Studio Preamp with high gain low output tubes

Hey ya all,

Been reading this board for over a year now. I finally found a Mesa I like and can afford! Picked up a used Studio Preamp the other day. It's still en route, but I'll certainly post results when I get it!

Anyway, I'm going to retube when I get it. I wrote Eurotubes and asked them about a high gain option with low output, and here's what they said:

"Your Mesa Studio preamp uses four 12AX7's and one 12AT7, so if you're after a bit more gain and increased articulation, I would go with three high gain ECC83S's in V1, V2 and V3. I would use a matched triode ECC83S in V4 which is the output tube. I would use one JJ ECC81 to replace the 12AT7. The high gain ECC83S's have about 10% more gain than standards which adds a bit of bite and a sharper dynamic but does not hurt the clean tone. The other attribute that these tubes have is a faster filament rise time which is great for a shred style, and is also good for fast palm mute and metal styles. For a substantial drop in signal strength at the output, you could substitute a matched triode ECC81 for V4. A full Retube with all the tubes detailed above, would run 64.50 and we can ship them for 8.00 by Priority mail with a 3 day delivery anywhere in the US."

If anybody's got some feedback, I would appreciate it. I'm wondering if that low output ECC81 for V4 will affect tone at all?

Thanks,
Scott in TX

All I can say is...wow...

This is my first Mesa, and I just can't believe the tone. I picked up a Studio Preamp off Ebay and immediately retubed it with the high gain low output thing. Scary thing is I'm only running my preamp through a Fender Blues Jr! I've got a Roadster 1X12 cab on the way along with a 50/50.

Next issue...what kind of tubes to put in the power amp? LoL

Guys, I've spent countless hours reading your posts and am glad to finally be able to post!

See ya around.

I am thinking about doing this as well. Did it effect the clean channel ( can you still get a good non distorted clean sound)? I am looking to get a bit more punch from my pre. for some metal covers. Is the gain still manageable ( not over saturated/muddy )? Thanks for taking the time to post the results. 8)

TOOLGUY,
The high gain low output tube thing does not affect my cleans at all. I love my Blues Junior and think it has great tone, but I actually like the Mesa cleans better. Not to mention that the Mesa is much more responsive to picking dynamics!

I'm quite happy with the gain as well and am confident that I can pull off metal when I get my 50/50 & Roadster cab. I will say, though, that even with my Blues Junior (I put a Vintage 30 in it.) and it's open back, I will still getting respectable chunk with the lead off, the lead bright on, and the lead gain set at 3.75. Oh, don't think I mentioned in the other posts, but I'm using a stock Schecter C-1 classic.

It's gonna take me a while to learn the in's & out's of the Mesa, but so far I'm quite impressed. I have a nice, modded overdrive pedal from Analog Man that I was using on the Blues Junior, but I have yet to plug it into the Mesa and see absolutely no reason to at this point.

TOOLMAN,
What kind of rig are you running?