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my streamliner 900 V1 rolling experiments

johnk_10

johnk_10

vintage bass nut
Inactive
Commercial User
Feb 16, 2008
21,240
23,638
Washington, Utah
johnkvintageguitars.homestead.com
Disclosures
John K Custom Basses
#1
ever since i built my own dual 3015 cab for it, i've been rolling tube V1 in my streamliner to try and make it's 'voice' and attack match my cab to my liking as much as possible. for V2 and V3 i'm running NOS RCA's (which are my faves for those two positions afer quite a bit of tube rolling with NOS, amperex 'bugle boys', mullards, telefunkens etc).

today, i was just concentrating on V1. i tried all of the follwing NOS tubes in it:

Mullard 1962 ECC83
RCA 1966 7025
GE triple mica 1957 5751
Telefunken 1965 12AX7 (long smooth plate)
Philips 1982 12AT7
Amperex 1965 'Bugle Boy'

to me, they all sounded great, big rich and full, and the RCA's tone was the brightest out of all of them (which i liked) but for me, the GE 5751, while a bit darker overall, had a certain 'bloom' to it's attack that made it feel a bit more like my Ampeg SVT so that's what i'm going with for now. if you're looking for the fastest 'touch response', i'd recommend an NOS RCA 7025. the RCA is super punchy in V1. almost too punchy for me. the RCA was also my favorite with the gain was pushed hard into distortion, but i don't usually use that gritty of a sound.

BTW, so i could test them quickly, i just removed the top cover, and rather than turn the amp on and off for each test, i just set the master volume to zero and then just 'hot swapped' the tubes in it, with no ill effects.

if i have time tomorrow, i'll try to post some clips to show what i mean about their tone and response.
 
#5
from the genz benz site:

"DESCRIPTION

The STM-900 is our 900 watt version of the Streamliner™ design. The 300 volt All Tube Class A preamp design is driven by three 12AX7 preamp tubes utilizing six gain stages...."

i don't know if they're running them at 300V, (which is probably is the power supply's voltage) but from what i understand they're running at high voltages like in a fender amp (around 250-270V) but, i suppose that i could just measure it.
 
#8
you should also try the Shuguang 12AX7-C9 or it's lastest incarnation the 12AX7-B! both are from China and claim to be the highest gain tube in that class. i replaced a 12AX7-EHX and was floored by the presence, bloom, and harmonics. i swear i've never heard so much content in one single note! :hyper:
 
#10
johnk_10 said:
BTW, so i could test them quickly, i just removed the top cover, and rather than turn the amp on and off for each test, i just set the master volume to zero and then just 'hot swapped' the tubes in it, with no ill effects.
Click to expand...

Just a general note here that applies to many tube/hybrid amps on the market... this is not a good idea nor is it recommended as there is high voltage present throughout the amplifier and the resulting transients that could occur from doing so could be damaging.

Also, should a pin on the tube be bent or the tube be rotated in such a position that a couple of wrong pins enter the socket, which is totally possible (even though the tube is not fully inserted) damage could result due to internal connections within the tube istelf when the amp is powered up.

Please remove power from the amplifier when swapping tubes,and be careful that the pin on the tubes are straight and enter the socket contacts accurately.
 
#12
pacojas said:
you should also try the Shuguang 12AX7-C9 or it's lastest incarnation the 12AX7-B! both are from China and claim to be the highest gain tube in that class. i replaced a 12AX7-EHX and was floored by the presence, bloom, and harmonics. i swear i've never heard so much content in one single note! :hyper:
Click to expand...


actually, higher gain in V1 is pretty much the opposite of what i'm looking for, and IME, an NOS RCA 7025 is pretty hard to beat.
 
#16
Tomorrow I will be doing my first tube roll in my STL600. I have all NOS - GE 5751 triple mica, Amperex and Telefunken 12ax7's, all tested as new. I know the 5751 will go in V1, though I have not made up my mind about the other two. Switch em around and see what happens I reckon.
 
#17
okay, here's the first two clips of the STM900 (pardon my simple Stone's riff). the bass is a 7 3/4lb p bass, duncan SPB-1 pickup (w/ both controls wide open) w/fneder 9050SL flats:

NOS GE 5751

NOS RCA 7025

now after listening back to them, IMO, they're pretty similar, but i actually now prefer the RCA 7025. it's a little tighter and brighter. to me, the 5751's bloom is a little bit nicer but the RCA's tone is a little more pleasing to me. plus, when pushed into clipping, i like its distortion better.
 
#20
Hmmmm I must have a Tin ear and that is with a set of Harmon Kardons.

The issue I have had the most with the Streamliner into one 8 ohm 1x12 cab is not solid enough/too much distortion creeping in/too gushy soft when I'm not paying attention (concentrating on playing at a gig). I can't tell you how many times I have launched into a solo expecting clean and realizing my sound is overdriven with a 12ax7. I wonder how a 5751 would help this? I have had good results with a 5814 but you have to crank the gain to compensate for the gain reduction. Sounds good though.

Now into two 8 ohm 1x12 cabs with a 12ax7 in V1 I have not had any issues. The sound is more solid due to the power and cone increase.
 

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