[Patswalker]

I'm very much a tube noob but I have the Tor Balanced and have been using RCA 6SN7GT tubes with it for a few months and has been great with it.

That said if anyone can clarify that'd be helpful so we don't fry the amps/tubes

Nice. I love it so far. I can say that I did call thetubestore.com about 10 min ago and they told me that it is totally fine to use 6SN7 and 6X5GT. The guy I spoke to told me that the confusion I had, the designation of "analogue" was in a translation between Ukrainian and American English. This makes total sense to me. I have not heard back from Tor Audio, unfortuantely I'm not expecting to for a while, but so far this is a point in the right direction. Thank you also for your reposting of my post, form the replies I hope to see here I'm hoping to get a better low down on how and where to aim these wonderful amps.

 

[rawheadjim]

My Freya+ does not list 6X5GT as an equivalent for 6SN7's, they only say you can also use 6N8S, 5692, 6SL7, or 6N9S. It would be nice if I could use 6X5GT's since they seem to be dirt cheap on ebay!

 

[bcowen]

My Freya+ does not list 6X5GT as an equivalent for 6SN7's, they only say you can also use 6N8S, 5692, 6SL7, or 6N9S. It would be nice if I could use 6X5GT's since they seem to be dirt cheap on ebay!

The 6X5GT is a rectifier tube and is not remotely compatible with a dual-triode 6SN7. Do not put one in your Freya. The 6X5GT is very close to the Russian 6C5S though and can be used as a substitute for it. (do not confuse the Russian 6C5S with the US-designated 6C5, which is a single triode tube that preceded the much better known 6J5).

The Russian 6N8S can be substituted for a 6SN7 with no problem. They are not identical electrically, but are so close that there's no issue swapping one for the other.

Or the TL;DR version:

6N8S = 6SN7 (dual triodes)
6C5S = 6X5GT (full wave rectifiers)
('equal' meaning close enough that substituting is not an issue)

 

[HTSkywalker]

The 6X5GT is a rectifier tube and is not remotely compatible with a dual-triode 6SN7. Do not put one in your Freya. The 6X5GT is very close to the Russian 6C5S though and can be used as a substitute for it. (do not confuse the Russian 6C5S with the US-designated 6C5, which is a single triode tube that preceded the much better known 6J5).

The Russian 6N8S can be substituted for a 6SN7 with no problem. They are not identical electrically, but are so close that there's no issue swapping one for the other.

Or the TL;DR version:

6N8S = 6SN7 (dual triodes)
6C5S = 6X5GT (full wave rectifiers)
('equal' meaning close enough that substituting is not an issue)

Hear Hear

 

[rawheadjim]

Got it, thanks! I wasn't thinking it would work or I should go off the approved list in the Freya manual, but now I know why.

 

[Ranger Ron]

Got it, thanks! I wasn't thinking it would work or I should go off the approved list in the Freya manual, but now I know why.

If you’re really feeling the urge to try different tube types I highly recommend the use of 6F8G with adapters. Your Freya might also accept 6C8G which are relatively cheap still.

 

[rawheadjim]

I've been having fun with some 6SL7's, you have to dial it up to about 3:00 instead of 2:00 but some of them sound very nice. They run about 1/2 the cost of what a similar 6SN7 goes for, on average.

 

[LoryWiv]

I am looking to make some upgrades on my tube amp LM508IA, hope someone who is familiar with tube sockets could offer some great advises. Currently, the amp has the stock sockets for 1 X 6SL7, 2 X 6SN7, 2 X 300B, 2 X 805. Planning to change the 3 X 8 pin octal and 2 X UX4 but leave the 805. Below are the stock sockets and you can see they are not of the best quality or design.



Please advise what kind of clip design and brand I should be looking for as in built quality and reliability. BTW, I roll 6SL7 n 6SN7 regularly, perhaps up to 10 times per month. Thanks in advance!!!

Headfi-er @Deyan is an adapter builder of high quality and a pleasure to interact with. Worth reaching out.

 

[TLO]

Headfi-er @Deyan is an adapter builder of high quality and a pleasure to interact with. Worth reaching out.

Thanks for the advise but I am looking for advise on tube socket, and not tube adapter.
Anyway, after some researches, it seems Belton and Omron are highly recommended.

 

[pravous]

I used this Belton octal socket for my tube tester. Belton Micalex. Very solid connection and has PIN numbers marked on the socket.

 

[les24preludes]

I've been rolling 6SN7s and some 6J5s for the last few days and these are my findings so far. Most obvious is that it's the construction of the tube that makes the difference much more than either the make or the type (GT, GTA, GTB etc). This isn't what you generally get in threads like this, and I don't know why to be honest. So...
1. Angled plates. The best sounding of all to my ears - neutral, detailed and all-round musical with good treble. Could possibly be a trifle bright in some systems but were OK for me. These stay in my system. Typical example Sylvania WGTA but plenty of others including taller bottles, GT, GTA, GTB.
2. T plates. I found these smooth and full in sound but lacking sparkle in the treble. The best were good but I wasn't totally convinced. These are usually the early GT ones which fetch high prices but they didn't sound better than the angled plates for me.
3. Round plates. These can sound good, for example the Brimar. Smooth and full sound close to the T plates.
2. Ladder plates. These were the worst sounding of all the constructions - grainy treble and not something I could live with. Otherwise they were clean and detailed but the grain remained an issue. There are plenty of ladder variants including the venerated 5692, which I haven't heard and which differs in having 2 micas at the top and a vertical supporting rod. So I can't comment on that.

On to 6J5 types. I've tried 2 types so far, but more on order.
1. 7193/2C22. Ladder plates again and again the grainy treble. Otherwise clean and detailed. So a non starter for me.
2. L63. This was a disappointment for round plates - a full sound but mediocre treble and very woolly bass. Maybe not good examples.

On order: CV6, E1148, Raytheon 6J5WGT. The Raytheon are ladder plates so I'm cautious but they do have the vertical support rod. E1148 have horizontal plates and CV6 round plates. I suspect they won't knock the angled plates off the top spot but I'll wait and see. Also on order a pair of 7A4 and a 7N7. That completes the most obvious variants to try. I'm staying with mu=20, so not considering 6P5G and others with less gain, even though I've tried these in the past and liked them together with 76, 56, 37, 27.

 

[Slade01]

I've been rolling 6SN7s and some 6J5s for the last few days and these are my findings so far. Most obvious is that it's the construction of the tube that makes the difference much more than either the make or the type (GT, GTA, GTB etc). This isn't what you generally get in threads like this, and I don't know why to be honest. So...
1. Angled plates. The best sounding of all to my ears - neutral, detailed and all-round musical with good treble. Could possibly be a trifle bright in some systems but were OK for me. These stay in my system. Typical example Sylvania WGTA but plenty of others including taller bottles, GT, GTA, GTB.
2. T plates. I found these smooth and full in sound but lacking sparkle in the treble. The best were good but I wasn't totally convinced. These are usually the early GT ones which fetch high prices but they didn't sound better than the angled plates for me.
3. Round plates. These can sound good, for example the Brimar. Smooth and full sound close to the T plates.
2. Ladder plates. These were the worst sounding of all the constructions - grainy treble and not something I could live with. Otherwise they were clean and detailed but the grain remained an issue. There are plenty of ladder variants including the venerated 5692, which I haven't heard and which differs in having 2 micas at the top and a vertical supporting rod. So I can't comment on that.

On to 6J5 types. I've tried 2 types so far, but more on order.
1. 7193/2C22. Ladder plates again and again the grainy treble. Otherwise clean and detailed. So a non starter for me.
2. L63. This was a disappointment for round plates - a full sound but mediocre treble and very woolly bass. Maybe not good examples.

On order: CV6, E1148, Raytheon 6J5WGT. The Raytheon are ladder plates so I'm cautious but they do have the vertical support rod. E1148 have horizontal plates and CV6 round plates. I suspect they won't knock the angled plates off the top spot but I'll wait and see. Also on order a pair of 7A4 and a 7N7. That completes the most obvious variants to try. I'm staying with mu=20, so not considering 6P5G and others with less gain, even though I've tried these in the past and liked them together with 76, 56, 37, 27.

May I ask what your amp/dac/headphones are for reference on how you are evaluating the tubes? Thanks!

 

[les24preludes]

May I ask what your amp/dac/headphones are for reference on how you are evaluating the tubes? Thanks!

Certainly. This is as a driver tube for my 2a3 SE amplifier with amorphous OPTs. 2-way speakers on stands around 89db, smallish room and I don't listen loud. My headphone amp is under revision for the moment so not functional. I design and make all my amplifiers, which are modular with interchangeable top plates, so I never need adapters. I have a pretty standard AK4490 DAC going straight into the amp. Source is a Mac Pro and iTunes and fully digital, no vinyl.

I've been trying out the loctal 7N7 and 7AF7. The 7N7 has T plates and sound is pretty typical of T plates - good full, crisp, immediate, smooth sound lacking just the last ounce of sparkle in the treble. I don't have an angled plate version at present. The 7AF7 has been a pleasant surprise. A little softer and less punchy than the 7N7 T plate but the treble is very nice and again smooth. Certainly one of the better versions. Mu is 16 rather than 20 but you don't notice much difference.

 

[mayurs]

The 2 types of Tungsol BGRP. These Tungsols have become my favourite 6SN7 tubes and I am getting more of them.

 

[Ranger Ron]

The 2 types of Tungsol BGRP. These Tungsols have become my favourite 6SN7 tubes and I am getting more of them.

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