EL84 power tube suggestions?

[Securb]

I am thinking of retubing my Peavey Classic 20h before taking it in the studio. It takes two EL84 power tubes and 3 12AX7/ECC83. For 12AX7s I tend to like Mullards. However, this is my first amp with EL84s, and I am open to suggestions. Keep in mind that I play high-gain metal.

My first thought is to just go with all Mullard glass like my Marshall.

 

[ehdwuld]

I use the Rubys in my EL84 amps

Carvin Belair is the only one I have retubed as yet
and it took Rubys in the power section
I did have Rubys in the Preamp as well but swapped those back to the Groove tubes that came with
the Rubys just didn't sound right

 

[Rex_Rocker]

High gain metal: Russian 6P14P-EV, no questions.

I went down that rabbit hole. Basically, you want the EL84's that sound the least like EL84's. You want the widest EQ range, the highest headroom, the cleanest and most powerful. Those are it. Because even those have a much narrower soundstage than any big-bottle and even 6V6's.

If you don't want to risk getting NOS, the current variations/tweaks are your best bet, IMO. Sovtek EL84M's, Gold Lion N709's, Tung Sol 7189's are all variations on the old Russian 6P14P-EV.

There are some sites that state that the TAD EL84's are the most 6V6-like... I don't quite agree. They do seem to have a sparkly top end (compared to other 84's), and a scooped low midrange (for clarity), but 6P14P-EV's have more girth.

Keep in mind, though, even the best EL84's still sound like EL84's, and I still don't think any pair of them is gig-worthy in a Metal scenario. But they work great for recording as long as you keep the poweramp loud enough to work its magic, but not super loud so that the EL84 sound starts to kick in so blatantly.

 

[El Dunco]

I haven’t had a single issue with the sovtek EL84s. They’re incrediy reliable. I have a huge pile of NOS Sovtek EL84s if you want any. They’re also pretty smooth and not as grainy as 84s are known for.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I haven’t had a single issue with the sovtek EL84s. They’re incrediy reliable. I have a huge pile of NOS Sovtek EL84s if you want any. They’re also pretty smooth and not as grainy as 84s are known for.

After the Sovtek EL84M's, their regular EL84/6BQ5's are also good. That's my second choice.

New Sensor offers a bunch of slight variations on those two designs. But for the most part, I tend to like Sovtek power tubes. They're cheap, they're reliable, and they've got a personality that fits the sonic signature that I gravitate towards.

It's mostly JJ's that I stay away from. Their ECC83S's have all been rock solid to me, even if they're not my favorite sound-wise. But TBH, I've NEVER had a set of JJ power tubes not fail on me, LOL. Their EL84's aren't particularly good sounding (to my ears) either, especially for Metal. JMO, course.

 

[El Dunco]

I have an absolutely ton of surplus Sovtek 6QB5s if anyone is interested. My one and only amp that uses them hasn’t burned out one in well over a decade, I really only need one spare set and I’m happy to sell the rest