AudioAficionado.org  

Go Back   AudioAficionado.org > Audio & Video > Tubes & Valves

Tubes & Valves Upgrades, Spares & General Comments

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 05-21-2019, 12:56 PM
blacsno's Avatar
blacsno blacsno is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Farmington, Mich
Posts: 678
Default Preamp Tube Replacement

Finally after 12 years of 5 hours per day use of my Gold Lions tubes in my McIntosh C2300 had to be replaced! What prompted to even think about replacing them was that my system started to sound "blah"! I can't think of any other description to explain it. I purchased two set of tubes for the preamp. Gold Lions where one set and the other was Tung-Sol matched pairs. I installed the Gold Lions first and never looked backed.

Since the Tung-Sol where never used so I swapped them into the C2300. Interesting after about 20 hours of break in time. The Tung-Sol have a much more neutral but an open sound, where the Lions were bright but an open sound. I'm not saying one is better than the other just different. The subs are definitely more pronounce than I ever heard before. I'll order another set of Gold Lions and make another swap in 2031!

Ken
__________________
McIntosh C2300:Gold Lions 12AX7, McIntosh MC452, McIntosh D1100 , Bryston bdp-3, McIntosh MEN220
Linn Sondek 25th LP-12 upgraded, Encounter MK-3, Lyra Delos, Wegne Plinth, Ultra Origin DC motor, Cetech Subchassis
Sonus Faber Cremona, (2) JL Audio F110 subs, Squeeze Server v7.9 Windows 2012 Server 25TB, Audio Metallurgy GA-0 XLR & RCA, Wireworld Silver Eclipse speaker cable, PS Audio Power Plant Premier (2), WireWorld Silver Power Cables, Tascam DA3000
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 05-21-2019, 01:10 PM
jdandy's Avatar
jdandy jdandy is offline
Merry Christmas to all



 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: North Central Florida
Posts: 53,224
Default

Ken.......This is a good testimonial for those who worry about tube longevity. Generally speaking, the 12AX7, 12AT7, and 12AU7 tubes last a long time. !0,000 hours is not uncommon. That's a lot of music listening time. Thanks for letting us know.
__________________
Dan



STUDIO - McIntosh C1000C/P, MC2301 (2), MR88, Aurender N10, Esoteric K-01X, Shunyata Sigma spdif digital cable, Sonos Connect, PurePower 2000, Stillpoints, Furutech Flux 50, Michell Gyro SE, Michell HR Power Supply, SME 309, Ortofon Cadenza Black, Wireworld, Sonus faber Amati Anniversario
LIVING ROOM - McIntosh C2300, MC75 (2), MR85, Magnum Dynalab 205, Simaudio MOON Neo 260D-T, Schiit Audio Yggdrasil, Aurender N100H, Shunyata Sigma USB cable, Micro Seiki DD40, Ortofon Cadenza Blue, Nakamichi BX-300, Sony 60ES DAT, PS Audio P10, Furutech Flux 50, Sonos Connect, Stillpoints, Wireworld, Kimber, PMC EB1i, JL Audio f113
VINTAGE - McIntosh MA230, Tandberg 3011A tuner, Olive 04HD, Sony DTC-59ES DAT, McIntosh 4300V, JBL 4312A
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 05-22-2019, 10:12 AM
80B's Avatar
80B 80B is online now
Listener in Training


 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Old City
Posts: 2,565
Default

It's always good to hear folks' experiences and impressions of tubes, which is a help to anyone getting into the hobby.
__________________
Sources: Vinyl: Clearaudio Innovation Wood turntable with 9" Universal tonearm, Da Vinci V2 cartridge, Stillpoints SS & Stillpoints clamp, McIntosh MVP 901, Apple Mac mini via Benchmark DAC 1, Aurender N100C via Schiit Yggdrasil
Control: McIntosh C1100, Mcintosh MX151
Power: Mcintosh MC2301s (front), McIntosh MC501 (center), Mcintosh MC402 (rear)
Speakers: Sonus Faber Amati Futura (front and back), SF Vox center
Power/connections: PS Audio Power Port receptacles, RGPC 400 pro (2) WireWorld interconnects and speaker cable
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 07-03-2019, 04:34 PM
rrwwss52 rrwwss52 is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2019
Posts: 16
Default

@blacsno

Without a day off, that's better than 20,000 hours. Great longevity off a set of 12AX7s......
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 09-03-2019, 01:55 PM
Roni's Avatar
Roni Roni is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Fort Myers, FL
Posts: 117
Default

Thanks for yours impressions of tubes, I have Mcintosh C2200 with Gold Lions (I hear Dan recommended ) and sounds great, maybe I try the Tung-Sol. Thank you.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 11-25-2019, 02:18 PM
MarkusTubesNow's Avatar
MarkusTubesNow MarkusTubesNow is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2019
Location: Portland Oregon
Posts: 15
Default Thanks

Good to know.
Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump

Audioaficionado.org tested by Norton Internet Security

All times are GMT -4. The time now is 02:06 PM.



Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.10
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
©Copyright 2009-2023 AudioAficionado.org.Privately owned, All Rights Reserved.
Audio Aficionado Sponsors
AudioAficionado Subscriber
AudioAficionado Subscriber
Inspire By Dennis Had
Inspire By Dennis Had
Harmonic Resolution Systems
Harmonic Resolution Systems
Wyred4Sound
Wyred4Sound
Dragonfire Acoustics
Dragonfire Acoustics
GIK Acoustics
GIK Acoustics
Esoteric
Esoteric
AC Infinity
AC Infinity
JL Audio
JL Audio
Add Powr
Add Powr
Accuphase - Soulution
Accuphase - Soulution
Audio by E
Audio by E
Canton
Canton
Bryston
Bryston
WireWorld Cables
WireWorld Cables
Stillpoints
Stillpoints
Bricasti Design
Bricasti Design
Furutech
Furutech
Shunyata Research
Shunyata Research
Legend Audio & Video
Legend Audio & Video