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In Reply to: RE: REVIEW: PSVANE WE845 Tubes posted by sherod on March 13, 2014 at 14:45:59
Sherod,
Thanks for your well-wishes. I too hope these WE845 have a long life. The 845-Bs did so I'm rather confident these will as well. I really wished I knew you were originally looking for a good 12AU7 type of tube. When I originally purchased my Mastersound, some 13 years ago now, I also looked for the "ultimate" 12AU7 to use in it's preamp stage. Back then I went everywhere I could find, i.e., SETriodes group, Audio Asylum, Audio Roundtable, Audioholics and World Tube Audio forums and I asked for some suggestions on what others considered to be "the best" 12AU7. Well as might be expected the "Use Amperex, Mullard, Telefunken" chant started everywhere. Back then I was new to tube rolling so I believed what I was told. Thus I bought Amperex, Mullards & Telefunkens. However I was not quite satisfied with what I heard.
So I also bought Brimar, La Radiotechnique, Maroni, Mazda, Phillips, RFT, Siemens, Valvo, and just about every European 12AU7 I could find. I also tried the US tubes GE, JAN, RCA, Raytheon, Sylvania and Tung-Sol etc. But that wasn't all. I was so obsessed with finding "the best" 12AU7-type tube I tried every different tube types within the 12AU7 family I could find. This included the CV4003, CV491, 12AU7, 12AU7A, 12AU7WA, 5814, 5814A, 5963, 6067, 6189, 7730, ECC82, E82CC, ECC802S & M8136. I hope you're getting my drift here.
After spending more $$$$ than I care to remember and after much trial and a lot of errors, I found the two 12AU7 "types" I liked best. Did you notice the I LIKED BEST part? You see IMHO the number one "best" 12AU7 variant is the Mazda "silver-plate" 12AU7WA / E82CC / 6189 by a far margin and the number two 12AU7 variant is the RFT Foil-getter 12AU7 / ECC82. In the Mazda I found "the King" of 12AU7's bar none ---{of course this was 13 years ago in the pre-Psvane days}--- But in the RFT I found all the salient traits of a Teley with much better midrange bloom and detail...the RFT smokes the Teleys IMHO!
But the most valuable lesson I learned however was this, EVERYTHING MATTERS, and there is no BEST 12AU7! The Mazda "silver-plate" 6189 sounded the best-bar none in my Mastersound, using my speakers, my transport, my DAC, my wires etc. No other 12AU7 even came close back then ---{except the RFT "foil-getter"}--- However that same tube in your amp, with your CD Player, and speakers etc. might not have "the magic" at all. Our systems are a gestalt of all the different components involved. Unfortunately the only way to find what "the best" 12AU7 for you is through trial and error. Thankfully you found the Psvane 12AU7 tubes. After hearing how amazing these Psvane WE845 tubes sound I'll believe have to try a pair of their 12AU7 tubes myself now.
I'm listening to:
Thetubeguy1954 (Tom Scata)
Thetubeguy1954 (Tom Scata)
Full-range/Wide-range Drivers --- Front & Back-Loaded Horns
Central Florida Audio Society -- SETriodes Group -- Space Coast Audio Society
Follow Ups:
Tom,
I read quite a while back about your search for the ultimate 12au7. It was your thread that got me on my search. However, I needed four tubes, two per amp and I never could find four, or even a matched pair of the Maxda silver plates, so I ultimately gave up, especially since I spent several hundred $$ on the other NOS tubes with no improvement. That was until recently when I decided to try the new Psvane 12au7-T Mk II tubes. Oh man! They were what I had been dreaming of all these years. I think I've finished my search, at least for now with my current amps.
I recently ordered a new tube preamp which uses 6sn7 tubes. I have only had tube preamps which have the 6922 types, so this will be a new experience for me.
Hi again Sherod!
Hmmm 6SN7 tubes huh? Well you'll definitely have to check out Grant Fidelity's direct drop in replacement's the CV-181 TII tubes. I've read where a few people made the 6SN7 to CV-181 TII swap and loved what they heard. I've even considered commissioning a custom preamp that uses 6SN7 tubes so I could do the same, but then I heard WE845 tubes so I'm set for awhile. If you do try the CV-181 TII tubes. Please let us know what you think, ok?
I'm listening to: Inside Out by The Connection
Thetubeguy1954 (Tom Scata)
Full-range/Wide-range Drivers --- Front & Back-Loaded Horns
Central Florida Audio Society -- SETriodes Group -- Space Coast Audio Society
Tom,
The Psvane CV-181T II tubes are definitely on my list of possible subs. I want to get a feel for the new preamp's sound for a while before I start some tube-rolling. Supposedly, the factory tubes are NOS Sylvania tubes, which have a good reputation.
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