Tubes, different makers, different types...but what are your preferences?
- Thread starter DaveyF
- Start date
They are not drop-in replacements - the PCC88 needs 7V at the filament, the 6922 / ECC88 is a 6.3V filament tube. You can use them, but they will be out of specification. I have some tens of Philips PCC88 and tried them on cj. The worked, but they become noisy after little time. The new GAT2 has a 7V supply for the filament.
It is a question of luck - some equipment has up to 6.7V filament voltage, and should work with the PCC88s. However if we get a 6.1 or 6.2V filament supply the PCC88 are out of range.
All this talk of CJ amps reminded me that I once had a CJ Premier 140 and found a cryo treated Voskhod 6h23 to beat many highly esteemed nos 6922 type tubes. Since the 6550 output tubes were individually biased, it was possible to slip a single TS6550 black plate tube into each channel amongst the existing svets to get a nice blend of their respective qualities.
Here's a few valves I have found to be of very good sonic quality over the years.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code gold pin ECC803S gold pin. The equal I think of the Telefunken ECC803S which I owned at the same time. And a lot less money. I could barely tell the two apart and the Tesla was constructed in a very similar manner internally using Telefunken equipment.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code E88CC gold pin cross swords (the crème de la crème marking) gold pin. Slightly better I think than Siemens, which looked uncannily similar to the Tesla internally, though just different enough to be able to tell there was a difference. Currently in use.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code PCC88 gold pin. Again I found these as good as the Telefunken PCC88 when used in an EAR 868PL.
Sylvania VT-52 used in Lampizator Big 7. I find this valve to be curiously unimpressively good. What do I mean by that? It doesn't sound impressive, but it is very even handed and neutral. It doesn't hype anything and therefore is hard to fault. A sure fire pointer to a genuinely sonically linear sounding valve, at least in my system.
Amperex 211. The best 211s I have heard. Currently in use.
GEC 6080. A tip for Woo headphone amp users. On another level compared to a big bag full of other 6080s and equivalents I tried.
Mullard mid 80s CV4204 and other CV Mullards from this series. Again, superbly neutral. They were still making excellent valves even this late. Very nicely made and were quite cheap but prices are moving up on these.
Telefunken E280F gold pin. Currently in use.
For some reason I really like the cheap and cheerful JJ Tesla EL84. I used to use 12 of them in an old Beard BB100 amp I sold a while back. It loved them to bits. Not actually that reliable, but lovely tone in that amp.
Chatham 5R4WGB. An amazing rectifier I think, superbly constructed, able to withstand amazing levels of G force and operate at 60,000 feet. Try 900 g/mSec on yer average EML or KR valve and see what you have left of them. Sounds superb in my preamp. And it is cheap!
All of the above tubes are properly made (apart from the JJs, obviously) and do not display any signs of microphony. Again unlike your average KR or EML valve but some obviously like a bit of that going on. It can lead to a lively sound that is for sure.
More to follow maybe.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code gold pin ECC803S gold pin. The equal I think of the Telefunken ECC803S which I owned at the same time. And a lot less money. I could barely tell the two apart and the Tesla was constructed in a very similar manner internally using Telefunken equipment.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code E88CC gold pin cross swords (the crème de la crème marking) gold pin. Slightly better I think than Siemens, which looked uncannily similar to the Tesla internally, though just different enough to be able to tell there was a difference. Currently in use.
Tesla yellow print 32 factory code PCC88 gold pin. Again I found these as good as the Telefunken PCC88 when used in an EAR 868PL.
Sylvania VT-52 used in Lampizator Big 7. I find this valve to be curiously unimpressively good. What do I mean by that? It doesn't sound impressive, but it is very even handed and neutral. It doesn't hype anything and therefore is hard to fault. A sure fire pointer to a genuinely sonically linear sounding valve, at least in my system.
Amperex 211. The best 211s I have heard. Currently in use.
GEC 6080. A tip for Woo headphone amp users. On another level compared to a big bag full of other 6080s and equivalents I tried.
Mullard mid 80s CV4204 and other CV Mullards from this series. Again, superbly neutral. They were still making excellent valves even this late. Very nicely made and were quite cheap but prices are moving up on these.
Telefunken E280F gold pin. Currently in use.
For some reason I really like the cheap and cheerful JJ Tesla EL84. I used to use 12 of them in an old Beard BB100 amp I sold a while back. It loved them to bits. Not actually that reliable, but lovely tone in that amp.
Chatham 5R4WGB. An amazing rectifier I think, superbly constructed, able to withstand amazing levels of G force and operate at 60,000 feet. Try 900 g/mSec on yer average EML or KR valve and see what you have left of them. Sounds superb in my preamp. And it is cheap!
All of the above tubes are properly made (apart from the JJs, obviously) and do not display any signs of microphony. Again unlike your average KR or EML valve but some obviously like a bit of that going on. It can lead to a lively sound that is for sure.
More to follow maybe.
Last edited:
Interesting, I would not have thought that mixing and matching tubes in that manner would result in a good outcome.
Tesla Vrsovice KT88, now the EAT KT88. Amazing sound the best 6550 or KT88 I ever tried. Horrendously unreliable filaments used to break all the time on the Vrsovice version. A real pity - nothing else came close - anywhere near close. Next best the Tung Sol 6550 but still a big gap between that and the Tesla. To counter and earlier post I hated the GE 6550. In my Air Tight ATM2 it just threw sound all over the place in a really imprecise manner. Which just goes to show how opinions can differ in valve land.
If they have solved the filament problem without affecting the sound on the version now marketed as EAT it will be killer.
If they have solved the filament problem without affecting the sound on the version now marketed as EAT it will be killer.
Western Electric 396A. See pic.
If you want to have some cheap fun, buy a Xiang Sheng DAC-01A for about £100 and dump one of these in it. Then put it up against your multi-K mega DAC. Then scratch your head a bit and laugh out loud
Western Electrics are a girl's best friend.
If you want to have some cheap fun, buy a Xiang Sheng DAC-01A for about £100 and dump one of these in it. Then put it up against your multi-K mega DAC. Then scratch your head a bit and laugh out loud
Western Electrics are a girl's best friend.
394a Rectifiers - Western Electric
56 Triodes - Sylvania or Fivre
7788/E810F - Mullard
71a - Sylvania JAN
EL34/6AC7/KT-77 - Currently partial to the Gold Lion KT-77 new production
OD3 - Sylvania
6SN7 - Depends; currently like Ken-Rad NOS, Sylvania 1952 3-hole, Fivre
56 Triodes - Sylvania or Fivre
7788/E810F - Mullard
71a - Sylvania JAN
EL34/6AC7/KT-77 - Currently partial to the Gold Lion KT-77 new production
OD3 - Sylvania
6SN7 - Depends; currently like Ken-Rad NOS, Sylvania 1952 3-hole, Fivre
Odd regarding your findings of the GE 6550's. I had them in several amps, including classic ARC's and they never did what you described, unless they were pretty much used up. WJZ always spec'ed these tubes in his 6550 based designs. The ATM2 is a nice amp, perhaps something else was amiss??
Last edited:
Audiomatiere ( a french tube electronics manufacturer) used EL34 and 6550 in parallel in the output stage, with a proper biasing scheme. I only listened to it once in a demo with Martin Logan, so my opinion has little value, but at that time I was very impressed.
I have not gone all out with power tubes, I use mainly 6550s type in all power amps that I ever had. And my first roll was into the winged C Svetlana (SED) KT88s and I loved the overall balance and presentation over the stock EH 6550s of the ARC VS110. It is for me a very musical tube, whereas the 6550 is a bit dry by comparison. When I moved to the ARC VS115 amp, again I rolled from its stock 6550 to this time the reissue of Golden Dragon which was quite a disappointment in that it has a dryer tonal balance and I was left thinking I should have gone back to the SED winged C KT88s. My next roll was into the PsVane Hifi Series KT88 which I am presently using now and it is a musical sounding tube, almost comparable to the winged C, and has a smooth balance with excellent dynamics and soundstaging properties. My next roll would be the Treasury T2 series KT88s, if I don't get to sell my amp first.
How do people store their inventory of tubes?
Are there special plastic or padded cases with many little sections where tubes are stored in their boxes?
Or do people just keep them in the original boxes in a row on a shelf?
Are there special plastic or padded cases with many little sections where tubes are stored in their boxes?
Or do people just keep them in the original boxes in a row on a shelf?
Hi Ron,
I have been storing them inside a sturdy box as in a previous pic I posted here. No special case or padding inside as it will be just there and non-moving. Inside,I always put them in their original wrap around corrugated carton, and in their pin protectors, below, the blue pin protector is an original Mullard itself. I have black generic ones too. But for transport and shipping, that is another thing, paddings, bubble wrap, hard cases should be used.
I have not gone all out with power tubes, I use mainly 6550s type in all power amps that I ever had. And my first roll was into the winged C Svetlana (SED) KT88s and I loved the overall balance and presentation over the stock EH 6550s of the ARC VS110. It is for me a very musical tube, whereas the 6550 is a bit dry by comparison. When I moved to the ARC VS115 amp, again I rolled from its stock 6550 to this time the reissue of Golden Dragon which was quite a disappointment in that it has a dryer tonal balance and I was left thinking I should have gone back to the SED winged C KT88s. My next roll was into the PsVane Hifi Series KT88 which I am presently using now and it is a musical sounding tube, almost comparable to the winged C, and has a smooth balance with excellent dynamics and soundstaging properties. My next roll would be the Treasury T2 series KT88s, if I don't get to sell my amp first.
Phil, generally when I owned amps that could use KT88's instead of 6550's I have preferred the KT88's. Not so much with the GE 6550's. On my previous ARC D70Mk2, I was using winged C 6550's. A very nice sounding tube. Nonetheless, i do think the king of the 6550's is the GE 6550A.
BTW, i don't think any of these power tubes compete with the new KT150's..or for that matter even the new KT120's. These new designs are a game changer IMO.
Last edited:
Great question. I store all of my tubes in the paper boxes that they come in...and then in a hard plastic container that has a sealable lid.
Agree on those points, Davey. My ARC VS115 are not suitable for the 120s or 150s, for long range reliabilty. I have no doubt they are fast, dynamic and very transparent sounding tubes. When I had the Jadis JA 200 amp, they were stocked with GE 6550s and I never thought of rolling 20 pieces of power tubes then, cost would be eye popping.
Similar threads
