I hit the front end very hard with the Tube King. The power tubes in the amp were working quite hard and the effect was excellent. Backing off the guitar cleaned up pretty good, and when opened up it would get as wild and brutal as I wanted, keeping all the while that bell-like singing layer from the high mids to the top.

I'm just getting started. I will tweak settings and rearrange things for a couple more days, then I'll know if my first impressions are infatuation or lasting lust. I tend to favor EL84 amps, I have several and love the singing quality of the little bottles. It was a great evening.

Thanks for posting this thread. This is something I have really been wanting to do.

M

By any chance in your testing can you tell me the difference when not using any pedals, just straight to the amp with the guitar?

Thanks for the review, waiting to hear more!

 

[MasterTrax]

Russ, it is definitely worth a try in my opinion. With the power reducers I feel like I am running a completely different amp.

GuitarCarr, the sound without the eq and OCD on chan 2 is tight, responsive and just a bit FIZZY.

The sound on chan 1 without any pedals is clean and clear with a vintage tone, lots of harmonics. Cranking chan 1's gain OR volume yielded a classic vox-like breakup. I used the OCD and Tube King like a preamp on chan 1. I used the eq to clean up the bottom end a bit. Very little eq was used or needed. Even with the pedals working the sound of the amp was allowed to shine through.

I'll post more after I play with the rig again tonight.

M

 

[GuitarCarr]

Thanks, I've been thinking of doing this too. Let me know the rest of your results!