Quote: Is yours working in the Bottlehead?   I got mine from the same seller and mine is the 12v version.   They're offering to send me another.

Apparently with the 12AU7 to 6SN7 there is a difference between the 6.3V and 12V version of the adapters.   The ebay seller told me that the one I have that doesn't work is wired for 12V and that I need the 6.3V version.   I have no idea if this is true or not, but I wanted to relay the info...

Here's the link to the auction.  Multiple are available.  This is also the best price I found:   http://www.ebay.com/itm/320659633166

I wish I knew how to take it apart.. But I think it's glued together.  Otherwise I'd fix the connection mix up.

    My 6SN7 to 12AU7 adapter(s) showed up from China finally.   The first one (nice, gold looking one) doesn't work.   The second one that showed up does work, however.   Do you run the risk of toasting the transformer by using this setup with no other modifications?   My...

Is there a generally agreed upon 'giant capacitor' to upgrade to?  I know that they all have some sort of impact on the sound quality, but is there a universal holy grail that people would flock to if money was no option?   I don't plan to put the speed ball upgrade onto this one I have because...

For whatever it's worth, my transformer doesn't really get that warm.

Quote:   I just put in an order from Hong Kong for an adapter to try 6SN7 tubes on my amp.  Do 6AS7G power tubes use less heater current?   I notice my aluminum top plate stays much cooler with the 6AS7G tubes than with the two 6080 tubes I have.    Thanks!

I was mostly disappointed it wasn't Capn Crunch.

Quote:   It worked out, but I just just put off a bit when the mail lady showed up Friday afternoon with a box of cereal, haha.  Here's an unpacking video I made with my phone.     But, the end result is what matters, and they all test as quiet and working.   For whatever reason...

Yep.  The tube sold on ebay, tested NOS with "no microphonics" from a major tube seller ended up being messed up and the bargain bin ones are all fine, haha.   They were all wrapped in one roll of bubble wrap and just dropped loosely into the cereal box.  I'm amazed that they survived...

I bought five 6AS7G tubes off of ebay and the seller sent them to me in a generic Cap'n Crunch cereal box!  5 tubes bouncing around in a cereal box.   This is a seller on ebay who is selling a lot of tubes.          Anyway, they all ended up sounding great.  No microphonics, no 60hz...

I get after everything that comes to the house with Caig DeOxit D5 and Q-tips.   I can try to burnish the tips, but they're already pretty clean and newish looking   I have 00 steel wool to try though.   My guess is that it took a hard knock on the USPS truck.  I have more coming in the mail...

This is a circa 1943 RCA 6AS7G.  I noticed people online doing things like baking them in the oven to 'dry out' the bakelite base in case of shorting that way.   I presume the heat generated while being used would cause that moisture to flee the base though.    I'm going to test the 'bulb' from...

I gave him the benefit of the doubt that the postman was playing football with the package on the way to my house.   The hum isn't all that loud (you quit hearing it as soon as you start playing music at low volume.)    How risky is it to use leaking tubes though in terms of them going 'full...

Quote: OK, will do!   This  humming noise comes and goes if you tap on the tube with a pencil and then comes back after a bit.   Is there a technical reason for what's happening like part of the guts that aren't supposed to be touching actually are, or something?  The guy I bought the...

Every fringe hobby I have requires calling people on the phone.  Mostly because the people I'm dealing with aren't internet savvy or they're too busy repairing things during the day to have time to sit around watching email.  Some of them don't even like to be called (in the case of antique...

Quote: I'm in central Iowa, USA. 

I only purchased one tube.  Being new to it all, I am keeping an eye on ebay and trying to purchase the reasonably priced stuff that have decent test numbers.  I realize that doesn't really mean anything if they don't sound OK.   I'm waiting to find someone locally that has a cache of tubes I...

Tonight when I got home from work, both of my eBay tubes had shown up.  I bought an RCA 6AS7G tube that tested 95/95 and an RCA 12AU7A (clear top) tube that tested 101/102.    It looks awesome with the shouldered tube in there.  The musical aspect of the amp is better.  Stereo separation is...

About three hours and a lot of elbow grease.  Mostly, I was learning as I went though.  The Crack panel would go more quickly.  The trick is to sand in one direction so you don't have swirl marks the catch the light.  You can buff in multiple directions though.     The trick with the amp...

As far as polishing aluminum goes, sorry for the photos of my motorcycle, but this is how I did it cheaply.  In the case of the Crack panel, you can probably start at 800, and work your way to 2000 or 3000 grit sandpaper.   At that point you need some sort of high speed buffing technique using...

The pre-fab case might seem spendy at 95 bucks, but the tools at Home Depot to make the same thing will run you several hundred dollars ;-)   I was contemplating it today, but I haven't lost all of my mind yet. 

I'm not a woodworker.  I tried using a router (not mounted in a table) and a crappy miter saw today to make a case out of oak.  That worked in terms of making the right dimension pieces, but my saw doesn't cut 45 degrees flat across boards well enough to mate up the corners.   So I decided to...