Dennis Had Inspire Amps

[pstrisik]

Hey Glenn,

So what do you think of the Visseaux 6V6? I'm anticipating nothing special since I don't think I've seen a comment about them. I'm currently back with them playing King of the Hill!

[nhparrot]

Originally Posted by pstrisik

Hey Glenn,

So what do you think of the Visseaux 6V6? I'm anticipating nothing special since I don't think I've seen a comment about them. I'm currently back with them playing King of the Hill!

Peter, I like them. While they have been in my amp, I haven't been thinking of what tubes are there. Just enjoying the music. However, I have not done and comparison of them to any other power tubes during that time.

May need to do some swapping and listening

Glenn

[pstrisik]

Originally Posted by nhparrot

Peter, I like them. While they have been in my amp, I haven't been thinking of what tubes are there. Just enjoying the music. However, I have not done and comparison of them to any other power tubes during that time.

May need to do some swapping and listening

Glenn

Good sign! I've hit the point where the rolling has slowed dramatically. I may try a variation or two, but come back to these. That's what I mean by King of the Mountain. The occasional challenger that will try to know the current king off. I had GEC KT-77's as king for a couple of months before reaching back to try the Visseaux' again. There are a few other tubes that I had tried earlier on that I will likely revisit. But all the urgency has finally passed! I credit my new speakers for much of the positive change. More tubes sound good; different but good.

[nhparrot]

Originally Posted by pstrisik

Good sign! I've hit the point where the rolling has slowed dramatically.

Peter - I have also entered the 12 step program for tubeholics

[robert_kc]

Originally Posted by Musica Amantem

My Sophia Electric 274-B (Mesh Plate) is this one:

http://www.sophiaelectric.com/pages/se/274b.htm (sorry, I've tried to avoid a live link but have not succeeded)

Yes, my amp's chassis has all octal sockets and the 27a preamp has all 4-Pin sockets. I was able to get a couple of 5Z3's (5U4G equivalent) which are 4-Pin, so I use an adapter for those. Yet, the 5Z3's are not doing it for me.

My 5AR4 is a Westinghouse-branded Amperex Holland, and it is fine, I just prefer the 274-B.

The 274-a (4 Pin) and 274-B (Octal) are different specs than the 5U4G although these usually are interchangeable, as the 5Z4, another good rectifier for the non-KT88 output tubes I have (6V6 GT, 6V6 G ST, 6P3S-E/6L6 GC)

I wonder how you like the KT66 and what brand is it. I've had no other 6L6 so far. If the Gold Lion KT66 sounds more extended and with even more body than the 6P3S-E, without masking micro-detail, I'm all for it. We'll see.

I don't have any KT66 in my inventory, so I had to temporarily pull a pair from a working Pilot HF-56 amp. These are generic Chinese KT66. If I were buying KT66 I’d be inclined to buy the new production Gold Lion. According to my notes, my brief listening impressions were that the KT66 sounded slightly brighter than the 6L6GC. (If I had a spare pair I’d try them again – but it’s a pain to pull the amp and unbolt the “bear trap” holders.)

I see that The Tube Store carries the “Preferred Series 274B / 5U4G”. Have you tried this one? I’m not sure if this is any different from my Shu Guang 5U4 (which has no markings on the tube, and only Chinese markings on the box). The “Preferred Series 274B / 5U4G” appears to have a slightly wider bottle, but otherwise looks identical to the Shu Guang 5U4.

Does the Sophia Electric Princess mesh-plate 274B make a significant difference sonically?

I think that tube preference is completely dependent on the speakers. For example, I found no tube combination in my Inspire amp that worked for my Klipsch Palladium (too “thin” sounding) – perhaps because they are 4 ohm. OTOH, with my RF-7’s – the sound quality can be excellent.

P.S. When looking through my listening notes I realized that I hadn’t tried EL34s with my new 6N2P-EV. The EL34’s have noticeably attenuated high frequencies (i.e., a “laid back” sound), with the most gain that I’ve realized from any tube combo in my amp. Generally not enough on the top end, but very easy to listen to. Bottom line - as of today - my favorite tube combination is the 6N2P-EV, 5AR4 rectifier, and Groove Tube Gold Series GT6L6 GE. Compared with the GT6L6 GE, the Gold Lion KT88 is a little brighter, the EL34 is noticeably less bright, and the 7581A’s sound a little “thin” (i.e., not as “rich” sounding). (Of course this based on my RF-7 speakers, my room, my ears, etc … and your mileage will vary …)

P.P.S. FWIW, IMO an excellent $5k system is an Oppo BDP-105, Inspire HO amp equipped as indicated above, and Klipsch RF-7 II (available for significant discount on-line).

[robert_kc]

Originally Posted by nhparrot

Peter - I have also entered the 12 step program for tubeholics

I need to join those meetings!

[pstrisik]

Originally Posted by robert_kc

I need to join those meetings!

Hello. My name is Peter and I'm a tubeaholic.

It has been three days since my last roll.

I believe I can be a moderate roller. One or two per week isn't self-destructive is it? Or am I just using denial and rationalization to avoid confronting my addiction?

Do I need to remove all but one set and one identical backup set of tubes from the house?

Is one roll too many and a thousand not enough?

I guess this is still step one!

[robert_kc]

Originally Posted by pstrisik

Hello. My name is Peter and I'm a tubeaholic.

It has been three days since my last roll.

I believe I can be a moderate roller. One or two per week isn't self-destructive is it? Or am I just using denial and rationalization to avoid confronting my addiction?

Do I need to remove all but one set and one identical backup set of tubes from the house?

Is one roll too many and a thousand not enough?

I guess this is still step one!

Hello Peter,

“De Nial” ain’t just a river in Egypt …”

I’ve got it bad. (But not as bad as some …) Here’s my current systems: http://www.audioaficionado.org/membe...tml#post769046

Robert

[pstrisik]

Originally Posted by robert_kc

Hello Peter,

“De Nial” ain’t just a river in Egypt …”

I’ve got it bad. (But not as bad as some …) Here’s my current systems: http://www.audioaficionado.org/membe...tml#post769046

Robert

Worse than me!!

That Scott sitting next to the Fisher in your TV room looks just like one I had around 1970. My Dad had bought it new and gave it to me. Sure wished I had kept it.

[robert_kc]

Originally Posted by pstrisik

That Scott sitting next to the Fisher in your TV room looks just like one I had around 1970. My Dad had bought it new and gave it to me. Sure wished I had kept it.

That Scott 299C is the first tune amp that I bought - about 6 years ago. Prior to that I had solid state gear, starting with a Dynaco pre-amp and power amp in the early '70s. (I wish I had built Dynaco's tube gear instead of their solid state amps - but at the time I bought into the "new and improved" marketing puffery.)

The Scott 299C is one of my favorites, and was relatively inexpensive. You should acquire one for sentimental reasons ...