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Inspire by Dennis Had Enjoying Vacuum Tube Audio

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  #4941  
Old 09-18-2018, 10:35 PM
Bombadil Bombadil is offline
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It is a task to find the "best" tubes. Not only do we have different preferences, different speakers, and different rooms, but our Inspire amps vary considerably. Some run tubes hard, others easy. Some operate in triode mode, others pentode. Some configs produce only 2-3 wpc, others up to 17-18 wpc.

Case in point, I feel that 6V6GT tubes sound terrible in my amp and system. Way too midrange forward. Yet other Inspire owners love these tubes.
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  #4942  
Old 09-19-2018, 10:51 AM
FloridaBoy FloridaBoy is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tyson View Post
I do have Gold Lion KT88s, Black Treasure KT88s, Penta Labs KT88s and Sovtek KT88s that it'll be fun to compare the NOS Tung Sol 6550s to.

The Gold Lion KT77s that everyone seems to love I just can't agree. I've listened to it a fair bit in a few different amps now, and to me its always a bit hard/flat sounding vs other tubes. Even the Gold Lion KT66 sounds better to me. Although the Shuguang KT88 Black Treasure is probably my favorite modern pentode/tetrode tube so far.
How does the Penta Labs KT88 compare with the Treasures? I have and like the Treasure KT66's. They are denser/robust sounding compared to the GL KT66.

I got a Sophia blue 6SN7 yesterday. It may be the *best* new production I have heard in my rig to date.

You may want to try the GLKT77's with a rectifier with more voltage drop, like a 5Y3. They also take a good while to settle in.

Last edited by FloridaBoy; 09-19-2018 at 10:59 AM.
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  #4943  
Old 09-19-2018, 11:54 AM
Bombadil Bombadil is offline
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If you are specifically looking for more voltage drop out of a rectifier than what a GZ34 provides, then consider a 5U4GB or 5U4G. They spec at 50V and 44V of drop respectively.

A 5Y3GT does have a 60V drop, but it also restricts voltage and current considerably. Max current (PmA) from a GZ34 is 250 whereas a 5Y3GT is just 50% of that at 125.

I'd like to hear the Shuguang Black Treasure KT88s, but I doubt I will drop that much coin to try them out.

I've read rave reviews of the Sophia blue 6SN7 but they are so expensive. So few dealers carry them too.
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  #4944  
Old 09-19-2018, 01:33 PM
FloridaBoy FloridaBoy is offline
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Originally Posted by Bombadil View Post
If you are specifically looking for more voltage drop out of a rectifier than what a GZ34 provides, then consider a 5U4GB or 5U4G. They spec at 50V and 44V of drop respectively.

A 5Y3GT does have a 60V drop, but it also restricts voltage and current considerably. Max current (PmA) from a GZ34 is 250 whereas a 5Y3GT is just 50% of that at 125.

I'd like to hear the Shuguang Black Treasure KT88s, but I doubt I will drop that much coin to try them out.

I've read rave reviews of the Sophia blue 6SN7 but they are so expensive. So few dealers carry them too.
The Treasure KT88's have come down in price but I doubt I'll try them.

So far the Sophia blue 6SN7 is sounding mighty fine. It's the most expensive single tube I've ever bought. I got it from Galen Carol Audio but it was shipped from Sophia.

I have found several power tubes I really like. The input tube is the key and that will vary from system to system.
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  #4945  
Old 09-19-2018, 05:53 PM
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Well, thanks to this thread, I went ahead and bought a bunch more tubes, mostly Shuguand and Psvane. Once they all arrive, here's what I'll have:

Psvane - EL84 Ti, EL34PH (Holland replica), 6CA7 Tii (grey glass), KT88 Tii (Grey Glass), CV181 Tii (Grey Glass)
Shuguang Black Treasure - 6CA7, KT66, KT88, CV181
Gold Lion - EL84, KT66, KT77, KT88
Electro Harmonix - EL34
New Production Mullard - EL34
Svetlana - EL34
Penta Labs - KT88-SC
Sovtek - KT88
New Production Tung Sol - KT150

Floridaboy, I don't know how the Pentas compare to the Treasures. I bought them recently for a song (like $100 for a set of 5), so they're in the box not even burned in yet.

I have so many tubes, burning them all in is going to be a major undertaking! Hmmm, I wonder.... you know, maybe I can hook up my backup tube amp which uses 3 6SN7s and 4 EL34s and just use it to burn in some stuff in parallel to what I'm doing with the Inspire MB12s. I have some big 8ohm resistors I could hook up to it's output, that just might work. At least speed up some of this.
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  #4946  
Old 09-19-2018, 06:00 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bombadil View Post
If you are specifically looking for more voltage drop out of a rectifier than what a GZ34 provides, then consider a 5U4GB or 5U4G. They spec at 50V and 44V of drop respectively.

A 5Y3GT does have a 60V drop, but it also restricts voltage and current considerably. Max current (PmA) from a GZ34 is 250 whereas a 5Y3GT is just 50% of that at 125.

I'd like to hear the Shuguang Black Treasure KT88s, but I doubt I will drop that much coin to try them out.

I've read rave reviews of the Sophia blue 6SN7 but they are so expensive. So few dealers carry them too.
Good info, thanks!

What about for tube like the EL84, doesn't it require the 5y3gt for exactly these reasons? So that the tube is protected. I also thought the original 6L6 (not 6L6GC) also required a low voltage/current rectifier as they just aren't very robust output tubes. Am I wrong?

For 6L6 GC and above, I use a 5U4GB, and for KT88's and above I use the 5AR4.
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  #4947  
Old 09-19-2018, 08:40 PM
Bombadil Bombadil is offline
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I would consider using a 5Y3GT for 6F6, 6V6, and EL84. Although I'd never try an EL84 in my amp. And yes, you are correct in that the very old 6L6 do run at lower voltages.

There's also a 5V4GA rectifier which lies between a 5Y3GT and 5U4G.
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  #4948  
Old 09-19-2018, 09:13 PM
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Anyone having any success with Sophia Electric tubes (274B, 6SN7, etc.)?
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Clearaudio SM Pro Focal Bathys JLA 10" Dominion Kuzma Stabi S w/MC & MM Magnepan 1,7i McIntosh MA8950 Oppo 203 Roon Nucleus Rose Hifi RS150B Shunyata Gemini-4 Sony ST-A6B, TA-F6B & PS-X75 Sorane SA1.2 & TA-1L Stillpoints LP1v2 WW Pt, Au & Ag
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  #4949  
Old 09-20-2018, 06:51 AM
FloridaBoy FloridaBoy is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tyson View Post
Good info, thanks!

What about for tube like the EL84, doesn't it require the 5y3gt for exactly these reasons? So that the tube is protected. I also thought the original 6L6 (not 6L6GC) also required a low voltage/current rectifier as they just aren't very robust output tubes. Am I wrong?

For 6L6 GC and above, I use a 5U4GB, and for KT88's and above I use the 5AR4.
Use a 5Y3 rectifier with 6L6G, 6L6GA, EL84 and non GT 6V6's. They simply run at lower voltages and in some systems sound great.
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  #4950  
Old 09-20-2018, 07:14 AM
nhparrot nhparrot is offline
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I have had a Sophia Electric mesh plate 274B (clear glass) since shortly after getting my Inspire 6L6 in January 2015. Good substitute for a 5U4, and preferable to me with some power tubes. Certainly looks cool with it's blue glow. Should be a lot of comments about it from folks in this thread.

Last edited by nhparrot; 09-29-2018 at 06:55 AM.
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