Some 12at7 tube rolling feedback for Levante owners
To cut to the chase, I could happily live with @50% of these tubes and the differences within this cohort were generally more stylistic than of substance. Some might be more preferable for classical music than say jazz or electronic, so there is an element of choosing according to your tastes / system needs. My notes in order of listening are:
Tungsram 1956 Tilburg - a high resolution energy monster. For users of either Taiko Extreme XDMS or my Sablon Evo cables, the magnitude of the gains in resolution over its predecessor are similar for the Tilburg compared to the ‘grail’ Philips. A rather high bar for the others I suspect.
GEC A2900 2 mica - quite a step backwards across the board and less energetic despite its reputation as being very dynamic. A moderate overall performance for me.
Siemens Papersa - seemingly relabelled from the Phillips factory in Buenos Aires. Very pleasant. Well-balanced (mid-hall / even frequency distribution) with a silky sweet presentation. A little less resolving and energetic than the Tungsram Tilburg. A good all-rounder does everything well and has nothing much wrong. A great starting point and you might be happy to stop rolling here.
‘Lorenz' ecc801 - Inverted commas as that’s how the tubes are labelled but were originally supplied in Valvo Hamburg 1961 boxes. I’m however told the internal structure is reminiscent of Brimar, so who knows. Fuller bodied and slightly mellifluous, giving some hitherto unnoticed information but sounds slightly slow and recessed. Suspect the latter aspect will ameliorate with more extended burn-in.
Valvo e180cc / 5965 1964 (green label Philips Heerlen?) sounds more linear and less voluptuous than the ‘Lorenz’ above. Objectively, it plays well from cold but will I feel benefit from more extensive playing time to become more enjoyable/soulful across all musical genres. Atm is more powerful than subtle, and better suited for electronic music. Less tonally saturated than my earlier production model, in the manner of later production tubes due to cost constraints from the emergence of transistor competition.
Valvo 6201 1966 blue 2 mica halo - a very positive immediate first impression consistent with its reputation as being the ‘special one’. Projects well with a full body yet remains open on hf extension. Good clarity but musically a bit slow / polite with some reluctance to unravel threads. I’m asking myself whether there might be a better sounding production year / version or is my system simply too revealing? Sometimes you see guys with cheap chi-fi dacs / amps writing reviews on rather esoteric valves and I wonder if they can properly assess the true capabilities.
TFK 5965 - 1981 Ulm - UnderwheLMing. Nothing worthwhile to report here.
RTC (Radio Technique France) 12at7wa foil getter - quite nice though soundstage is somewhat small and closed in. Dynamic range seems more limited, notes don’t jump as far or fast. Might evolve with burn in but, well, the other new tubes were rather more open from cold. Still a nice tube though and could work well for many.
GEC 5965 3 mica / black plate / dual support disc getter, all the King’s Horses etc and yet it still sucked. Dark, closed in and limited dynamic range.
Brimar 6060 Yellow - Quite open, clear and energetic. Tonally lighter and brighter than others here which rather surprised me. Agile with little inertia yet I switched off emotionally quite quickly. I suspect that body / weight will evolve with burn in and make it more complete.
Philips 6201 disc getter - middle of the pack performance wise and slightly fatiguing to listen to. Reasonably balanced but doesn’t have the dynamic range of the better options here. Competent rather than special. No Jose Mourinho.
TFK ecc801 - tbh I somewhat dreaded firing these up given my experience of the 5965 and this model’s reputation as the weakest of the TFK 80x range however it gives a fair middle of the pack performance. Is articulate and agile but possibly more competent than charming, given its neutrality. Balanced overall without any knockout qualities.
Sylvania 6201 black plates gold pins. The only US tube in my ensemble. Darker weightier, possibly less nuanced presentation but quite an enjoyable soulful listen. Substance has its virtues. Hangs onto the musical thread quite nicely, with notes starting / stopping quickly and holding onto my attention. A respectable performance.