Les, do you mean ask PRS for suggestions?
No, I meant ask PRS if you can substitute EL34s for 6L6s, and if so, make sure you understand how to bias them correctly.
And, the last sentence is a bit discouraging... To answer your other questions, I don't mind spending say $150-$200 if needed to get a big upgrade, but I was also hoping that the new Mullards or Tung Sol EL34s were good. I've read good reviews on both, but you know how that goes. Initially I had decided on Winged C but as you know prices have jumped since they stopped producing them. That still might be what I get since they may still be under $200. (I wonder if they will start producing them again).
As far as Pre tubes, I've seen a lot of guys, who have a lot of different amps, singing the praises of the Tung Sol for V1. I already have several of those so I can try that before I even buy any more tubes, except...
Where can I get a tube chart with details? My manual for the H lists what tubes are, but nothing more. Where can I get one which shows "V1" "V2" and then says something like "the V1 tube is the first and second gain stages for the OD channel" or such. I haven't seen that info yet.
Here's the thing: back in the day when tubes where what nearly all electronics ran on, including medical equipment, aircraft equipment, and other high-tech stuff at the time, they had to be made to a certain standard. And the equipment tubes were made on was new and well-maintained. The engineers who worked for the companies that made tubes in the 50s, 60s and 70s were highly trained - like today's electronics workers are - and they knew the ins and outs of tube manufacture.
In contrast, today's tubes are mostly made on old or refurbished equipment. The American and European engineers who knew all about making tubes, and keeping the equipment up to snuff, and the tubes up to spec, are either very old now, or dead.
So what's left are the old Eastern Bloc countries, who bought the equipment for the most part from the old manufacturers in the West. Eastern Bloc tubes were never the equal of their US and European counterparts in the first place, and now the equipment that makes them is even older, and the original engineers are probably no longer there, either.
I think it's great that New Sensor - a subsidiary of Electro-Harmonix - found a bunch of old, desirable tubes and had their designs copied. That's a wonderful thing, because eventually the supply of the originals will completely dry up, and guitar players will still want tubes.
But at the same time, these are NOT the original tubes, made in the original US and European factories. There's no longer medical equipment needing tubes. Aircraft no longer need tubes. High end electronics for the most part do not need tubes. The tolerances aren't as tight. The know-how isn't as expert. The secret sauce that made some tubes great and others meh...well...that's gone.
If you buy a bunch of JJ or New Sensor preamp tubes, lots of them will fail within a few days, lots will fail within a few months. I've replaced two on my recently purchased HXDA30 already. On the other hand, well-sourced NOS preamp tubes rarely fail for years.
And they sound better. Noticeably better, which is why the guys like Grissom who are known to be tone gurus use NOS tubes in their amps.
Now, a lot of guys will sing the praises of the newer tubes, but how many have tried the originals? Unknown. I will say that I've tried both, and while the newer tubes are indeed an improvement on some of the crap that was being made earlier, real NOS tubes of the same type sound different. Better? To my ear, yes, but that's my preference. YMMV.
Also, FYI:
V1 = first preamp tube closest to the input jack in every amp I know of. V2 is the next one, etc., etc.
