Tubes to brighten up a Peavey 6505

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Synllip

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Hey guys,
I'm looking for some replacement tubes to brighten up a Peavey 6505 lead channel a little bit, I have TungSol pre's and power tubes in mind but I'm not sure if these are going to achieve what I want. Does anyone has any recommendations and experiences with different tubes with 5150/6505's?
 

Bearitone

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I remember Shuguangs (too lazy too see if spelled that right) bringing life and a tad bit of brightness back to my 6505. I would try those.
 

DudeManBrother

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Tung sol is usually a solid choice for brightening up. I like their preamp tubes anyways. I usually go for SED =C= 6L6’s in my 5150’s. Shuguangs have been great tubes the last handful of years as well. Good price and quite reliable.
 

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Necky379

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I remember Shuguangs (too lazy too see if spelled that right) bringing life and a tad bit of brightness back to my 6505. I would try those.

Came to say this. I went from Tung Sol in V1 JJ’s everywhere else to Tung Sol V1 Shuguangs everywhere else and it definitely made things brighter without being harsher. Also, if you’re using speakers with a lot of mid range try cranking the presence knob, I’m at 8.5 with greenbacks.
 

Necky379

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Adding to that, I’ve never tried Tung Sols in any position other than V1 and like DudeBrotherMan said I find it bright. I can’t say they’re brighter than Shuguangs or not. Maybe someone who has compared the two directly will respond.
 

TheWarAgainstTime

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I've found the Sovtek WXT+ 6l6 to have the most high end detail/clarity in those amps, plus the most low end definition.

For preamp tubes, I was originally going to suggest Tung Sol, but Chinese 12AX7s may do the trick as well. You might also try a lower gain tube in the V1 spot like a 5751 or 12AT7. That way you will have a bit more control over the gain and there won't be as much saturation to muddy things up. It has a different character when you run the gain a bit higher with a lower gain tube vs all high gain tubes and the gain control lower.

In a 6505, the only preamp tubes that affect the lead channel are V1, V2, and V5. So if you aren't having any tube issues, there's no reason to change V3 or V4.
 

KailM

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Another one to try is the JJ ECC803, which is a long plate 12ax7. In V1, of course. It’s quite a bit brighter than a regular JJ 12ax7 and has richer, grindier mids. I like it a lot better than a regular JJ in V1, and better than Tungsols too.

Of course my favorite in V1 is the JJ 5751, but it’s not as bright. I play cranked most of the time so I don’t have any trouble needing more brightness.:mf666::lol:
 

oneblackened

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If you want bright, you want old square getter Chinese preamp tubes. Those things are SUPER bright - they make the tungsol reissues sound balanced.
 

glytch5

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So the Chinese Sino tubes are biright and chimey... that is true.
One thing to try would be to buy a good tested, matched triode version of this tube and put it in you phase inverter slot on you're 6505. I did this on mine and it totally changed the response of the lead channel...
I am using JJs in the front and a matched triode sino on the PI and it just sounds great... the PI spot is very interesting... you can really adjust how the amp feels and sounds on there, in some cases more so than v1!!
 

cGoEcYk

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ElectroHarmonix 12ax7's were the brightest on top of the various tubes I have tried. I don't like them but they can be good in darker amps (like an Ampeg bass amp).
 

DudeManBrother

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ElectroHarmonix 12ax7's were the brightest on top of the various tubes I have tried. I don't like them but they can be good in darker amps (like an Ampeg bass amp).
I agree. I have some EH 12ax7’s in a 6505+ right now and I’m not really a fan. I have a ton of tubes I can swap in, but usually I’d rather just play one of my other amps :lol:
 

Synllip

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Thank you for all of your suggestions!
I'm now torn for EH and TungSol, also I'd want the lowest noise possible pre amps.
As far as replacing the power tubes is it recommended to get a Matched Quad or Two Matched Pairs will be good to go without problems?
 

Necky379

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FWIW I’ve tried EHX tubes too, they were my least favorite out of what I’ve tried. The Sovteks never did it for me either but the Sovtek lps is fine/great in the phase inverter. I’ve owned and played my 5150 for at least 15 years now, not that that means a lot but I consider myself to be pretty familiar with 5150 behavior (rereading this sentence and it sounds so douchey :lol:). I’d take pretty much anything over EHX preamp tubes. Have you tried cranking the presence knob yet? What cab and speakers are you using?
 

oneblackened

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Thank you for all of your suggestions!
I'm now torn for EH and TungSol, also I'd want the lowest noise possible pre amps.
As far as replacing the power tubes is it recommended to get a Matched Quad or Two Matched Pairs will be good to go without problems?
6505s run so cold you can literally use 4 unmatched tubes without problems. You should get a matched quad, though.
 

Synllip

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FWIW I’ve tried EHX tubes too, they were my least favorite out of what I’ve tried. The Sovteks never did it for me either but the Sovtek lps is fine/great in the phase inverter. I’ve owned and played my 5150 for at least 15 years now, not that that means a lot but I consider myself to be pretty familiar with 5150 behavior (rereading this sentence and it sounds so douchey :lol:). I’d take pretty much anything over EHX preamp tubes. Have you tried cranking the presence knob yet? What cab and speakers are you using?
I have presence on 4 and treble on 6 with a DV Mark 4x12 with Neodymium speakers.
I don't think I'm looking for that harsh icepick brightness with excess with presence. I find the 6505 a little too "dark" compared to my Randall Satan, I'm looking for the notes to open up a little more in the higher range, basically undarken the amp a tad.
 

budda

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I have presence on 4 and treble on 6 with a DV Mark 4x12 with Neodymium speakers.
I don't think I'm looking for that harsh icepick brightness with excess with presence. I find the 6505 a little too "dark" compared to my Randall Satan, I'm looking for the notes to open up a little more in the higher range, basically undarken the amp a tad.

More mids, less bass and resonance.
 
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