New Cavalli Audio Liquid Glass Amplifier - Fall Release - Page 34

 

I found a bunch on eBay for ~$60 a quad.  I just finished testing them, and out of the 10 I have on hand, only three test below 100 with anything above 50 being good (the other three test at about 65).

 

Am I correct to set the heater to 12V and B+ to 200V for the 8416's?  I haven't found a data sheet, but from what I can find it appears to be a 12V 6DJ8.

Just hooked up my LG tonight. Very very smooth with the lcd-3. I knew the soloist was not doing them justice. The liquid glass has excellent control. Very strange compared to what I am used to. On well recorded tracks it's like the equipment itself just disappears and has no coloration, harshness, or indication that I am in fact still listening on headphones. (A example is shinedown's live album, feels like you are there in some tracks). Very good build overall. The power button was a bit odd at first but I got used to it rather quickly. For some reason I was expecting it have some tactile feel but nope. It's kinda like pressing a button on a microwave but with a tad more force. If you are even thinking about getting this amp just do it.Guaranteed no disappointment. Super smooth and revealing amp!

I spent a little time with the LCD - 3 and the Amperex 8416's over the weekend, and it definitely didn't have any of the overly etched qualities I got when pairing the HE-6 with 6DJ8's. I'm going to have to try it out with the HE-6 when I get home today as it had a ton of gain with the LCD-3 (I could barely get to 10:00).

I've got some Marconi 6SN7s on the way....

 

Where'd you get yours?  I've searched for those a few times but always seem to come up short.  There's also the fact that while I've got no problem buying ten sets of tubes at $50 a pair or 20 sets at $30 a pair, I'm reluctant to pay more that $100 per tube some times.  Most of these that I've found have seemed too expensive for me to buy from some random person. 

So far I'm like a few of the tubes I have picked up, too early for a review of them, but early impressions: I'm really impressed.

 

Ken Rad JAN CKR 6SN7GT Black Glass

 

Sylvania "Bad Boys" 6SN7GT Tall Bottle

 

Sylvania 12SN7WGT Brown Base

 

Have more tubes still awaiting listening sessions, but sometimes its overwhelming...!

My favorites so far (and by far) are the Sylvania JAN-CHS VT-231 / 6SN7 Black Plates from the 1940s. This is with LCD-3's. The music was so enveloping and engaging that I just could not tear myself away from them to roll some other tubes.

Amperex Orange Globe 6DJ8's sounded very good, but they are not in the same league as the Sylvania's (but they are better than the Electro-Harmonix tubes that came with the LG).

Surprisingly, my Lorenz Stuttgart PCC88/7DJ8 3-Mica's did not do well - they sounded odd with any of the headphones I tried (LCD-3; HD 650; DT 880; ATH-D9000). They may need more hours of break-in to open up - not sure.

 

It could just be that they've got slightly less heater voltage than intended, but I had a similar experience with my Philips pinch waist PCC88's.

 

Ah so, nice to know that you had a similar experience with PCC88's.  They did not sound bad, exactly, just odd. I can't even really desribe it, I just know I don't want to listen to it

 

No worries Alex. The LG is a beautiful machine just as it is. I thought I would try out the PCC88's just to see what would happen. I've got tons of tubes to roll with the correct heater voltages.

One could also place the amp on a stove to help with the heater aspect.

 

 Great idea buddy!  Should I set it to simmer?  Or am I trying to boil here?