Do all tube amps jingle?

[Rigormortis]

Whenever the volume on my Traynor YCV20 is above halfway, there is a resonant jingle that seems to be coming from tubes. It sounds like a broken lightbulb being vibrated. It only happens with certain frequencies, and only when those frequencies are being made by the amp. A second amp turned up next to it will not make the first amp jingle. It's loud enough to be heard across the room.

I had an old Ampeg Reverb-O-Rocket that had the same sound,and I thought it was just old. So it must be common. Do all tube amps have this jingle? Or is there something wrong with my amp?

[Enzo]

SOme amps are worse than others, and some tubes worse than others. Little EL84s are pretty loose to start with and may rattle in small combo amps like the PV C30. it isn't necessarily something wrong, the EL84 was designed to sit in a table radio, TV set or a record player, NOT a screaming guitar head sitting on a speaker or worse even, in a combo. If it bugs you , you usually have to swap out the tubes.

I make a tube retainer for the PV to keep the tubes from shaking so they won't rattle.

[chipaudette]

My tubes jingle like broken light bulbs, too. I hate it. But, I've not fixed it yet. I've swapped some of the tubes...that helped get rid of some of the jingles but I have others that still jingle.

I'd like to try the silicone o-ring trick, but haven't gotten the time to actually go get some o-rings that fit around my tubes.

I hate this problem!

Chip

[Rigormortis]

Yeah, of course the sound is NOT coming through the speakers--that's good.

I've poked around in there while the guitar string is doing a continuous feedback, and I can hear it but not see it. My tubes do have little rubber bumpers at the ends to keep them from moving, and touching the ones I can reach with a rubber screwdriver handle doesn't change the sound.

These are the JJ tubes that were recommended for upgrade/replacement. But that was three or four years back. Could they be worn out? Would new ones possibly have the same sound?

Maybe it's not the tubes. But it sure sounds like filaments against glass.

It's definitely coming from the amp part and not the reverb, for example.

[Alex R]

Check the handle. Try taking it off. They rattle sometimes & it seems to spread through the wood.

[Enzo]

It is the tubes or not the tubes. WHile someone plays it so the rattle happens, someone else can grasp the tubes firmly to prevent them shaking. Use a rag or gloves if they are too hot. Uf that stops it, then it is the tubes, and if not, then it aint't.

One trick is the poor man's stethoscope. Roll up a magazine into a cylinder. Now hold it to your ear and listen through it. It will narrow down what you hear and may help localize the noise source.

[Rigormortis]

OK. I isolated the jingle. It's in one of the two EL84 tubes--or their JJ Tube equivalent. I can't read the writing on the tube in position. I can hold it firmly between two guitar picks and it stops jingling.

I guess the next thing is to order new tubes, huh?

[Enzo]

You might try the Sovtek EL84M - M for military I think. it is a ruggedized version of the tube, and some folks find they rattle less.

[captntasty]

+1 on the military spec - russian or american... I had a 5Y3 that jingled and it drove me nuts. I researched and found often a milspec tube was built for less microphonics/vibration etc tried a NOS 5Y3WGTY - no more jingle... I then and there decided that milspec tubes were the way to go for all tubes (other than preamp) - no more jingles.

[tubestuff]

Tube Jingling is usually more prominent during the Christmas Season.

[petemoore]

But I don't like the tubes having to endure 'baja' conditions.
You may lose some of the combo type sound...mechanically vibrating the tubes at frequencies they're amplifying, probably out of phase...makes a 'tube reverb' [the tube actually reverberates the signal] type combo-tone.
I don't miss it, nor do I miss having tubes go microphonic as often.
Putting a microphonic amplifier [with microphonic tube in it] on a towel, or moving it to a table from atop a 4x12'' cab can [not always] make it non-microphonic.
I prefer having them ride in a soft suspended 'caddilac frame, heavy does has it's advantages, separate head / mushy feet.

[tboy]

Tube Jingling is usually more prominent during the Christmas Season.

...or at least more meaningful.

[Chuck H]

I have two el84 combos and both are prone to tube rattle. I had a box of 20 old Sovtek el84s that I matched up pretty close. A pair would last between 2 weeks and 2 mos before becoming noisy. Again, mostly at certain frequencies. But there was one song I used to play and they would jingle all the way.

Couldn't help it.

Chuck

[hasserl]

I've got tubes that jingle, jangle, jingle... oh, sorry.

[Enzo]

And the butt of a pheasant on my hat