Mark_Bass Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Hello Bass chatters, The amp I recently brought (Mesa M9 Carbine) was upgraded with NOS Mallard tube, I was wondering what folk thought about compared to the standard 12AX7, And in general Mesa Boogie tubes in general? In the grand scheme of things how much difference would changing the single pre-amp tube make to the overall tone of an amp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldG Posted January 10, 2014 Share Posted January 10, 2014 Lay your hands on a cheapie 12ax7 out of a behringer pedal or similar, and try that.... I'm sure you'd hear a big difference. The Boogie tubes are very much better - I used a full set in my little Traynor Bassmate to add a bit of break up for guitar use. The Mullards that were in it would stay clean all the way up until flat out - and to be honest I found them too polite and treble shy for guitar. I run a valve LDC mic for vocal recording which has just been upgraded with a Sylvania 12ax7 from the for sale section here (thanks again Gareth), and you really tell the difference between tubes with this. The stock tube was nice but a just a little brittle and 2 dimensional. A new Electro Harmonix was fuller but less refined. A 70's Mullard had nice depth and complexity - but imho was too bassy/warm with a soft treble (that vintage British sound) The Sylvania has a nice bold open sound with lovely depth and detail (American sounding). I haven't tried a Boogie in there, but I'd bet it would be similar to the Electro Harmonix sonically.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_Bass Posted January 10, 2014 Author Share Posted January 10, 2014 Thanks G, that gives me some idea. I think i'll have free up some time to a/b the mallard to the mesa tubes to see if i notice\prefer one over the other :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark_Bass Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 I tried the amp ion Wednesday, it sounded great, so clean which oddly is what ive been looking for in my mesas. the amp itself was a bit hissy when connected to the cab, so im going to swap it to a new mesa tube just so i can get a baseline comparison. The amps booked in with my amp guy so he can give it the once over after its journey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverfoxnik Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 [quote name='OldG' timestamp='1389340998' post='2332951'] I run a valve LDC mic for vocal recording which has just been upgraded with a Sylvania 12ax7 from the for sale section here (thanks again Gareth), and you really tell the difference between tubes with this. The stock tube was nice but a just a little brittle and 2 dimensional. The Sylvania has a nice bold open sound with lovely depth and detail (American sounding). [/quote] +1 I'm just trying out a few different valves courtesy of Gareth also, and there is a significant difference between the ones he's just sent me and the two i already had - i.e. a Sovtek and a Ruby (I think that's what it is? The Sylvania 12ax7 gives a fabulous tone in my Daniel D turbo-booster pre-amp pedal compared to all the others, which include Mullards and Brimars, though the Brimar comes a very close second for me. The Sovtek and Ruby sound less full and rich to my ears and break up too easily for my taste. The Mullards are very warm sounding and the Brimars quite similar to them IMO.. Though I prefer the Brimar. Until this week, I really hadn't any experience of this, but having now tried out a variety of different valves, I'm absolutely convinced it's worth checking out as many different ones as you can to enhance and improve your tone.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.gif.9ad672bb8b84505709f76b39c8c256ec.gif)
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.