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Thread: Sovtek 6L6's and 5881's....

  1. #1
    Forum Member Homer's Avatar
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    Sovtek 6L6's and 5881's....

    Hi there!

    I've got some questions regarding some Sovtek tubes:

    I've heard that the Sovteks from the last few years are really bad ones, and that oldre Sovteks were quite good; is this true, and if yes, when did the Sovteks start to become low quality?

    I've got two pairs of Sovtek power tubes lying around. The first pair is labeled "5881WXT" and has a full sized base (I'm using that one in my Blues Deluxe at the moment), the other pair is labeled "5881/6L6WGC" and has almost no base. The pair of WXT's might be as old as my amp (I think they are the ones that came with my amp, but I'm not really sure), that's about 8 years now, and I think I got the 6L6WGC's maybe 2 or 3 years ago, don't remember exactly. What's the difference between those two and which pair would be the better one to use?

    Thanks!


    (edited for sense; got the bases and pairs mixed up!)
    Last edited by Homer; 11-08-2002 at 04:23 PM.
    "If you wind up with a boring, miserable life because you listened to your mom, your dad, your teacher, your priest, or some guy on TV telling you how to do your shit, then YOU DESERVE IT."

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  2. #2
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    Tim C.'s Avatar
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    There were no quality control issues with the particular tubes you have mentioned. Both are considered reliable workhorses.
    They just aren't quite as toneful as some other 6L6 varieties that are available.

    Tim C. :)

  3. #3
    Forum Member Homer's Avatar
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    hmmm I can't complain... the 5881WXT just have replaced the set of Ruby Tubes 6L6GC-STR (they claim them to be a remake of the Philips/Sylvania 6L6GC) that had gone bad (massive tube rattling and noise), and I must say going back to these rather old tubes has even improved the tone... but then again, it probably wasn't to good to begin with, considering the damaged tubes :).

    Again: What's the difference between the 5881WXT and the 5881/6L6GC type?
    Last edited by Homer; 11-09-2002 at 01:13 PM.
    "If you wind up with a boring, miserable life because you listened to your mom, your dad, your teacher, your priest, or some guy on TV telling you how to do your shit, then YOU DESERVE IT."

    - Frank Zappa -

  4. #4
    Forum Member Teleologist's Avatar
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    AFAIK, the main difference was the bigger base. The original small base doesn't work as well in the Fender-style tube retainers if they're not tensioned just right.

    These tubes have always been pretty reliable. They're not really 5881s or 6L6GCs but a Soviet tube that's similar. They can take the voltage and operating conditions like a real 6L6GC but break up sooner - more like a 5881. Their filament current draw is typically a little lower than a 5881 or 6L6GC.

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