Forums - EZ 81 blown twice

roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	EZ 81 blown twice 04/30/12 at 03:04:39 So I've had two JJ tesla EZ 81s blow in the same channel. All stock tubes. All tested. Any idea what might be the problem? Both times it was idling. What should I do next?
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Rivieraranch Seasoned Member Posts: 2126	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #1 - 04/30/12 at 04:26:51 Not to make light of your situation, but the quality of JJ products right now blows. Get a U.S. or European 6CA4/EZ81 and see if it blows, too.
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Fireblade Seasoned Member Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. A.L.Tennyson Posts: 1046	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #2 - 04/30/12 at 04:40:03 If you have another spare tube (or when you get it), just plug the one that was on the other channel into the channel in trouble, and the new one on the other channel . If it blows too, is not the tube.
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roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #3 - 04/30/12 at 14:10:02 I have a NOS EZ 81 that has not blown. I used it after the other JJ blew too.
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roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #4 - 05/01/12 at 00:35:27 Other than a bad tube, what could cause a tube to blow?
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Donnie

Seasoned Member

Why does it hurt
when I pee?

Posts: 2194

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #5 - 05/01/12 at 00:54:14

Now remember that I am not too technical, but a small explosive charge could blow a tube. Maybe Alpha or Gamma rays, I always forget which one is bad, maybe Stingrays?
It could be something to do with electricity, tricky stuff, avoid it like you would a tiger that looks hungry. Perhaps a short? Or possibly a long, it is hard to tell them apart.
I have always found the best way to fix a problem is to throw money at it, and if that doesn't work, shoot it with your largest caliber gun!

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erik2a3 Seasoned Member Posts: 100	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #6 - 05/02/12 at 01:16:51 Donnie: LOL!
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erik2a3

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Posts: 100

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #7 - 05/02/12 at 01:21:26

By the way, I made some ear extenders once. It can be amazing what lightly cupping one's ears can do for clarity in listening to music. I've known band directors who do that when listening critically to students playing their instruments (i'm a an art teacher, and would stop in the band room sometimes to listen. Some high school bands I've heard are really outstanding!).

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Have fun!
erik

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Les Lammers Seasoned Member Posts: 146	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #8 - 05/02/12 at 13:17:37 Jim McShane has RFT EZ81's. Google and scroll down. Personally, I like Mullard or Amperex.
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Rivieraranch Seasoned Member Posts: 2126	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #9 - 05/02/12 at 13:39:59 I bought a pair from him. Another rectifier you could use is the EZ80.
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HappyDwarf13

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Posts: 37

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #10 - 05/02/12 at 21:43:35

Just entered your forum. I love Steve's gear and own what will become seven items in his product mix within the next 12 weeks.

I suspect that I have the same predicament as some of you. I'm still breaking in a set of ZOB open baffles with the TORI mini amp. When I left for a meeting this morning things were sounding very pleasant with only about 28 hours on the system. When I returned to the office two and one-half hours later one side of the amp was out. Noticed that the rectifier tube wasn't heated.

Oh to be a tube dweeb. That's okay. To me a bit of reflection going back to all that ham radio equipment that I built in my youth using valves is pleasant. Too bad that I didn't realize how good (linear) tubes were for passing sine waves until about 18 years ago. I'm 60 now. From here on out it's vacuum tubes all the way--combined with high resolution digital recordings and of course my beloved LP collection.

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Rivieraranch Seasoned Member Posts: 2126	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #11 - 05/02/12 at 22:01:59 Is that another JJ failure?
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erik2a3

Seasoned Member

Posts: 100

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #12 - 05/02/12 at 23:55:04

A bit at odds, I guess, but I've always always had pretty good luck with JJ reliability. I've used a number of different rectifiers from them with long term success. I've learned in the past that some who are new to tubes have admitted to turning an amp on and off rapidly and repeatedly during swapping of tubes, and experienced a number of problems including blowing fuses and damaging rectifiers, etc. If you're one to constantly roll tubes, let the amp take a break for a bit before hitting the switch. It's not good to keep turning it on and off and on and off in quick succession.

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Have fun!
erik

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roggae

Seasoned Member

Posts: 160

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #13 - 05/04/12 at 19:06:08

i've got a little more time now so i'll respond with a little more detail. i've had tubes for about ten years now. blew one tube in my previous amp as a result of a bad socket. the blown ez 81 happened after the amp had been on for a few hours and was the second time it had happened in the same slot under the same circumstances.

i'm not concerned just confounded.

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HPDJ

Senior Member

Posts: 79

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #14 - 05/05/12 at 00:57:40

Hey,

I'm new to the forums so please excuse my jumping in on this thread. I'll briefly say that I had issue with my EZ81's with my Mini T. and ended up getting some NOS ones from Brent Jesse and have not had any problems since...I got my Mini in January. GREAT amp btw!

And I think others have had issues with their JJ EZ81's SO, it's not really Decware's fault (I know knowone has pointed fingers or anything) . I think there is an unreliable batch of EZ81's out there and some people are getting stuck with them. I tried 3 different batches of JJ's...they all were a no-go!

NOS rectifiers don't go for very much either and you can read a bit, or ask around about the different manufacturers who made them and see what flavor might work best for your set up

I've got a set from Valvo and I think Mullard.

Have fun

-H

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Lon Seasoned Member "Love without guts is worthless!" Philip K. Dick Posts: 23464	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #15 - 05/05/12 at 12:41:19 H, Welcome to the forum! Glad you're enjoying your MT and Trapeziums. Keep the impressions coming!
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Rivieraranch

Seasoned Member

Posts: 2126

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #16 - 05/05/12 at 14:39:59

Simply put, JJ quality BLOWS! Jim McShane wrote recently of a batch of JJ EL84's he received that were bad. The JJ EL84 was a very highly regarded tube. If they start mucking that up, do you think they are paying attention to quality control in their rectifiers? Hell no!

Jim McShane sells an RFT EZ81 that is a good bet. NOS US 6CA4 are available as well. If I am not mistaken you can also sub an EZ80 6V4 in there as well.

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Les Lammers Seasoned Member Posts: 146	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #17 - 05/05/12 at 15:01:58 Just get a pair of quality NOS or lightly used RFT, Valvo, Mullard, GE etc. They will seve you well. Like Erik posted, if you are rolling tubes let the amp cool a bit before turning it back on...especially if you are using JJ EZ81's.
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roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #18 - 05/15/12 at 01:57:34 Blew another JJ. Different channel. Amp was idling. Put kids to bed. Came back. Tube was blown. What should I do?
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HPDJ Senior Member Posts: 79	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #19 - 05/15/12 at 02:07:09 which tube was it? The EZ81's?......as others here have mentioned, your best bet is to ditch the JJ's (my 6V6's work fine still in my MT though) and get a more reliable NOS one...you probly got some JJ"s from a bad batch or something...
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Fireblade Seasoned Member Knowledge comes, but wisdom lingers. A.L.Tennyson Posts: 1046	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #20 - 05/15/12 at 03:17:12 If you still have that single survivor JJ tube that has not blown yet, it's definitely a bad lot. Try to take this with the seller, if you can.
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roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #21 - 05/17/12 at 15:51:37 Pulled the trigger on a pair of the RFT EZ 81s and I also picked up a pair of 6v6gt reissues since Steve mentioned my out put tubes might be shorting. Any thoughts?
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Les Lammers Seasoned Member Posts: 146	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #22 - 09/29/12 at 22:09:29 Rogge, Were you using 6L6 types when the rectifier popped? FB
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roggae Seasoned Member Posts: 160	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #23 - 10/15/12 at 01:33:43 I'm pretty sure it happened both with stock tubes in place and other approved NOS tubes. Why?
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Rivieraranch Seasoned Member Posts: 2126	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #24 - 10/15/12 at 10:53:30 This is the main reason that the mass market migrated towards "solid state" in the 1960's. Tubes were somewhat unreliable. They can test fine but after a while sometimes a tube can go bad. Hopefully this won't happen to you again. With new power tubes and rectifiers, there is little chance that tubes will blow.
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Lon

Seasoned Member

"Love without
guts is
worthless!"
Philip K. Dick

Posts: 23464

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #25 - 10/15/12 at 13:34:33

Actually, I think the main reason that the industry moved to solid state was cost, transistors ultimately were easier to build, transport, and install all at a lower cost point. They could provide more power more easily, and it was easier to build powerful amps with inefficient speakers than lower powered amps with efficient speakers. Or so Ive read and been told by a few audio technicians.

What a shame really. . . Just think what fifty years of tube electronic development might have brought. And maybe we wouldn't have been hurled into this automated electronic nightmare we live in (or maybe just how I perceive it at times.)

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Les Lammers

Seasoned Member

Posts: 146

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #26 - 10/15/12 at 17:55:22

Lon,

The chicken or the egg? LP's & CD's? Would Led Zep & ZZ Top have been the same with all tubes? The Japanese bought a lot of the old tube gear and tubes and sold us Pioneer and gave us perfect sound 4ever.

I just sold a Sansui AU222 20 watt integrated from 1964-65 it sounded much like tubes and had a very good phono section. Actually, early SS was voiced to mimic tubes. The little amp was built like a tank. Industrial strength circuit boards etc. I wonder how it would stack up against a modern amp if it were fully restored?

Les

P.S. EZ80's sound great in the Mini. I got some Tungsrams and RFT's. They are not expensive tubes.

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Lon

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"Love without
guts is
worthless!"
Philip K. Dick

Posts: 23464

Re: EZ 81 blown twice
Reply #27 - 10/15/12 at 18:01:59

When I listened to Zep and ZZ. . .I listened on a tube system.

And those bands used tube amps.

The Japanese were smart to buy up that stuff. Most here didn't value them at the time.

I guess I blame transistors on miniturizing circuits and such things as smart phones and even the internet, both of which I begin to feel are polluting life and allowing the fabulously wealthy to . . . ah I'll just say I'm starting to be a bit of a luddite and enjoying my tubes.

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Les Lammers Seasoned Member Posts: 146	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #28 - 10/15/12 at 18:27:01 I'm getting old(er) too. SS can sound very good but tubes do it for me.
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Lon Seasoned Member "Love without guts is worthless!" Philip K. Dick Posts: 23464	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #29 - 10/15/12 at 19:11:49 I prefer to think that we're both getting . . . wiser.
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Les Lammers Seasoned Member Posts: 146	Re: EZ 81 blown twice Reply #30 - 10/15/12 at 20:11:59 Speak for yourself...the jury is still out in my case. ;D
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