MV90 Swapping inner and outer pair of power tubes, safe?

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BrownieD2W

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Hey guys,

Been awhile since I've posted. I'm low on cash and have some gigs coming up in September, haven't replaced my tubes in about 18 months, and I put quite a few hours on them a week. I almost exclusively play in the 45w setting w/ EL34's and the Tube Rectifier on. 1) Do many of you guys run your Mark V the same way, and more importantly 2) Assuming that the 45w mode is only running the Inner Pair of power tubes, would it be safe to assume that I could get a little more life out of my tubes if I swap the Outer Pair for the Inner Pair to get me through the month?
 
Hi,

1) I don’t run the same way.
2) That would work to swap inners and outers. The inners should be the same color and the outers should be the same color.

For my V all power tubes are the same color. Mostly 10W is used because that’s the “home” power setting. Once in a while I’ll swap left pair with right pair. Does it help extend life? I have no idea but it doesn’t hurt.
 
I actually would not even swap them. I would take spares. If they have issues change them. Tubes actually last quite a while. I mean I can always tell when I put in a fresh set as the amp feels sharper and crisp but only you would hear the difference.
 
Sure, it is only safe to do so with the power switch turned off. Since the MKV90 cannot be run with an integrated quad like the older sinul-class Mark amps (EL34+6L6) you should be fine to swap the inner and outer pair of tubes. If you use the 10W mode a lot, remove both sets of tubes but keep them paired up and swap the left and right tube in the pair before you swap the inner to outer.
 
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