Valve Shootout: 6L6 vs EL34

6L6 and EL34, both popular power valves for guitar amps, but what is the sonic difference between the two?
Here I take a Bugera 333 loaded with 6L6s and swap them over for some Tung-Sol EL34s.
The Infinum circuit within the amp accomidates for the different style of valve.
Unfortunately I couldn't turn the amp to the volume I'd have liked to really bring out the valve tone, but hopefully this still gives a good representation of how they sound.
With more run in time the EL34s will probably sound better still.
The sound samples were recorded using CSG custom CS1 guitar with Bareknuckle Pickups, through the Crunch and Clean channels of a Bugera 333 infinium
(with MXR smartgate and Carboncopy in the effects loop),
driving a Celestion Hot 100 speaker, picked up by a Sure SM57.
For all your valves check out www.watfordvalves.com. Quality assured with more diagnostic testing than just about any other valve distributer.
Join the discussion at: csguitars

[@ZONNEKAT]

This guy speaks with a EL 34 accent !

[@kellyjackson7889]

Pear-fektly Sco'-ish

[@charlesbaranyi5006]

Lol he’s Scottish. He’s got an El 84 accent its slightly different.

[@alphanumeric1529]

I'm with you on that Zonnekat. Found this dude a year ago when I was buying a used Bugera 333. But I stop by every now and again because he is hilarious and just has a way that is interesting.

[@skinnykarlos710]

@@charlesbaranyi5006 There is definitely a difference. No question.

[@Matthew-b2i]

Does that mean he's pre biased? : )

[@HDvideoedit]

6L6 1:33 EL34 7:08

[@hafizhadzori]

Physister i

[@micronesia3797]

The 6L6's definitely win for me!

[@ScienceofLoud]

I feel that was a little uncalled for. LWB was providing what I considered to be some interesting information. He'll be getting some really good sound quality from that thing. I've had a look at your recent comment history, it seems to be all like this. Being horrible just for the hell of it. Disappointing Garry, disappointing. I've not had a troll on my comments for a while. Have they built a new bridge close by for you to live under perhaps?

[@TheChianello]

The 6L6's provide a flatter frequency response than the EL34's, that's why the slight bump in EL34 bass response can be appreciated. The 6V6's exhibit even more linearity than the 6L6's, but in the end, it is a matter of personal preference. Good job! This an important comparison to make. Sam (USA)

[@rafberu]

Nice test ! 6L6 is a beam power tetrode (so less odd harmonics and less distortion) EL34 is a real pentode (so odd harmonics and distortion) 6CA7 is a beam power tetrode version of the EL34 (I never heard one !) for playing heavy metal like you do, EL34 is probably better sounding for playing blues jazz like I do, 6L6 (and 6V6) is what I like (lot of even harmonics and little distortion) Cleaning valves bottle is a good idea : when the valve goes hot (about 250° celsius) your fingerprint will cook and crack the glass

[@ScienceofLoud]

The pickups in the guitar I'm using here are by Bareknuckle: a Painkiller in the bridge, and a Sinner (with zinc/steel baseplate) in the neck.

[@bluerock5351]

Wow, what a difference! The EL34's have much more gain, a heavier type sound. If you can live with the extra hiss when you're not playing or playing clean is the trade off. Great test thanks for that.

[@McDylbot]

Gotta be the EL34s for me. I recently switched the stock 6L6s out of my Bugera 6262 Infinium for Sovtek EL34s (which I managed to get for £20), and the difference in tone is incredibly apparent. I was only expecting a minimal difference, but the EL34s seem to have a much smoother high end and a slightly tighter bass response. Great vid mate. :-)

[@cyclone159]

i was just wondering what the difference was between these valves. thanks for making this 11 years ago. 🤘

[@GONZOFAM7]

I think the point of using the infinium was so he could switch and let it do the work of compensating and biasing. INFINIUM Tube Life Multiplier Technology revolutionary INFINIUM Tube Life Multiplier technology is like having your very own technician inside your amp constantly monitoring and tweaking tube performance for the ultimate in tonal integrity and reliability. This revolutionary circuit not only optimizes the performance of each output tube, it dynamically balances the drive between them to more evenly distribute the load. With INFINIUM, your tubes last up to 20 times longer, saving you substantial money over the lifespan of your amplifier. INFINIUM also compensates for the effects of aging, automatically adjusting current levels to keep your tubes sounding as good as the day they were installed.

[@joseislanio8910]

Is it an ad?

[@Subtle-System]

6L6's all the way baby!!!! Good demo, thank you... Will try the 34's for myself as well... I feel my 6L6's are very ice picky high... I definitely get as much bass and punchiness as I would ever need... but sometimes those highs really stab me in the ears.

[@DaveDoingDaveThings]

Haha, I do those silly mouth twitches when I play too. The new Laney IronHeart series has 6L6 with the ability to switch to EL34. Tony Iommi uses 6L6, he's British, he invented metal so both valves have their heritage in British metal

[@spartanworria]

I liked the EL34s better.

[@bflo1000]

They have a deeper sound. More body.

[@therapscallion23]

It sounded bigger.

[@StahLHerZRocK]

@@therapscallion23 facepalm

[@CelticAndyTheBard]

Good vid. Informative. I play the Bugera 333xl with EL34's but always wondered about the 6L6's. You gave me my answer.

[@muttamps]

Hey that is a great comparison between two great types of tubes. You really illustrated the sonic differences well. Almost everything I've built so far has been around the 6V6/6L6/7591 family; I agree with you on the "tighter" feel to them. I'm thinking I need to give the EL34s a try.

[@ethangoode635]

I noticed I like the cleans from the 6L6's better but the distorted tones from EL34's. Not a bad demo at all!!

[@ScienceofLoud]

Sounds are very hard to quantify with words, and we all hear slightly different things. It also sounds different in the room than it does recorded down, and then the compression that youtube puts on everything changes it again. EL34 had some earlier break up than the 6L6s, and I could hear them growl a bit more. but the comparison was to let everyone hear the difference and decide for themselves. Music wouldn't be anywhere near as interesting if we all agreed on everything :)

[@Cablexman2k]

One thing that might make a difference is the quality of the original tubes in the amp. Evidently one had already failed, the other 3 could be on their last legs. The replacements of Tung Sol El34b is a fairly high quality tube. Perhaps a better comparison would be of a new set of quality 6L6s against the EL34s? Also you could probably put a pair of each in and get a mix of both worlds.

[@jeauxl4051]

Amp tech/builder since '86 here. The differences between 6L6s and EL34s are going to be hard to hear at levels below power amp clipping because of the negative feedback used in most amps with those two tube types. Usually, you can match most of the difference with your tone controls. For this reason, I recommend 6L6s because they are quite a bit more reliable and long lasting for modern master volume amps. Of course, my old Marshalls only get EL34s! Good video, thanks for posting.

[@miguelroldao6939]

I'm just blown away by your agility with the pots in the guitar, wow! I preferred the el34s as they were slightly more top-endy, imo.

[@jeremymioque299]

Power valves really show their tonal differences when pushed hard. This type of amp mainly relies on preamp distortion, you won't hear any change in texture there. It's the saturation of the power stage that would really differ.

[@DouglasBWelch]

a good topic for the video. when I was buying my first valve amp several years ago,I was stuck in analysis paralysis but was pretty certain I wanted an el34 base. I finally decided to go to long and mcquades and play several, one after the other and buy the one I liked best. I ended up with a yorkville ycv40wr (6l6 base) and have never looked back. this was after comparing against fenders, orange, Marshalls and mesa s. a few years ago, I did pick up a blackstar ht5r for practice as the ycv40 was a little overwhelming for the size of our practice space. my advice, pick your amp with your ears not it's specs. btw while there is a volume range that most amps sound good in, I don't buy into the idea that it has to dimed.

[@joeytruelove]

Those Tung-Sol EL34s are probably the brightest true pentodes out there, with a clipping characteristic that is actually pretty 6L6GC-esque, so no surprise you find them brighter than expected. EL34s usually are stronger until point of breakup where they compress like crazy. 6L6GCs not that much so, though the taller the bottles the stronger the valves with these, generally.

[@MichaelRigsbyHammer]

i liked the the EL34's so i bought the jj's,they sound great to me,imo.

[@ScienceofLoud]

Mine is an older model, was in a pawn shop, no details, no footswitch, no guarantee. couldn't even test it. As such I anticipated some issues. Pleasantly surprised to find there was none. Had to replace a valve a few weeks in, but that's standard with second hand valve amps. Have been using it at shows and at home since I got it, never had an issue with reliability yet. No downside in performance or build quality. A very good amp for the price. Louder than you'll ever need too.

[@philthyphil2298]

Aw man, love the JMD shirt! still my favourite amp I have!

[@AdamRainStopper]

=) 0:35 "Either an EL34 or a Sex El Sex"

[@scottmckinstry1698]

HAHAHA I had the exact same thought! No disrespect Colin!

[@AdamRainStopper]

***** What does that sound like? I can't imagine how it would be that different from how any other english speaking person says it. Does it stick to the roof of your mouth for while before finally emerging through clenched teeth?

[@AdamRainStopper]

***** Oh god......it's bad enough you guys say "Zed" for the letter Z!

[@mosesbullrush8051]

You say Zee for the letter Z.

[@AdamRainStopper]

Moses Bullrush Yes, we do.

[@jeffreymorreale7223]

My Valveking Mkll is my only amp that can take both of these valves. The EL 34s improved the amp characteristics drastically over the factory 6L6. I have some KT77s i want to try next.

[@XaleManix]

The heavy sound on the EL34s, to me, felt like they had much less distortion, but had a lot more 'bite' as it were. Overall, the 6L6 tubes seemed to distort more and at lower volumes, whereas the EL34s keep their definition, and have a more full tonality. Both are very pretty.

[@vaughanmacegan4012]

In a Dual Rec the 6l6 tubes sound a lot better than the El34s, but, in this amp the reverse is true - but in this case the sound is a lot closer.

[@ametalguitarist]

Learning quite a bit from your videos but one thing I can teach you is to roll the tubes in a tight circular motion instead of back and forth to extract and insert them. It keeps the connections from wearing out, kind of like a plug on an outlet will loosen up.

[@jordanlmcgrath4883]

EL34 all the way

[@DanielRodriguez-eh1qd]

I have a 333XL with EL34s I want to switch them to 6L6s so it’s awesome you have almost the same amp for me to hear the differences.

[@davidshearer567]

Would the 6L6s be better used for an acoustic amp, especially with a 12 string acoustic guitar? The first riff you played sounded better with 6L6s, but EL34s sounded great overall (to my ears). Great video!

[@timothyfoley240]

The EL34 had a colder and raspier break up than the 6L6. The 6L6 made this amp sound very Mesa-like

[@reddsshaker3477]

The guitar shines through the 6L6s better than it does through EL34s. There’s a certain ‘gritch’ in an EL34 that seems to replace the actual ‘note’.

[@dcflake5645]

Just got into tube amps from moving from solid state. I had no idea that the different valves gave different sounds and from this video I don't think it matters. Both sound great.

[@ryanhoffman5654]

You won't be able to hear much of a difference on a compressed KZbin video but they can change the sound of an amp dramatically.

[@AwakenedAnhedonic]

Tubes can be removed without the risk of breaking by using a circular motion and easing them out. Don't worry about the sockets because they're meant to handle the circular motion.

[@ElectricJeff81]

I thought your video was an excellent depiction of the different tonal sound from the tubes. Varying from power chords to picking and bassy notes from the B string. Good job. I listened through good headphones on my galaxy s and noticed a lot of variances between the two. I thought I was going to prefer the el34's but I felt they sounded a bit muddy on the bottom end.

[@MrAnders1976]

your are exactly right in your observation.. EL34 has much more internal gain than a 6L6GC.. The 6L6GC is a more "efficient" tube as it spends less energy at the screen (max 5W vs 8W for a EL34) and more on the plate (30W vs 25W for the EL34). The EL34 has a much higher transconductance and needs less bias voltage to drive it at a plate voltage of 450V. The biggest difference is the beam forming element in the 6l6GC tube that focuses the emited electrons to a more narrow area. Also look at the shape of the loadlines of a EL34 vs a 6l6GC, the 6L6GC has a kink early on the loadline.. EL34 are not normally taught as having a good clean sound but that is probably because most guitar amp run the screen voltage rather high like 465V in a marshall and why we need to add huge 5W 1K to 1.5K screen resistors om each tube. If you designed an amp with 375V on the plates and screens it would probably sound sweeter with the standard marshall 3.4K OT load and have an output of ~40W if you had a stout power supply. .. We are really pushing the plate limit with the stock marshall 3.4K OT for a pair at 465V. The marshall gets away with it. as the power transformer voltage will sag a little under heavy current draw. I think if you wanted a better clean sound from a pair of EL34 you would have two power rails, so the plate and screen are feed from their own line. That way you could keep the screen voltage constant (335V) at a lower voltage than the plate voltage you would have much higher (700V) and an OT with a much higher impedance to match the high plate voltage... (MusicMan HD130 amp)

[@joeytruelove]

Rather unique, those Tung Sol EL34s, in that they were designed to sound closer to a 6L6GC than your average EL34. That gives them a bit more open top end than usual. Then of course there are 6L6GCs that are quite dark or mid centred too.

[@nekromachine]

The INFINIUM 'tube life multiplier' feature allows for using a mix of any compatible power amp valves and it will constantly monitor and change each one to be identical even if you shove a 6L6, EL34, 6550 and a KT88 say. Hence it won't sound any different and it doesn't above despite a good quality video with good quality sound, That is always much appreciated. It is great as using any of the Bugera's packing INFINIUM will save the user on shelling out for matched sets of power-amp valves. Laney's IronHeart IRT range (the 50 and 100 watt models at least) allow for the use of either 6L6s or EL34s, Are priced right just like Bugera's. So I would recommend one as a good choice for demonstrating the characteristics of each valve. Not to mention the built-in attenuation on the IronHeart if wanted/needed which will make the differences even more accessible to anyone curious

[@musicsynctank]

Hey Colin. For me, the 6L6s sounded brighter and cleaner, the EL34s warmer and dirtier. Subtle, though... Thanks for the vid!

[@yusufronco]

shouldnt the amps be turned up so the power tubes actually change the sound? were pretty much hearing the preamp tubes only on both recordings.

[@annanthony5754]

Yes, that is the thing they all know nothing about. The preamp is the one shaping 80% of the tone. Power amp only has 20% to do with the tone. Therefore the only way to hear the other 20% of the power amp tone is to crank the fucking thing. But like always, the little bird brains on youtube have no clue as to why it is what it really is. All they know is what they read on threads. When really the preamp is 80% of the tone, If preamp sucks the whole fucking amp sucks. You will never hear the other 20% until you crank the poweramp.

[@ericmhanks]

For a metal sound, I like to think (as a generalization!) that 6L6 has a very Master of Puppets era Metallica feel. Lots of boosted highs and lows, slightly scooped mids. This tends to drown out the bass in the mix. In other words, a Mesa Boogie Mark IV or 2C+ type of tone. EL34 has a Rust In Piece era Megadeth vibe. Boosted mids, present but controlled and tight bottom end with smooth highs. I'm not sure what rig Dave and Marty were using back then, but I'd guess it was a Marshall JCM800 boosted with a tube screamer. Disclaimer: of course I know that the actual tone produced has everything to do with the guitar, pickups, amp, pedals, cabinet/speakers, mics etc. I do, however believe that the 6L6 lends itself to scooped mids and Boosted Bass due to the controlled Bass response of the power tubes. I think that because the EL34 has an inherently powerful bass response, if you try to boost the lows too much and scoop the mids, your tone can very easily become a puddle of mud. I prefer a mid-driven overdrive myself.

[@Foghornish]

For Rust in Peace Dave used a VHT power amp. The rhythm tracks are all 100% Dave. I'm not sure what power valves were used, but knowing Dave is a huge Marshall fan he probably used EL34's, KT88s or 6550s. I think most of the tone came from doubling the parts (possibly even 4 x using a slightly cleaner tone left + right), cab/speaker choice, pickups and Dave's magic fingers lol.

[@southamptonguitaracademy7470]

Great video Colin. Very useful to hear the comparisons. ONe Question: In your opinion, is there a perceivable difference in sound between different brands of the same type of tubes (for example a set of EL34's made by JJ, vs set of EL34's made by Mullard)?

[@GASMan-57]

The 6L6s seem a bit more vocal to me. The EL34s a bit thicker.

[@toplak666]

Defintaely prefer the EL34s although I can't really say why...

[@MisterTee]

The issue with these Bugeras is that they actually don’t self bias properly. To make them work with both types of valve the plate voltage is really low and both tube types run really cold. I modified a friend’s 333 heads to run at properly with each valve. He did lose the ability to interchange the valves but the amps sounded entirely different from the stock heads.

[@Mickwolfy]

My opinion: for a comparison like this, if you use a standard tuning (or at least higher than Drop Bb) on the guitar and a less bassy eq on the amp, we absolutely can understand the difference between the valves better than we do with your setup. With DropBb guitar and bassy eq the valves sound pretty similar, but they absolutely aren't...

[@headbangerministries]

Definitely the 6L6 boomier. I got a bit tired of hearing mine boomy on chugs and just ordered some EL34's so I believe Ive one the right swap.

[@bradcarroll6780]

Not sure why people are saying there's not much difference here. Too me it's the difference between Van Halen and Electric Wizard (okay so it's not an EW tone but you get my point). Sometimes I"m a 6v6/6l6 fan but in this case, EL34 sounds like it has a lot more depth and texture...and just plain sounds more badass!

[@robmccarthy1018]

I'm not surprised that the EL34s have more punch and volume than the 6L6s. The El34 was designed as a higher gain output valve than the 6L6. The 6L6 was designed in the mid 1930s . The EL34 was released by Philips in 1949. The 6L6 has a more linear characteristic than the EL34 which was made for higher output amps and it has more harmonic distortion than the 6L6. When thinking of valve output stages one needs to consider the quality of the output transformer and the class of operation ( A vs AB1 and even AB2). I've seen a circuit of an early Marshall with the bias and cathode resistors purposely mismatched to produce a particular sound quality and distortion. Also the amount of negative feedback around the output circuit effects the sound too. When comparing the 2 tube types as in the video there are many variables which can be attributed to more than just the valve type itself. It becomes rather subjective than just techy and down to the sound the guitarist likes for their type of music etc

[@kaptnmeier9018]

Sounds all the same, like Bugera:)

[@DCWelker]

Bugera's do NOT all sound the same. The 6262 sounds very similar to the trirec, but the 333 and 333XL sound completely different

[@Siklax]

Of course, everything sounds the same when you don´t have a trained ear :)

[@kierenmoore3236]

Trained ear ... Lol. 'ALL THE METALZ' really narrows the difference between these power tubes ... you will still hear a stark difference between them on the cleans, though, of course ... I prefer 6L6, and both have their charm/place for crunch and lead tones ...

[@southamericanrocker]

People going to hear your band play do not have a "trained ear" :) ... It all boils down to hype!

[@guntherabrahamowicz4659]

Yeah, playing clean would have made a much bigger difference.

[@ojohnson5508]

The el34 has more midrange. The 6L6 has a more scooped sound. The el34 has a bit more attitude, the 6L6 has a better dynamic and tonal range. I vote for the 6L6. That's why I put them in my Marshalls.

[@matthewgoff7411]

Based on your video it seems to me that the EL84's have a much crisper transient response and better note definition between the strings. There seems to be about the same amount of gain between the two. It's too bad the EL34's are much noisier than than the 6l6's. The 84's have a great tone!

[@tomhock8088]

Excellent man , I love everything you teach us colon , love you man

[@MrWillco007]

Hey Chris, some great sounds here. Are you expecting the EL34 to be warmer/darker as they tend to have a scooped mid response. I like the fatness of the EL34 and they dial in really well with resonance and presence tweaking. Looking forward to seeing you try out your new purchase, cheers Will 😎🤙

[@GONZOFAM7]

I'm looking for a used Bugera Infinium, this video sealed the deal for me. I'm usually a Fender guy.

[@joelpoitras6226]

I have 2 amps 6L6 and el34's. I personally feel that the el34's are more tubish warmer sounding and smoother breaking up,, more natural and organic, but it's hard to push a clean channel without breakup. Meanwhile 6L6cs are less tubish, has a harsher treble frequency and don't breakup as well. I feel like 6L6's stands in between El34's and solidstate. But 6L6's are better on loud clean channels and seem to have a larger frequency band width, that making 6L6 a better pedalboard platform. But for a classic rock smooth overdriven juicy crunch without the fizz EL34's a win for me.

[@guitarguru186]

About to do some SERIOUS reamping for a solo album, using a Mesa/Boogie Mark V, & going to be testing ALL of the options (pentode vs. diode vs. tube, 6L6 vs El34, 90/45/10 watt settings, etc.) & I wanted to brush up on the tube differences. I thought "I wonder if my new favorite channel has a video on this"...sure enough, you do! New subscriber, & love the content + personality. Great for the adept professionals & novices alike. Keep it goin' strong, my friend \m/

[@danceswithbadgers]

I have a JTM45 Bluesbreaker reissue from 1990-ish I bought new because of the 6L6's it was fitted with. I already knew I didn't like the EL34 - equipped amps I'd heard and tried. Marshall changed the JTM45 valve spec sometime this century (!) to KT66's, heaven knows why, as the 1962 Bluesbreaker amps had 6L6's in them. I really like the 'American' sound of amps with 6L6's in them. GEC KT88'S (in my experience) can sound very similar too.

[@LifeLostSierra]

Best advice to changing tubes go through eurotubes they specialize in the JJ's and they sell them whole sale and you can customize exactly what tubes you want...for example I'm running KT88s, 4 gold pin ECC83 S and 3 ECC81s in my orange rockerverb. If u get their bias probe makes life amazingly easy just unscrew your head clean your tubes with Doxitd5 retube then plus ur head up to a speak and just tweak your poteniometer. Never trust your amp when it says it'll bias it by itself if you're like this guy then you can be running your tubes too hot and boom you'll be getting half of what you paid for...but that's just my experience my amps tone has improved amazingly never go with stock ruby el34 bhts you're just wasting your tone away

[@PedalingPrince]

Interesting. I agreed with your assessment that the EL34s had the greater gain and distortion, but if I had to choose one or the other I prefer the sound of the 6L6s. I like crunch distortion but I also like a good solid contrast between the crunch and clean sounds and I felt the 6L6 was better for that. That being said, my IDEAL guitar sound would be a combination of the two: the EL34 for crunch/overdrive sound and the 6L6s for the clean sound. Also, I agree with you that the EL34 edged out the 6L6 for full bass, another thing that's important to me in my music.

[@SLAMSTERDAMN]

EL34's are my favorites. Good vid, Colin, & thx for recording it right, it's annoying as hell to get a vid in which the damned strumming hand is audibly slapping strings.👍

[@ARayMaddy]

Watched this video months ago...I have an amp that you can swap the tubes out with a flip of a switch...just for feedback on the video and for the folks wondering which tubes to purchase etc., Here's what I found ...I bought the EL34's excited to try them to get a More Marshall crunch...and I guess it worked...'cause I took my amp out LIVE and played a gig (forgetting I did the swap from 6L6 to EL34)...I found myself all night trying to get enough BOTTOM END from my amp...so I went back to my 6L6's....just my opinion....I won't be going back to the EL34 atleast LIVE anyways....Thanks for the great videos!

[@bscotti68]

always a great video from you. straight answers and points on all of them. you just solved my tube issue with one phrase. "the 34s have a punchier bass" that is it. sold

[@inventhead]

its the 12ax7a that makes the pre amp tone clean to distort the 6l6 is just a clean power output tube to run the speakers the class of the amp makes for its clarity and grit also speakers ohm power and size and by the way 6l6 or el34 are dif volts current and power and need re bias if it where me i would just change the 12ax7a to 12az7 that is an industrial pre amp that yields more output at same requrements check the data sheets and a bit less noise also is the power supply are the circuts getting proper power sitting and turned up under load

[@do3491]

6L6 all the way, baby!

[@ChickenWingsMelon]

1:33 Sex L Sexes 7:07 EL34 Sounds the same. Based on Name? Hmmm.

[@MaggaraMarine]

I can hear a difference. It's not a huge difference but the EL34 sounds like it has a bit more lows. The sound is a bit fuller.

[@VantisDoroHall]

I prefer the 6L6 tubes. At least I do on this demonstration.

[@darklibra2488]

Great video , its always fun watching your videos :)

[@rmxrider20032000]

Really? Bishop. Tone is very objective. It's all personal taste. Let's see all of your great tone videos!

[@ShredWithMe]

I bought that head some time last week...i played out with it last night...Keep in mind this is my first tube amp... I had the channel volume down for playing at my house and instead of being smart and turning them up and the master down i just turned up the master...I kept getting really bad feedback...Lol i guess you have to learn some things the hard way. Also i think im gonna keep the valves it came with. Nice vid man.

[@dreamcoma2213]

This video is definitely proof that Colin is a hologram.

[@MorganPettersson]

Did you crank it up to 10 on the master volume? I dodn't Think that you will here much difference when the gain is coming from your preamp tubes.

[@joeytruelove]

EL34s are clearly middier and help the rather smooth mid of the Hot 100s come through a bit better. I wouldn't say they let more gain through though as the 6L6s are more defined. EL34s definitely are dirtier and rougher though, but then they also compress more. Would have made it interesting had you tried 6CA7s in it, which are easier to sub for the EL34s than the aforementioned KT88, great as they are.

[@vyrus24]

i love how he say "Sex el sex"

[@TheZiggydog4]

EL34 (TunSol) matched quad work well in my hi fi amp after 30 hours they sounded great. Lost there jumpiness and hi's. Smooth as now.

[@LukeCannotSkate]

I need EL34s for sure

[@michaelinglis8516]

To be fair it has to be said those were EL34B's. They have a higher impedence than other EL34's and are said to be more 6L6 like at lower volumes. I certainly prefer the EL34's but I mainly play a 100Watt DSL100HR all the time so it's what I'm used to but what I also naturally gravitate towards.

[@ix-Xafra]

If you're taking it on the road and you wanna use the el34s, take some spares. The el34s aren't as longwearing as the 6L6s.

[@kosmicwizard]

Just got a matched quad of J/J E34L tubes to replace the 6L6s in my Mesa Dual Rectifier multiwatt. I enjoy it more now.

[@matthewbowden1517]

i wouldnt say that a higher noise floor equates to more gain.

[@UglyBunnyJase]

7:22 almost sounds like Dream Theater's "These Walls." What a great tone! Love the EL34s. The sex el sexes sounded amazing too, but something about the EL34s is just 'home' to me :)

[@AXESLINGER2112]

you can't hear the difference much on here, but i had a 333xl and it came w/ el's and when i switched to 6l6 it was a huge difference. i was playing the head live too tho. you really have to push those tubes to hear a real difference....ok...my $0.02 worth....great demo

[@darthslater6077]

The Bugera for the money is the best amp going lots of haters but for what!!? Because most everyone can afford to sound great, I don;t get it perhaps because I am a dumb but PROUD Yank and most of our allies would be speaking other languages if not for us? I just don't see where people can hate an amp that gives you great tone for a great price. I really enjoy your channel Colin.

[@pd1jdw630]

couldn't really make out any difference from this end. Only in the clean parts. where the 6L6 sounds a slight bit warmer. Laptop -> AKG k240 headphones Laptop -> SonyDR-4A Though i have to admit. Being a more blues/jazz player. i love the 6L6 . Enjoy Them ;)

[@123lowp]

I've tried a shit load of tubes and 6L6s are always better for cleans in every amp I've ever tried. For gain, it depends on the preamp and personal taste. In this amp, EL34 definitely better for gain. Best EL34s = Winged C EL34... unfortunately, they aren't made anymore.

[@CLELDKFKEJ]

I came here with the same exact head. Definitely liking the EL34's better

[@danstewart8218]

Nice one mate! Always really useful..

[@WebbChannel1]

EL34's not only more gain BUT darker with more bass punch. I wouldn't go so far to say "muddy" but going towards that. The CLEANS definitely sound RICHER too. Overal I would go with the EL34's.

[@Mrius86]

I have a Marshall 100w 1959 with four El34. I really want that AC/DC lead sound. Thinking about changing the power valves but there are so few real good guitar stores in my town.

[@rodrigozamo]

Generally I like to describe the EL34 sound as tighter and the 6L6 as looser. 6L6 are great for cleans and drop tunings, EL34's better for crunchy, more compressed sounds. Preamp gain also affects of course but to get that heavy metal tone the trick is not to drive the preamp gain too high, but rather crank the volume and get those 6L6's working. Where as the EL34's like to be compressed by the preamp gain before, makes for sweet sustainy solos. I like my Egnater Renegade that has 2 of each set and you can blend how much you want out of each set pero channel, so you could run a clean channel with 6L6's and a tight crunchy channel with EL34's, which is how I prefer to use it.

[@Gutch220]

In that amp (in this video) the cleans sound similar but in my opinion 6L6's will usually sound better for that kind of music with the mids kinda scooped out. This is less apparent for the cleans in this video.

[@CultrCnnundrm]

i definitely appreciate the EL34s better than the 6L6 tubes... ALOT more defined mid-ranged balance... the highs aren't as piercing and the lows are well balanced in there compared the screechy-ness of the 6L6 tubes... thanks for the video...

[@spookybaba]

Oh, young Colin! 😊

[@nunyunbizz8380]

EL34 is definitely a tad warmer, little less top end trebble. 6L6 slightly more treble and meaner sound. But to me the difference is SLIGHT. Both sound great to be honest.

[@4142Wilb]

And the debate goes on...opinionated though, I seem to prefer EL34, Tung Sol EL34B to be exact. They have a more textured characteristic that adds to the tone of a metallic amp setup whereas 6L6s seem more vanilla to me. Then again preference is a damned thing in choosing.