How to Change a Pre-Amp Tube (ART VoiceChannel)

Updated: Oct 8, 2023

This website isn’t so much about fixing hardware, but my single channel strip was starting to fail, and it had a vacuum tube.

It was a serious problem on my FL Studio Podcast because my voice was starting to distort and cut out sometimes. I immediately thought it’s probably the tube!

I show how to replace the ART VoiceChannel vacuum tube.

More Pictures of the ART VoiceChannel Replacement Tube Model

The ART VoiceChannel required a 12AX7 tube, but make sure to read the manual yourself to confirm. (I won’t be held liable. These are not directions for how to do it, just showing my experience).

Surprisingly, the 12AX7 Tube was not very expensive!

One thing to say is there are various price ranges if you want really quiet recordings, but I purchased the mid-range, which seems sufficient. The ART VoiceChannel is back up and running good!

Conclusion: Tube Replacement was EASY and Successful!

One thing I learned from being an electrician was that you should never touch tubes or glass that heats up on lights because our fingers have oils on them.

These oils create burn spots, and cause premature device failure. That’s why I held the tube with the plastic wrapping for the best installation.

I also decided to purchase a solid state channel strip instead so that a failing tube will never be the problem again. It’s great to have this ART VoiceChannel as a second backup channel strip to get a solid microphone recording.

Want to learn to make better beats? Try my FL Studio Courses!

About Author: GratuiTous

GratuiTous manages his Beatmaker Training Platform, authors Beatmaking Books, and hosts the "Music Production Made Simple Podcast". Introduced to FL Studio by his good friend in 2009.. he began FL Studio tutorials in 2011, eventually leading to his 35+ Courses in the platform. Fun Fact: He was an electrician for 10 Years!

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