Got a late birthday present!

[trevorus]

Our sound guy at church was given a few old school tubey things... So, he knew that I love tube stuff. He plays with a modeler most times anyway. So, he gives me a pile o' stuff. Here's the list:

Big box of analog computor (yes, it's spelled that way) tube op-amps. These have some super nice tubes. Some Telefunken Diamond bottom 12ax7's, old RCA 12ax7's, clear top RCA 12au7's, and a few 6BR8A's as well. This is a sizable lot of tubes!

Second, there were a pair of tube PA heads, one being a Bogen Challenger CHB50, and a Calrad AP-35 tube head. They also have a sweet complement of tubes. I plan on building some guitar amps out of these little beasties.

Third, and somehow coolest of all, a Hickok 6000a tube tester. This thing will test just about any tube, and by what I have seen, almost every tube has been at least usable. I cannot wait to get through all these tubes, try them out, and hear what some real 60's tubes will sound like in my little amp collection!

[Chuck H]

You dog! Sweeeet.

IMHE Those old tubes will test out and yield at least 60% good stuff. The rest will be gassy or you'll plug them into a guitar amp and find them microphonic or somehow leaking voltage onto the grid or some some such. But whatever comes out of it, those used good pulls were a staple for me in my early years and I miss them terribly. You'll surely enjoy whatever comes out of those.

The old PA's are a good score too. I read that the guitar player for Chicago used a Bogen PA as an amp. Then, when the band got signed, did he buy a new brand name amp??? Nope. He bought another Bogen amp so he could double his power with the tone he had! I can't say for sure, but knowing he was ardent about his amp choice I have to assume that the solo work on 25 or 6 to 4 was done with a Bogen PA! At least as the preamp into a dummy load and then into another amp (something Terry did a lot I read). So they sound pretty good by just swapping to a 1/4" jack! Fun stuff to play with.

The tube tester is good to have. I've never owned one but when I used to buy pulls both stores I shopped had testers on site. I found them invaluable for preventing the purchase of grossley bad tubes. But there seem to be a lot of things they don't catch. And there's no harsher judge than a guitar amp.

Happy day.

[trevorus]

Most of my amps are heads anymore, so that gives me a little leeway on microphonics. I can't wait to try some of these things in my stable, honestly. The tester is a good guideline, but as you say, the ears tell it all.