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Review: Woo Audio WA6 vs. WA6SE (stock units) - Page 7

post #91 of 506
11/9/08 at 12:15am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Orcin View Post
These RCA's have 50+ hours on them, so they should have softened up by now. They sound harsh and muddy.
Strange. Have you had them tested? I have never heard that from the RCA's and I use them all the time. I have Sylvania and other brands but hands down prefer the RCA with the shield between the sections.
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post #92 of 506
11/9/08 at 12:24am
Even when these RCA's were new, they didn't sound harsh or muddy. Are yours the same as these? Note the shield between the plates. I hear some don't have them. I'm not sure that makes a difference though.

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post #93 of 506
11/9/08 at 1:37am
Nobody seems to mention the GE branded ones that come with the tube in the first place. How do those compare to the RCA and Sylvania branded 6de7 and 6ew7? Does it make sense to change brands within the same type of tube?
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post #94 of 506
11/9/08 at 2:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by atbglenn View Post
Even when these RCA's were new, they didn't sound harsh or muddy. Are yours the same as these? Note the shield between the plates. I hear some don't have them. I'm not sure that makes a difference though.
Without the shield the tube, to my ear, is not as dynamic and there isn't the transparency I hear with the tube that has the shield.
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post #95 of 506
11/9/08 at 1:26pm
Thread Starter 
Hmm... mine have the shield. I'll see if I can get them tested. I don't have a tester, unfortunately.

Edit: I just let them warm up for 2 hours, and listened again. They were much better than I thought earlier. I no longer think they are defective. I just must have listened when I was too tired or they were not yet warmed up.

I still liked the Sylvania's better though. I'll see what this next set of RCA's sound like.
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post #96 of 506
11/11/08 at 11:51am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by monsieurguzel View Post
Nobody seems to mention the GE branded ones that come with the tube in the first place. How do those compare to the RCA and Sylvania branded 6de7 and 6ew7? Does it make sense to change brands within the same type of tube?

I tried my GE 6EW7's last night for an extended period of time, and I thought they were just as good as the Sylvania fat bottle 6EW7's. I think they would be interchangeable.

More experienced tube rollers have said that tubes vary, and you might try two pair of the same thing and like one pair better. The good news is that the power tubes for this amp are pretty cheap, so you can pick up a few different pairs to see for yourself. The thin 6EW7's might be worth a try, as well as the 6DE7's.

On another note, is there any rectifier that is better than the Sophia Princess 274B? I might spend a few bucks on something if it had an advantage, but I can't see the point in buying any more inferior tubes. The Sophia is just so good that I keep rolling it back in everytime I get serious. Variety is nice, but the Sophia just seems to do everything well.

What about the metal base 5AR4's? Are they equal to or better than the Sophia for impact and/or deep bass?
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post #97 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:04pm
I have found the Mullard GZ30 brown base to be as good if not better in the bass department as the 274B and at around 20 USD a good deal too! Just slightly less airy but still a good tube.
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post #98 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:07pm
Woohoo!!! Just had word from Jack that my maxed WA6 SE is coming back after having had the tube protection circuit modification to support the 274B. He also trimmed down the tube socket screws to let the tubes sit more securely. He also said they enhanced the power supply to allow lower background noises, which would improve focus of music. I have asked what that power supply mod was as I was not aware that there was any backgound noise as the amp sounded dead silent.
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post #99 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:12pm
Sclamb,

Great news! When did you send the amp back?

Glenn
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post #100 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:16pm
I sent it on the 27th November, so not a bad turnaround really given that it did not arrive in NY until the 31st. It will be shipped back on Wednesday this week so hopefully I will get it back early next week.
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post #101 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:20pm
Woo Audio really takes care of their customers. Unlike some unnamed high end manufactures
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post #102 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:23pm
I agree!! Being in the UK I took a gamble, and unfortunately because of the 274B issue I had to send the amp back which was the worst case scenario in that gamble (it cost me 200 USD as UK postage is not cheap!).

However, Jack has turned it around quickly which is great. Of course, I have to wait until I get it back to make sure all is good, but so far the service has been exepmplary.
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post #103 of 506
11/11/08 at 12:28pm
Unfortunately when you buy something overseas you take a risk no matter how good the product. $200 yikes! that's a lot of money. Fortunately for me, Woo is about 20 miles from me. It's cost me around $10 to ship my 6 for the PS mod.
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post #104 of 506
11/12/08 at 1:36pm
Had an email from Jack about the power supply mod. He said the PS enhancement is a better way to make background noise lower and darker. Most headphones would not display such low level hum but it would help to make sound cleaner.

I have to say that my amp was black as black in terms of silence, so I probably won't hear any difference. So, still none the wiser about what the mod is but I can't wait to get my amp back
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post #105 of 506
11/12/08 at 1:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sclamb View Post
Had an email from Jack about the power supply mod. He said the PS enhancement is a better way to make background noise lower and darker. Most headphones would not display such low level hum but it would help to make sound cleaner.

I have to say that my amp was black as black in terms of silence, so I probably won't hear any difference. So, still none the wiser about what the mod is but I can't wait to get my amp back
I can't imagine the Woo being any quieter than it already is. Unless of course you have super human hearing Oh BTW, I just won a pair of NOS Sylvania 5U4GB made in 1955 for $12. Hopefully they'll sound good.

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