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In Reply to: SST on output tubes - 5 weeks and still OK posted by Rushton on January 4, 2005 at 18:43:17:
Unless you have some kind of unusual fiber optic probe, you won't be able to see anything with respect to the tube sockets just by removing the tubes. You would have to invert the amplifiers and remove the bottom panel to get a decent look. Since my own MA240s use the MA2 chassis' and power transformers, I know how humongously heavy and awkward they are to manipulate, so I predict you will not want to do that. However, do take a good look at the tube pins and let us know what you see. Try scraping the pins to see if there is a filmy gunk on them, i.e., varnish. Also, see whether the filament pins look any different from the other pins, i.e., corroded or otherwise deteriorated.
Follow Ups:
Lew, just reporting the results as I promised... I finished pulling all of the output tubes and examining the pins and the sockets for any sign of problem with the Walker SST application. After 7 weeks of very active use, I could see no corrosion, no film, no unusual residue, on either the pins or in the sockets. The SST was dry on the pins, and still removed easily with a bit of isopropyl alcholol on a Q-tip.
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I am reading so much here about problems with the filament connections of 6C33Cs that I am beginning to think I must have a problem with mine that I don't want to know about. In 6 years I have never removed any of the twelve 6C33Cs (in my Atma MA240 monoblocks) from its socket. The amps sound wonderful and there is no indication of any malfunction (which I could detect if present, since my amps were built to allow me to bias each power tube separately). Thus I am predisposed to leave well enough alone. If I pull the tubes to put SST on them and then they later fail, I will never know who or what to blame. Meantime, the SST on all the OTHER connections in my system (including preamp tube pins) continues to work wonders.
Glad to hear of your positive experience with SST in your system, Lew. Matches my experience, too.
Thanks for the suggestions, Lew. Actually, I will be removing the bottom panel from one of the amps, so I'll make a point of looking from below.
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