[2359glenn]

It's 24kg 'dry'. Beast of a thing. If I ever have to ship it again (when I return to Oz someday) I will get a packing create built to ship it in.

I used to have an 845 based power amp. That thing was 42kg 'dry'. Lifting that around was not much fun for my middle aged spine.

Something I have said before and want to say again in case potential 300B amp buyers are put off by the cost of the TOTL 300B tubes - there are some very, very fine 300Bs out there that cost a fraction of the top end tubes and deliver 80% to 90% of the magic. The EML plate and mesh tubes are damn fine in their own right. I have no problem using them from time to time. Ditto the EAT 300Bs I have. You don't have to have Taks or vintage WE300Bs to get stunning performance from this amp.

The Taks are better - absolutely - but that is very much the extreme pointy end of diminishing returns. If my Taks were taken away tomorrow and all I had was the EML tubes I would still enjoy the amp and be a happy camper.

WE is going back into production in the US and they are 1/2 the price of the TAKs.
Pan on buying a pair this summer when they start selling them.

 

[TonyNewman]

...I use HEXFRED rectifiers now with a Amperite time delay tube to delay the B+ voltage in the 300B amp.

Nice! A much better solution than my custom modification that adds a resistor switch for start up on the front panel.

Powering up without the resistor engaged is BAD. Only done it the once - but that was with the Elrog's installed - perhaps the most fragile 300Bs I own. Have a slight hum on one of those tubes ever since, so I did some damage.

 

[UntilThen]

Tony, I had the Primaluna Dialogue Premium HP tube amp for a few months and that weigh 31kgs and that is heavy !!! Sold it because I got a better deal with the Redgum.

 

[TonyNewman]

WE is going back into production in the US and they are 1/2 the price of the TAKs.
Pan on buying a pair this summer when they start selling them.

Ditto. However, I still expect the Taks to reign supreme (based on a colleagues comparison of vintage WE300Bs from the 50s and Westrex 300B vs 'old production' TA300B).

The WE300B wins the mid range magic - slightly - vs Takatsuki, but the Taks extend in both directions significantly better than the best of the WE300Bs.

 

[ru4music]

2xrectifiers. One per channel - Glenn or WA5.

Glenn was using PY500s for the 300B amp (that's what mine used before I converted to hexfred).

Well, we're both correct! The PY500 tube is a half wave rect. so you need two for full wave rectification. Two PY500 tubes equals one 5U4G tube (I'm assuming Glenn used two half wave rect. tubes with a center tapped power transformer.)

 

[UntilThen]

Matt I could build you a nice 300B amp!
I use HEXFRED rectifiers now with a Amperite time delay tube to delay the B+ voltage in the 300B amp.

Damm you almost make me choke on my breakfast.

All in good time. My OTL amp is only 2 months old.

 

[TonyNewman]

Damm you almost make me choke on my breakfast.

All in good time. My OTL amp is only 2 months old.

Do it. You know you need some 300B love in your life

 

[ru4music]

Speaking of rectifier tubes - BTW everyone I have been using my 5CU4 rect. tube ($10 USD) recently in my GEL3N amp with exceptional results. Some of us have to keep the Universe in balance by offsetting the cost of those high price tubes!

 

[TonyNewman]

Speaking of rectifier tubes - BTW everyone I have been using my 5CU4 rect. tube ($10 USD) recently in my GEL3N amp with exceptional results. Some of us have to keep the Universe in balance by offsetting the cost of those high price tubes!

https://www.langrex.co.uk/products/5z4gycv1863-kbfe-stc-brimar-nos-boxed/
https://www.langrex.co.uk/products/5z4gycv1863-kbfe-stc-brimar-nos-boxed/

I have a ton of these from Langrex - a very, very good NOS rectifier for not much $$$. As good as any new production rectifier I have heard (except for the TA274B) for a lot less cash.

 

[ru4music]

https://www.langrex.co.uk/products/5z4gycv1863-kbfe-stc-brimar-nos-boxed/

I have a ton of these from Langrex - a very, very good NOS rectifier for not much $$$. As good as any new production rectifier I have heard (except for the TA274B) for a lot less cash.

Yes, I believe I already have their ebay page bookmarked.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/5Z4GY-CV18...3909306?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368#shpCntId

 

[ru4music]

The 5CU4 is another "Glenn special" rect, tube that takes 3.5 amps for the heater (most systems can't provide this current.) It has extremely high perveance which means it drops less voltage across the tube, only ~ 5 to 10 VDC drop at 100ma current load (i.e. less sag/sway (swag)) in the power supply.

 

[Oskari]

WE is going back into production in the US and they are 1/2 the price of the TAKs.
Pan on buying a pair this summer when they start selling them.

I'm afraid that remains to be seen. I think the reissues were roughly $1k a pair almost 20 years ago.

 

[Oskari]

You are right these are no Mullard even though my friend told me so. These very beautiful looking and sounding drivers are Brimars. It's got the numbers 7250 and KBIFE etched on the glass.

This doesn't really matter, but, strictly speaking, that's not even Brimar.

FE = STC, Oldway. 72 = year, 50 = week.

One could regard Brimar as STC's tube division for the consumer market, although Brimar made receiving tubes for other markets, including lots of CV types. STC itself made the big stuff, but also some receiving tubes. STC sold Brimar to Thorn in 1960. In 1961 Thorn merged their tube interests, including CRTs, with those of AEI forming Thorn-AEI.

Brimar's home location was the STC site in Footscray. Under Thorn-AEI the site in Rochester became Brimar's main site while Footscray remained an STC site. The STC Paignton sites ("Paignton" and "Oldway" tube manufacturing sites) were unaffected. These were not Brimar locations.

 

[UntilThen]

This doesn't really matter, but, strictly speaking, that's not even Brimar.

FE = STC, Oldway. 72 = year, 50 = week.

We really need you and Gibosi knowledge on tubes origin. I'd never have known all this info.

 

[UntilThen]

I think the WA5 need some help. So I use my own pair of Tung Sol 6F8G on it and I like it more. Fully texture. Glenn's OTL is sniping at it's heels.

The real surprise here is how well Glenn's OTL with Sylvania 6sn7w metal base and 6 x 6bx7gt is holding up. This is like an even contest.