jimihendrix6699

so i just got my tax return and im going to buy some new tubes for my amp, been needing them for a while now. i have a Traynor YCV40 and it has 3 sovtek 12ax7's in the preamp and 2 groove tube 6L6's in the power section. im more of a high gain player but also like to play some blues/low gain stuff. although, a really good high gain sound is more of a priority. i would also like the brighten the amp up a bit as it is pretty dark unless i crank the shit out of it/use an eq pedal.

any recommendations?

__________________

4FunandProphet

You could do worse than to call Bob at Eurotubes and see what he would recommend. He deals solely in JJ Tubes, so all of his suggestions and kits will use them. That being said, I have never owned or played through a Traynor, so I can't really comment on how his kits sound relative to other brands of tubes when used in that amp. However, I do know that one of the JJ kits made a world of difference on my Peavey C50 when I swapped out the stock Sovteks. I have since played around with the preamp tubes a bit, tried a few NOS tubes, and generally tweaked it to my liking. But the JJ set was a good start, so hopefully it will be for you as well, if you can't get any better solutions.

badkirk

The tone issues usually mean modifying the caps and resisters. As far as distortion and gain that's tubes. Remember to get your amp professionally re-biased when you change the power tubes.

__________________
YEAH!
http://bkwrepair.mysite.com/

brentonlatour

Definitely re-bias if you change the power tubes! You can do it yourself with a multimeter but it is fairly high voltage and moderately dangerous if you know nothing about electrical safety. Seriously, you could die.

For my amps that I like to have some good distortion, I use new Tungsol 12ax7's in the preamp. If the power amp is getting too overdriven, (harsh abrupt buzzy distortion) I put an 12au7 in the phase inverter.

jimihendrix6699

ah i gotcha, well i still have my EQ pedal to help that out. i thought that you only needed to re-bias when you change the type of power tube, like 6L6's to EL84's?

i ended up just getting a set of JJ's and if im not happy from there i will definitely try out those tungsol's. thanks dudes.

__________________

bburritt1

Yeah i leave biasing to the pros or have them show how to do it safely and correctly. I've been electrocuted 5 times in my life and i wouldnt want another on my list. So be smart and safe my friend!

__________________
The Rig of Joy:
Stiff Amplification Dirthead 20w
Bugera 2x12 Cab
Fender Partscaster Korean Made
Epiphone Prophecy
Washburn Southern Cross 34 of 100
Ibanez TS9,AD9,GCB95, Multi Chorus and TU2

4FunandProphet

No, you really should check the bias any time you replace the tubes, and adjust it if necessary. Going from one type of tube to another, such as from 6L6 to EL34, will certainly require a rebias, and depending on the tube, may require other circuit mods as well.