It just struck me last night that I’ll be at Decware next week where there are going to be plenty of ppl skilled to perform surgery on the tube. So I sent a picture and at least one member is going to bring his solder, iron, and epoxy to seal the deal.

Woo! that's awesome! I think I could probably handle doing it myself if I had a soldering iron or even a place to do it lol.

You might have already answered this, if so sorry. Are you taking your amp there?

Unfortunately not. I’m flying and due to weight and space restrictions, that just wasn’t practical. It might have been different if I was driving.

Update: Another attendee of the fest has agreed to bring his solder, iron, and epoxy to fix the 807.

I switched over to the Mullard 807 just because it has been so long since I last heard it and had never used it with the 14n7. Compared to the Cossor these sound "smoother" and a little more reserved. Very pleasing sound, possibly more laid back. The Cossor still has more detail and therefore more space. The Mullard tubes are about 1/3 less expensive so fantastic bargains.

Hello folks. I’m new to the forum and have spent several hours reading through this long and informative thread, primarily looking for tube recommendations for an Inspire KT88 SEP that I purchased over the weekend.
I’m using a pair of Decware Zen Master clones, an open baffle / fullrange driver design rated 100dB / 8 ohm.

I’ve a number of tube options on hand that I’ll begin experimenting with soon, but I wondered if someone might be willing to suggest a combination of output, input/driver and rectifier tubes that would deliver a warm, lush sound in the way of classic designs like the old Leak Stereo 20 that I remember so fondly, or even some of the older CJs?

With the stock GL KT88 the sound is detailed, dynamic, open/transparent, but lacks a little tube warmth and bloom.

Having only acquired the Inspire a couple days ago I haven’t played around much with cables and ancillaries, but I like what I hear so far and I’m just looking for a ‘quick-start’ to get me going in the right direction.

Many thanks!

Rooze… Welcome to AA! :wave:

Hmm, think it’s going to be tough to get that kind of sound out of the Firebottle. It’s just such a different design. Off the the top of my head the “warmest” combo I’ve had in mine is probably Tungsol 6k6gt with a Raytheon gf8g input tube. Oh and a Tungsol 5w4gt rectifier. I also think the GE 6bg6ga is a pretty warm tube in the Firebottle using a 5u4gt rectifier.

In the end I think the KT88 Firebottle will always sound more open and “transparent” than classic push pull amps. Personally I think those old amps ended up masking the music and the Firebottle lets it come through. I once loved a system built around a McIntosh mc240 and big Spendor BBC monitors. So warm, so lush! But after a while I realized that everything sounded like that on that system. I like chocolate cake but it turns out I can’t eat it for breakfast lunch and dinner.

One of my absolute favorite things about the Firebottle KT88 is how many shades of sound you can get with different tubes. I’ve had a blast trying out many different tubes. I started a thread in this forum just about tube rolling.

Hi Rooze,

I don't think it's because of the GL KT 88. They solve well but have no bright sound and a slight emphasis in the upper bass range.

This should actually match your sound description.

KT 170 and RCA 6L6 are similar. slight overemphasis in the upper bass range.

Play more with the driver tubes.

6SL7 more heights
6SN7 balanced
6BX7 more bass

I finally managed to listen to the Marconi 6V6GT.
operated for about 80 hours. Very balanced, great with any kind of music.

If I hadn't heard the Fivre 6V6 GT and my Kron KT88 as a comparison, you could listen to music very well in combination with the Melz and Sylvania 6SN7, long-term suitable, nothing annoys.