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Post by ronmail65 on Nov 3, 2009 10:42:53 GMT -5
So I've had my ProMod for just over 2 years now. It sounds great, but I'm wondering where I stand with regard to tube life and what is a normal expectation for tube replacement. It's got the stock tubes that Scott uses (whatever that might be).
Related to that... any tube recommendations would be greatly appreciated. If I can mellow the top end by using different tubes, that would be of interest to me.
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Post by joelaroint on Nov 3, 2009 11:25:30 GMT -5
So I've had my ProMod for just over 2 years now. It sounds great, but I'm wondering where I stand with regard to tube life and what is a normal expectation for tube replacement. It's got the stock tubes that Scott uses (whatever that might be). Related to that... any tube recommendations would be greatly appreciated. If I can mellow the top end by using different tubes, that would be of interest to me. JJ's in the pre's would tame some of the high end. As far as power tubes, I don't have much exp. w/ el34's |
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Post by DonaldDemon on Nov 3, 2009 11:26:03 GMT -5
So I've had my ProMod for just over 2 years now. It sounds great, but I'm wondering where I stand with regard to tube life and what is a normal expectation for tube replacement. It's got the stock tubes that Scott uses (whatever that might be). Related to that... any tube recommendations would be greatly appreciated. If I can mellow the top end by using different tubes, that would be of interest to me. After 2 years is when I typically change my tubes. If I ever learn how to bias myself I would do it more often but since I currently pay a tech to do it I let it go longer than I would like. Ideally, every 6 months to a year would be best but it depends on how often you play the amp. Mine only gets used at band practice an gigs so it’s moderate use I guess. If you want to tame the top end I strongly suggest the Tung Sol RI 6550’s and 12ax7’s. I had the stock JJ KT88’s and preamp tubes and the top end was a lot more harsh then. Ever since I went with Tung Sol’s and now using SB-25 speakers I have zero complaints. |
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Post by ronmail65 on Jan 9, 2010 17:56:18 GMT -5
Chapter I
In mid-December my power tubes went out on me. I had an excellent local tech replace the tubes. He highly recommended against using 6550s because, in his experience, they require much more voltage and he didn't think that was necessarily good for the amp. The original power tubes, Genalex brand, were far more costly than other barnds and my tech had no experience with them to know if they were any better or worse. So, we installed EH KT88s and biased them at 50. How does that sound? (I have no idea)
Anyway, I find the amp sounding a little less bright and a little more spongy. Definitely less harsh. I'm pleased with the result.
Chapter II
Since getting the amp back, I put about 5 hours on it with the new tubes. Then at a gig last night, with the amp on for about 15 minutes, I grabbed my guitar for our sound check and the amp went dead. Mains fuse blown and I didn't have any spares. Fortunately we were opening for another band so I was able to use one of their amps. It was an Orange (not sure what model) and sounded pretty freakin' good. Never played thru an Orange before. Still, I missed the solo boost and nice mids from my Splawn.
I took the ProMod back to my tech today. Problem was a bad power tube -- hairline crack was found. I'm back in business... at least for now.
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Post by brian on Jan 9, 2010 22:34:57 GMT -5
ok i am not saying that is 100% not true since i am not a expert but...i had 6550's in my pro mod (two sets) and i beat the balls off of it and it never skipped a beat. rich ward has them in his pro mod (he actually told me to get them in the first place) and he tours with his and logs a ton of studio time with his different projects and his rips as well and he has never had a problem (to my knowledge) so i don't know how they/the voltage they require could be "bad "for the amp.
again..i don't know for sure but i would imagine that a kt-88 probably runs right around the same voltage since they are similar tube. i could see that statement (maybe) if the amp was built around a el-34 or 6l6.
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Post by zao on Jan 10, 2010 11:24:02 GMT -5
I tried some different pre tubes in my promod and I ended up liking a tung sol in v1 and jj in the other slots.
I normally hate jj pre tubes and usually always like Chinese in the pre but not in the promod.
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Post by ronmail65 on Jan 10, 2010 17:45:10 GMT -5
ok i am not saying that is 100% not true since i am not a expert but...i had 6550's in my pro mod (two sets) and i beat the balls off of it and it never skipped a beat. rich ward has them in his pro mod (he actually told me to get them in the first place) and he tours with his and logs a ton of studio time with his different projects and his rips as well and he has never had a problem (to my knowledge) so i don't know how they/the voltage they require could be "bad "for the amp. again..i don't know for sure but i would imagine that a kt-88 probably runs right around the same voltage since they are similar tube. i could see that statement (maybe) if the amp was built around a el-34 or 6l6. Josh at Splawn told me 6550s would be fine. The tech I use is a fairly conservative guy and he didn't have any experience with Splawns. I think he was just being cautious. |
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Post by philm on Mar 4, 2010 8:12:40 GMT -5
Looks like I'm probably getting a Pro Mod.
I just sold and shipped the most amazing sounding VHT Ultralead, another KT88 amp. This one had =C= (winged C) 6550 tubes in the power section and I'm wondering the impact of those tubes vs. KT88s. I'm also thinking 6550s might be the way to go with the Pro Mod. Thoughts?
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Post by philm on Mar 5, 2010 7:52:11 GMT -5
The Pro Mod is the bastard stepchild isn't it? ha ha ha
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Post by DonaldDemon on Mar 5, 2010 10:18:59 GMT -5
The Pro Mod is the bastard stepchild isn't it? ha ha ha ;D I use the Tung Sol 6550's and like then much better than the JJ KT88's. |
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Post by philm on Mar 8, 2010 17:30:20 GMT -5
Tung Sol, eh? I'll look into those.
I'll hear it with the KT88s on Wed! Very excited about this amp.
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Post by angusdeadking on May 7, 2010 5:23:06 GMT -5
So, I was checking out my amp before I use it Saturday night and discovered that BOTH of my outer power tubes had hairline cracks! I freaked out and called Josh and explained the situation. I cant get the it retubed before Saturday but I can yank those tubes and run at half power for my saturday show. I leave on tour next week and my Splawn is staying home with the Splawn guys until I get back. Josh suggested a retube with Sino EL34B's which apparently have KT88 abilities and I wont need a resistor swap either. Im excited about trying something new! On a side note, I found that I have the 31'st Splawn built and they are at over a thousand now!
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Post by angusdeadking on May 11, 2010 21:14:28 GMT -5
Dropped her off at the shop on Monday. I guess I'll officially be a Quick-Rod owner instead of a Pro-Mod owner when I get it back. I leave on tour with the mighty Antiseen tomorrow. We are heading out of NC for Delaware and heading West from there. I should be back in June and get back to rocking my precious Splawn! I'm gonna miss her but at least I'll have my Telecaster and Twin Reverb to keep me company in the meantime...
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Post by angusdeadking on May 26, 2010 16:36:36 GMT -5
Back home with Splawn in-hand! So I picked up my pro-mod from Josh yesterday. I had it retubed with Sino EL34B's and let me just say....WOW!!! This is a totally different beast altogether! The KT88's just gave me way more headroom than I needed and I wanted a bit more emphasis on the upper mids. The Sinos really did the trick! It has a super-aggressive feel that just wasnt there with the kt88s. Also, I can utilize the treble knob a lot differently now. I used to keep the treble and presence controls on zero but now I get a lot of bite out of the treble knob. I also love the cut it has now, it always cut like a knife before but now it really couples the bottom end and the mids for a kick in the chest that still sounds musical and clear. With the kt88's, I always favored the sound of my flying v (i guess the low-mids of the pro-mod worked well with the brightness of the v) but now, my Les Paul has taken its throne. You can just hear the thickness of the Les Paul now and the V almost sounds a bit muddy (thats probably just a pickup issue though). I've only played on it for a couple of hours so far but I love it and cant wait to play some more!
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Post by MetalHeart on May 29, 2010 18:15:33 GMT -5
Dropped her off at the shop on Monday. I guess I'll officially be a Quick-Rod owner instead of a Pro-Mod owner when I get it back. I leave on tour with the mighty Antiseen tomorrow. We are heading out of NC for Delaware and heading West from there. I should be back in June and get back to rocking my precious Splawn! I'm gonna miss her but at least I'll have my Telecaster and Twin Reverb to keep me company in the meantime... Antiseen? I shop at the guitarist's record shop  A little place called "Repo Depot",cool guy with alot of old records! Cheap too ;D Wow , small world |
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A little place called "Repo Depot",cool guy with alot of old records! Cheap too ;D