Current production 6L6 ?

[markusw]

What current production 6L6 do you guys prefer regarding tone and reliability?
So far I had Winged Cs. I like them. They just became too expensive.

How many working hours approximately do you use them before it gets too risky that they might fail at gig?

Peace,

Markus

[vibratoking]

I am using Winged Cs in some amps. I also like the TAD short bottles.

I don't count the hours and just remove them based on that. I look at how the bias current drifts, but very rarely ever have a power tube drastically fail. So removing them before to avoid failure is not something that I do. I will replace them when they stop sounding 'correct'.

[SoundPerf]

I'm using the TAD WGC STR's. They sound great and have been holding up well.

I can't give an exact time range. I would say if you're gigging regularly, you should have at least one good backup set at any time.

[stelligan]

What current production 6L6 do you guys prefer regarding tone and reliability?
So far I had Winged Cs. I like them. They just became too expensive.

TubeDepot has them for $60 a pair right now. Still pricey - but 25% off...

[Structo]

be careful who you order power tubes from.

If they don't state that they burn the tubes in at operating voltage before they match them, they will drift under operation in your amp.

I bought a quad of Tung Sol 6L6GC STR from another vendor that drifted 8-10ma after a short time.

I know that Doug's Tubes burns them in, not sure who else does it.
No affiliation just a happy customer.
I bought a quad of TAD 6L6 STR from him and they have stayed closely matched after many hours of play.

From his site:
» Burning In

All power tubes are burned in for 24-48 hours using a pair of Maxi-Burn rigs that each burn in 30 tubes at a time. Burning the tubes in stabilizes the tube, which ensures a more accurate reading for when we match the tubes.

http://www.dougstubes.com/services/

[Mark]

So far the TAD's I'm using are good, I don't recommend Tungsol's as they sounded "pingy" which is to say bright and percussive. They'd probably sound good in brown face amp.

Winged C are a great tube!

[markusw]

Thanks a lot for your suggestions!
Will give the TAD 6L6WGC-STRs a try.

I don't count the hours and just remove them based on that. I look at how the bias current drifts, but very rarely ever have a power tube drastically fail. So removing them before to avoid failure is not something that I do. I will replace them when they stop sounding 'correct'.

Good to know, thanks !

TubeDepot has them for $60 a pair right now. Still pricey - but 25% off...

That's really a good price. In fact even $80 is much better than what we pay here in Europe (~ $120).
Unfortunately, ordering from TubeDepot will add another $29.95 for shipping, plus 20% import taxes and another ~$20 "handling fee" our local post office here in Austria charges for anything above Euro 22.

TAD offers the 6L6WGC-STR in two matching grades, standard and premium. I couldn't find any informations on the differences.

http://www.tubeampdoctor.com/en/shop_ot ... TR_TAD_834
http://www.tubeampdoctor.com/product_in ... anguage=en

Any ideas?

Regards,

Markus