[Hansotek]

The 6922>6SN7 and 6080>6BL7 adaptors arrived!!

 

[gibosi]

Don't tempt me. I will leave the rest of the 6BX7 brands for @UntilThen to test.

While Tung-Sol and Fivre are a bit rare and hard to find, GE are plentiful, cheap and sound very good, so I encourage you to grab six of them.

 

[mordy]

While Tung-Sol and Fivre are a bit rare and hard to find, GE are plentiful, cheap and sound very good, so I encourage you to grab six of them.

While I have some 25 6BL7, I only have 6 6BX7. Rebranding was very common, and I have BX GE tubes that say RCA and Westinghouse, so looking for these GE tubes might be even less money than GE branded.
I also have Tung Sol labeled 6BL7 tubes with the telltale sand blasted dots on them, which means that they were made by GE.
I preferred the BL tubes when I used them in my amps, but it may have to do with the gain - don't have a Glenn....yet.

 

[2359glenn]

I guess it was in the Littledot thread because i and a few other guys had cracked a tube. you just cant wiggle that tube when removing it you just pull straight out. I just left them in the adapters .Eventually i found these loctal sockets way better .

These are Russian sockets much better then the Chinese ones.
These are what I use in my amps.

 

[UntilThen]

Hahahahaha...with the sheer amount of tube combinations to be had, it kinda freaks me out..i shall continue lurking first and reading more impressions of yours once you've had more time acclimatising to the amp before deciding my next move

I've rolled about 5 different combinations so far. They have been very very impressive. They ought to be because I rolled in some of my best tubes. I broke my own cardinal rule of starting with farmers tubes first. I had to hear how this amp respond to some of the best tubes. It didn't disappoint. Every day now since Tuesday, the music becomes more and more involving.

However one combination stood out. It's the Telefunken C3Gs and 2 x Fivre 6BX7gt / 4 x Los Gatos 6BX7gt. The acoustical space has been enlarged, power have been applied in a controlled manner and effortlessly. The most startling experience is hearing details in those songs that I'm familiar with. It's a down right dead knock up moment as I discovered how exciting those songs have become.

In the midst of this, I am consciously aware of how different C3Gs and 6BL7 are sounding now compared to my experience of those tubes on Elise. I remember C3G being a bit edgy in the high frequencies in Elise. It's details galore but it get a bit too much after a while. Hence I don't use it that much in Elise. However here in GOTL, C3Gs are firing with all cylinders in a controlled and disciplined manner. It's dial to perfection now. Likewise the 6BX7. Granted I only use 4 x GE 6BL7gta in Elise. It was a bit 2D and deadpan then but with a gutsy bass. However those six 6BX7gt in GOTL now are like six super spark plugs in a Phantom Lamborghini. See photo below of the Lambo !!!

You can lurk a bit longer but after a month of my impressions of this amp, you will find the queue and waiting times for this amp stretching around the block. .... and you can't buy my one and only Ulysses.

 

[UntilThen]

While Tung-Sol and Fivre are a bit rare and hard to find, GE are plentiful, cheap and sound very good, so I encourage you to grab six of them.

Omg Ken, prices for 6BX7 / 6BL7 tubes are going to skyrocket now. Please keep it low key. Do what attmci did. Insist that the WE421A tubes are better.

 

[UntilThen]

While I have some 25 6BL7, I only have 6 6BX7.

Mordy !!! What are you waiting for. Glenn Super 9 OTL amp is perfect for those tubes. I haven't touch my speaker system for 3 days !!!

 

[UntilThen]

And since the GE are a bit more neutral, rolling in a GEC U18/20 with a Sylvania 6SN7W sounds great.

Huh you have to lure me to try out the Sylvania 6SN7W. So I swap the C3Gs for this brand new tube from Langrex.

This is my expression.



...and this is the culprit

 

[mordy]

Mordy !!! What are you waiting for. Glenn Super 9 OTL amp is perfect for those tubes. I haven't touch my speaker system for 3 days !!!

Hi UT,
I am thinking about it, but I need to know more about the amp and the various options and their price/performance ratios to be able to make an informed decision. I am awaiting clarification on some items from Glenn.
Another question: What is the purpose of the single socket in the front of the amp? Is it meant to use for a dual triode in two channel mode?
I remember that when the Elise was in the planning stages, Feliks decided to use two 6SN7 type tubes as drivers, even though one would suffice. Something about improved sound with two tubes working in parallel(?).

When are you going to test out the 3A Russian 6C33C horned beasts?

 

[UntilThen]

Hi UT,
I am thinking about it, but I need to know more about the amp and the various options and their price/performance ratios to be able to make an informed decision. I am awaiting clarification on some items from Glenn.
Another question: What is the purpose of the single socket in the front of the amp? Is it meant to use for a dual triode in two channel mode?
I remember that when the Elise was in the planning stages, Feliks decided to use two 6SN7 type tubes as drivers, even though one would suffice. Something about improved sound with two tubes working in parallel(?).

You are heading in the right direction, talking to Glenn. I've never been so swooned by a tube amp before.

The single socket in front of the amp is for one 6sn7 / 12sn7 / 25sn7 or their equivalent. I find in the space of 3 days that a single driver tube sounds as gorgeous as 2 in Euforia. You don't need 2. One in GOTL is sounding heavenly and the beauty of it is, you only need to buy JUST ONE brand new Sylvania 6SN7W from Langrex. Imagine buying 2. That would cost 2 kidneys.

 

[UntilThen]

When are you going to test out the 3A Russian 6C33C horned beasts?

Haha I don't think we can use these tubes.

 

[whirlwind]

It depends on the driver and rectifier. Since the Sylvanias are pretty lively and sparkly, rolling in a darker rectifier and driver, such as the Cossor 53KU and a pair of RCA 76 triodes sounds great to my ears. And since the GE are a bit more neutral, rolling in a GEC U18/20 with a Sylvania 6SN7W sounds great. Again, it is all about synergy and matching.

Ditto. You can get too much of a good thing.

I really don't care for the GEC 6AS7G and the GEC B36 driver together...for my ears...the driver is to bright.

The thing is, it could sound very good to someone else so it is pretty much subjective.

Lots of variables, everybody's chain is different , from source to headphones to genres of music.

I agree with you, it is all about what synergy works for you.

I find most sylvania tubes have a sparkly and brighter treble

 

[attmci]

Omg Ken, prices for 6BX7 / 6BL7 tubes are going to skyrocket now. Please keep it low key. Do what attmci did. Insist that the WE421A tubes are better.

I hear you, Matt.

BTW, I have tons of 6bl7/6bx7. LOL

 

[whirlwind]

I thought the GEC tubes were very good but I needed to hear C3G - 6BX7 again. So in they go again. While I agree with you Joe and Arnold that the beauty of this amp is the many tones we can custom it with but this C3G - 6BX7 is it. Wow just wow. With HD800, this is high fidelity. This has shot to top of the class. You need to listen to C3Gs with 6 x 6BX7. This is where the magic is.

A caution though. When I had seated all the tubes, I detected a constant hum on the right channel that wasn't there the first time I heard this combination. I could tell it's from the right C3G. I tap it lightly with my finger and hey presto, the hum disappeared. So make sure you seat it correctly and leave it alone.

I have a couple EL3N tubes that need a flick of my finger to the top of the tube every once in awhile..then they settle down.

 

[Hansotek]

Wow, so a couple quick thoughts:

The quad of 6BL7s with the Mullard ECC31 driver sounds really big and open. Bass is big and full on the Auteur with great slam. Seems like there is more extension now. Tubes synergize very well with the headphone's excellent depth layering. It's almost like there are two macro layers to the stage with dozens of micro layers in between: chorus harmonies or orchestration will kick in and I'm like HOLY $&%# @?%#!!!!! The stage just explodes wide open with a larger macro stage. You can tell these Sylvanias have little to no hours on them, as they have a little bit of that "new out of the box" strain that usually diminishes within a few dozen hours of burn. The 6BL7s were very loud and buzzy out of the box, but once the amp warmed up they quieted down significantly. The noise floor isn't pitch black, but it's barely audible at this point. The GEC6080s are more euphonic and (I think) more transparent at this point (we'll see how these sound in 100-150 hours), but I gotta say the 6BL7s are WAY more fun, and less than a cost of a single GEC 6080, I'd totally grab the quad 6BL7s if I had to buy one from scratch.

The 6922/6DJ8/ECC88 > 6SN7 adaptor is a fun little toy for $12-$15 or whatever it was. I have some pretty good tubes of that type, as I've owned the Liquid Crimson, Lyr, Project Solstice and the Aune T1 at various times... so I still have like 8 or 10 6922s sitting around. I only tried a couple with various results. I have a Russian 6N6P that didn't have that big of a stage, but the midrange was super euphonic with vocals to die for. I also tried a very high-quality Amperex Bugle Boy 6DJ8 that seemed to do everything very well... the Mullard ECC31 still rules the roost in the driver department too.

Using a killer Philips Miniwatt GZ34 rectifier the whole time with Hugo 2 as the source. Both are really nice and transparent and let the other tubes do their thing. Never hurts to have a good control group!