Good luck to you.
After 200 hours, my Acme 805 tubes are working fine.
https://www.hifi-amplifiers.com/en/...be-highend-tube-best-matched-pair-p-5264.html
This dealer provided best deal and good service to me.
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After 200 hours, my Acme 805 tubes are working fine.
https://www.hifi-amplifiers.com/en/...be-highend-tube-best-matched-pair-p-5264.html
This dealer provided best deal and good service to me.
Kiwame sound nice but add a lot of warmth and sound a little fuzzy. I'd consider Mills wirewound for cathode and power and AmTrans carbon for grid stopper. This would make a pretty big difference, probably more than any tube change.
Mundorf caps can be nice too, but I have not found anything better than copper foil caps, The Jupiter copper caps would probably be a nice upgrade too.
I've bought Shuguang and Psvane tubes from Grant Fidelity for over a decade. I pay a little more than buying from China directly. However, they (now Rachel) take care with testing the tubes when they arrive at their location in Canada, and they have always been great about any issues. My 2A3 Acmes are on back order and I hope to get them in a month or so.
Larry
Larry
Thanks Dave,
It is such a fantastic sounding amp as it is with its current mods that I haven’t considered going in under the hood and taking it even further but may just well do that so your comments are much appreciated and I would definitely have had the Jupiter caps on my shortlist. I’m with you on copper foil caps being the way to go if poss.
I have just been going through research now to upgrade the caps in the crossover of my horns and was looking at Jupiter copper foils for these but as the caps required are 33 uF the cost with going with all the copper foils just went through the roof... duelund copper tin foils for this were so well past the roof and somewhere off into near orbit at $3300 USD each. But I’ll likely go with duelund silver bypass caps in parallel anyway to just get a taste of the duelund magic into some Evo supreme Oil caps, the combo works out closer to about $300 per cap all up which should be a good upgrade from stock mundorf basic m caps.
It is such a fantastic sounding amp as it is with its current mods that I haven’t considered going in under the hood and taking it even further but may just well do that so your comments are much appreciated and I would definitely have had the Jupiter caps on my shortlist. I’m with you on copper foil caps being the way to go if poss.
I have just been going through research now to upgrade the caps in the crossover of my horns and was looking at Jupiter copper foils for these but as the caps required are 33 uF the cost with going with all the copper foils just went through the roof... duelund copper tin foils for this were so well past the roof and somewhere off into near orbit at $3300 USD each. But I’ll likely go with duelund silver bypass caps in parallel anyway to just get a taste of the duelund magic into some Evo supreme Oil caps, the combo works out closer to about $300 per cap all up which should be a good upgrade from stock mundorf basic m caps.
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Yesterday I inserted original Western Electric 300B made in 1930's to LM 508 amplifier.
After I got LM 508 on Aug 2018 and I had done lot of tube rolling.
Now I have Acme 805, 1944 Sylvania vt231(6SN7), Mullard ECC85(6SL7) and Synergistic Blue power cable and fuse with it.
Isoacoustics Orea Bordeaux foot is also under LM 508.
I had been hesitant to try my original Western Electric 300B with LM 508 amplifier.
After paying 3k$ for pair 17 years ago, I had run 10K hours on the tube with Silbatone 300B 8W SET amplifier.
It still sound fine with 5K - 10K hours more remaining.
But it is hard to get good NOS Western Electric 300B tube anymore and it get more expensive ( more than 6K for pair now).
I had tried Sophia Carbon Plate 300B and Shuguang Treasure 300B on LM 508.
With Sophia Carbon Plate, I got slightly deeper bass with more refined treble.
With Shuguang Treasure, I got more details and tight and deeper bass with wider soundstage.
Now with original Western Electric 300B, I got much more and cleaner details and tighter bass with transparent and wider and deeper soundstage.
The most notable difference is more details and transparent soundstage.
I had not expected that much improvement with original Western Electric 300B.
After going back to Sophia Carbon Plate, it sound warm but boring with less details and less transparent sound.
Thus I had to go back to original Western Electric 300B.
When I play " Songbird" of Eva Cassidy with original Western Electric 300B, she appears to sing in front of me with spooky presence.
Now I got into trouble.
I do not want to put valuable original Western Electric 300B into LM 508.
20 years ago, replica of Western Electric had been made and I compared it with original Western Electric 300B.
It turned out that replica was no match to original Western Electric 300B.
Replica had crude and less details and narrower soundstage.
Although they claim to make another replica of Western Electric 300B, I do not have much expectation from my previous experience.
I placed order of Acme 300B tube yesterday.
Acme 805 is the best new production tube with natural details and transparent soundstage.
I do not expect Acme 300B to be better than original Western Electric 300B.
But if Acme 300B is 90% as good as original Western Electric 300B, then I will use it with LM 508.
Replica of Western Electric 300B made 20 years ago was only 70% as good as original Western Electric 300B
After I got LM 508 on Aug 2018 and I had done lot of tube rolling.
Now I have Acme 805, 1944 Sylvania vt231(6SN7), Mullard ECC85(6SL7) and Synergistic Blue power cable and fuse with it.
Isoacoustics Orea Bordeaux foot is also under LM 508.
I had been hesitant to try my original Western Electric 300B with LM 508 amplifier.
After paying 3k$ for pair 17 years ago, I had run 10K hours on the tube with Silbatone 300B 8W SET amplifier.
It still sound fine with 5K - 10K hours more remaining.
But it is hard to get good NOS Western Electric 300B tube anymore and it get more expensive ( more than 6K for pair now).
I had tried Sophia Carbon Plate 300B and Shuguang Treasure 300B on LM 508.
With Sophia Carbon Plate, I got slightly deeper bass with more refined treble.
With Shuguang Treasure, I got more details and tight and deeper bass with wider soundstage.
Now with original Western Electric 300B, I got much more and cleaner details and tighter bass with transparent and wider and deeper soundstage.
The most notable difference is more details and transparent soundstage.
I had not expected that much improvement with original Western Electric 300B.
After going back to Sophia Carbon Plate, it sound warm but boring with less details and less transparent sound.
Thus I had to go back to original Western Electric 300B.
When I play " Songbird" of Eva Cassidy with original Western Electric 300B, she appears to sing in front of me with spooky presence.
Now I got into trouble.
I do not want to put valuable original Western Electric 300B into LM 508.
20 years ago, replica of Western Electric had been made and I compared it with original Western Electric 300B.
It turned out that replica was no match to original Western Electric 300B.
Replica had crude and less details and narrower soundstage.
Although they claim to make another replica of Western Electric 300B, I do not have much expectation from my previous experience.
I placed order of Acme 300B tube yesterday.
Acme 805 is the best new production tube with natural details and transparent soundstage.
I do not expect Acme 300B to be better than original Western Electric 300B.
But if Acme 300B is 90% as good as original Western Electric 300B, then I will use it with LM 508.
Replica of Western Electric 300B made 20 years ago was only 70% as good as original Western Electric 300B
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Congratulations Thomas,
Yes the minute you put that original WE300B in you were in trouble, somethings are best left unheard
no way back now.
Enjoy in good health
Tao
Yes the minute you put that original WE300B in you were in trouble, somethings are best left unheard
no way back now. Enjoy in good health
Tao
I need to use original WE 300B with Silbatone amplifier.Congratulations Thomas,
Yes the minute you put that original WE300B in you were in trouble, somethings are best left unheard
Enjoy in good health
Tao
Unfortunately, I have only one pair of it.
Thus I will use Acme 300B with LM 508.
I hope that Acme 300B be 90% as good as original WE 300B
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I quite agree Thomas, the reissue WE300b was indeed disappointing and I preferred the carbon Sophia to it.
A local customer of mine has about 20 matched pairs of NOS original WE300b stashed away.
20 pairs of matched pair NOS WE 300B is a nice asset.
My tube guru, the owner of Silabtone has around 100 pairs of NOS 300B and more than 20 of 300A.
I had listened to his amplifier using WE 300A.
It sounds terrific.
But I can not afford 300A which cost 15K$ for pair.
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As a slightly off topic observation, SET owners shouldn't overlook small internal component upgrades. By their very nature, SET amps tend to have simple circuits and their owners are more likely to be diy minded. Things like Duelund interstage coupling caps and teflon valve sockets can give very pleasing sonic upgrades for modest costs and maximise the potential of great tube choices.
I’ve been taking the upgrades with the LM508IA and the Pureaudioproject Trio Horns one step at a time so I can appreciate what is going on.
Step 1 was getting an upgraded amp with improved caps and resistors throughout and now has been burning in the amp (about 500hrs and sounding fantastic).
For the horns it has been putting in upgraded pure silver hook up foils and then burning in the speakers (300 hrs approx and the PAP horns are just starting to really open up and bass and mid bass fleshing out particularly in the last week or so and also sounding absolutely fantastic).
Next step. Will be upgrading the 805 output and 300B driver valves probably settling them in over a month or so and then swapping back to the stock valves to see what has gone on with changing both the output and the driver valves separately.
Also have an order in with Parts Connexion for Mundorf Supreme Evo Oil caps and Path Audio resistors for the crossover in the PAP horns and will swap out the stock spike footers with sets of IsoAcoustics Gaia II feet.
Am doing further upgrades with the Microzotl pre shortly as well.
Am enjoying the journey and doing my best to experience and learn from each upgrade along the way. Patience isn’t a strong point here but slowly getting better at it.
Step 1 was getting an upgraded amp with improved caps and resistors throughout and now has been burning in the amp (about 500hrs and sounding fantastic).
For the horns it has been putting in upgraded pure silver hook up foils and then burning in the speakers (300 hrs approx and the PAP horns are just starting to really open up and bass and mid bass fleshing out particularly in the last week or so and also sounding absolutely fantastic).
Next step. Will be upgrading the 805 output and 300B driver valves probably settling them in over a month or so and then swapping back to the stock valves to see what has gone on with changing both the output and the driver valves separately.
Also have an order in with Parts Connexion for Mundorf Supreme Evo Oil caps and Path Audio resistors for the crossover in the PAP horns and will swap out the stock spike footers with sets of IsoAcoustics Gaia II feet.
Am doing further upgrades with the Microzotl pre shortly as well.
Am enjoying the journey and doing my best to experience and learn from each upgrade along the way. Patience isn’t a strong point here but slowly getting better at it.
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Tao, I rather like your choices of both amp and speaker - fertile ground for tweaking. Have you tried using your Zotl as a pre to drive the 508ia? I would be interested to learn how they combine.
Mark,
In a desparate attempt to not being tracked down by the hyperbole department and flayed for unbridled descriptiveness I would just say that the matching of a zotl with the LM508IA SET is the very best tasting secret sauce in my current stereo recipe. They make both my PAP horns and Harbeth 40.2s sing joyously.
It adds a quicksilver cut through and real drive, revealing even more nuance and timbre as well as apparent speed and microdynamics to the rich upbeat beauty of the 805 and 300B driver pairing in the big black LM beasty.
The sonic and musical outcome is in the best possible way a much more structured and lithe bass, the oh so beautifully natural mids and a top end that somehow challenges both the Maggie 20.7s and Harbeth 40.2s in its absolute rightness. There is this fascinating sense of speed but with elasticity and stretch. The pre and amp combo just interplays with the sense of time.
I did have a sense that this combo would really work as I tried a Zotl pre with the 845 based LM219ia with a pair of Devore 0/96 (really beautiful looking speakers) at home for a month or two a few years back and it stuck in my memory at a time when I had some wonderful gear temporarily in my care.
The addition of a Chord M scaler has been a complete relevation in terms of timbre and naturalness upstream in the front end and the Microzotl Lm508ia and Pap Horns are just revelling in it. Best moves I’ve ever made.
In a desparate attempt to not being tracked down by the hyperbole department and flayed for unbridled descriptiveness I would just say that the matching of a zotl with the LM508IA SET is the very best tasting secret sauce in my current stereo recipe. They make both my PAP horns and Harbeth 40.2s sing joyously.
It adds a quicksilver cut through and real drive, revealing even more nuance and timbre as well as apparent speed and microdynamics to the rich upbeat beauty of the 805 and 300B driver pairing in the big black LM beasty.
The sonic and musical outcome is in the best possible way a much more structured and lithe bass, the oh so beautifully natural mids and a top end that somehow challenges both the Maggie 20.7s and Harbeth 40.2s in its absolute rightness. There is this fascinating sense of speed but with elasticity and stretch. The pre and amp combo just interplays with the sense of time.
I did have a sense that this combo would really work as I tried a Zotl pre with the 845 based LM219ia with a pair of Devore 0/96 (really beautiful looking speakers) at home for a month or two a few years back and it stuck in my memory at a time when I had some wonderful gear temporarily in my care.
The addition of a Chord M scaler has been a complete relevation in terms of timbre and naturalness upstream in the front end and the Microzotl Lm508ia and Pap Horns are just revelling in it. Best moves I’ve ever made.
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That’s great news Tao and thanks for sharing. I have a little project rolling around in my head ;-)
Yesterday I inserted original Western Electric 300B made in 1930's to LM 508 amplifier.
After I got LM 508 on Aug 2018 and I had done lot of tube rolling.
Now I have Acme 805, 1944 Sylvania vt231(6SN7), Mullard ECC85(6SL7) and Synergistic Blue power cable and fuse with it.
Isoacoustics Orea Bordeaux foot is also under LM 508.
I had been hesitant to try my original Western Electric 300B with LM 508 amplifier.
After paying 3k$ for pair 17 years ago, I had run 10K hours on the tube with Silbatone 300B 8W SET amplifier.
It still sound fine with 5K - 10K hours more remaining.
But it is hard to get good NOS Western Electric 300B tube anymore and it get more expensive ( more than 6K for pair now).
I had tried Sophia Carbon Plate 300B and Shuguang Treasure 300B on LM 508.
With Sophia Carbon Plate, I got slightly deeper bass with more refined treble.
With Shuguang Treasure, I got more details and tight and deeper bass with wider soundstage.
Now with original Western Electric 300B, I got much more and cleaner details and tighter bass with transparent and wider and deeper soundstage.
The most notable difference is more details and transparent soundstage.
I had not expected that much improvement with original Western Electric 300B.
After going back to Sophia Carbon Plate, it sound warm but boring with less details and less transparent sound.
Thus I had to go back to original Western Electric 300B.
When I play " Songbird" of Eva Cassidy with original Western Electric 300B, she appears to sing in front of me with spooky presence.
Now I got into trouble.
I do not want to put valuable original Western Electric 300B into LM 508.
20 years ago, replica of Western Electric had been made and I compared it with original Western Electric 300B.
It turned out that replica was no match to original Western Electric 300B.
Replica had crude and less details and narrower soundstage.
Although they claim to make another replica of Western Electric 300B, I do not have much expectation from my previous experience.
I placed order of Acme 300B tube yesterday.
Acme 805 is the best new production tube with natural details and transparent soundstage.
I do not expect Acme 300B to be better than original Western Electric 300B.
But if Acme 300B is 90% as good as original Western Electric 300B, then I will use it with LM 508.
Replica of Western Electric 300B made 20 years ago was only 70% as good as original Western Electric 300B
Hi Thomas
Have you ever considered to try a pair of the new and seemingly not anymore failure prone Elrog 300b tubes from your namesake Thomas Mayer?
The old Elrogs, before Thomas Mayer took over, where already said to sound excellent but unfortunately rather failure prone. That doesn't seem to be a problem anymore.
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I had not tried Erlog since I had been happy with original NOS WE 300b.
Acme 300B had been shipped and I expect to get it on Thursday or Friday.
Let us see what happens to Acme 300B which also carry 2 year's warranty.
I will keep it updated.
By the way, Line Magnetic Amplifier is a very nice one after tube rolling.
It is almost (90%) as good as Silbatone in transparency, details, soundstage.
Thomas
Summary of improvement on LM 508
1. Acme 805 (740$ well worth it)
2. 1944 Sylvania vt231 (125$ fantastic value)
I bought one pair at 100$ and so much I like it, I ordered one more pair from the same dealer at 125$ as backup.
He does not have them any more.
Two pairs sound almost alike with 125$ pair very slight more details.
3. NOS WE 300B ( tight bass, wider soundstage, fantastic details but expensive and hard to get)
4. NOS Mullard ECC35(125$ from Ebay well worth it)
5. Synergistic Blue power cable( make sound faster and transparent)
6. Synergistci Blue fuse( make sound more refined , subtle effect)
7. Isoacoustics Orea Bordeaux ( subtle effect, more focused sound)
No1. has the most effect and No7 has only subtle effect.
1. Acme 805 (740$ well worth it)
2. 1944 Sylvania vt231 (125$ fantastic value)
I bought one pair at 100$ and so much I like it, I ordered one more pair from the same dealer at 125$ as backup.
He does not have them any more.
Two pairs sound almost alike with 125$ pair very slight more details.
3. NOS WE 300B ( tight bass, wider soundstage, fantastic details but expensive and hard to get)
4. NOS Mullard ECC35(125$ from Ebay well worth it)
5. Synergistic Blue power cable( make sound faster and transparent)
6. Synergistci Blue fuse( make sound more refined , subtle effect)
7. Isoacoustics Orea Bordeaux ( subtle effect, more focused sound)
No1. has the most effect and No7 has only subtle effect.
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https://photos.google.com/share/AF1...?key=VjN1SHRiUWYxUGd0dk5qWTVQOEJNNXdMaEZ0RGZB
I received Psavne Acme 300B tube around noon today(Thursday).
It had been shipped from China on Tuesday using DHL express.
It took only two days to get here in Washington State US.
I bought it from here.
Psvane Acme Serie 300B Hi-end Vacuum Tube Replace
I inserted it into LM508 and played some music.
Without burn in, it sounds refined with clean details and transparent sound.
Acme 300B remind me of Acme 805.
With Acme 805 and 300B in LM508, it sound musical with transparent window.
They seems to have synergy in my LM 508.
After running Acme 300B for 100 hours in LM 508, I will compare Acme 300B with NOS WE 300B in Silbatone 300B SET amplifier.
I will keep it updated
Thomas
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