[toidcans]

Hey everyone, I have been away from the audio scene for a while, as I was satisfied with what I had at the moment. But after coming back and lurking for a while, I saw some new headphones that I may have an interest in so I picked them up. I have a pair of Ethers coming. So I also decided, to upgrade my set up for them. I am trying to pick up the wa22, currently in the classifieds... I was hoping someone can help me decide if the stock tubes or the ones listed, 6su7 round plate drivers and 6bl7 power tubes, would go well with them. If I am able to purchase it I will give it a whirl with those first to learn the amp. But I would like to see what suggestions you all may have regarding any other tubes that may be worthwhile to keep an eye out for.

Ok nevermind guys, the seller sold it to someone else for some reason. So I will have to decide if I want to go purchase a new one or go a different route. Any suggestions on how this pairs with the Ether's with the stock tubes would be appreciated, to know if I would have to go out and change them from the get go.


Thanks

 

[leftside]

Some GZ34's:
 

 

[kyle1010]

I seriously can't wait til I get some new tubes. My WA22 is noticeably sounding different with burn-in. Like so much rolloff in the low end and no tube magic midrange now. Boring. I'm actually considering listening straight from my Mojo until I talk myself into buying all these costly new tubes. I'm missing my WA7's deep and lush sound. Too bad it's back in its box in my closet. I still feel like I made a good upgrade choice, but I'm a firm believer in going big or going home. So until I grab some of these $$$ holy grail nos tubes in a few months, my WA22 isn't gonna get much action.

 

[leftside]

I seriously can't wait til I get some new tubes. My WA22 is noticeably sounding different with burn-in. Like so much rolloff in the low end and no tube magic midrange now. Boring. I'm actually considering listening straight from my Mojo until I talk myself into buying all these costly new tubes. I'm missing my WA7's deep and lush sound. Too bad it's back in its box in my closet. I still feel like I made a good upgrade choice, but I'm a firm believer in going big or going home. So until I grab some of these $$$ holy grail nos tubes in a few months, my WA22 isn't gonna get much action.

I've found the WA22 to sound pretty good with some quite cheap tubes. The trick with this unit is the synergy. Go for lightly used and strongly matched. See my other posts for come good combos that I've found. I feel that I now have the WA22 set up perfectly, but it did take quite some time.The sound is so luscious that I could almost taste it and eat it.

 

[Badas]

Here are 3 of my favorite setups. Tube base colour's are colour matched.

Brown Base:





Silver/Metal Base:






Black Base:






And my favorite combo:

That is some serious tube porn going on there.

 

[Badas]

I've found the WA22 to sound pretty good with some quite cheap tubes. The trick with this unit is the synergy. Go for lightly used and strongly matched. See my other posts for come good combos that I've found. I feel that I now have the WA22 set up perfectly, but it did take quite some time.The sound is so luscious that I could almost taste it and eat it.

Geez. Great statement. I couldn't agree more. Especially the taste the sound statement.

I've also being playing around with the WA22 far too long and think I've got the sound dialled in perfectly. Also silky and lush.

One of my favourite combos is also very cheap. Brimar 5Z4GY which I bought at 10 quid (US$15). They have gone up a bit now. Tung-Sol round plate 6C8G's. I purchased 16 sets NOS, NIB at US$60 a set. Crazy cheap. Everyone else was sleeping. Then the 6BL7's which were picked up at US$30. So a total tube cost of US$105.

It can be done. Wonderful sound without too much $$'s.



US$105 tube arrangement. Thick lush sound. Never gets harsh or out of control.

 

[abvolt]

  Some GZ34's:
 

 
Very nice..

 

[leftside]

Anyone else heard of Triotron? They were another company owned by Philips (like Mullard). Their tubes are very nice if you can find them. Here is a collection of ECC32 - ECC35
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[kyle1010]

Interesting. How do the individual sets sound?

 

[leftside]

Interesting. How do the individual sets sound?

They all sound really nice. Amongst the best tubes I have. Sound the same as the Mullards - as they should - as they appear to be exactly the same tubes (just with different branding).

 

[kyle1010]

Initial thoughts on this Brimar 5Z4GY rectifier. It's only been a few hours with it, and my WA22 is maybe at 22 or so hours total break-in time. Eh. The tonality with the 5Z4GY is definitely lovely. Slightly more open sounding than the stock Psvane, but not a dry sounding openness like with the Sophia Princess. However, the bass, once again, is lackin. Idk if it's because my power and driver tubes are stock, but the slam just is not there. The stock Psvane rectifier easily gives a discernible 3db more low end, at the expense of the overall smoothness and harmonic awesomeness of the 5Z4GY. Welp, back to square one in trying to get the slam back in this rig. Maybe with some new drivers or power tubes mixed with this Brimar I'll be good to go.

I've been window shopping all of you guys' suggestions. It's so hard to make a decision based on reading short impressions especially since all the great drivers cost a ton. (I drooled over a $1200 ebay pair of Sylvania metal base 6SN7s all weekend. So. Freakin. Gorgeous.) I wish there was a meet somewhere near SD where I live that I could try these things out. Click and pray just does not sound fun.

 

[Badas]

Initial thoughts on this Brimar 5Z4GY rectifier. It's only been a few hours with it, and my WA22 is maybe at 22 or so hours total break-in time. Eh. The tonality with the 5Z4GY is definitely lovely. Slightly more open sounding than the stock Psvane, but not a dry sounding openness like with the Sophia Princess. However, the bass, once again, is lackin. Idk if it's because my power and driver tubes are stock, but the slam just is not there. The stock Psvane rectifier easily gives a discernible 3db more low end, at the expense of the overall smoothness and harmonic awesomeness of the 5Z4GY. Welp, back to square one in trying to get the slam back in this rig. Maybe with some new drivers or power tubes mixed with this Brimar I'll be good to go.

I've been window shopping all of you guys' suggestions. It's so hard to make a decision based on reading short impressions especially since all the great drivers cost a ton. (I drooled over a $1200 ebay pair of Sylvania metal base 6SN7s all weekend. So. Freakin. Gorgeous.) I wish there was a meet somewhere near SD where I live that I could try these things out. Click and pray just does not sound fun.

Ya going to have more luck with power tubes with bass. Ya want the rectifier to be dynamic.

Try 7236, 5998, RCA or Mullard 6080 and GE6AS7GA. All produce good bass. Some better in other areas.

 

[leftside]

That's a crazy price for the Sylvania metal base. Have patience and you should be able to get them for 1/4 that price.
 
I second the power tubes mentioned above. Also give the WA22 another 80 hours or so of burn-in (use the stock tubes for this). I am more than satisfied with the bass in the WA22, but it doesn't "slam" and neither is this something I am looking for. You can get a cheap amp that delivers bass slam. It might not deliver much else though... When you get used to the sound of this amp, you might try out other amps and think "all I can hear is the bass, it totally overrides all the magical quality in the music".  I like a lot of electronic music, so I definitely like a decent amount of bass. I just don't want the bass to override everything else.
 
Different headphones might deliver more bass than different tubes.

 

[Badas]

The Russian 6N13 (6AS7G) delivers stack of bass as well. Too much in my opinion. Everything else sounds muddy with that tube tho. Also very difficult to get a quiet set. I went through 4 sets before I could fine two tubes that worked together quietly.
 
Not recommended but very bassy.

 

[kyle1010]

That's a crazy price for the Sylvania metal base. Have patience and you should be able to get them for 1/4 that price.

I second the power tubes mentioned above. Also give the WA22 another 80 hours or so of burn-in (use the stock tubes for this). I am more than satisfied with the bass in the WA22, but it doesn't "slam" and neither is this something I am looking for. You can get a cheap amp that delivers bass slam. It might not deliver much else though... When you get used to the sound of this amp, you might try out other amps and think "all I can hear is the bass, it totally overrides all the magical quality in the music".  I like a lot of electronic music, so I definitely like a decent amount of bass. I just don't want the bass to override everything else.

Different headphones might deliver more bass than different tubes.

I hear ya dude. Here's my retort about bass. Maybe "slam" was a bit of an exaggeration on my part. Being a true hi-fi guy that also loves the thump is not a fun spot to be in. I've read and heard almost those exact same words multiple times in forums and at trade shows. I get it. I absolutely love all of the other magic in music that makes this hobby worthwhile. Lovely midrange, silky extended highs, 3D imaging, wide or intimate soundstaging depending on the tune, I dig it all. Having that stuff with really authoritative bass CAN be done without messing with the rest of the frequency spectrum. I've heard it done right many times on many systems. I'm actually finishing up college right now for a BS in Audio Production. I've definitely learned from my Grammy award winning studio engineer professors here in SoCal that too much bass can muddy up the scene. I don't want a "cheap amp" that overdoes it in the lows, but I do want to rock the f out sometimes with my cans. That's why I went LCD-X. That's why I go tube amps so I can tailor the sound signature and also get that intoxicating even order harmonic distortion. But anyhoo, stepping off my soapbox now.

Thanks to you awesome WA22 brethren, the problem might be solved. I picked up a NOS matched pair of TS 5998s over the weekend, and I think I'm back in Bassville. Using them with the Brimar 5Z4GY and stock drivers definitely fills out the bottom end correctly, but I feel like the openness heard with the stock power tubes is sacrificed slightly. Not much, but noticeable. Hmmm. Gonna toss in my Sophia Princess with the 5998s and see how that goes. Overall the Tung Sol's sound incredible. This should hold me over til the next upgrade for sure. However, I'm just having a little fun with these initial tube rolls. I'm gonna set everything back to stock soon and finish the burn-in period with those tubes. I really appreciate you guys' impressions. Nothing better than feeling like you made well educated tube purchase decisions

Ayyyy this is my 100th post on Head-Fi! Pretty sure there's a profile promotion for that.