I was recently talking to a Vox serviceman about the Tonelab SE and changing valves from the stock 12ax7 to a 12au7 and he recomended not to as a 12au7 or any other valve rather than the stock valve could damage the electrical parts of the unit as a 12au7 runs at a different power wattage
Just curious to know before i do this has anybody else heard of this?
Changing Valves in SE
Wed, 2008/01/09 - 6:20pm — rojo
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That would seem to go
Thu, 2008/01/10 - 6:40am — firebrandThat would seem to go against the grain of many posts in this forum.
Also, the amount of current pushed through the tube is not enough to light it up on it's own.
It would seem to me whether a 12aX, 12aT, or 12aU that all would allow the SE to work as designed without incurring damage.
Maybe this service man
Thu, 2008/01/10 - 8:21am — mself61Maybe this service man hasn't read this forum, there have been tons of post of people whom have changed their valves and even posted youtube video's of the process, although this might void warranty I don't believe anyone has damaged their unit by using a different valve, I often wonder if one can push a higher voltage through the tube to make it run hotter but then you'd have to expect damage trying to accomplish that I assume. I have yet to change the tube in mine although I have purchased a few different ones to do this, I guess I'm content with the current performance for my needs.
www.selfdistruction.com
Rojo; I've switched out my
Thu, 2008/01/10 - 1:06pm — hotramanRojo;
I've switched out my valve about a year ago and have not experienced any problems. On certain patches you can hear a slight difference.
The valve in your TLSE will last for awhile.
I thought the tube may have
Thu, 2008/01/10 - 6:28pm — firebrandI thought the tube may have been bad when I was fixing my Desktop unit. It looked like a great opportunity to experiment, but the local shop carries (only) the exact Electro harmonix tube already inside the unit!
So I now have a spare tube in the "parts box" at home.
Ok thanks for the input I
Thu, 2008/01/10 - 11:14pm — rojoOk thanks for the input
I guess maybe the service man might want to stick to genuine parts for many reasons who knows
any way i am going try a 12au7 and see what the difference is as i have read many opinions about this
and i guess at he end of the day its all about what sounds and feels good to your own ears
the only thing i can see to using a lower gain Valve is that it will give you more headroom before distortion kicks in.
but i will try before i make to many comments.
You should also do a
Fri, 2008/01/11 - 7:58am — mself61You should also do a calibration on it after you put it in, see this thread http://www.tonelab.net/node/812 .
www.selfdistruction.com
I have revisited the tubes
Sat, 2008/01/12 - 12:00pm — ChicoBluezI have revisited the tubes option and currently switched to a Mesa (labeled Russian) 12ax7. The difference? I have to gig with it first to make that call. I will say (type) that the hundreds or thousands of research hours the Vox techs put into designing the TLSE's killer realistic tube amps where done with a 12ax7. The quality of tube put in a production TLSE is at best questionable and merits an upgrade or downgrade (in a good way) with the 12au7.
Chico
http://www.myspace.com/thefabuloushouserockers
"When the power of love is greater than the love of power, there will be world peace." -Jimi Hendrix
It would be fair to say that
Sun, 2008/01/13 - 3:01pm — firebrandIt would be fair to say that after creating the unit, Vox most likely went with the tube of choice they could get the best bulk pricing on.
This was a great Thread...
Mon, 2008/01/14 - 8:11am — LoudBobThis was a great Thread... I setup the Tube Trim and got the SE to where it should be.
Thankx,
LB
Chico..... You started
Tue, 2008/01/15 - 6:52pm — cDubChico.....
You started all this 12AU7 nonsense. Now you've switched back!?!?!?
(http://www.tonelab.net/node/769)
Chico's a tweaker at heart
Tue, 2008/01/15 - 7:43pm — mself61Chico's a tweaker at heart
www.selfdistruction.com
Hi, This is my first post
Sun, 2008/02/03 - 11:52am — buddhapaughHi,
This is my first post here. I'd first like to thank all who have posted here previously. I have found your insight invaluable in my own pursuit of tonal nirvana. So... thanks... and a hearty bow.
After reading here about swapping tubes on the TLSE... I went ahead and went through about 5 or 6 different tube options. I tried JJ's, GT's, EI's, Ruby's, EH's... with many of them being 12ax7's... but some being 12ay7's... at7's... and au7's....
(that was a fun day!!) ; o )
...anywho... I ended up discovering that lower-gain tubes (the au's... at's... and ay's..) definitely tightened up the 'bottom-end' when using higher gain patches. I loved the results of using lower gain tubes. It also seemed to remove some of the 'fizziness' that even the beloved TLSE produces as digital artifacts. Every modeller I have used has produced this 'fizziness' while using higher gain patches. I was unable to get rid of it with a Digitech... Zoom... Line 6.... or Behringer. But.... oh yes... but with the lower-gain tube option in the TLSE I was about to remove virtually all noticable digital artifacts and get a warmth and fatness that has none of that quirky fizz modellers are a little too well known for.
I also feel that the clean tones are not quite as 'brittle' and don'e seem to break up on the 'high-end' as much.
So... to summarize ... a tighter 'bottom-end' with high-gain patches... and a less brittle 'top-end' with lower gain patches.
Just so you know... I settled with a Groove Tube 12at7 in the TLSE... and I put a JJ 12au7 in my ad50vt Valvetronix.... and I have never had a better... more enlightened guitar tone in all my 30 plus years of playing.
Compassion is the answer,
BP
Thanks for your input and
Mon, 2008/02/04 - 8:36am — mself61Thanks for your input and welcome to the site, one of these days I'll have to take the plunge.
www.selfdistruction.com
The 12au7 and 12at7 are
Wed, 2008/02/20 - 1:08pm — nomad100The 12au7 and 12at7 are actually better suited for low voltage. They are also better suited for low wattage PA like how they are being used in the Tonelab, i was surprised it used a 12ax7. There are a few designs for ≤2 watt tube PA's that use 12au7's
Welcome to the site. I
Wed, 2008/02/20 - 9:27pm — hotramanWelcome to the site.
I switched out my tub and went with a JJ Au7.
Its sounds just like you described it.
I wish i could do that on a
Thu, 2008/02/21 - 8:50am — nomad100I wish i could do that on a LE