ECC83 /12AX7 Super 7 Preamp Tube. A JJ Pre Amp tube rebranded by Peavey. These are the latest generation of 12AX7 valve to come from the JJ Tesla plant in the Slovak Republic. The new design is based on the famous frame grid construction made famous by Telefunken. The main improvements made are in the area of microphonics and noise. This is yet another manufacturer that is producing well engineered and a solid construction that adds to their already proven track record. The JJ tube is a great all round valve and a very popular tube in the guitarist circle. The design improvements that JJ have made will no doubt make it more so.
The valve tends to bring out the natural tone of the instrument and has a clean detailed edge which we found rounder and warmer than other standard types of 12AX7. Background hiss and hum was also very low at high gain settings. Also we found that compared to the standard 12AX7 the mids were very smooth and possessed more clarity.
Drive the tube a bit and you get that classic crunch sound which sounded round and retro. Great Stuff. This valve is suited for those that love vintage valve tone and work well in most leading brand amps.
Drive them a bit more and you get a smooth round overdrive. Perfect for taming down those over bright harsh amplifiers. When I hear valves like this it makes me realise how far the digital generation of designers really have to go to get anywhere near this kind of tone.