Tube replacement for a Peavey Classic 30 amp

[Strbender]

I've had my Classic 30 since 2000. I want to replace the tubes with something that will give me a nice clean sound. I know for this, it's more about the pre-amp tubes. That's were I'm having a hard time deciding. It looks like there's 4-5,+ variations of the AX7's. I used groove tubes in the past with a Fender that I had. Would GT's, Mesa Boogie, etc. be a better choice over JJ's, Tube Amp Dr. etc.? I know there's a lot of re-branding of tubes. So I wouldn't want to pay a premium for let's say GT's if there actually just JJ's.

Thanks

[Little Jay]

For a cleaner sound you can use 12ay7 tubes, but you will lose some overall volume too. They have a lower gain than the 12ax7. Doesn’t hurt the amp and you might like it.

Just replacing the 12ax7 with the same type of another brand won’t suddenly make your amp a clean machine: they all have about the same gain. But different brands can sound a little different, so it’s fun to experiment. A recommendation is hard, since that comes down to personal taste. I like old German tubes: Telefunken and RFT, those do sound a little clearer and cleaner in my experience. I hunt for used ones and bargains. Sometimes there’s a dud with too much noise and hiss, but it’s fun :-)

[BBGuitar]

I retired after 39 years servicing industrial electronics. When I ran out of my new old stock tubes (12ax7) I got rid of my tube equipment and went solid state.

Not a bit sorry.

I got more money for my old tube equipment that needed tubes than it cost for solid state replacements.

[Strbender]

I plan to get a jazz amp in the future. The Peavey can sound really nice and I've seen others use it for jazz. It just needs a little TLC. Plus, right now it's more financially feasible to use what I have. I'm not gigging out at the moment. Just wood-shedding at the moment .

I'll keep the Peavey for any blues gigs I might play down the road.

[Ray175]

You may want to visit "Watford Valves" site which I found to be a goldmine on different valve types and characteristics. In the "reports" section there is a 2012 review of the major ECC83/12AX7/7025 manufacturer's valves

https://www.watfordvalves.com/cgi-bi...CC83_12AX7.pdf

[Longways to Go]

Take a look at the various retube kits for the Peavey Classic 30 at Eurotubes.com

Personally, I like JJ's and also Tungsols. I like to replace the V1 tube with a NOS 5751.

Peavey Classic 30 is a really good amp for jazz IMO.

[John A.]

I've had my Classic 30 since 2000. I want to replace the tubes with something that will give me a nice clean sound. I know for this, it's more about the pre-amp tubes. That's were I'm having a hard time deciding. It looks like there's 4-5,+ variations of the AX7's. I used groove tubes in the past with a Fender that I had. Would GT's, Mesa Boogie, etc. be a better choice over JJ's, Tube Amp Dr. etc.? I know there's a lot of re-branding of tubes. So I wouldn't want to pay a premium for let's say GT's if there actually just JJ's.

Thanks

In my experience, unless the preamp tubes are broken/noisy/microphonic, there's not much point in replacing them. Doing so might change the tone of the amp somewhat (more likely, won't), but's not going to add clean headroom. Changing power tubes usually makes more of a difference, both because they're much more likely to be worn out and/or close to failure and because different tubes are more likely to have different characteristics, especially with respect to distortion vs headroom.

GT doesn't make tubes. They re-brand tubes made by others (including JJ). Their sales pitch is that they spec them tightly from their suppliers, and match/code power tubes to that if you replace like with like you can in theory get away without re-biasing the amp. Ditto for Mesa. Plus, Mesa amps don't have bias pots, so you can't rebias them to deal with tube variability (unless you modify the amp). They claim to spec tubes from their suppliers very tightly and test them to handle the high current in their amps. That doesn't necessarily make them better than other tubes, just more predictably plug-and-play in Mesa amps. JJ makes good tubes. FWIW, FWIW, I've currently got a mix of preamp tubes in my amp (one JJ, 2 GT, and a Raytheon). IIRC, the last time I had the amp serviced a few years ago, the tech replaced a microphonic tube with the JJ, but the others have been in there for many years (since before I got the amp). They're all still fine.

John

[Strbender]

I was playing last week with my archtop. I noticed a rattle sound when I was playing on the low e string. After it was turned off and cool, I tapped the tubes and they rattled. That's when I thought I needed to replace them. I was under the impression that I should also replace the pre-amp tubes at the same time. No? I'll try replacing just the EL-84's for now.

Thanks everyone!

[Strbender]

You may want to visit "Watford Valves" site which I found to be a goldmine on different valve types and characteristics. In the "reports" section there is a 2012 review of the major ECC83/12AX7/7025 manufacturer's calves

https://www.watfordvalves.com/cgi-bi...CC83_12AX7.pdf

There's some serious information on there!

[John A.]

I was playing last week with my archtop. I noticed a rattle sound when I was playing on the low e string. After it was turned off and cool, I tapped the tubes and they rattled. That's when I thought I needed to replace them. I was under the impression that I should also replace the pre-amp tubes at the same time. No? I'll try replacing just the EL-84's for now.

Thanks everyone!

Tap the pretubes lightly (with something like a pencil or chopstick) while the amp is on (not off). If you hear a rattle or plinking kind of sound through the speaker, that means the tube is microphonic and should be replaced. If you hear other noises (buzzes, hums crackling sounds, weird distortion) while the amp is onsomething is wrong, and that something is often a tube (power tube more often than preamp, very rarely a rectifier). To figure out which tube is, swap known good tubes with each one in the amp. If the noise never goes way with any of the swaps, the problem is not a tube.

As far as what needs to replaced when, preamp tubes don't need to be replaced unless they're known to be bad. Power tubes should all be replaced in pairs (or all at once to be on the safer side).

John

[David B]

There's some serious information on there!

Watford Valves offer tested and selected tube sets for a range of amps. I have one of his sets in my Deluxe Reverb and have never had a problem since.

He does offer sets for the Peavey Classic 30. Shipping to the US probably doesn't make sense but take his choices as a good starting point.

For clean tone and headroom in a Peavey Classic 30, he recommends:
2 Specially Selected Harma ECC83 STR
1 Specially Selected & Balanced Harma ECC83 STR
4 Specially Selected and matched Harma EL84/E84L

His standard tube kit for the Classic 30 is:
2 Specially selected JJ ECC83-S
1 Specially selected & Balanced JJ ECC83-S for the phase splitter
4 Specially Selected and matched JJ EL84

Link: Watford Valves :: Full Revalve Kits

[Strbender]

I just ordered a matched set of EL-84's to start. If I still have issues, I'll address the pre-amp tubes after reading up on the information I received here. I have a guitar/amp tech near by. I was told that the tube change was just a swap out on the Peavey. So I figured I could save some $$ changing them myself. When I still had my 60's Fender BFSR, he did all the work on it.

Thanks again

[BComp61]

I've had a couple of Peavey Classic 30's. Cool amps and the tubes are easy to swap out. I was using JJ's in those and I continue to use JJ's in the Egnater's I have now. The guys at Eurotubes are great to work with and always willing to answer questions. Eurotubes - Vacuum Tubes by JJ Electronic - ECC83, 12AX7, 6L6. 6L6GC, EL84, EL34, KT77, KT66, KT88 - Eurotubes Inc.

Just my 2 cents.

[citizenk74]

The Peavy Classic 30 is a great workhorse amp, as is its bigger brother the Classic 50. I have had both and gigged extensively and happily with them. Investing in a select few spare tubes is just good practice. Best of luck with your tube search!

[Doctor Jeff]

I used to have a Classic 30. Nice amp, just a little heavy for taking out of the house. Never replaced any tubes.

The discussion above is reminding me how complicated tube devices are. When I need a new hobby I might think about messing around with tube amps again.

[rpjazzguitar]

Most of the original Ampeg tubes in my 64 Reverberocket lasted more than 45 years.

The JJ replacement 7591's died after a couple of years, during which the amp mostly sat in the same place.

The JJ's sounded good, but didn't last.

I recently put in EH tubes which sound similar. Maybe the JJ's sounded a little better, but it's hard to tell.

I trust Mesa quality control and wouldn't hesitate to spend a few more bucks for something Mesa stands behind. I have a 34 year old Mark III that has never needed any work and still works perfectly, with the original tubes.

[Strbender]

I've had a couple of Peavey Classic 30's. Cool amps and the tubes are easy to swap out. I was using JJ's in those and I continue to use JJ's in the Egnater's I have now. The guys at Eurotubes are great to work with and always willing to answer questions. Eurotubes - Vacuum Tubes by JJ Electronic - ECC83, 12AX7, 6L6. 6L6GC, EL84, EL34, KT77, KT66, KT88 - Eurotubes Inc.

Just my 2 cents.

I went with Eurotubes. I chose the JJ's EL-84 Matched Quad, and for the 12AX7, chose the ECC83S Gold Pin Balanced and Matched.

[whiskey02]

I personally found the C30 to sound significantly better when I got it up off the floor and onto an amp stand. With some amps it makes a big difference, other amps not so much. Replacing V1 with a JJ 5751 will lower the gain a bit but you'll likely never hear the difference unless you're playing pretty loud.

[neatomic]

jj..which is the only euro made tube(slovak republic)...makes great el84's!!..all other tubes are from russia or china...mesa is rebranded chinese..as are many current tubes

a matched quad of jj el84s will make that peavey sing


cheers

[TedBPhx]

I have a JJ5751 in V1, JJ12ax7 in V2, Sovtek12ax7LPS in V3, and a matched quad of jjEL84 for the power section in my C30. The 5751 in V1 makes the biggest difference in getting a better clean with more headroom to my ears.

An Eminence Cannabis Rex speaker also made a “hearable” difference.

But now after twenty years with the Peavey I play through a no problems out of the box Boss Katana.

[Jimmy Mack]

I share TedB's preference for the Peavey 30 tubes, although V2 maybe different, I don't remember and the amp doesn't reside in my apt. But in general, a 5751 yields great results when taming down hi-gain amps, or when in search of cleaner tones.

Also, the speaker choice is important when chasing a tone.

Enjoy.

[KirkP]

This is slightly off topic, but Classic 30 owners might want to bookmark this in case your caps go bad. The caps in those amps aren’t the highest quality.

[marcwhy]

Take a look at the various retube kits for the Peavey Classic 30 at Eurotubes.com

Personally, I like JJ's and also Tungsols. I like to replace the V1 tube with a NOS 5751.

Peavey Classic 30 is a really good amp for jazz IMO.

+1 for the 5751 in V1. I also like 7025 for V1.

[Strbender]

This is slightly off topic, but Classic 30 owners might want to bookmark this in case your caps go bad. The caps in those amps aren’t the highest quality.

I've watched a couple of his videos. There good.