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In Reply to: RE: Yes, same amp, same system, same track, same LP,... posted by Michael Samra on May 25, 2014 at 13:25:29
The solid plates are not black but dark grey(darker than the three hole plates).
Matching tubes is over-rated but these were matched when new 10 years ago and I doubt they have changed much sitting in storage.
Again, less than 100 hours if that.
But yes, I do believe the amp in question was voiced for Chinese tubes.
And Chinese tubes are MUCH better than they were 10 years ago AND, don't forget, the Tung Sol 6550 was never manufactured as an Audiophile tube (mine all likely came from old stock held for years in storage at Hill AFB in Ogden, Utah).
Follow Ups:
Matching tubes is over-rated
I would agree as long as mutual conductance and current draw are within 15% of each other.
Honest amplification is better than excessive 2nd order distortion anytime.
In the case of my ST-35, there is a common cathode resistor for all for power tubes, so all bets are off here!
Received my GLs KT88 last night and sat down for a quick listen to get an initial observation after 5 hours of running. They are very quiet with better separation and a deeper and wider soundstage but still require many more hours for them to really snap into focus. Great midrange and rich overtones which is a plus since I listen only to cello, violin and acoustic guitar.
More to follow as they get more hours but I'll have 16 hours on them tonight around 9 PM so I'm interested on how they will sound tonight...
Excellent service from Jim and these tubes are solid and biased perfectly.
Listened last night at the 16 hour mark and they were definitely more open and musical but image focus is still vague and not pin point and hopefully this will happen with more time; they're running now and will shut the system down when I hit the hay at midnight...
After a few more hours of listening, pop the KT88SC back in and see how you like the sound. Let us know which tubes you prefer.
I'll be over 50+ hours tomorrow and will advise on which I prefer at this stage...
Guys,
I popped the Shuguangs SC back in last night and got them warm before biasing to get an overall impression of the two tubes. I can say that the GLs are quite special, images are more palpable and the ability to capture subtle ambiance cues is amazing. The SCs are also good but are thinner sounding in comparison.
If your music is missing flesh and bones, give the GLs a try and you'll be impressed...
Funny, I found the Goldlions thick sounding and rolled off on top when they were working in my amp. Guess it depends on the amp and the listener.
Glad they are working out for you.
Nunki,
Are the Black Treasures Z much better the your Penta SC? No thickness at all in my Vac amp, very organic/natural sounding and I'll do more serious listening when I've hit the 100 hour mark.
I'm interested in the Psvane KT88 TII, anyone have a quad matched used set for sale?
Wig
wig,
in my rogue atlas magnum i prefer the pentas over the black treasures. in my welter monos it is just the other way round. but i can stat that the black treasure Z is definitely more accurat, neutral, more "true" than the penta SC. although some people say the Z performs on the cool side but i like their direct sound. the pentas perhaps show a bit more emotion but also sound a bit of muddier therefor.
Nunki
The times, they are changing...
Nunki,
Thanks for your direct comparison.
I have been living with the GLs for 10 days now and have a good overall impression of their sound signature in my amp. The GLs and Shuguang SC have their strong suits but it's obvious that the GLs are better in musicality, sound-staging, imaging, separation, height, depth and super black backgrounds.
The midrange of this tube is beautiful and they're a couple of things I wished were better, transparency is a little on the warm side but it doesn't affect extension and they reach much farther than the SC without any brightness...
@ Ivan: Did you get the opportunity to compare the GLs against the Psvane TII?
I love what the GLs do in my system but I prefer a little more transparency and the Psvane may be the ticket if they are more transparent and don't have a warm sound signature.
Wig
My GLs has registered 115 hours by the time I listen tonight and I'll takes some notes and listen to my daily selections and will switch to may stock Shuguang KT88 SC and give them a couple of days to settle in before determining which tube I prefer.
Acquired a pair of Psvane 12AX7 TII (Integrated amp requires 3)and WOW what a difference right out of the box compared to my stock Chinese 12AX7s. Way more transparent, better imaging, blacker background and no bloom, just better localization of instruments within the soundstage...
I'll give them time to burn-in and I'm sure another pair will be needed to take care of the final 12AX7 position. I did try some Tele Smooth plate a few months ago and they sounded terrible, flat and one dimensional but the ones I have in the 12AU7(4x Tele SP) position are amazing.
the GLs performed too charming to MY ears in MY gear with discoloured midrange. i purchased them twice and sold them twice again. since then i stick with black treasure Z and penta labs KT88.
N.
The times, they are changing...
Each KT88 tube is biased manually.
If the Psvane KT88 TII are that good, this is something I must try. Sent Grant several e-mails a few days ago but have not heard from them. Someone from A'Gon mentioned that the tubes his buddy received were matched but when they tested them on one of the best testers, the matching was terrible.
I'd hate to spend this type of money for factory matched verses a professional trained and skilled technician. Any other reputable sources that sells these tubes?
Thanks,
Wig
Then go for the Genalex reissues. Buy them from Jim McShane. They will amaze you and they will hold up very well. I've bought two quads from him and they were so closely matched in all ways that it was no problem at all to set the bias and play music. I've had thousands of hours on mine and they still sound just great! I bought two quads as I believe in backups but, alas, I've not had a failure...
As much as I admire the Psvane brand, it is very hard for me to justify them. I've a bunch as well, including power tubes like the 300B T-MarkII and their EL84-T's. Some will drop in to certain circuits and just sound great or not.
One can court bankruptcy in trying to attain 'perfection' with glass bottles. It is made of unobtainium. The circuit design, all of the capacitors and resistors in the signal chain, the preamp tubes, the power tubes and then that most mysterious of all things, the output transformers! Oh yeah, did I forget to mention speakers?! What is your signal source? Was it blessed by a Shinto priest? Is your tone arm tracking true? Was your cartridge made from an endangered species bones? You see where this goes...
If it sounds good to your ears then enjoy it and then play it into the ground with gusto! Your system only has to please you!
Since I have some GLs being matched by Jim and I'm wanting to try some new 12AX7, this is the perfect opportunity to order some Psvane TII and see how they sound to my stock Chinese 12AX7.
Thanks again for your expertise and advice.
Wig
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