WHO THE HE** ever said EL34's were good in a Mark V? ...

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litesnsirens

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... because whoever you are.... I HAVE TO THANK YOU!!!!!


Let me start by saying I already loved this amp with the stock 6L6's, easily my favourite amp of all the amps I have owned over the years. I loved the sound of my old Hi-Watt back in the 80's but it was a single channel amp and nowhere near as versatile, so the Mark V wins hands down, it's got tone and versatility. Now, I could have easily stayed with the 6L6's and been a happy customer for life, but after reading all the posts on here about guys loving the sound of 34's I figured I would invest a few bucks and give them a try. There is no turning back now. And here is the kicker, I just bought Mesa EL 34's, stopped into my local music store and that's what they had in stock, didn't even go out of my way to get something sexy and exotic.

These tubes rock in this amp. I think if I was looking for a heavier bottom end, you know the detuned, 7 string heavier kind of tone, I would stick with the 6L6's but I play more classic rock. I find the tone easier to dial in, the lows and the high end are a little more tamed down and musical. Mark I mode really comes to life with these tubes. In some of the Boogie literature I have read they talk about that kind of sax tone that you get via the gain stage structure they use, and I think that it's a really good description, but I found it a little harsh and wanted something a little more creamy. The EL34's deliver!! I really think the mesa boogie gain structure tamed by the 34's is a perfect combination.

I was sort of skeptical because I was thinking that I would probably have to turn it on and play it with the 6L's then change the tubes and play the 34's to really notice any kind of difference since the difference would be at the power tube stage. I was even considering recording such a session so I could really listen side by side. But I didn't have time, I had a rehearsal that night and really only enough time to put the new tubes in and get to rehearsal. I was able to hear the difference, I was able to feel the difference, it was just a different experience. That was a week ago yesterday, then on Friday I had a gig with my other band, and fell even deeper in love with these tubes, and then another rehearsal last night. I mean when you are just blown away by your guitar tone all night, it tells the story. I have made a few adjustments, on the fly. I am still in FAT mode on channel one... brought up the mid's a bit and got a nice big fat clean tone. I have switched from crunch to Mark I in channel 2... and love it, I have always like to fool around with this mode but never found it a useful tone for me live, and went from II C+ to Mark IV mode on channel 3... just minor adjustments to my previous tone settings and I am now in tone heaven. Everything sits in the mix so nicely.

OK I think I have raved on long enough about this... just wanted to share my experience, for those who are on the edge and thinking about giving it a try... it comes down to the type of music you like to play really .. the 6L's are the thing if you want that big heavy tone (and I'm not talking about the saturation levels, there's plenty of range there whichever tubes you use) ... if you are more of a classic rock player ... I think 34's are the answer.
 
Same here man, just did a full retube on mine yesterday and popped in a set of SED EL34s and I am loving the tones I'm getting! The Mark 1 mode really is more fun to play now and I've always loved the Edge mode, but love it even more now. It's funny cause I was trying out my overdrive pedal with it awhile ago (Tonefreak Abunai 2) and I just don't like it with the V, probably end up selling it or it's gonna collect dust cause to me the V doesn't need any kind of overdrive pedals. But I'm glad you're digging it with the EL34s, jam away! :D
 
I just put some Blue 450's in today, wow.. they sound great. The distortion is alot better to my ears and the cleans in fat are true.. no grit. The Grey 450's I have sound alot different, but still great. They seem to have less distortion to me.
 
Lesterpaul did, over a year ago, in this thread. http://forum.grailtone.com/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=37145&start=45 We dialed in the Mark I mode, featured later on in the same thread. 8)
 
litesnsirens:

I agree with your assessment exactly! I too really enjoyed my MkV with the stock 6L6 tubes (for about 1 year). I decided to change to EL34's (stock Mesa) about 5 months ago and have not looked back! I was surprised how well the clean sounds of channel 1 handled the EL34's and that was really my only concern prior to making the switch. Do my cleans sound the same in channel 1 with the switch from 6L6's to EL34's.....no, but they sound great in their own way. The sounds of channel 2 and 3 clearly are different as well with the EL34's, but I happen to prefer them for my taste and needs!

Personally, I feel that stock Mesa tubes are as good as any others. I have experienced good reliability and great sounds using stock Mesa tubes for many years and will continue to stick with them unless I experience significant issues down the road. Personally, I feel that the "sexy and exotic" tubes are more hype than anything else. Honestly, those "exotic tubes" may be exactly identical to MB with a different brand name printed on the tube. Sound "quality" is so subjective. My .02
 
Ok...i finally did it too...
I switched to some old EL34's. Two Winged C's in V8 and V9 and two EHX
in V10 and V11.

Needless to say it sounds pretty **** good. :D It does give the amp
a more classic rock feel for sure, esp. on crunch. I must admit though,
the 6L6's seem more 3d to me, a little more "glassy", and more "laid
back," somewhat subdued.

The EL34's seem to balance the volume between the channels better,
is more "in your face" and I can tell now it's gonna sit in the upper
mid range in our mix.

I need more time with the EL34's to get a better feel but this is
what I get so far. I'll know better after I hook up with the band tomorrow.


I have one issue though. Since the tubes are a little old, I found that my
V10 tube is bad, no light. I switched from V11 to V10 and it still follows.
10 watt mode sounds flat as well.

I'm leaving it on 45W so I can use the winged C's in V8 an V9 only.
Does anyone see anything wrong with running it this way for the
short term or should I just drop in 6L6s until I can get a full
complement of good EL34s?

thanks!!!


Edit: I put the 6L6's back in just to be safe...and the amp pretty much lost it's balls.
I just ordered two matched pairs of SEDs so I can get me balls back...haha.
 
Yeah I loved the 6L6 setup myself but found,using sevenstring guitars,I wanted a tighter sound.The EL34s did this for me...cant see goin back but I do pop the factory tubes in every now and then just to remind myself how much better I like it.
 

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