|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
216.52.215.232
I have a SA 3000 Counterpoint preamplifier that has all of the
modifications offered through Alta Vista Audio, run by Mike Elliot.After running the gamut of the various tube versions of the 6JD8,
6922 and 7308 in the line stage of the preamplifier, I have found
the best sounding tube.A E288CC/8223 beats all others hands down!
The modified SA3000 brings out the best in this tube. It is very
musical with an accurate and natural sound stage with no coloration
or added emphasis.What makes the E288CC different from all the others, is that it
actually has a lower threshold for signal pickup! I hear actually
hear more sound/music with a E288CC/8223 than any other tube that
I have tried in the SA3000.This additional subtleness means that not only is there more detail
in the timbre and coloration of the music, but the harmonics are
better reproduced giving an added richness to the sound overall.
It's effect particularly on CD's is amazing. I am using Heart CD
player and a Counterpoint SA8 main amplifier (with full Alta Vista
modifications), and the E288CC makes CD's sound more 'vinyl'.They E288CC uses a little more heater current than the standard 6922
(0.475A against 0.3A), but Mike Elliot confirmed that there is no
problem running this tube in the preamplifier.Since the SA5000 and SA2000 use similar circuits, I would expect the
same results with these preamplifiers.Good Listening,
Joe
Follow Ups:
Have you tried the E288CC tubes in the Heart CDP? Would be very interesting...
I did try them in the Heart CD player.I was surprised that I did not get the same effect as I did
with the preamplifier.They sounded OK, but were little different from standard 6922's.
I find that using pinched waist 6922's in the Heart is
the best.Please note that I have put the following improvements
in the Heart player:1. Upgraded power cord.
2. 'Sand-bagged' both DAC's
3. 'Sand-bagged' the crystal.
Auricap tweek that in coming power on that thing & you will notice a large improvement.
I have not tried the pinched waist but have found 1960s vintage 6922s by Amperex and Siemens to sound the best. I upgraded the output coupling caps to Dynamicaps. An easy mod. You should try rolling your favorite caps into the CD6000...
'Sandbagging' is a tweak where you create a small golf-sized
ball of dense material (i.e. sand) and double wrap it in
plastic and cloth.This is used by placing it on top of the item you
wish to isolate from vibrations on the circuit board of the
CD player (i.e. the DAC and timing crystal).This is a cheap but very effective way to significantly lower
'judder' distortion in a CD player, and will make the Heart
CD player really come alive.The tweak came from Jon Risch:
http://www.geocities.com/jonrisch/index.htm
By the way where are the output coupling caps located
in the Heart CD player?Good Listening
on the same PCB as the tubes. There were a couple versions of the CD6000 so location may vary a bit. The link below will bring you to a review with a pic of an older version. One cap is vertical and between the tubes, the other horizontal under the right tube. My newer CD6000 OSE LE looks a little different.
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: