Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

Hoss

Joyfulnoiseologist
seems like a cool idea?! wonder how well they really work!?


thdyellowjackets.jpg

"What are Yellow Jackets®?
Yellow Jackets® Converters are a type of specialized adapters which permit the use of EL84/6BQ5 power tubes in place of 6V6, 6L6, EL34, and 7591 types.

How do they work?
They give you simple Class-A operation from any amp.Yellow Jacket® Converters not only rearrange the pin locations of the tubes, but also provide the necessary current limiting on the screens and cathode as well as blocking the amplifier's grid bias voltage, while configuring the EL84 in a Class-A, Self-adjusiting cathode-bias circuit. In other words, there are no adjustments to make and no modifications necesary, you simply plug the Yellow Jackets® into the amp's output tube sockets, (in cathode-bias amplifiers) screw the ground wires under one of the output tube socket mounting screws, plug the provided EL84's into the Yellow Jackets®, turn on the amp and play.

How will they change my amplifier?
It's like getting a whole new amplifier! In Champ and Deluxe type amplifiers, the Yellow Jackets® output is smooth, strong and more even than with the stock 6V6s. When the Yellow jackets® Converters are installed inlarger amplifiers intended for 6L6s or EL34 output tubes, the high plate and screen voltages are reduced as well as current limited to protect the EL84 and to drop output power. When a pair of Yellow Jackets® are used in a Marshall 50 watt or similar amplifier, the overall power drops to about 20 watts and takes on more of the character of an old Vox AC30. The distortion is smoother and more even and the output is both substantially reduced and more compressed due to the Class-A nature of the Yellow Jackets®. In a 100 watt amp like a Twin Reverb or Marshall 100, either two or four Yellow Jackets® can be used. If only two are used and the other two sockets are left empy, the output is dropped to about 20 watts. With four in place, the amp puts out about 40 watts and takes on a whole new warmth and richness.

In the cases of the YJ7591 converters, the overall ouput power remains the same, but the sound becomes fuller and the extinct 7591 are replaced with common and inexpensive EL84 tubes. In old Ampeg Reverb Rockets and the like, you experience a warmth and sweetness that you could never get with the now unavailable 7591 tubes.

Will they hurt my amp?
No! Yellow Jacket® converters are safe for all amplifiers and transformers. As all Yellow Jacket® Converters internally limit voltage and current they put no extra strain on amplifiers' power and output transformers or internal components. Using the Yellow Jackets® in higher powered amplifiers actually reduces the strain on the transformers and internal components because it reduces the overall wattage of the system. Furthermore, the heater (or filament) current of the EL84 is lower than that of the 6L6, EL34 or 7591, so the Yellow Jacket® will reduce the strain on the filament windings of the power transformer as well."
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

I had them. They worked great. I just didn't dig the sound of the EL84s in my amp (Crate Blue Voodoo).
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

it would kinda be an expensive experiment then huh?
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

You'd lose some cash if you don't like them, that's for sure. I got mine, and sold mine on ebay. Also bought two brand new JJ tubes from Eurotubes.

The Blue Voodoo is a finicky amp though. My guitar tech said I probably wouldn't like the sound, but stubborn ol me had to see for myself. I've heard people who rave about these in Marshalls. I think it's the 6V6 designs like my amp and Fenders that don't like the EL84s. I think.
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

I used a pair in a Marshall DSL 50. Sounded OK, but not great. They would be worth it if you were doing alot of studio recording, as they do change the sound of an amp, giving you more options.

My DSL sounded better with the stock EL34 tubes.
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

I've got a pair :rolleyes:....they sounded good in some amps/not so good in others.

When I traded my UniValve away for a Hiwatt, I gave the guy a bunch of tubes & the 1 YJ I had & he gave me a pair of 6CA7s & 2 YJs.

They worked very well with the Hiwatt BTW.....

Yeah, a semi-pricey experiment, but you can always get rid of them if you don't like them. You won't get BRAND NEW prices, but a fair price is better than collecting dust!


If you get an amp you wanna try them in, let me know....you can try mine out before dropping the cash on some:bigthumb:
 
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Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

thanks bro...i may take you up on that offer one of these days!
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

I had a pair when I owned my Bivalve. They worked great and I discovered I don't like el84's.
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

I used em in 2 amps

I used em in a MESA HEARTBREAKER where I mixed it with 6L6's. It worked GREAT! I like the thickness it gave the mid signature. It was like a nice tweak that gave a 6L6 amp the "british" feel I wanted. Added nice harmonics and it really had that vox-y feel. With the half power switch it gave me a nice rich poor man's BUDDA at 18-20 watts.

On the MARSHALL, it took all the balls from the Marshall and made them kinda Vox-y and really creamy. I like my Marshall Plexi to be a Plexi. NOW here is the killer, MIXED WITH EL34's IT WAS WAYYYYY HARSH IN THE MIDS. The El34 Marshall is middy enough. With the EL84's MIXED, it lost bottom, got a weird harmonic overtone over the top that I didn't dig compared to the real thing, AND it had HARSH mids.
 
Re: Yellowjackets...any experience with them?!

IN my experience, they can make a poor sounding amp sound better sometimes, but they didn't seem to help much for amps that have been modded to dial in a particular sound. I use them in a JCM 900 Dual Reverb which has a poor Marshall sound IMO. The YJs make it Voxy like "O" says and the amp usable in the studio. They sound pretty good also in my 80 50W JMP, but don't sound so good in my 77 Super Lead which was modded with a PTP board and extra 12ax7 for gain. They also didn't do much for my Splawn modded Marshall. KInda fun to mess with though and give you a different sound dimension to experiment with.
 
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