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Using a 5W4GT in place of 5Y3GT on Princeton 5F2a

F

flynn

Active Member
Hello,

I have a home-built 5f2a that has been running and sounding great for years.

My 5Y3 was lost in a move and I have a 5W4 on hand. Also lost my 6V6 and have a new Sovtek to drop in.

Any problems dropping them in to see how they sound?
Is it guaranteed that i'll need to re-bias the amp with the 5W4 in there?

Thanks for any input...!
 
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Thanks for the message. Yes, it's not a direct replacement, but it seems its a 'safe' one. On that doc you linked to it does say at the end "low power 5Y3":

5W4-G/GT- 5T - 5.0 - 1.5 - 45 - 100 - 350 - low power 5Y3
 
flynn said:
Any problems dropping them in to see how they sound?
Is it guaranteed that i'll need to re-bias the amp with the 5W4 in there?
Click to expand...
I always check bias when changing recto or output tubes...
But it's perfectly safe to plug in the 5W4 and check the sound.
Also check if the 5W4 isn't microphonic, it's irritating in those little amps...
 
5W4 will do fine - it's good for 110 mA, SE 6V6 amp might need 70 ma, push-pull one could be 100.
 
Well, i plugged 'em in. My results:

Sovtek new-issue 6V6 sounds pretty darn good. No clue why they're so shamed.
The 5W4 works just fine.
I seem to be getting a lot more dimension to the amp - but i must disclose that i haven't played this amp in almost 2 years.
A very gracious individual is sending me some NOS 6V6's and a 5Y3 to try out. I'm going to do some A/Bing on them to see for myself.
I do have a gorgeous NOS Tung-Sol 12ax7 from the early 60's to pop in there when i do the tests.
I'll report back on my findings!!!
Thanks to everyone for the input on this...
 
Strange, as far as I know, the "new-issue" Sovtek doesn't exist...
Current production is New Sensor EH and Tung-Sol, Gold Lion and several chinese manufacturers.
The Sovtek 6P6S is very real and maybe reboxed in 6V6GT boxes, they are NOS, depending on the sample can sound very good. (I wouldn't recommend them in a PP amp as matching them is a problem)
 
Thanks for the info. It may well be NOS - it does have 6v6gt printed on the side and 'made in russia'.
 
Update: I put some different tubes in and did some basic A/B testing. My results:

The 5W4 gave me more of that clean, chimey Fender sound than the 5Y3. It's slightly harder to break up; and overall it appeared 'louder'. I would have guessed it'd be the opposite given the lower voltage.

The combo of the 5Y3 and the NOS 6v6's instead of the 5W4 and Sovtek 6v6's was realllly obvious. The former had a much smoother distortion (less 'splatty') and more bass response.

As I mentioned to the kind soul who sent me these alternative tubes, I finally see for myself why people tube-roll. I don't see it of use in a rehearsal scenario, but for recording it's really good to have the different color options.
 
So, I take it, that the 5W4 with the vintage 6V6s was probably the best overall sound?

Regards,
Gordon.
 
Hi Gordon,

As with anything audio, it's in the ear of the behearer. I'd say that the NOS 6v6's made the real difference. I'd definitely switch out the rectifiers depending on whether i was going for a clean sound or a crunchy one. The sovteks don't sound 'bad', just a little harsher - they cut a bit more, so I still think they have their place. The NOS just seemed more 'rounded' in terms of the distortion where as the sovteks seemed to emphasize certain frequencies more than others and it just sort of 'spikes' out at you.
 
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