OMG! Are the Mullard input tubes pumping up the bass?

(And the woofer level is on the Grover Neville setting (-23.5) -- lowest I have ever had it.)
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: jadis
I am wondering if both pairs of cheap cables, the Belden and the Gotham, were contributing sibilance/a bit of the edginess all this time?

My main impression so far is that I'm hearing less sibilance.
As your cables are new I’d be figuring they’ll open up quite a deal as they settle in Ron. Ribbon tweeters are just more revealing than most and benefit from better cables with a more open and resolved top end. I had been thinking you’d possibly been chasing issues that related to your ICs but it’ll be good for you to be able to see if that’s the case.
 
Of course I shouldn't have made tube and 47' cable changes at the same time. o_O

The tonal balance sounds different. Any excessive sibilance is gone.

What a crazy f$&@ing hobby!
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: AudioHR and jadis
Of course I shouldn't have made tube and 47' cable changes at the same time. o_O

The tonal balance sounds very noticeably different.

What a crazy f$&@ing hobby!
It’s easy to swap the tubes back to see what’s doing what when your cables are burned in… consider it play time.
 
Jeff Buckley "Hallelujah"

 
Eva Cassidy "Fields of Gold"

 
At the moment I think I've been waterboarding the wrong suspect. I think I should've been working over the 47' Belden 1192A cables. Maybe they're a good match for vintage horns -- maybe not so good for contemporary ribbons?
 
  • Like
Reactions: morricab
It's hands off the controls for me, pencils down. I am very happy with this sound.

I should've done this 47' interconnect cable swap sooner.

Shout out to Angela Cardas who suggested the Cardas Clear Reflection! Thank you, Angela!

PS: Does anybody need 94 feet of Belden 1192A?
 
I just listened to your two latest Eva Cassidy videos. Could you describe for us what you hear in your room between the two videos? How do you separate the contribution of the cable and the tubes?

I hear today's "Fields of Gold" playback as a bit smoother, a bit warmer, a bit more natural, omitting the touch of brittleness (dryness?) on the prior one. (A bit complicated because today's recording was at higher volume than the prior one.)

The 47' interconnects have been the most consistent element thus far. I actually swapped in the Ei KT90s about three weeks ago. But I think a basic cable was a rational place to start.

I am listening 89dB to 95dB to Famous Blue Raincoat (digital recording) and Thriller (bright-ish, mediocre multi-track pop recording). Edginess, brightness, dryness, excessive sibilance all gone.

I've actually done a lot of tube swapping even with the VTLs. No tube swap made a difference this significant. I blame the 47' Belden 1192A interconnects.

Musica Nuda's "Eleanor Rigby" sounds so different than it did in March.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Al M.
OMG! Are the Mullard input tubes pumping up the bass?

(And the woofer level is on the Grover Neville setting (-23.5) -- lowest I have ever had it.)
Ron,

It could be the Telefunken 802s doing the bass job too. But since you put them in all at once, it would be hard to tell. But what matters is the bottom line. There should be a noticeable improvement in overall sound quality with these NOS tubes.
 
It’s easy to swap the tubes back to see what’s doing what when your cables are burned in… consider it play time.

Nah, I'm not interested in autopsies. I just want to get to where I want to be. I'm there now.
 
Are you going to change the IC to Cardas from components to preamp as well?

They have been Cardas Clear Beyond for a while.
 
  • Like
Reactions: happyrc
Nah, I'm not interested in autopsies. I just want to get to where I want to be. I'm there now.
Optimising ribbon panel speakers is a joy, it’s so easy to hear when you are getting there and immediately clear when you are not. Dialling them in is easy as well because they let you know so much even with changes of fine increments.

If your loving these ICs at the start that’s great. I‘ve always found with cables while they all take time to open and unfold and settle into place if the essential balance and goodness is there at the start that’s a great sign that it’ll all be a good and an even better outcome in the end.

So while ribbons and panels don’t leave you anywhere to hide and that’s with any gear in the setup and every chain within the system… but it’s a whole different ballgame with cables and electronics when you have a tweeter that is helping out concealing any other system top end granularity by rolling off early.
 
Listening to "Fields of Gold" from a month ago, from a week ago, and from today, my feeling is about how little of the sonic differences survive the digitization in and out.

I think the sound from the system is now materially different from today's ubiquitous contemporary system sound. (To my ears this is a good thing.)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Al M.
Eva Cassidy "Fields of Gold"


it will be good every time you post this, you reply to your previous video. That way all the videos stay linked together making it easy for readers to listen to the current one, previous one, so on.
 
I hear today's "Fields of Gold" playback as a bit smoother, a bit warmer, a bit more natural, omitting the touch of brittleness (dryness?) on the prior one. (A bit complicated because today's recording was at higher volume than the prior one.)

The 47' interconnects have been the most consistent element thus far. I actually swapped in the Ei KT90s about three weeks ago. But I think a basic cable was a rational place to start.

I am listening 89dB to 95dB to Famous Blue Raincoat (digital recording) and Thriller (bright-ish, mediocre multi-track pop recording). Edginess, brightness, dryness, excessive sibilance all gone.

I've actually done a lot of tube swapping even with the VTLs. No tube swap made a difference this significant. I blame the 47' Belden 1192A interconnects.

Musica Nuda's "Eleanor Rigby" sounds so different than it did in March.
You just can't handle the "truth TM" Ron, don't blame the cables for the mediocre recordings you like, if you want the pretty version of everything, just use tubes everywhere ! ;) Oh yes you are doing that already !:p
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing