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In Reply to: RE: 2a3 and 300b posted by Palustris on July 03, 2014 at 08:28:25
I recall calling a friend who spent decades designing triode amps. I asked him how good the vaunted 300B was. He said about a B+. I was surprised so I asked what tube he liked better. He said the 2A3. I trust my friend. And I know that the MOST important quality for him in any audio device was linearity.Then I recalled what the 300B was designed for. It wasn't primarily fidelity. It was meant to amplify long distance signals and to be buried in the ground. So I suspect it was a good tube(in the days of Ma Bell Western Electric didn't know how to make crap) but ultimate fidelity wasn't necessary. However superb reliability was. Digging up tubes was not what was desired. So the Western Electric 300B was super reliable(whether later copies were may be another question). And I suspect it's this combination of a very good(but not great) performing tube combined with superb quality and reliability that gave the Western Electric version its wonderful reputation, not its sonics alone.
Edits: 07/03/14Follow Ups:
"I recall calling a friend " "Digging up tubes"
So your assertion about the relative linerity of the 2A3 vs the 300B is based upon heresay and conjecture. Why not base it on science?
Be serious. It's not conjecture. I know my friend. He worked with tubes for decades. Linearity is measureable and if he said the 2A3 is more linear I'd bet on my friend. He's probably designed more amps than you've thought about.
Heresay:
information received from other people that one cannot adequately substantiate; rumor.
the report of another person's words by a witness, usually disallowed as evidence in a court of law.
My friend is an expert. If you choose to ignore good info so the results meet your beliefs, that's fine. You can live with your own truths. Citing definitions doesn't change measureable facts just because you don't like them or like where they come from.And I never said the 300B wasn't a good tube simply that it wasn't as linear as a 2A3.
Edits: 07/07/14 07/07/14
What gets lost in these conversations is just how linear the 300b is compared to most other power tubes.
The 300b, even with it's quirks, is way more linear than any triode wired beam power or power pentode tube.
Just because it's not as linear as a 2a3 or a 45 doesn't mean it's a non-linear tube.
DHTs are in their own class and that class is the most linear power tubes ever made and yes, within that class some are "better" than others.
Tre'
Have Fun and Enjoy the Music
"Still Working the Problem"
I never said it wasn't good, just that the 2A3 is better. And a lot of 300B rep is it's great reliability, which is admirable.
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