6v6 tube comparison (to my ear)

[tsp17]

My newish Mesa Boogie California Tweed came with Mesa tubes of course.  I’ve always found Mesa tubes to be consistent and good quality for tone and reliability/durability.  Playing them for about a month now i decided to try some different 6v6 to see if I could really hear any difference and find the perfect match between amp/tubes and the tone i want to hear.   The stock Mesa 6v6 is terrific sounding, so it is just my curiosity and no suggestion that i am not happy with how they sound.  Great amp that sounds very very good right off the shelf.  

Tone seekers are gonna tweak, right?

I’ll post impressions here as i try each different tube set.  All are matched quads.  First up is Mesa 6v6 vs JJ 6v6.

Both very musical.  Mesa is more of a classic 6v6 sound. Sweet, a little soft around the edges, soulful.  JJ’s are (true to reputation) robust sounding, more focused, brighter and later breakup.  Mesa’s are mildly warmer, not dark, but warmer/darker than JJs. 

Breakup on Mesas is far creamier.  To me JJ’s are more “distortion” sounding than light overdrive sounding.  To my ear, Mesa 6v6 is a very classic, musical breakup.  

Sustain for miles with the JJs. Mesas are good in this department, but JJs hold on longer. 

Both are excellent.  I’ll be playing around with JJs for a bit and will post updates, as well as new posts when try the next brand set of tubes , either Gold Lion or Tung-Sol sitting on my shelf waiting for their turn in the box.

Remember that all this evaluation is highly subjective and your mileage will differ.  Also based on a single amp.  Contrary opinions are welcome. 

More to come. 

Edited July 17 by tsp17

[pressure]

Wear earplugs.

[bolero]

Got a microphone? Audio clips would be pretty useful

[rockabilly69]

4 hours ago, tsp17 said:

My newish Mesa Boogie California Tweed came with Mesa tubes of course.  I’ve always found Mesa tubes to be consistent and good quality for tone and reliability/durability.  Playing them for about a month now i decided to try some different 6v6 to see if I could really hear any difference and find the perfect match between amp/tubes and the tone i want to hear.   The stock Mesa 6v6 is terrific sounding, so it is just my curiosity and no suggestion that i am not happy with how they sound.  Great amp that sounds very very good right off the shelf.  

Tone seekers are gonna tweak, right?

I’ll post impressions here as i try each different tube set.  All are matched quads.  First up is Mesa 6v6 vs JJ 6v6.

Both very musical.  Mesa is more of a classic 6v6 sound. Sweet, a little soft around the edges, soulful.  JJ’s are (true to reputation) robust sounding, more focused, brighter and later breakup.  Mesa’s are mildly warmer, not dark, but warmer/darker than JJs. 

Breakup on Mesas is far creamier.  To me JJ’s are more “distortion” sounding than light overdrive sounding.  To my ear, Mesa 6v6 is a very classic, musical breakup.  

Sustain for miles with the JJs. Mesas are good in this department, but JJs hold on longer. 

Both are excellent.  I’ll be playing around with JJs for a bit and will post updates, as well as new posts when try the next brand set of tubes , either Gold Lion or Tung-Sol sitting on my shelf waiting for their turn in the box.

Remember that all this evaluation is highly subjective and your mileage will differ.  Also based on a single amp.  Contrary opinions are welcome. 

More to come. 

Another thing a lot has to do with biasing which you can't adjust with the Mesa, that's why Mesa insists on using their tubes, as they fall within acceptable bias ranges for their amps. I know that some tube sellers can find non mesa tubes in the right range for Mesa though. The less musical tone and harder distortion tone of the JJs could just be cold bias.

[tsp17]

On 7/16/2024 at 10:54 PM, rockabilly69 said:

Another thing a lot has to do with biasing which you can't adjust with the Mesa, that's why Mesa insists on using their tubes, as they fall within acceptable bias ranges for their amps. I know that some tube sellers can find non mesa tubes in the right range for Mesa though. The less musical tone and harder distortion tone of the JJs could just be cold bias.

Could be… I did d communicate with Tube Depot about the fact that these tubes are going in a Mesa Cali tweed.  They were helpful and sent tubes in that range. So the JJ and Tung Sol tubes I’ve got should be well suited. 

the Gold Lion tubes that I ordered came from Stew Mac so we’ll see…

[rockabilly69]

2 hours ago, tsp17 said:

Could be… I did d communicate with Tube Depot about the fact that these tubes are going in a Mesa Cali tweed.  They were helpful and sent tubes in that range. So the JJ and Tung Sol tubes I’ve got should be well suited. 

the Gold Lion tubes that I ordered came from Stew Mac so we’ll see…

Did you buy the JJ 6V6S? Some people love them as they have 6L6 properties. I tried them in my TOPHAT Club Deluxe,  they didn't work for me, they were very stiff sounding! I tried Gold Lions and they actually sounded pretty good. Most of my 6V6 amps though have NOS Sylvania or RCA tubes, and they always sound good.

[tsp17]

On 7/18/2024 at 1:35 PM, rockabilly69 said:

Did you buy the JJ 6V6S? Some people love them as they have 6L6 properties. I tried them in my TOPHAT Club Deluxe,  they didn't work for me, they were very stiff sounding! I tried Gold Lions and they actually sounded pretty good. Most of my 6V6 amps though have NOS Sylvania or RCA tubes, and they always sound good.

Yes- 6v6s.  I can see why folks say it is 6L6 adjacent.   They are growing on me.  They sound great with my Super KB, better than with my H550.   Very clean and articulate.  My SKB came with HRW pickups and i changed them to Lollar Imperials, but with the JJs i hear something similar to what I recall with the HRWs.  Brighter, cleaner, tighter .  Really nice.    I hear what you hear and refer to as “stiff”.   Not as soulful and warm a sound as the stock Mesa tubes, but really good in a different way.   I love the effortless sustain they give, and the clarity. 

Gold Lions are next.  

 

On 7/16/2024 at 9:37 PM, bolero said:

Got a microphone? Audio clips would be pretty useful

I’ll try to do some sound clips in the next week or two.  

 

[Gitfiddler]

Is it possible that some of these subtle, audible differences are due in part to other components or tubes (e.g. rectifier) interacting with these different 6V6 tubes?

 

[rockabilly69]

On 7/20/2024 at 10:36 AM, Gitfiddler said:

Is it possible that some of these subtle, audible differences are due in part to other components or tubes (e.g. rectifier) interacting with these different 6V6 tubes?

 

If he put JJ 6V6S tubes in there, I can tell you from experience they do not sound like 6V6 tubes. They are way more 6L6 like. Whether you like them or not is comes down to the individual, and what they are looking for,and perhaps even the amp they are used in can make in difference. In my TopHat amp I did not like them one bit, and couldn't yank them fast enough. But that is the only amp that I gave them a try in, so maybe, it was just the way that amp reacted to them.

[Gitfiddler]

10 hours ago, rockabilly69 said:

If he put JJ 6V6S tubes in there, I can tell you from experience they do not sound like 6V6 tubes. They are way more 6L6 like. Whether you like them or not is comes down to the individual, and what they are looking for,and perhaps even the amp they are used in can make in difference. In my TopHat amp I did not like them one bit, and couldn't yank them fast enough. But that is the only amp that I gave them a try in, so maybe, it was just the way that amp reacted to them.

I've heard/read that JJ 6V6's sound somewhat like 6L6GC's in certain amps. 

That said, I really like their sonic 'girth' in my smaller sized amps, especially how they wake up my 80's Champ II and Super Champ rigs. 

YMMV

[RJLII]

I use JJ 6V6S tubes in my Victoria Ivy League (5F10 Circuit). They do sound a little stronger than 6V6GT, but in a good way (to my ear).

[rockabilly69]

On 7/23/2024 at 10:33 AM, Gitfiddler said:

I've heard/read that JJ 6V6's sound somewhat like 6L6GC's in certain amps. 

That said, I really like their sonic 'girth' in my smaller sized amps, especially how they wake up my 80's Champ II and Super Champ rigs. 

YMMV

To be clear, not JJ regular 6V6 tubes I'm talking specifically about the 6V6S tube

[Kuz]

I haven't tried all 6v6 tubes out there, but I have tried many different brands. To my ear, the new Tung-sol 6v6 sounded clearly the best. 

Just my opinion, but I can't stand any JJ power tube or JJ pre-amp tube.  

Edited July 25 by Kuz

[rockabilly69]

5 hours ago, Kuz said:

I haven't tried all 6v6 tubes out there, but I have tried many different brands. To my ear, the new Tung-sol 6v6 sounded clearly the best. 

Just my opinion, but I can't stand any JJ power tube or JJ pre-amp tube.  

I have two close friends that are both, amp builders, and first rate repairman, and both of them recommend Tung Sol 6V6 tubes. I have used them in my Victoria Regal II, and my TopHat Club Deluxe, and I like them. My favorite 6V6 tubes are NOS Sylvania (I also love green label Sylvania 12AX7s) as it seems they last forever and sound great, but I could easily use TungSols and not feel like I'm losing any tone. 

[tsp17]

Gigged with the JJs in my amp last night.  Cleans were terrific.  I’ve never been a JJ tube fan but these are good.  posts above about them being somewhere between a traditional 6v6 and 6L6 are accurate.  I liked it last night.    They seem to suit this amp pretty well.  

[RJLII]

On 7/25/2024 at 12:34 PM, rockabilly69 said:

I have two close friends that are both, amp builders, and first rate repairman, and both of them recommend Tung Sol 6V6 tubes. I have used them in my Victoria Regal II, and my TopHat Club Deluxe, and I like them. My favorite 6V6 tubes are NOS Sylvania (I also love green label Sylvania 12AX7s) as it seems they last forever and sound great, but I could easily use TungSols and not feel like I'm losing any tone. 

I've had good luck with the Tung-Sol tubes as well. I've tried them in a DRRI, my Ivy League, and my Regal II. They break up quicker than the JJ 6V6S

[tbonesullivan]

Which version of the Mesa 6V6 tubes did your California Tweed come with? They've had a few different versions over the years. I believe they used to use JJ for those, but the recent pictures I have seen show a tube I don't recognize.

[tsp17]

On 8/2/2024 at 11:58 PM, tbonesullivan said:

Which version of the Mesa 6V6 tubes did your California Tweed come with? They've had a few different versions over the years. I believe they used to use JJ for those, but the recent pictures I have seen show a tube I don't recognize.

[rockabilly69]

On 7/29/2024 at 12:53 PM, RJLII said:

"hey break up quicker than the JJ 6V6S"

that's exactly what I like about them!

[tbonesullivan]

On 8/4/2024 at 11:14 AM, tsp17 said:

That really looks like a JJ 6V6 S. Does it have a square "window" on the sides of the plate structure? only the JJ 6V6S and Telefunken new production tubes have a square window on the side with an envelope that is the same size as the base like that. Round top, with getter flash at the top.

Green is a mid level rated tube, about a Groove Tubes 5.

[tsp17]

23 hours ago, tbonesullivan said:

That really looks like a JJ 6V6 S. Does it have a square "window" on the sides of the plate structure? only the JJ 6V6S and Telefunken new production tubes have a square window on the side with an envelope that is the same size as the base like that. Round top, with getter flash at the top.

Green is a mid level rated tube, about a Groove Tubes 5.

I was thinking the same thing…I’ll do a side by side look. 

[tsp17]

On 8/5/2024 at 6:14 PM, tbonesullivan said:

That really looks like a JJ 6V6 S. Does it have a square "window" on the sides of the plate structure? only the JJ 6V6S and Telefunken new production tubes have a square window on the side with an envelope that is the same size as the base like that. Round top, with getter flash at the top.

Green is a mid level rated tube, about a Groove Tubes 5.

Side by side mesa 6v6s and JJ 6v6s are very similar , e.g. the ‘window’, but JJ is a bigger  bottle and different base.  You all with more tube expertise may notice other differences but those were visible to me with limited knowledge.  Will post pics later.

[rockabilly69]

 

 

 

Edited August 11 by rockabilly69

[tsp17]

[tbonesullivan]

Hmmmmm. They do look very similar. The shape of the top and bottom of the plates is also identical. The size of the glass envelope actually can vary, as they are pretty much made by hand. They also look to have identical getter halos on the top of the plate structure. I can however find pictures of the JJ 6V6 tubes that don't have that cut out on the tops and bottoms of the plate, and don't have the window. The Russian made tubes have also definitely had differences over time.