[UsoppNoKami]

@Deyan - 6J5 and EL11 adaptors have arrived safely, thanks again mate.

Loving the GEC 6J5 ST driver pair with the Sylvania 6BL7 sextet and WE422A.

 

[whirlwind]

Greetings All. I have posted on this thread a few times and follow religiously. I enjoy the passion and appreciate the knowledge you all are willing to share. I went a little crazy on Black Friday and now find myself in need of a quad of 2A3. I would appreciate opinions on new and NOS options of all vintages. I would also appreciate options for trusted sellers. I had the option for the KR 2A3 HP but domestic prices were crazy. I found the same tubes for nearly 45% off at either Banzai Music or Tube Amp Doctor in Germany. Is anyone familiar with these sellers? I know 2A3 is not much discussed here but hope someone has knowledge to share. I don't want to the derail the thread so PM me with your suggestions. Appreciate all your help.

Did you get a new amp ?

I am not much help with 2A3 tubes, but i am sure someone here will be able to help.

 

[pippen99]

I decided to be old and crazy. I ordered a Woo WA33 Elite Edition on BF.

 

[maxpudding]

I decided to be old and crazy. I ordered a Woo WA33 Elite Edition on BF.

Crazy, but a nice purchase. Congrats? If you don't mind me asking, what headphones do you have in your collection?

 

[pippen99]

Audeze LCD4 and ZMF Pheasantwood Open. Since I am confessing I have them paired with the ZMF Verite Silver, Norne Silvergarde S3 and DHC Prion4 cables. I use the Cavalli Liquid Gold with the PS Audio Directstream DAC streaming from a Lumin U1. I am certifiable.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Greetings All. I have posted on this thread a few times and follow religiously. I enjoy the passion and appreciate the knowledge you all are willing to share. I went a little crazy on Black Friday and now find myself in need of a quad of 2A3. I would appreciate opinions on new and NOS options of all vintages. I would also appreciate options for trusted sellers. I had the option for the KR 2A3 HP but domestic prices were crazy. I found the same tubes for nearly 45% off at either Banzai Music or Tube Amp Doctor in Germany. Is anyone familiar with these sellers? I know 2A3 is not much discussed here but hope someone has knowledge to share. I don't want to the derail the thread so PM me with your suggestions. Appreciate all your help.

I am thinking the person you need to talk to is @Xcalibur255 , has experience with 2A3 in a Glenn amp.

 

[Velozity]

Hey @Velozity - you got the wooden Glenn amp - yes? I hope you are enjoying it. It has been too long with no pix of that wooden bad-boy.

Also - I hope you enjoy the Tipper album If you liked it, let me know - and send me something to listen to. If you hated it, let me know - and send me something to listen to.

@chrisdrop Yes I'm going to post some more G-Woody beauty shots when I get my new Atticus and Draug 3. I do enjoy the Tipper album. I'm glad I downloaded it in AIFF. Much of it leans closer to dubstep which isn't my first preference per se, but I do really like it, especially in my car with front mounted subwoofer. For head-fi I'm more of a downtempo / ambient electronic guy. Anyway, one good tip deserves another. Check out the album Anatole - "Emulsion" on hi-res. It's not too slow nor is it dance music. Definitely for chillin'. It really shines on my GOTL when I roll 7236 power tubes and the TS BGRP driver.

 

[Xcalibur255]

I am thinking the person you need to talk to is @Xcalibur255 , has experience with 2A3 in a Glenn amp.

Not so much actually. That's a feature that came and went quickly.

It's commonly said that the 45 and 2A3 sound basically the same but I'm not sure I buy into that. Some 2A3 tubes were basically two 45s shoved into the same glass bottle, but this doesn't mean they share all the same sonic characteristics and there were versions of 2A3s made that had physically different construction too. They are DHTs and share an overall house sound with tubes like the 300B and 45, but they are also kind of their own thing too in some ways. I have not heard enough to offer wisdom on any specific 2A3 tubes.

I know the single plate RCAs are highly desirable. Also highly expensive. I think if it were me I would get a pair of EMLs and call it a day. They have a very good reputation and many people who have tried them found them better than NOS tubes. One of these days I'll get some EML 45s for my own amp.

 

[pippen99]

Thanks for chiming in. EML is the way I am leaning after a lot of searching. The best price I have found so far with recommendations is JAC Music. Has anyone dealt with them? Good, bad or indifferent?

 

[L0rdGwyn]

Thanks for chiming in. EML is the way I am leaning after a lot of searching. The best price I have found so far with recommendations is JAC Music. Has anyone dealt with them? Good, bad or indifferent?

He is good, many people have bought from him but can be a bit unresponsive to email, so if you don't hear back right away might just need to wait a bit. I recently contacted Jac to buy some sockets, didn't hear back for days, so ordered elsewhere. He got back to me about a week after my initial message, but it was too late. If you need other opinions on 2A3 could seek out Head-Fiers who have the DNA Stratus.

 

[pippen99]

Thanks. Getting ready to fill out a price quote request. Will check out the DNA Stratus thread.

 

[L0rdGwyn]

I have been listening to the Sylvania 6BL7GT flat plates for well over a week, they are nice and quiet. I think I was supposed to compare them to the T-plates, but I haven't had any desire to take them out oh well I guess I'll just keep listening then, Brian Eno for a quiet evening of schoolwork. I have been changing out drivers intermittently, from ECC32 to L63, to A4110, to MH4, to NR52, now STC/Brimar 6J5G. Very nice to have the variety, that is the fun of owning the GOTL.

 

[DecentLevi]

To that end,the gentleman who was kind enough to send me four of the RCAs did not inform me of the pricing of the cables,so my perception would not be skewed.

The cable that retails for nearly 900.00 is much heavier and thicker than the others,and just oozes luxury so it was hard to not have some sort of skewed perception on this particular cable. However on the other three I still do not know their prices.
I played a reverse game with Constantin. I described what I was hearing from each cable,and asked him to guess which cable I was describing. He got exactly zero correct. The cable he described as being a great all around cable I did not like whatsoever. The one he described as being "the least useful in the toolbox" came in 4th out of six. The one he described as being too polite and he liked mainly for classical only was my 2nd favorite(go figure)
We both agreed that the uber $$$ cable was the cream of the crop.

So again to reinforce my previous post,what one person hears in his/her chain doesnt necessarily mean the same results will be heard in anothers chain.

So were you saying you both agreed that the $900 interconnect sounded best? And would you mind to at least share a photo of it? And which was that other cable that "he described as being a great all around cable I did not like whatsoever"?

My basic understanding with cables is that different materials conduct energy differently, affecting the sound in different ways. Though not entirely dismissing expectation bias, I believe resolutely the materials affect the signal, even one specific material making a brighter or darker sound (notwithstanding wire gauge however) - perhaps even more than EQ'ing because not only frequency response but also things like dynamics, soundstage and 'organic-ness' are also affected and the same drum piece of the same song can sound distinctly different from cable to cable regardless of which you wanted to sound better. Cables to me are an indespensible part of your fine tuning arsenal, allowing you to make a bright and clinical album sound lush and robust, or tighten up the bass on a dark recording, etc. And that's also a good point that synergy can be system dependent so YMMV, but indeed large samples of opinions can build a strong case towards the general performance of a specific piece of gear.

 

[Monsterzero]

So were you saying you both agreed that the $900 interconnect sounded best? And would you mind to at least share a photo of it? And which was that other cable that "he described as being a great all around cable I did not like whatsoever"?

My basic understanding with cables is that different materials conduct energy differently, affecting the sound in different ways. Though not entirely dismissing expectation bias, I believe resolutely the materials affect the signal, even one specific material making a brighter or darker sound (notwithstanding wire gause however) - perhaps even more than EQ'ing because not only frequency response but also things like dynamics, soundstage and 'organic-ness' are also affected and the same drum piece of the same song can sound distinctly different from cable to cable regardless of which you wanted to sound better. Cables to me are an indespensible part of your fine tuning arsenal, allowing you to make a bright and clinical album sound lush and robust, or tighten up the bass on a dark recording, etc. And that's also a good point that synergy can be system dependent so YMMV, but indeed large samples of opinions can build a strong case towards the general performance of a specific piece of gear.

I will reveal names,prices and details in my video,until then I will keep you in suspense,but yes,we both agree that the uber dollar cable sounds the best thus far,which is quite a statement coming from Constanin,as three of the cables in the shootout are his own brand,yet he admits his arent in the same class(one is close though)

Here is a great quote from a high end cable maker:

All cables degrade the signal,ours just do it less.

When I view cables with that quote in mind,it makes much more sense...to me at least.

 

[Monsterzero]

Ive been thinking of the best way to do this cable shootout video. Im thinking I will choose a handful of songs across several genres that I own and know well. All will be redbook,or above.
Play the same songs seven times,take notes,and shoot the video.
Can you guys think of a better way to do it? Im open to suggestions.