6L6 or El34?
- Thread starter BlueSky
- Start date
fenderiarhs
New member
Re: 6L6 or El34?
i'm afraid i can't answer one or the other...............I really think you need to own both......
i'm afraid i can't answer one or the other...............I really think you need to own both......
sosomething
Seymour Duncan Customer Support
Re: 6L6 or El34?
For high gain? EL34s all the way.
That's just my preference. I also like 6550s, KT77s, and KT88s.
I think those types of tube all have a smoother break-up than 6L6s do. I may have it wrong, but I feel like the waveforms that a 6L6 produces under duress can sound choppy and, well, broken up. It's kind of a low end and low-mids thing. EL34s tend to get more raw in the upper mids but stay tighter in the low end.
That's just my backwards perception of what's going on. YMMV.
For high gain? EL34s all the way.
That's just my preference. I also like 6550s, KT77s, and KT88s.
I think those types of tube all have a smoother break-up than 6L6s do. I may have it wrong, but I feel like the waveforms that a 6L6 produces under duress can sound choppy and, well, broken up. It's kind of a low end and low-mids thing. EL34s tend to get more raw in the upper mids but stay tighter in the low end.
That's just my backwards perception of what's going on. YMMV.
JeffB
Let it B
Re: 6L6 or El34?
You Sir, said basically what I would have.
I cannot stand a high gain 6l6 amp when the power tubes are getting cooked. Low end gets too farty/choppy, high end gets too fizzy. 6l6 amps need a lot of headroom and a well designed high gain pre-amp section. (Fender Bassmans and the like are a different story).
You Sir, said basically what I would have.
I cannot stand a high gain 6l6 amp when the power tubes are getting cooked. Low end gets too farty/choppy, high end gets too fizzy. 6l6 amps need a lot of headroom and a well designed high gain pre-amp section. (Fender Bassmans and the like are a different story).
PFDarkside
of the Forum
Re: 6L6 or El34?
I like both 6L6 and EL34 for high gain, although I think I prefer 6L6 for metal type playing and EL34 for more hard rock type playing even though gain levels are about the same. I do bump the mids a little for the EL34 settings I use.
I like both 6L6 and EL34 for high gain, although I think I prefer 6L6 for metal type playing and EL34 for more hard rock type playing even though gain levels are about the same. I do bump the mids a little for the EL34 settings I use.
sosomething
Seymour Duncan Customer Support
Re: 6L6 or El34?
I'd try both in a Soldano.
All rules regarding intrinsic tube tone are general rules, anyway. All I know about are the amps I've owned and/or played, but since I think Soldanos have always been 6L6-based amps I would at least give those tubes a try before I went with EL34s.
I'd try both in a Soldano.
All rules regarding intrinsic tube tone are general rules, anyway. All I know about are the amps I've owned and/or played, but since I think Soldanos have always been 6L6-based amps I would at least give those tubes a try before I went with EL34s.
sosomething
Seymour Duncan Customer Support
Re: 6L6 or El34?
Woody and buttery.... I don't know. Those terms seem pretty arbitrary.
What you need is an auditory frame of reference.
Go to a music store and play through some Vox and Marshall tube amps (EL34)
Then play through a few Fender and Mesa/Boogie tube amps (6L6)
You'll hear differences over a pretty wide spectrum of tones, and you'll also see how, in general, tube type makes a lot less impact than the overall design of the circuit, cab, and speakers in an amp. Tube preference is really the result of people going for those last few percentage points of difference regarding a tone they've already come close to nailing that will put them over the edge, and that's just not something you can figure out by reading - you need to be listening.
Hope that helps!
Woody and buttery.... I don't know. Those terms seem pretty arbitrary.
What you need is an auditory frame of reference.
Go to a music store and play through some Vox and Marshall tube amps (EL34)
Then play through a few Fender and Mesa/Boogie tube amps (6L6)
You'll hear differences over a pretty wide spectrum of tones, and you'll also see how, in general, tube type makes a lot less impact than the overall design of the circuit, cab, and speakers in an amp. Tube preference is really the result of people going for those last few percentage points of difference regarding a tone they've already come close to nailing that will put them over the edge, and that's just not something you can figure out by reading - you need to be listening.
Hope that helps!
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BlueSky
New member
Re: 6L6 or El34?
vox/ marshall
fender/ mesa
so what you just said is what I asked. One has more of the british thing going, and the other has a more american vibe. heh. British tone sounds to me a rougher wood like tone, and american tone is a cleaner glass or liquid type tone.
vox/ marshall
fender/ mesa
so what you just said is what I asked. One has more of the british thing going, and the other has a more american vibe. heh. British tone sounds to me a rougher wood like tone, and american tone is a cleaner glass or liquid type tone.
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CapoFirstFret
New member
Re: 6L6 or El34?
My fault for not reading the thread and voting....sheesh....for high gain, definitely prefer EL34's...now which tube do I prefer overall? the 6L6, king of tone baby!
My fault for not reading the thread and voting....sheesh....for high gain, definitely prefer EL34's...now which tube do I prefer overall? the 6L6, king of tone baby!