Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes

Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes

Site Menu

Magazine
Reviews
Photos
Lessons
Videos
Blogs

Magazine
Tone Report Issue 203

Magazine
Tone Report Issue 202

Magazine
Tone Report Issue 201

Rig Report
Daily News
Interviews
Tone Tips
Do it Yourself
Lifestyle

Tone Tips
Building Better Swells and Soundscapes for Your Sunday Morning Gig

Tone Tips
Fractal Audio Announces Axe-FX III Preamp and Effects Processor

Tone Tips
Fender Releases New Line of Effects Pedals

Guitars
Amps
Music
Pedals

Review
SolidGold FX 76 Octave Fuzz

Review
JHS Pedals Pink Panther

Review
Friedman Amplification Fuzz Fiend

Rock
Classic Rock
Blues
Alternative

Lessons
The Rolling Stones - Satisfaction Guitar Lesson

Lessons
Aerosmith -Toys In The Attic Guitar Lesson

Lessons
Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Greeting Song Guitar Lesson

Daily News
Riff of the Day
Demos

Demos
SolidGoldFX Electroman MKII Delay

Demos
JHS Offers Nine Tube Screamers in One with New Bonsai Pedal

Demos
°red sun fx Grantler High Gain Distortion

Guitars
Amps
Music
Pedals

Pedals
Wampler Low Blow

Pedals
MXR Custom Shop CSP099 Phase 99

Pedals
Radial Engineering Elevator

Connect

Facebook
Youtube
Twitter
Tumblr

Features

Rig Report
Daily News
Interviews
Tone Tips
DIY
Lifestyle

More

PHOTOs
Interviews
Lessons
Videos
BLOGS

The Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes Nano is a re-creation of the original Hot Tubes from the late-1970's. As the original has gained cult status from use by Sonic Youth and others it has slowly escalated in price on the used market. Seeing the demand for the original unit, EHX developed the Hot Tubes Nano using the same CMOS circuit as the original.

Fuzzy is the best way to describe the tone of the Hot Tubes. To my ears, it sounds like speaker break up or like a small amp being pushed just beyond the breaking point. It’s an overused term, but the Hot Tubes really does sound "tweedy."

Having the option to bypass the tone stock adds a lot of versatility to the Hot Tubes. With the tone stack bypassed, the Hot Tubes Nano is a little dark, but it’s louder and gainier. Engaging the tone stack cut some of the lows, reduces volume overall, and allows for a brighter tone.

I preferred the tone stack bypassed when using the Strat and Tele. With P90s and humbuckers I liked the engaging the tone control for cutting some low frequencies and dialing in some sizzle.

If I had to use one word to describe the Hot Tubes Nano, it would be “garage.” It really nails the tone of a small combo bezerk. There’s a thickness to the low frequencies and raspiness to the highs that just makes you want to bash away.

What We Like: The Hot Tubes Nano sounds like a low-budget vintage tube amp cranked up in your parents’ basement or garage. It’s not smooth, it’s not as touch sensitive as some other overdrives, but it gets the point across in a balls out rock and roll kind of way.

Concerns: With the overdrive set below noon, there's something artificial about the attack of the note. Running the gain beyond noon is great though.

Build Quality: The build quality is solid. No complaints here.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
As an interesting aside, the Hot Tubes is EHX version of the Craig Anderton Tube Sound Fuzz. The Way Huge Red Llama is another copy of the Tube Sound Fuzz, and is more faithful to Craig’s design.
I used to own an original Hot Tubes - my favorite distortion pedal ever….it was even AC powered! of course it died eventually, and now I see there’s a re-do…..i’m going to check it out. the way I ran mine, was a Boss 7-band EQ in front, set for a treble boost and very slight lower-midrange cut. This kind of ‘goosed’ the Hot Tubes, and gave it quite a sound [tone control off]. I found the tone most helpful to dial up different responses to different guitars, at the time i was using a Hamer ‘sustain block’ Special, a Westone Dynasty, Kramer Foyd Rose signature model, and ibanez strat copy w/EMG’s. . .the tone control let me, for example, take the extra ‘zing!’ out of the Kramer - with a maple body and floyd, it was really trebly - i could just dial it down to my liking. Definitely gonna check out this new one, hopefully my ‘holy grail’ tone will be RIGHT THERE. . .but, we’ll see.. . ...
Copyright (c) 2017 Reverb.com, All rights reserved.
Copyright (c) 2017 Reverb.com, All rights reserved.

was successfully added to your cart.
Electro-Harmonix is not only an effects pedal pioneer, but we are the world’s leading manufacturer of vacuum tubes, and our tubes are quite simply the absolute best. We design and manufacture our tubes for high fidelity, reliability and warmth. Next time you retube with EHX, you’ll be getting great sounding tubes at a very reasonable price.
The EHX family of tube brands includes: Tung-Sol, Electro-Harmonix, EH Gold, Genalex Gold Lion, Mullard, Svetlana & Sovtek.
Our tubes have always been known for their reliability and great tone due to our strong committment to quality engineering and manufacturing. For a tube to be labeled with our brand, it must endure and pass the toughest testing in the industry.
Electro-Harmonix vacuum tubes are the leading choice for many legendary amplifier manufacturers and if you want great sounding tubes at an affordable price, then EHX tubes should be on the top of your list.
A vacuum tube is an electronic device consisting of a minimum of four active elements: a heater (filament), a cathode, a grid and a plate, all sealed in a vacuum glass enclosure to prevent parts from burning. Once heated, the cathode begins to emit electrons, which flow from the cathode (which is negatively charged) toward the plate (which is positively charged). The grid’s purpose is to control this flow, in effect, acting as a valve, which is why tubes are called "valves" in the U.K.
The term JAN stands for JOINT ARMY-NAVY. These are tubes that have been manufactured to a military specification or have been specifically selected for a military application. Most of the current stocks of JAN tubes are NOS (New Old Stock) tubes that were manufactured in the 1970s and 1980s. These tubes were either ruggedized during manufacture or selected from a very tight specification for highest performance and reliability. Since these tubes are no longer in production, when the current supplies are sold there will be no more.
Grid leak is the small current through the grid of a vacuum tube into the circuit feeding the grid. It is an inherent operating characteristic of triodes and other multi-grid vacuum tubes. This current is caused by the small negative voltage present in all vacuum tubes as a result of a space charge within the envelope of the tube. This space charge is part of the thermionic effect, which is the fundamental phenomenon behind all vacuum tubes.
Grid leakage is also a term that is frequently incorrectly used to describe the condition of a tube when tested on a tube tester. The correct term is inter-electrode leakage, which refers to leakage paths between the elements of a tube. Many emission type tube testers have leakage tests that far exceed the application of the tube being tested and will reject many perfectly functional tubes. Sencore sold tube testers in the 1960s that were claimed to have the "most sensitive leakage test in the industry".
When power tubes are matched, they are frequently classified by the distortion and break-up characteristic. The most common method is to refer to the tubes as Soft, Medium, or Hard.
Soft tubes reach saturation and break-up quicker. These tubes have lower plate current (Ip) and transconductance (Gm) matching numbers. They are preferred by blues guitarists for the break-up and sustain they provide.
Hard tubes have the highest amount of clean headroom before break-up and distortion. These tubes have high plate current (Ip) and transconductance (Gm) matching numbers. They take longer to reach saturation and are preferred by jazz, country, and bass players. Hard tubes are also used by guitarists who rely primarily on effects pedals to generate distortion.
Medium tubes fall in between soft tubes and hard tubes. They exhibit good headroom, but will break up and distort when pushed. These tubes have plate current (Ip) and transconductance (Gm) matching numbers in the middle of the range. Classic rock guitarists and players who play a wide variety of styles generally use medium rated tubes.
The actual sound of a 12AX7 depends on the design of the amplifier. Other factors include the type of sound the user is looking for, the gain structure of the amplifier, and the type of 12AX7 that was used during the design process of the amplifier. The best way to decide which 12AX7 to use is actually purchase several different types and actually try them in the amplifier to determine which one sounds the best in your amplifier. Experienced technicians do this. They know that a certain type of 12AX7 tube may sound better in one amplifier, where a different 12AX7 may sound better in another amplifier. Since 12AX7 tubes are self-biasing, they can readily be swapped without any adjustment to the amplifier. The following description of the 12AX7 tubes manufactured by New Sensor Corporation will provide a helpful guideline to assist with the selection process when trying different types of 12AX7 tubes.
The Sovtek 12AX7WA/WB/WC series of tubes are general-purpose workhorse types that provide reliable performance in a variety of applications. These tubes are frequently found as OEM tubes in many different brands of amplifiers. The 12AX7WB has about 6% more gain than the 12AX7WA and a slightly darker sound signature, which is great for smoothing out harsh sounding amplifiers. The 12AX7WC has closely matched sections making it ideal for phase inverter circuits. The 12AX7WA/WB/WC types hold up better than other 12AX7 tubes in cathode follower circuits where the maximum cathode to heater rating of 100 volts is often exceeded.
The Sovtek 12AX7LP/LPS series has a large plate format that gives a large soundstage with a lot of detail. The 12AX7LPS also has a spiral filament for reduction of heater to cathode induced hum in amplifiers with AC powered heaters.
The Svetlana 12AX7 has performance that falls between the Sovtek 12AX7WA/WB/WC series and the Electro-Harmonix 12AX7EH. It has a slightly different internal geometry that makes an additional "flavor" of 12AX7 available.
The Electro-Harmonix 12AX7EH is a high-gain, low noise type with a short plate format for reduction of microphonics in high gain amplifiers. It also features the spiral filament for hum reduction.
The reissue Mullard 12AX7/ECC83 has the same features as the Sovtek 12AX7LPS, with a geometry and transfer characteristic that replicates the sound signature of the large plate Mullard ECC83 tubes that were popular in the 1960s and 1970s.
The reissue Tung-Sol 12AX7 has the highest gain of all of the 12AX7 types. It has a very full and musical sound signature. This is an excellent tube to improve the sound of bland and thin sounding amplifiers.
The Sovtek 5751 is a special version with 70% of the gain of a normal 12AX7. This tube has low microphonics and is useful for lowering the gain of an amplifier to provide a clean, bell-like tone that is reminiscent of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s "Riviera Paradise".
The Electro-Harmonix 12AY7EH/6072A is another tube that is useful in lowering the gain of an amplifier. It has 44% of the gain of a 12AX7 with a higher transconductance making it more touch sensitive. 12AY7 tubes were frequently used as the first preamp tube in most Tweed-Era Fender amplifiers.
The New Sensor/Electro-Harmonix Tube Matching System uses a test fixture that is based on the information provided in MIL-STD-1311 Test Methods for Electron Tubes. This document is the military standard for vacuum tube testing. This test fixture is connected to a special computer controlled switching matrix that selects each tube individually on a tray that holds forty tubes. This allows us to test and match large numbers of tubes to meet the demands of the musical instrument amplifier and hi-fi audio industries, as well as service shops and technicians that maintain this equipment. The system is powered by heavy-duty regulated power supplies that are continuously set and calibrated for each tube type through proprietary computer software that is referenced to a Hewlett-Packard/Agilent 34401A digital multi-meter. The calibration is tracable to NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology). Each tube, when selected by the switching matrix, is put through a battery of tests, including inter-electrode leakage, positive grid current, screen grid current window, and high/low plate current limits, prior to the actual matching process. When the tube passes these tests, it is then matched to within 1 ma. plate current (Ip) and 100 microohms of transconductance (Gm). When the system has tested and matched the entire tray of forty tubes a sheet of labels indicating test results and matching information is printed by the computer. The tube tray is then removed from the matching system, replaced with another, and the process is repeated. The tubes are then put into pairs, quartets, or sextets with the labels indicating Ip and Gm attached to the boxes and the tubes banded together. The matching is very accurate and repeatable. This precision matching ensures that the sets of tubes will wear evenly, sound better, and last longer.
The best test for a tube is in the actual piece of equipment the tube will be used. It is common for design engineers to build a mockup of the circuit being designed with meters and oscilloscope connections in order to evaluate the performance of the tube under the various operating parameters encountered. Early in the development of radio special tube/set testers were used where the tube was removed from the radio, the tester was plugged into the tube socket, and the tube was plugged into the tester socket. The radio and tester were turned on and the condition of the tube was read on the tester meters. This worked well on old 4 pin simple rectifiers and triodes. As more tube types were developed and circuits became more complex, these simple testers did not work or provide enough information to properly evaluate the condition of tubes operating at wide ranges of voltage, current, and signal waveform. The high cost for many adaptors and wide range of equipment required became impractical and not cost effective.
The service tube tester was developed for the telephone, radio-TV, communications and industrial electronics industries to provide basic tube testing capabilities to help technicians and engineers locate defective tubes. The early testers only tested cathode emission. They worked fine in the early days of the industry before the circuits and tubes became more sophisticated.
Over the years there were many approaches to tube tester design. The features, accuracy, and the tests available differ widely by make and model. Some manufacturers wanted to focus on simple low cost units to find weak or just bad tubes. In all cases tube testers were at best a set of balances and trade-offs in the evaluation of the tubes vs. the cost of the tester. Even the best service testers made trade-offs in design to allow for simplicity of use, the ability to test many different types of tubes, features, and accuracy, balanced by the price of the tester. The service tester was a piece of test equipment to be used by professional engineers and electronic technicians to aid in the process of repairing tube electronic equipment. Testers were designed with the understanding that those using them were knowledgeable in tube operation, the equipment the tube was used in, and how the tester worked in evaluating tubes. This is more often not the case today when someone acquires a tube tester and attempts to use it!
There are many types of service tube testers and mos
Big Mature Cuckold
Video Online Fetish
Hairy Stockings Videos

Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes

Report Page