Author Topic: I've fitted an attenuator to my Valve junior but............ (Read 2920 times)

crispsandwich · « **on:** October 04, 2006, 11:24:26 AM »

I think I've got a cr@ppy preamp valve. I'm not sure though. The sound becomes harsh and fizzy when I hit the strings too hard and when I play chords there's a really audible fizz/hiss that gradually disappears. Does that mean it's a bad preamp valve? The problem was there before. I was hoping it was the speaker being driven too hard and once the amp was attenuated the problem would disappear, but nope. It's worst when I'm trying to play nice smooth licks with my neck pickup. It's like this mid-range fuzz that sits on top of the note. Argh! Played clean the amp sounds wonderful. The attenuator (apart from the fizz being caused by the amp) works very, very well. Cost me less than a tenner including postage.

I'm looking to replace the valves in a few weeks anyway. What low gain alternatives to a 12AX7 could I pop in there? I'm going to be adding two more gain stages and a tone control so would like the normal gain stage to be as clean as possible.

Also, I'm still wanting to push effects in front of it. I want some reverbs and delays. The problem with my Behringer X V-amp is that it completely sucks my tone. The Zoom G2 looks good. It's only 60 quid and has 32-bit effects and a 96khz sampling rate (compared the my Behringer's 32.1khz - yuk). Will this preserve most of my tone?

Cheers.

-Danny :)

DeanS · « **Reply #1 on:** October 04, 2006, 05:47:42 PM »

Danny, for a lower gain pre amp valve you could try something like a 12 at7, in any case look up watford valves for some serious choice.

3th3r · « **Reply #2 on:** October 04, 2006, 08:06:32 PM »

You could substitute a 12AX7 with (in decreasing order of gain):

5751
12AT7
12AY7

You will get cleaner sounds, and your overall volume will decrease, as well.

crispsandwich · « **Reply #3 on:** October 04, 2006, 08:19:42 PM »

Cheers for the replies. I'll look into them valves :).

Can anyone answer my original question? :)

Tinus · « **Reply #4 on:** October 04, 2006, 10:23:20 PM »

I use 5751's in my Budda to lower gain and it works well. Apart from lower gain there's also some extra clarity and definition, the amps sounds more "Fendery" if that's a word. 5751's are easy to pick up NOS and arent too expensive.

I've tried 12AT7's too but I learned they have trouble coping with my booster pedal in V1 position, they'd burn out too quickly. However it all depends on playing style and the actual amp so experiment and see what works best for you.

As for the fuzziness w/ attenuator: you get to hear the amp working very hard but without the speaker colouration and compression you'd normally get at high volume. I get the same fuzzy distortion if I use too much attenuation. So try less amp volume / less attenuation, or maybe just play louder (it's only 5W!!!! :twisted:)