Yup, the 6v6 family is just so satisfying. I remember trying to explain the sound to a friend. While I could get more detail, crisper bass, or bigger soundstage from a variety of tubes the 6v6 I have tried have just sounded “right” to me.
So far I have used old Sylvania in the form of JAN 7c5, black glass Ken Rad, and some newer Sylvanias. Also used some Sylvania branded GE 6ez5 but I’m pretty sure they are actually just later GE 6v6 tubes. All of them sounded great. All of them are pretty cheap too. I have spent a lot of money on various output tubes but have not as yet explored the world of more expensive 6v6. The grey glass RCA versions are the most desired US tubes although I think a lot of that is driven by guitarists.
I bought a bunch of 6aq5 tubes from the likes of Telefunken, Mullard, and some French ones. The 6aq5 is commonly known as a 6v6 in a smaller envelope. The trouble is that according to the data sheet, the KT88 Firebottle exceeds the max ratings pin the screen. And looking at the voltages shown with different rectifiers a few posts up the max anode voltages are exceeded too. I managed to get some niceish sounds out of some of them but I was never really satisfied with them. Plus I was worried about burning them up.
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