Amp/Preamp Asylum

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Using the 6H30 "super tube" narrows the choice

Posted by E-Stat on February 26, 2017 at 10:15:00:
Which is fine by me. AFAIK, there are three choices:

1. Current production Sovtek
2. Current production Sovtek with gold pins
3. NOS 6H30-DR

While the third choice is the best, they are quite pricey when you can find the genuine article. I have an SP20 and purchased a replacement set of choice 2 for when the time comes.

I'm with 3+4 in that my experience parallels his that small signal tubes don't seem to "wear out" like power tubes. I know when the 6550Cs are dying in my VTL amps because they require higher bias settings and eventually start taking out the B+ fuse.

I used to have a Manley DAC with a simple 12AU7 tube output and just for grins, left the tubes in for years. Seemed to not make much difference with that model. At around 4000 hours (ARC recommendation), I might try swapping out the original 6H30s with the new set and see if I can hear any difference.

We'll see...