ARE THESE NEW TUBES... ANY GOOD? TAD EL34 REDBASE

[@plexidust5101]

Thanks For Doing This Pete & Dave ! Exactly what Marshall Guys needed to hear. Stress levels reduced for many I'm sure. Those German tubes are my Favorite for my Marshalls also and this was a home run for me.

[@colejustesen]

I thought PSVANE was Shuguang for awhile now. Nice to know that they are a different factory. I started seeing PSVANE tube options in the Hi-Fi world. They seemed like a premium option...

[@MorGuitarz]

Damn, they sound pretty damn good. Full-bodied...yes, I agree....a bit fuller down low, but not detracting from the top end. Perhaps if the bass knobs on the Siemens were turned up, they'd be nearly identical. Sounded great tho Pete, thanks for sharing the info on them🙏

[@nicolasrivera5310]

WOW. didnt expect the new ones to sound that good, actually prefer them over the old ones. Great video Pete.

[@corkystclair7475]

I'm a vintage audio guy, and I can tell you without hesitation, Psvane tubes are EXCELLENT for hi-fidelity audio.

[@_patrikjay_]

Thanks for this Pete,. Thanks TAD those tubes sounds great and help alleviate some of the tube issues we will see for the next few months to a year... Appreciate the efforts Pete you make for the guitar/amp community

[@NINEWALKING]

I am rewatching all videos about few tubes because I am about to make the choice what tubes to use in the next amplifier. I love TAD EL34 tubes. Last time I have used them was like year ago when I was checking, retubing and fixing a Blockhead amplifier. Those sounded great in it. But it was a great amplifier as well. Iron was almost the size of the 100 Watt models and it was 50 Watt amplifier. Great build quality. Tubes were very strong and tone was great. They were less middle pronounced as some EL34 can be and more scooped like old Mullard tubes. They sounded glorious. Anyhow regarding TAD they do get their tubes from more places. For example their EL84 STR is a Russian tube. Their matching and quality control is awesome. When I can't have amplifier on my bench and I can't provide tubes from my tube guy then I have no hesitation to recommend TAD tubes. I was still never disappointed by them. Some tubes can sound better but TAD tubes are as good as what it states on them. Premium selection means exactly that. Their tiers of products are according to real quality and sound. For one of my amplifier models I use their EL84 STR tubes as output tubes. They are bit bigger and bolder and rounder sounding. More like USA counterparts then like some European versions of EL84. They7 have thicker and bigger glass/bottle as well and might not fit in some amplifiers. They have a bit more headroom as well. If I need earlier breakup I use Tung Sol version of EL84.

[@musicmann1967]

My first impression was that the TADs sounded a tiny tiny bit bright. when I jumped back and forth, (before I knew you were gonna do the same thing) I thought the Siemens tubes sounded the slightest bit mellower in the top end. It's really a ridiculously small difference, not a bad thing at all, and I think you got some great tubes there!

[@voxpathfinder15r]

They sound great, but to be honest if I can get a strong operable tube correctly biased - all the different brands sound fine to me. I can’t really tell the difference in tone in the time it takes to swap and re-bias. I figured if it takes recordings along with looper pedals to hear any difference, then I don’t really care. Speakers and EQ pedals in the loop make far more differences.

[@jasondorsey7110]

The difference in tone is often marginal at best...I do prefer nos tubes though just because they were designed to handle the higher voltage of the old class a amps and tend to last longer which makes them worthwhile...several of my tube amps are single-ended low wattage specimens which blow the russian and chinese tubes within a few months which just isn't cost effective

[@Brkprsn]

Always end up on one of your videos. Your voice and mic setup are also perfect for podcasting. Can’t wait to check these tubes out.

[@GTguitarworks]

Thank you so so much Pete… for this bit of inspiration🎸💜🎸 as you know, this has been an extremely stressful scenario for those of us who have been playing through tube amps most of our lives. I am 52 years old and I made a huge mistake in the mid to late 90s selling my holy grail Amp to Ricky Medlock for $300💔 it was a 1976 JMP Master volume and finally about a year and a half ago I finally found its replacement.. a JTM 50 and it’s the best sounding amp I’ve ever owned, I actually think I like it better than my 76 JMP… so thanks again I always love how you are so considerate, you are good people Pete🎸🙏🎸

[@adamcapps5532]

I literally just got my Marshall back last week from my amp tech and he installed these for me! Love em so far, couldn’t believe how much different they were from the previous TAD set that finally bit the dust on me.

[@johnfritzenjr.1240]

Thanks for the follow up Pete! That amp kicks ass! Tubes sound great too!

[@jamesbruno6266]

I've had a set of their 6L6's in my amp for 3 year's now, my tech recommended them. They sound great and I've had no issues and the price was right 👍

[@johnnolan4312]

Thanks Pete for putting the time in for this .Very informative!

[@AudioAtmos]

I have the old TAD short bottle 6L6’s in my Dumble clone and they sound great. I will have to get some of these new Red Base and try them. Thanks for testing these.

[@ericwarrington6650]

I think these sound really full and chimy and harmonics come through really well...

[@matthewf1979]

They sound great to me. The 6L6 Redbase has more oomph than the Shuguang made TAD 6L6WGC(short bottle black plate). PSVane/TAD has another short 6L6 on the way too, which I will be ordering ASAP.

[@LeStraTele]

The TAD tubes sound great. I like them better than the Siemens.

[@XiaNingTian]

I had ordered the same pair for my Marshall Origin 20H. Right now, my stock tubes are still good and the TAD is going to be my spare tubes when I need to change them. Glad they sound great.

[@me.roderick]

You Sir truly are the authority on tubes and working knowledge of both types of amps. Many thanks Peter! I can breathe a sigh of relief.🤘💪🎸

[@brownsfan7753]

This was a really cool comparison!! Thanks for going through all the trouble!!

[@stevestarr6395]

Hi Pete. They sound much better than the older EL34B-STR’s!

[@realtruenorth]

I loaded a tremoverb with TAD 6L6s and it sounded significantly better, more detailed and refined, cleaner tighter bass and glassy highs. Rich mids. I had doubts that i would hear any change at all. I stand corrected.

[@jk-76]

I bought a bunch of NOS tubes for less then newer brands a couple years ago and should have enough for the next couple decades.lol I got lucky, an old TV repair shop was closing up and tested them all on a big ole Hickock for me. Now I am glad I did. The NOS thing is cool, the artwork on some of the boxes is worth it to me but I just got them for my amps in case something goofy happened to the tube market. Lol, I was an amp prepper.

[@DerekSantaMonica]

I bet you're feeling pretty smug right about now.

[@jk-76]

@@DerekSantaMonica Never

[@shockmantra]

The Siemens sound like lows and highs were slightly rolled off. Warm but not as full and crisp in the top end as the other tubes. The difference is very subtle and I don't know if I prefer one over the other.

[@richbrack431]

TAD KT66 came stock in my marshall vintage/ modern 100 watt and they sound great.

[@alexw4590]

Great to hear, thanks Pete

[@SDPickups]

Ordered a set of the 6L6 redbases. Will be comparing them to my Winged C 6L6's. Price is very reasonable for a matched pair. Thanks Pete.

[@SDPickups]

Winged C's are way better tubes than the TAD's red bases. The regular 6L6 red base is very TALL and won't fit in either amp, but the shorter 6L6 did so compared it to the the JAN Philiips 6L6WGB's and not bad, but not supre great either. Am keeping them both to try in my vintage Fenders maybe down the line.

[@wrekkingcru]

As always, Pete - You are one helpful dude. Thanks for the info and for you and Dave doing this test.

[@anthonysilva5312]

BRUTHA!! Share the love..I just bought me the Marshall Sv20h mini plexi head. Picking it up soon! I’m giggly all over!!!🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

[@PeteThorn]

Those little things sound really good. Pretty impressed with them really, they do a great approximation of a Plexi. A bit more compressed and of course less volume, cathode bias… Really usable

[@lostreb]

Thank you for the comparison video. I find your input very informative. Thank you for your efforts and the great video.

[@geraldrauch1701]

Pete!!! yup, just bought a set of TAD blackplate 6L6's...also, a set of mullard EL34's n JJ El34's...my mesa mark IV has tung-sol 6L6's and mesa EL34's...i think i'm good for a while from a fellow gear nerd!!! oh, n have JJ 5881's comin too...cheers brother!!!

[@Chef_Jeff69]

Sweet! “Black Shuck” I just saw The Darkness last night at the Showbox in Seattle. 🤘🏼 Oh yeah, I ordered some of these (6L6’s) to try in my SLO

[@DrDannyMannGuitar]

I recognized that riff too! Such a great tone on that tune

[@jm_1214]

I've been very impressed with everything TAD. The customer service is also excellent.

[@crsantin]

I think they sound great. I've always had a good experience with TAD tubes in my 5150. A good setup for me with the original 5150 was a TAD 6L6 and Tung Sols in the preamp slots. I've tried other combinations since then but I never got quite the same results. I'm not a metal player at all.

[@boddumblues]

Just got two Marshall DSL20CRs and was pleased to see red base EL-34s in them 😀

[@jcwm01]

Thanks for this vid. Extremely valuable info. Cheers!

[@sanderson4036]

I bought a 12AX7 preamp tube about a year ago. It worked for awhile and the quit. 1/2 of it went bad. I sent it back and got a refund. I do have a 5Y3 rectifier that works great.

[@cooper5882]

I think your on to something . Could be the next best thing . They sound very close . Thanks Pete and Dave !

[@79lpcustom]

I have a few sets of TAD EL34-B from the mid 2000's that I believe were made by Shuguang at the old factory. They sound really good, a lot of Marshally midrange grind. They were similar to the Ruby EL34-B that came out of that factory as well. These are not stamped 'red base' and the internals look like the unlabeled Sino EL34-Bs. They are a;so stamped as EL34-B STR

[@tubeDude48]

New tubes sound fuller!

[@joeywilder9708]

Just ordered a set for my BE 100! Can’t wait to try them out!

[@pwnEdge1]

Yup sound really close to me, I like em

[@YMESYDT]

Awesome video! I'd be curious if Dave or any other makers switch to this factory, it would be cool to have a manufacturer that's doing it right.

[@lynyrddeville]

My Friedman Smallbox combo that I bought 2 or 3 years ago came with a pair of TAD EL34s which I think were Svetlanas at the time. I know that Dave and the folks at Friedman are always trying to source the best tubes available and it is always a challenge. Personally in this challenge I preferred the Siemens and I had a big hate on for them before because back in the metal says my tech sold me on the Idea that Siemens were the best out there so I switched. In my Metaltronix the newly biased Siemens sounded like cold ugly witch ass! Goes to show how what works for some won’t always work for you. I would use whatever Dave is recommending at the time in my amp. He has always given me, a complete no-name, solid thoughtful advice.

[@pippydog28]

I tried the two sets in my amp . I prefer the Siemens . They just sound a lil less flubby overdriven. But are super close . I did notice on clean settings the tad tubes did sound fuller . I guess in a perfect world I'd have one for clean channel and the other for the dirty channel:p

[@truthserum9157]

I don’t get it, you didn’t brake them in, mine usually takes about 100 hrs of burn in time, or are they burned in already?

[@gobeco]

Buying tubes from TAD since 2006 here in Spain and all were excellent .

[@jeffreyjones3228]

Ironic, that I used the exact TAD tubes for replacement into, my Friedman Runt 50. Thanks to you and Dave.

[@anthonymichael3029]

Let’s Get it Up into Black Shuck. Ok I’m sold. I’ve actually known about TAD for several years now. An amp tech I took stuff to outside Pittsburgh used them in a Weber build Marshall clone of mine. He said he found them to be more reliable than the JJs I use. First I had heard of them.

[@brianr76]

Pete, here we are 2 years later. Curious how these tubes are doing for you? I bought a pair for my ‘78 JMP combo and just replaced them today as one had a short and failed.

[@dannyllerenatv8635]

The TAD stuff is definitely pretty good. Humbucker music sells them as kits to retube Two Rock amplifiers, which are very high-end amplifiers. Only time will tell how long they last, but I can imagine they're good stuff if humbucker music swears by them.

[@kodas3366]

I use these in my Marshall as well, TAD el34-STR..great tubes!

[@Christbearer57]

I thought the Siemens’ sounded more open, but they are almost exact sounding.

[@giulioluzzardi7632]

Great sound, to they also sounded a bit louder (red base).

[@jahjah67]

They sound great in the JMP but my guess is these would also sound really good in a Hiwatt

[@Paul_Lenard_Ewing]

I can't believe how close your amp sounds like mine :-) NICE!!!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Great work Pete! This the black and white info that helps alleviate the toilet paper hoarder madness

[@yestoES355]

Love it Pete, I’m not tube picky but many people. As long as the quality is “good” then I’m happy

[@albertm471]

Just found your review. I'm in the process of looking for new tubs for both my '65 AC50 and my Jet City JCA50H. I can't believe how much the prices have gone up. So it's been a couple of years since you made this video and I was wondering how the PSVane's have held up. Also, have you tried any of their pre-amps?

[@andrewstaward6878]

Great video Pete. Really ressurring. Thanks

[@AmpAHolic-wn6mr]

Thanks for the info Pete, always good to know your options. Pretty sad we can’t tool up here in the states again and develop some quality made American tubes.

[@randallabracadabra]

The Siemens are greasy with great midrange and the Red Base do have that nice bottom end, but are a touch bitey in the highs. I can always tell the Chinese tubes apart from the top end bite they have, that could just be due to the molecular density of the cheaper metals they use vs heavier duty metals in NOS stuff.

[@tubeaddicted485]

Even in a highgain amp like my Peavey 6534+ they made a huge difference.

[@lance134679]

My Dean Markley head is by far the best overdrive sound I can get, quite superior to any of my pedals into a clean amp. That said, I think it's good to have at least one solid state amp around. I have a Roland Blues Cube and Fender Tone Master Twin as they both sound good as clean pedal platforms and are loud enough for gigs. Thanks for checking out the TAD tubes! They seem great.

[@bbbro34]

Kind of an interesting background to why tubes now pretty much all come from Russia. A lot of those tube factories in Russia came out of manufacturing old analog radios for the military before the fall of the Wall, and after the Wall fell many of those factories moved their manufacturing strategy into tubes for amps and especially guitar amps keeping those factories open as they moved into a more capitalist based manufacturing plant. Remember when the old Marshall 900s started they were using EL34s and by the end of their run they were using 5180s (6L6-type tubes, really), I believe it was because they came into a shortage in the early 90s because those factories were shifting in their strategy and EL34s became harder to come by for Marshall, thus the switch. They do it well because they've been doing it for a long time. Kind of an old world meets new world there. Stay strong Ukraine.

[@kennethc2466]

NOPE! You spread misinformation. It comes down to manufacturing chemical toxicity, and longevity of use. The first vacuum tubes were made in America, that manufactured "old analog radios for the military", in larger numbers. Skill has nothing to do with Russian tube production, WORKER PROTECTIONS DO, or lack of them. The EPA isn't a world wide entity, and American's don't work for pennies an hour. America lead the world in RBB and RBC radios during WWII, and after. Russian MIGs up the the Foxbat used vacuum tubes, ONLY BECAUSE Soviet transistors were trash, and hardly available for a LONG TIME after WWII. Unlike American transistors, that lead the world in solid state components (at the time). PS, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Russia, and China are the foremost suppliers of tubes used in guitar amps. Only one of those is at war. Also, Japan and France manufacture small scale audio tubes as well.

[@hkguitar1984]

@@kennethc2466 Thank You, so many people are uninformed or misinformed.

[@bbbro34]

@@kennethc2466 Right, I don't disagree with much of what you're saying, but the USA stopped producing them in like the mid-70s. We could, we did, but we don't anymore. Perestroika (translates to reconstruction), after the fall of the Wall, led to a gradual opening up of the Soviet economy and they still used tubes because they didn't advance the way other countries did (as you note) and still leaned on that for use in their military, also as you've noted, they moved to a market that would sustain them as there still was and is a demand for them. Matthews, EHX owner, kind of cornered that market and bought a lot of them up but has had to deal with them and their flailing, ever-changing ways for some time now; that's kind of how the Sovtek amp line came about...been a headache for EHX; he was having problems with the Russian mob before this invasion, now it's kind of halted altogether. I'm not sure your statement even runs in contrast to what I've stated or substantiates it. Sure, we could make the best tubes in the world, but we are no longer set up to do that as those factories have been shuttered a long time ago, it would take a company or individual (Jack White comes to mind) to really kick that up again...and, honestly, I hope they do. Who knows, maybe those other countries will jump in that vacuum that's been recently created by this shortage...I hope so. I do see opportunity in it if they do.

[@bbbro34]

There's Western Electric here in Georgia that makes tubes, but they rely heavily on Russia and China. And the other Chinese company, Shuguang, closed their factory in 2019 in order to upgrade, but they still haven't reopened due to permission from their gov't.

[@bbbro34]

EHX released this statement four days ago, saying that new orders will be honored but at a higher cost: Attention All EHX Tube Customers The export restriction on Russian tubes has been resolved for now. We are accepting new orders, processing backorders, and hoping to resume shipping in April. Priority will be given to the oldest orders. Considering various economic pressures, we must raise our wholesale prices. This price increase will apply to all back- and new orders. Also, there will likely be a further price increase for tubes shipped from our NYC headquarters once the government implements heightened tariffs against Russian goods, akin to the 35% rate Canada is now imposing. Other territories, including EU, UK, and Japan, are expected to follow suit. For all non-US customers facing such heightened tariffs and with combined Russian tube orders of $3K or more: Consider having our Russian warehouse directly ship such combined orders to the nearest international airport in your country. That will avoid our having to pass along the cost of the heightened US import tariff. Otherwise, you will, in effect, incur a double tariff on shipments imported first to NYC and then to a country with heightened tariffs. You can cancel any backorder, but we do not recommend this; there is a tremendous shortage of tubes.

[@rknprs]

Really nice sounding tubes. Thanks for sharing, Pete!

[@ARRITDOR]

Sounds great! Seems like the extra bass could be dialed back if needed. And I liked the Ocean tease(!).

[@scottdunn2178]

Need a couple of matched quads and I'll be set 👍

[@IgnisIban]

Totally agree, to me this EL84 have a big bottom, hence some mentioned similarities with an 6L6 but is on the bass response that creates that association, in some amps sound great like in my Bassbreaker 45 make it sound kind of more bassmanish (as the circuit supposed to be close ) and bluesbreakerish kindy close to JTM45 than stock sound more like a straight 68 tamed rounder plexi, but in some other the saturation tend to go muddy, sludgy and loose articulation like in my marshall red flag that is already an edgy amp that falls apart kindy about-to-blow-up kindy situation when cranked that I love with Mullards but with this ones get sludgy and mushy, great review as always

[@MatthewTomich]

JMP: the best tone

[@fiddlix]

Great video. Looking forward to see how they will do in the heat of battle.

[@mhoff7722]

So how did these tubes work out over the past two years? Sorry if I missed an update somewhere along the way. :)

[@SeQFreQ369]

That's gr8 to hear, I have a pair on the way for mine. Cheers

[@arkistriph1]

Thanks for the info Pete.

[@brianr76]

Hey Pete, curious how you feel about these tubes 5 months later?

[@alecr666x]

Black Shuck. Nice

[@pfmusic1636]

I had an old set of TAD EL 34’s. They still kicking 🦵 cheers 🍻

[@GazMoz78]

Wow they sound great! Tones and playing totally on point Pete 😎

[@julianc.227]

I've been using the TAD matched Chinese El 34 in my Marshalls for quite some time now and I'm very happy. Sound great and are really reliable. So for me, there's no reason to worry. Sidenote: I believe Friedman ships his amps with Chinese el34 also.

[@mwagliardo]

Cool! The TADs do sound great, will be interesting to hear if the sound changes after putting some hours on them.

[@erik2446]

Sounds great! Such a cool guitar too!

[@ryanfulldark2775]

I have Dave Friedman in my garage too. 🤣 Pretty great to know there are still options!

[@creativeheadroom]

I wonder how well they'll do one year from now. Hopefully they'll be as close to what they're at now as the Siemens tubes were at the start of the video. If reliability is on par with other brands, these newer tubes will be a welcome addition to the market.

[@metalmulisha0143]

That guitar is damn gorgeous... can we get a video on it?

[@mvenuti1980]

After SamAsh cancelled my tube order I went to TAD and bought the red base 6L6s and some JJ 5881s. Thank for the lead!

[@rckilmore]

Ha, they did the same to me this week so I did the same as you! TAD 6L6’s on the way soon!

[@cpk313]

I think the redbases are more articulate, I like them better, which is both surprising to me and awesome. Psvane started by making 300B tubes for the highend audiophile market so they are not a budget focused organization, they are focused on making tubes that sound really good. I don't own any of their tubes but I have had friends like them very much in their stereo amps.

[@jgabora]

Those sound great! The more I watch these vids the more I hear that output tubes don't matter that much. Sure there are slight differences, but maybe not worth the vintage glass. Although I always use old glass. Ha Ha. Speakers make way more difference IMO.

[@jackprice7828]

The TADs were warmer. On the other hand you might want the added high harmonics

[@walth9092]

That's exactly what I payed for the set I ordered for my EVH 5150 6l6. Expensive" I would like to know what the original tubes were( 16K8) marked on the glass, and JCS 7 marked on the base. I had to turn the bias down on the tads. Good tubes the Tads.

[@zbaby82]

They sound very similar. The only question is how long will they last?

[@ronnierazor4302]

That's a really cool guitar, Pete! Thanks for another awesome video

[@HugoWelti]

TAD EL84's are awesome as well!

[@andrewspade7969]

Brought a Marshall 6100lm with Sovtek 5881wxt tube that had been in for years, tried some new tad tubes all he had were 6L6GCM-STR REDBASE tubes. They had a harsh top end a boomy low end so I put the Sovtek's back in and now I'm stuck with the new tubes. My JCM900 SLX had TAD 6L6WGC-STR BLACKBASE tubes that sounded great but blew recently, so I put the new TADs in and harsh top end and boomy low end. Have been told TAD have discontinued the BLACKBASE tubes which is a shame because they sounded so good, anyone know any good 5881/6L6 tubes.

[@TempoDrift1480]

That's my favorite AC/DC riff.

[@deadscenerecords]

Try PM Tube's Golden Dragon tubes. I can vouch for the 12AX7/E83CCT. I prefer it over Telefunken and Mullard low-microphony tubes, my next favorites. Disclaimer: I'm a mastering engineer and base my opinion on full-spectrum accuracy and performance within preamps.

[@jeremyversusjazz]

Glad theres an alternative thnx pete They sound great

[@--_._--_._--]

Ha! Black Shuck! I know someone who saw The Darkness a few nights ago!

[@andrewmarsh3094]

They sound like they have more air. Hard to describe more open sound maybe?

[@yanossnicklefritz7064]

Nice review Pete. I think the market will adjust. Someone will pick up the slack like someone always does when there's money to be made. The same threat on tubes is a possibility with chips too though, due to the Taiwan threat of attack from China. Even though there is already a shortage now. Eventually there would be someone to pick up the slack. But the reality to the situation that we're leading into it, we probably will have much greater concerns going on.