Matsushita 7DJ8 safe in LP140's & GAT?

[CJinSC]

I purchased 6 Matsushita (Nationals) 7DJ8's from Kevin at Upscale Audio to use in place of 6922's in LP140's. First day I put them in, a capacitor went bad in the left channel. Sent the amp to CJ with the Tung Sol KT120's and Matsushita's that I planned to use in the amps. CJ condoned use of KT120's for output tubes but told me not to use the 7 volt 7DJ8's, as the amps were designed for 6 volt 6922's. CJ said the 7DJ8's did not cause the issue with the capacitor. These amps have had the input tube matching issues fixed by CJ about a year or so ago. Kevin assures me the tubes are safe to use & disagrees with CJ's 7volt argument.

Do y'all think these tubes are safe for LP140's? I am also contemplating trading in a CT5 for a GAT and wonder if the 7DJ8's could be used safely in the GAT.

Let the opinions flow fellas! Many thanks from a neophyte audiophile! I have owned a PV12AL and Premier 11A for about 15 years and never had a days trouble other than a dirty volume pot in the PV12. Love that tube sound!

[Rayooo]

I tried a couple in my GAT and one in my ET5 for a time, no problem but in my particular case/ opinion I saw no particular benefit to them. There were debates regarding the filament voltage issue and their suitability and sound....and guess what? Opinions were varied just like with everything else In this crazy world. For every 100 people there are approximately 100+10 different opinions. Welcome to AA!

[CJinSC]

Thanks Rayooo. Was the GAT worth the jump from ET5 for twice the cash?

Regards,

John

[Rayooo]

Originally Posted by CJinSC

Thanks Rayooo. Was the GAT worth the jump from ET5 for twice the cash?

Regards,

John

great question... what's that movie quote? 'goes something like ...
"those questions are best answered by philosophers."

From a pure Spock Logic point of view, no way, but having said that, I'd not part with the GAT, period. I think the GAT is better across the board than ET5. is it twice as good as ET5, not hardly...but it's only $$ and ya can't take it with you to the next life... as far as I know.


Strangely enough, or maybe not, going from JC-1s to ART Monos was far more dramatic. The difference is borderline astounding. 'course the ARTs cost 4X the JC-1s.


OBTW, I forgot to mention in the previous post, I've basically settled for Gold Lion 6922s in the GAT. My tube rolling days are over...and I also should have said that the 7DJ8s sounded fine, I didn't mean to imply they we bad sounding, it was just that they didn't do anything exceedingly better than your average 6922 IMHO, YMMV!

[CJinSC]

I can swallow the cost of the GAT upgrade but to go from lp140's to ART monos would put me in divorce court . But I am getting closer to the GAT plunge.

Naked coming into the world & naked on the way out

[Myles B. Astor]

Originally Posted by CJinSC

I can swallow the cost of the GAT upgrade but to go from lp140's to ART monos would put me in divorce court . But I am getting closer to the GAT plunge.

Naked coming into the world & naked on the way out

There is the ART stereo.

[ronenash]

Originally Posted by CJinSC

I purchased 6 Matsushita (Nationals) 7DJ8's from Kevin at Upscale Audio to use in place of 6922's in LP140's. First day I put them in, a capacitor went bad in the left channel. Sent the amp to CJ with the Tung Sol KT120's and Matsushita's that I planned to use in the amps. CJ condoned use of KT120's for output tubes but told me not to use the 7 volt 7DJ8's, as the amps were designed for 6 volt 6922's. CJ said the 7DJ8's did not cause the issue with the capacitor. These amps have had the input tube matching issues fixed by CJ about a year or so ago. Kevin assures me the tubes are safe to use & disagrees with CJ's 7volt argument.

Do y'all think these tubes are safe for LP140's? I am also contemplating trading in a CT5 for a GAT and wonder if the 7DJ8's could be used safely in the GAT.

Let the opinions flow fellas! Many thanks from a neophyte audiophile! I have owned a PV12AL and Premier 11A for about 15 years and never had a days trouble other than a dirty volume pot in the PV12. Love that tube sound!

I use them in the LP125m without a problem and I think they sound terrific.

[medward0]

I've used the Matus 7DJ8s in my CJ ET250s (hybrid) amp and loved the sound. Sounded to my ears a bit "meatier" than the EH 6922s.

Because I can't leave well enough alone, I bought a pair of EAT EC88 cool valve tubes and tried them out in place of the Matus in the amp and have stayed with the EATs. To my ear, the EATs combine the clarity of the EH6922s with the meatiness of the 76J8s with a big dollop of sound stage enhancement thrown in.

Both the Matus and the EAT were too noisy (microphonic) for the ET3SE pre tho'.

[CJinSC]

Ouch, at $225 a pop the EAT's get pricy in the LP140's. May have to give it a try when the upgrade itch hits though

[CJinSC]

If the Matsu's have worked in the LP125's, I would hope they would work in the LP140's. May have to try them again.

Myles, what do you think would give me a bigger bang for the buck; CT5 to GAT or LP140's to LP275's? I always thought the preamp was the heart & soul of the system, but some of the guys here seem to be leaning more towards amps as heart & soul. I don't have a clue!