interesting
by chance though do you know if it’s worth going with the platinum, kevins stash, or cryo?
Cryo is something I don’t personally believe in. Normally I just go with Gold or Platinum grade.
not familiar on tubes to begin with, is cryo supposed to do anything? More Audiophile Snake Oil?
I don’t know if it is snake oil or not. The hypothesis behind cryo is that it will enhance the hardness of the pins and everything else made of metal, thus making them a better conductor.
Below is a link to a pretty interesting article on the matter…
interesting, I will give it a look thanks.
I will admit, the fact those tubes are practically the same price as a used liquid platinum makes me a bit hesitant… lol
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For some the Telefunkens are their favorite, for others they veer towards the Siemens CCa’s (a NOS pair of which are at unobtainium prices). What I’ve listened to so far on a stock LP fed by a Bifrost 2 (my go-to cans: Hifiman Arya/HEKv1 and HE500):
Favs:
-
Amperex PQ 7308
USN made in USA 7308 - Both 7308’s are probably the most balanced across the audio spectrum featuring great clarity (the best I’ve heard on the LP so far), although the mids are a bit more forward in these than others. Great dynamics -
Bugle Boy/Harleen 6DJ8 1950’s D-getter - A bit of warmth, large soundstage, wonderful body to the sound (thicker than the 7308’s), great mids – I listen to these the most with the above-mentioned cans because it gives the Arya much needed body and the HE-500 a holographic soundstage.
Very good:
- Bugle Boy 6DJ8 1950’s large O-getter - Warm like the D-getters as well as having a nice soundstage but they exhibit less clarity than their older brothers. Another pair of tubes that I often use
Good:
-
Foton 6N3P (2x mica) (Russia, 1960’s) [needs an adapter] - Warm but less so than the Bugle Boys, so it is probably closer to a neutral sound profile. Has a nice soundstage and clarity, probably a touch better than the Bugle Boy 1960’s I mentioned above. Maybe they are a little bit more boring to my ears than the Bugle Boys, so that’s why they are not that often in my rotation. The Foton 3x mica’s from the 1950’s have a reputation over at HF, but it seems that their stock has dried up as they are impossible to find these days. 6N3P’s can be a little noisy, so sometimes it is the luck of the draw.
-
Stock tubes [fully burned in] - Yes, you read that right. The stock tubes are pretty decent once they get some hours in them. Initially, there is a bit of harshness to the treble that is eventually smoothed over and their initial dryness becomes a thing of the past. Fully burned-in, the EH 6922’s present the bass, mids, and treble quite nicely to my ears. However, what I cannot get past is its in-your-face presentation, especially with my HE-500’s. These and the HE-500’s are like oil and water. Decent with wide 'staging headphones like the Arya/HEKv1
-
Reflektor 6N23P (Russian equivalent to the 6922) - My most recent acquisition. It sounds pretty good and neutral, if not a little dry so far. It is NOS I believe, so the sound may improve.
Meh:
-
Reflektor 6N3P 3x mica’s 1950’s - Thin and brittle sounding, pass.
-
Brimar Cv2492 - Has nice mids but too thin-sounding for my tastes, overrated imo
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Matsushita 6DJ8 (Japan 1970s) - Supposedly built using equipment Mullard shipped to Japan, but what resulted is a boring, muddy sound with the LP. It is nice option if you are suffering from insomnia and need something to bore you to sleep.
Outside of the cans that I already mentioned, my other main cans are the HD800S and the HE-6 (4-screw). I prefer to drive the HE-6 (and increasingly the HE-500) from my Marantz MM 7025 (140W at 8ohms). I really like the Bifrost 2 pairing with that amp. With Bifrost 2+MM 7025, my HE-500 have a clearer sound than the LP and greater sense of punch and dynamics. These old school Hifiman’s love the added current. As for the HD800S, I typically prefer using the CTH with a Western Electric 396A (great tonality) or a Tung-Sol black glass 6C8G, and those combinations really prevent me from listening to the LP with my HD800S for any great length. The above opinions are mine alone.
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I have a pair of '75 Reflektor SWGP Silver NOS that’s being shipped from Ukraine otw. I’m currently using Genalex Gold Lion Platinums, but want to try some vintage tubes in the LP. Will update once I test em out!
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Where do you recommend getting a set of these? I’ve been wanting to get some more body from my LP as I find the stock tubes to leans bit too much on the neutral side of things and been craving A bit more oomph
I and others here have ordered tubes from Brent Jessee Recording - Illinois USA. Super knowledgeable guy, good to work with but can be a tad expensive. However, you are not going to be getting $99 “take a chance” tubes, like you risk from eBay…
Scroll to the bottom of the page for tubes and descriptions. Take a look at the other information on this page as well. Some good stuff.
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I bought a (strong measuring) matched pair from tubemazestore on ebay for $85 (this tube seller has a good reputation on HF). I took flyers for two matched pairs for $55 each (less strong measuring), and they turned out to be fine on my LP. My limit for these tubes would be $90 for a matched pair. Again, YMMV with other sellers on ebay. Be sure to read up on the Brent Jessee Recordings to spot the fakes. Ebay, it is the wild west there.
Does anyone else’s LP have an ultra high pitched whine or constant tone? It’s coming out of the unit itself, not the headphones, and is right at the edge of the audible freq., but it’s noticeable and very annoying.
Not sure if this is a burn in thing or…
What happens if you unplug everything from it and turn it in?
Also, is the noise coming from one of the tubes?
Unplugged the RCA inputs and no change. Volume dosnt change it either.
Tough to say wether or not its the tubes, it doesn’t sound like its coming from the tubes themselves, almost sounds like its coming from somewhere back by the power input jack… but it gets louder as the tubes heat up.
There’s nothing of substance by the power jack. Try to localize the sound as well as you can then swap the tubes and see if the source of sound has moved.
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What are your impression after your Mod,satisfait?
Who? Me?
good people what is the risk of pluging in power supply with different specs? e.g 36V 1.75 A?
I would not recommend running anything with a different voltage, unless you’re doing knowing what you’re doing. Less voltage means the amp will probably compress and distort at some point. More voltage means you’re changing the supply celling somewhere, and that can brings problems.
Higher current is a different story. Usually, circuits shouldn’t draw more current than they need, and any value up from the spec (1.5A) should be fine. That said, some designs may not have this care/protection and they can draw more than they should, especially in some brief moments. So, I would not recommend going too much up in there. The specs you said should be fine, just watch out for the PSU quality. Garbage PSU can always be dangerous to equipment.
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Always use the same voltage as the included power supply.
Higher current is a non-issue as the circuit will only draw what it needs.
Think of the powersupplies voltage like a bucket on top of a ladder. The higher the ladder, the higher the voltage.
The thickness of the hose in the bucket dictates how much water can flow, in electricity, that is the current.
That is only partially true.
A circuit that “draws more than it should” is in fault condition, in other words: broken.
Thanks a lot guys for explaining. Monoprice told me I should buy myself a new one since they provided shit that is not working, they dont sell replacement and provide zero guidance.
would something like this be ok?
https://www.meanwell-web.com/nl-nl/ac-dc-single-output-moistureproof-adaptor-with-pfc-owa--60e--36