Introduction to Tung Sol 6550 Tubes

[@algielapinskas6093]

You're a lucky man. Cool vid.

[@tatialo37]

Cool vid doc and beautiful granddaughter! God bless!

[@ncilmo]

Thanks Ruben.

[@mesoanarchy]

Dr. Kemp, you are THE BEST! I was looking to swap out power tubes on my Randall RT503 50 watt amp head; now I know what to buy! Thank you!

[@ncilmo]

We are finding that the glass in these Tung Sols may be too thin for some application. I recommend checking out other Russian Tubes as well.

[@ncilmo]

Thanks Bruh Wilson.

[@bassmaster1953]

Enjoyed your video. I'm a tube collector. Mainly audio tubes. If I may, I would like to expand on the numbers and their representation. All U.S. manufacturers had company numbers. G.E.=188, RCA=274, Tung Sol=322, etc. On the Tung Sol, the next two numbers were the year of manufacture. So, if the next two numbers are 61, then the tube was made in 1961.The two numbers after the 61 would be the week of that year of manufacture. This numbering is not consistent for all companies, though.

[@ncilmo]

Thanks bassmaster!!! This is very helpful information.

[@TheWarped45]

Mullard El34s and those tung-sols are really nice.

[@nevenante]

you have been upstaged by your tooooooo cute grand daughter Dr. Kemp !!!

[@ncilmo]

Oh This baby girl has me completely under her control!!! LOL She is a natural in front of the camera.

[@raymondheath7668]

Wow, I looks at all your personal amps on the shelf and I think King Solomon's mine!

[@ncilmo]

I am amazed when I enter my shop as well. I have been blessed to be surrounded by the things that I have passion for. God knows the desires of my heart and he has so honored me with this aspect of his glory. I have to live a life of righteousness for him. WOW God is truly amazing.

[@twincam825]

Thanks for posting video working on a 50watt Marshall that needs 6550 power tubes will try the tung sol brand.

[@BoudewijnvanHouten]

Great Video Dr. Kemp. I have two American made Conrad Johnson Premier Five mono amps with 8 EL34 powertubes in each of them. Love to have 16 black plate original Tungsol 6550's for them, but as you said that would cost me a fortune. What's your opinion of substituting my old EL34's with the new Russian made 6550's? Thanks in advance, Boudewijn

[@peteaustin6997]

I found a pair of old Tung-Sol 6550s with unusual numbering and was hoping you might be able to shed some light. They are solid gray plate triple getters. The first line of the label on the base is "6550 TUNG-SOL" and the second is "6315 MADE IN U.S.A.". The lettering is the typical white lettering seen on base labels from the bygone days. The only other number anywhere is on the top of the tube: "6550" in a hexagon with "USA 3" just below the hexagon. I would appreciate any help you could give in identifying a year and/or info on the odd numbering scheme. Thanks!

[@danielkinney9407]

Hey Doc. What's the most wattage light bulb can u place under the organ for the Bass pedals?

[@ncilmo]

Hello Daniel. Anything beyond 40 watts will cause a hole to be burned into the bottom of the keyboard base. I would go with 40 watts or less.

[@zacharydoering313]

Have you tried KT88s in a Leslie? I would think those might work better in some applications especially to take out the excessive bloated sound you might get in some 6550 based circuits. One of my favorite amps of all time uses 6550s, but some amps can be biased for both and KT88s are more linear in certain applications.

[@ncilmo]

Yes I have. The 6550 is a better tube for the Leslie amplifier than the KT88. The 6550 is a beefier tube in the Leslie amp. The Leslie amps came from the factory with 6550's rather than KT88's as well. Those engineers knew which was the better tube for that application. I stay with the tradition as close as possible.

[@orange70383]

Love them tubes'

[@ncilmo]

Me too Orange. They are great sounding tubes. Be careful with the new ones. The glass seems to be too thin and we are having problems with some of them. The vintage ones that test good tend to be fantastic.

[@alskndlaskndal]

Is that an issue with all modern tubers or do some brands have better quality glass?

[@ncilmo]

The vintage tubes are the best. The new tubes are simply not of the same quality as those from the past. So I just try to use the best that are available today. I use the new Tung Sol 6550's.

[@richardsmith6496]

An excellent informative video....thank you. Though you specialize in guitar amps, what is your feeling regarding the original Tung Sols vs. Russian Tung Sols in home audio? Many folks swear that the originals are far superior to the modern Russian versions. In your opinion, is the huge price difference worth it for serious listeners? Many thanks!

[@ncilmo]

Hello Richard. I specialize in Leslie Amplifiers which are used with the Hammond organ. Some have said that the glass is thicker in the vintage Tung Sol Tubes. They seem to me to be a better quality tube. I would consider them to be a "different" tube than the new tube. Here is an article where the vintage tube was tested against the new tube. One has to determine if the differences is worth the differences in cost. Personally, I ONLY use the vintage Tung Sol tubes in my Leslie Amplifiers. However, I only sell the New Tubes. The Vintage tubes are simply too expensive for most customers to purchase. They don't want to spend that type of money. But I have enough of them in my collection to be able to offer them the choice if they desire a set in their amplifier. But I never advertise them as being for sale. Here is the article: forum.audiogon.com/discussions/tung-sol-6550-old-vs-new

[@richardsmith6496]

Many thanks!!!

[@johnsimms3957]

Have you tried the JJ 6550?

[@ncilmo]

+John Simms I will have to buy a set and test them against a new pair of Tung Sol 6550's.

[@ncilmo]

I just tried the JJ 6550. I tried a new set up against at new set of Tung Sol 6550 and I get the same results on my B&K 747.

[@Erukulon]

thanks for the info :)

[@thirdroompro]

I have a mid 70s 100 W Marshall that has 6550s I need to have it serviced. Several people have told me to switch it over to EL34. What say you? P.S love your vids man.

[@janedvinsson]

Nice talking and tips! Thanks

[@francesnieznay6623]

try buying a matched set of 6 for a SVT or Fender 400 ps.EXPENSIVE and they will blow out a chinise tube,700 volts to the plates.