Liverpool el84s

[Buschman]

Does there seem to be a favorite el84 for the Liverpool. I am running a mixture of Sovtec and JJ used junk and think it sounds great. Curious what the cork sniffer tubes would do. What did Ken like?

[UR12]

Does there seem to be a favorite el84 for the Liverpool. I am running a mixture of Sovtec and JJ used junk and think it sounds great. Curious what the cork sniffer tubes would do. What did Ken like?

My favorites so far, are NOS GE EL84s and NOS GE Long plate 12AX7s. The only problem is finding a long plate that will work in the V1 spot that isn't microphonic.

This should be a fun thread

[Fischerman]

For a reasonably priced, stout EL84 a lot of folks like the surplus Russian military tubes. The Russian designation is 6pi14pi (where pi is our pi symbol)...they are also nicknamed 'Saratovs'.

There are at least two versions. One version has discolored pins and looks exactly like an EH EL84 on the inside. The other has shiny pins and doesn't look like any other EL84s I have internally...these are sold by Sovtek as the EL84M (it MUST have the 'M' designation). I have a close-up picture of both plus an EH but it's at home. If I remember I'll post it.

Preamp tubes you just have to find via trial and error imo. IMO, JJ ECC83s have a subdued top end, JJ ECC803S are very sparkley on top but prone to microphonics, Tung Sol reissues have a high-mid presence, and EH have a fat bottom end.

[Plague]

I love my made in Holland Hammond's. They are actually Amperex ones from the 50's

[dartanion]

Saratovs or the EL84M Sovteks, and NOS Mullards also sound great. The Russian Military versions are solid and somewhat dark, more like a 7189. If you want more chime and brightness, use an EL84/6BQ5, preferably RCA or GE for US made; Mullards, Amperex, Telefunkens and RFTs sound nice too.

[MikeMcK]

Curious what the cork sniffer tubes would do. What did Ken like?

From here: http://www.ultimateguitargear.com/ken_fischer_story.htm

"Groove Tubes were the standard tubes in Trainwreck amps for years. ... Groove Tubes always had good EL-84's and I'd recommend them for any EL-84 equipped amp. Grade #4 for a "Wreck," and grade #6 for a J.M.I. Vox."

Now, exactly what Groove Tubes were shipping back then is a question for folks more knowledgeable than me.

[dartanion]

Curious what the cork sniffer tubes would do. What did Ken like?

From here: http://www.ultimateguitargear.com/ken_fischer_story.htm

"Groove Tubes were the standard tubes in Trainwreck amps for years. ... Groove Tubes always had good EL-84's and I'd recommend them for any EL-84 equipped amp. Grade #4 for a "Wreck," and grade #6 for a J.M.I. Vox."

Now, exactly what Groove Tubes were shipping back then is a question for folks more knowledgeable than me.

Not the same stuff any more for the most part. Nowadays, it's a challenge to find ANY new production tubes that are decent. Things have gotten better in the past couple of years, but we're still light years behind how things were done classically. QA/QC is still pretty bad from the factory.