I briefly messed around with the Regular 6p3s, sure did not last long though smoked/blew up some of them with 400-420v on plates/screens haha, Guess I need to try/get the 6p3s-e? they are tougher? they sure look tougher.... just curious how they would sound and if they would last....I would like to make a comparison of them vs the JJ 6v6s or something haha.
Yes they are tough. 420 volts at the plate is no problem, just watch the dissipation. They are NOT a 6L6GC.😉
Do the JJ 6V6's like to go up in smoke?
jeff
No not from what I ran them at I ran the JJ 6v6 from 400-440v plates and screens, no problem...just a bunch I have used/had suffered from going Microphonic/rattle/pop/crack stuff.... so that's not cool...
The JJ 6v6 sound is alright I guess though...its more into that 5881/6l6 sound, it doesn't sound anything or as good as like old/Nos 6v6s at all to me....
JJ does a lot better with their E34L when you get good ones that is, had a few sets that just would not hold bias well/far too mismatched etc...
don't use low/lower screen resistors with E34Ls either... arced/smoked a few of them doing that a few times haha.
Yes, the last few years QC for octal tubes at JJ seems to have gone by the wayside. Lots of "teeth gnashing" on the interwebs.🙂
jeff
jeff
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hmmm, I have a JJ 2A3 in a box waiting to be used from a couple of years ago - should I be worried about it ?
No, I don't think you should be worried. Most of the QC issues with JJ's seem to be with their octal tubes.
jeff
My results with the 6P3S-E at high voltages (400) has been positive. Likewise with the JJ E34L. These are the two best sounding tubes in my Tubelab SSE.
Yeah I don't think the E34L tone is that bad at all, it does have a aggressive character I like, and the bass response is a bit bigger than some other el34s being it is a real el34 for one so should sound like it haha, still its kinda more on the bland side man I swear old tesla sounded better the brown bases blow the new JJs away hell even the 80s/early 90s black base's sound better. RFT's tend to smoke em too man xD
Yes, the old design 6П3С (6P3S) is constructed to the old (obsolete in the 1950s) 6L6GB structure, so 300V on the screen is all it's rated for.
The 6П3С-E is a different and altogether excellent Beam Power Tube. It's rather like the 5881, but whatever the ratings, there are many examples of its satisfactory service at high voltage. The biggest sample is in the Fender Reissue Series of Guitar amps, that have been around for over 15 years.
The Fenders use the 6П3С-E as original equipment in all theses models, and run them at normal guitar amp voltages. They are branded Groove Tubes and/or Fender 5881WXT, and have the "Rat-Trap" base, but they are made in the Reflektor plant at Saratov to the same structure as the 6П3С-E.
I measured the running voltage on a Reissue Deville a few weeks ago - 510V B+ and about 500V on the screen, even with the usual 470R screen resistor. The specified idle current is 25mA per valve. Others run 470V, but none of them are tube-eaters.
Use with confidence. Backing off to 450V will cause them to last longer, but even the new production (labelled Sovtek 5881WXT etc) are tough and reliable. And cheap!
The 6П3С-E is a different and altogether excellent Beam Power Tube. It's rather like the 5881, but whatever the ratings, there are many examples of its satisfactory service at high voltage. The biggest sample is in the Fender Reissue Series of Guitar amps, that have been around for over 15 years.
The Fenders use the 6П3С-E as original equipment in all theses models, and run them at normal guitar amp voltages. They are branded Groove Tubes and/or Fender 5881WXT, and have the "Rat-Trap" base, but they are made in the Reflektor plant at Saratov to the same structure as the 6П3С-E.
I measured the running voltage on a Reissue Deville a few weeks ago - 510V B+ and about 500V on the screen, even with the usual 470R screen resistor. The specified idle current is 25mA per valve. Others run 470V, but none of them are tube-eaters.
Use with confidence. Backing off to 450V will cause them to last longer, but even the new production (labelled Sovtek 5881WXT etc) are tough and reliable. And cheap!
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I have used the 6П3C-E valve for years in my 1965 Fender BluesMan and have repaired many Fender, HiWatt, Boogies, Peavey and Marshall etc with outstanding results. They are fairly expensive but worth it for the reliability. Always check the fixed bias voltage and set each valve just under 25mA for the warm Fender sound and 10mA for Marshall distorted hard sound. The latter equates to around -58Volts!
Sounds very like my experience!
I see the price has gone up now (I bought bulk very cheap a few years ago), but the Sovtek 5881WXT is nearly as good IMHO, and cheaper than most other new options.
Excellent all-round, anyway.
I see the price has gone up now (I bought bulk very cheap a few years ago), but the Sovtek 5881WXT is nearly as good IMHO, and cheaper than most other new options.
Excellent all-round, anyway.
I tried 6П3C-E valves in place of EL34s in my ST70 clone I've been experimenting with, they sounded very good without even changing the bias, which was about -40V under 415V HT, giving nearly 60mA ! At about -41.8V running at 52mA they get less hot than EL34s. At the same bias EL34s run at 46mA, and I'm still undecided although I have good EL34s(black sable) and they do sound very good too!
What? no way man the 6p3s-E can handle 500v on plates and screens!??? I would have to try/see that to believe it.... I had JJ E34Ls screen arcing getting up there to 420v on plates and screens with 470r screen resistors though haha...one of that arced badly actually still ok its just badly mismatched and wants to run away a little more haha. might of been something wrong with it from the get go though... it has a retarded/deformed base haha like its tilted to side a bit not quite right man haha. some one was drunk when they let that go through Qc haha.
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I have seen them in a Fender Studio Bass, too - and from memory these run it even higher.
If you have arcing, it's probably a weakness of the tube, but at 500V it's certainly worth applying the anti-parallel diode trick, to limit overvoltages.
Just take a pair of 250mA rated, 2kV diodes (or series-connect some 1N4007s) and apply them diode's-anode to ground, diode's cathode to tube's anode, on both sides of the PP pair. This keeps any PP side from getting more than a few diode drops below ground, and the transformer coupling means that the other side won't go much above 2x B+. (Without these diodes, it can easily go to 2 or 3kV).
Wire with short leads.
If you have arcing, it's probably a weakness of the tube, but at 500V it's certainly worth applying the anti-parallel diode trick, to limit overvoltages.
Just take a pair of 250mA rated, 2kV diodes (or series-connect some 1N4007s) and apply them diode's-anode to ground, diode's cathode to tube's anode, on both sides of the PP pair. This keeps any PP side from getting more than a few diode drops below ground, and the transformer coupling means that the other side won't go much above 2x B+. (Without these diodes, it can easily go to 2 or 3kV).
Wire with short leads.
No man..I'm just saying I didn't realize/think the 6p3s-E could take some voltages that high...that's well beyond 6v6/5881 territory....that's in the 6l6/el34 area plate voltages/screens well some 6l6s would grown/moan with that much on the screens, 6v6s would be melt down for sure, although I have pushed some 6v6 into 400-440v on plates/screens and they sure as hell didn't like it at all haha, same with el34s most have weak screens I just don't trust that much on them.... I'm assuming they can dissipate like a 5881 like max 18-23w somewhere around there? even though the JJ6v6 is kinda bland sounding its pretty tough though.. it will dissipate far more than 12w that's for sure xD
Regardless I knock some voltages down with some big 5-10w cement power resistors they get hotter than living hell too hahaha.
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