[Sweet William]

Same, got a pair and one went south on me quickly and they do sound thin and lifeless. Maybe for a bass heavy headphones? They are beautiful.

Yes theThomson is a good looking tube. I honestly do not belive the many available are NOS French tubes though.

 

[Sweet William]

Make that 3. Got a pair -- 1 was DOA, one was very low output. The replacements were no better. Just took the refund and called it a day.

They lack gain and are slower than many tubes to warm up.
I think I will look elsewhere for a power tube.

 

[Sweet William]

Make that 3. Got a pair -- 1 was DOA, one was very low output. The replacements were no better. Just took the refund and called it a day.

They lack gain and are slower than many tubes to warm up.
I think I will look elsewhere for a power tube.

 

[JKDJedi]

They lack gain and are slower than many tubes to warm up.
I think I will look elsewhere for a power tube.

Mullard 6080 is the cats meow.

 

[Sweet William]

Mullard 6080 is the cats meow.

Where to find one is the problem. At the mo I rely on RCA 6080 and the driver us a Shuguan special edition driver tube from Grant Fidelity in Calgary. Neither has given me any trouble these last twelve months or so and sound very good.

 

[UntilThen]

Where to find one is the problem. At the mo I rely on RCA 6080 and the driver us a Shuguan special edition driver tube from Grant Fidelity in Calgary. Neither has given me any trouble these last twelve months or so and sound very good.

I know a place that has a lot of them. Whisper me and you can only buy a pair so that others might get a chance to sample NOS notoriety.

I gave up on my Tung Sol 5998, Bendix 6080wb, GEC 6080, Mullard 6080 together with Wa22 and call it a day. No I don't regret it because I'm on pentodes now and to my ears and for my purpose they sound better.... by a mile. Make it 2 miles.

 

[LobalWarming]

I know a place that has a lot of them. Whisper me and you can only buy a pair so that others might get a chance to sample NOS notoriety.

I gave up on my Tung Sol 5998, Bendix 6080wb, GEC 6080, Mullard 6080 together with Wa22 and call it a day. No I don't regret it because I'm on pentodes now and to my ears and for my purpose they sound better.... by a mile. Make it 2 miles.

A place with a lot of what - notoriety? I know many notorious places, some even here at Head-Fi.

 

[JKDJedi]

A place with a lot of what - notoriety? I know many notorious places, some even here at Head-Fi.

Somebody ran out of milk for their cereal...

 

[LobalWarming]

Somebody ran out of milk for their cereal...

Milk on cereal! Sarcasm on a meter! Where is this 6SN7 thread headed next?

 

[BenSherman]

Hi all,

I have a Miltra OTL-8XT headphone amp. It was supplied with a pair of 6N13S power tubes, and two pairs of driver tubes: 2 x 6H8C and 2 x Psvane 6SN7 (shown in photo).

I'm really keen on purchasing some new tubes to play with the sound. However - I don't understand the naming or compatibility of tubes.

All the tubes I have for my amp have the connector as shown in the second photo. It has 8 metal connector pins with a central plastic stalk to hold the tube in place (is this what makes it a '6SN7'?). I have seen some tubes for sale with the 8 connector pins - but without the central stalk. Would that be suitable/safe, or does it need to match exactly?

I've read some excellent reviews of the 'Genalex Gold Lion' tubes, and I wanted to try some of these. Could somebody please recommend some suitable/compatible Gold Lions for my amp (to swap both the driver and power tubes)?

I've seen these Gold Lion 12AU7/Ecc82 tubes for example - but they don't have the plastic stalk!

Apologies if this all sounds really naive! I don't want to make a silly mistake and destroy the tubes, or worse still my amp, headphones or ears!

Cheers!

Ben

 

[JKDJedi]

Hi all,

I have a Miltra OTL-8XT headphone amp. It was supplied with a pair of 6N13S power tubes, and two pairs of driver tubes: 2 x 6H8C and 2 x Psvane 6SN7 (shown in photo).

I'm really keen on purchasing some new tubes to play with the sound. However - I don't understand the naming or compatibility of tubes.

All the tubes I have for my amp have the connector as shown in the second photo. It has 8 metal connector pins with a central plastic stalk to hold the tube in place (is this what makes it a '6SN7'?). I have seen some tubes for sale with the 8 connector pins - bit without the central stalk. Would that be suitable/safe, or does it need to match exactly?

I've read some excellent reviews of the 'Genalex Gold Lion' tubes, and I wanted to try some of these. Could somebody please recommend some suitable/compatible Gold Lions for my amp (to swap both the driver and power tubes)?

I've seen these Gold Lion 12AU7/Ecc82 tubes for example - but they don't have the plastic stalk!

Apologies if this all sounds really naive! I don't want to make a silly mistake and destroy the tubes, or worse still my amp, headphones or ears!

Cheers!

Ben

Nice amp, I'd get the tube with the center guide pin, that's all it is but you want that. Seems like you could use any 6as7g, 6080, 5998, 7236, for the power duties .. 6sn7 refers to the voltage used by that tube.... 6 volts. Any 6SN7, 6SN7GT, 6SN7GTB, etc.. will be good, Don't look for 12au7 tubes unless you amp supports it. I don't know much about your amp but if it came with 6sn7 tubes.... I'd stick with those type.

 

[LobalWarming]

The 6SN7 is one of the great audio tubes, even if it wasn't developed directly for audio. It uses an Octal base (8 pins) and draws 600mA of current. The latter specification is vital when rolling tubes outside the 6SN7 family. Exceeding the heater current spec in an amp is where most of the smoke and harm occurs.

The 12AU7 is a direct cost-down descendant to the 6SN7. With half the heater current needs at 300mA. And in most cases, half the sonic virtues of the 6SN7. Can be used in your amp with a 9pin (noval) to Octal adapter.

However, before migrating to 'mutant' tubes, worth exploring the great variety of vintage 6SN7s.

The 6SN7 Reference thread is filled with great info: https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-reference-6sn7-thread.117677/

A little 6SN7 history lesson here at effectrode.

 

[BenSherman]

@LobalWarming & @JKDJedi thanks for your help - really useful and interesting info!

I can't seem to find any Gold Lion tubes that match your recommended models for the driver or power tubes. Are there any specific brands/models that would be a safe bet as a great upgrade to the stock tubes?

 

[JKDJedi]

@LobalWarming & @JKDJedi thanks for your help - really useful and interesting info!

I can't seem to find any Gold Lion tubes that match your recommended models for the driver or power tubes. Are there any specific brands/models that would be a safe bet as a great upgrade to the stock tubes?

Older NOS tubes are something to look into. (New Old Stock) Sylvania, Tung Sol, RCA, etc... tons out there. And then there's the new stock... you get your money's worth with the Old Stock . imo.

 

[LobalWarming]

I can suggest a number of tubes - that I enjoy, but you may not. But @JKDJedi is correct - NOS old tubes from golden era of tube production are better than current manufacture - in general.

Here's a reasonable cost pair of National Union 6SN7s: https://www.ebay.com/itm/334654379710 - great introduction to vintage tubes.

Sylvania 6SN7GT (almost bad boys): https://www.ebay.com/itm/225278649274 - technically the 'bad boy' nomenclature is reserved for '51-'52 production - but the constuction is very similar - and the Sylvania bad boy rep is pretty much tube vendor marketing-speak. Regardless, a good entry into the Sylvania 6SN7 family.

Sylvania 6SN7WGT - I like these as much and sometimes more than bad boys: https://www.ebay.com/itm/334653794127 - 6SN7WGT is the mil spec version of the 6SN7 with tighter specs and more rugged construction.

Tungsol 6SN7WGTA - Another 6SN7 I enjoy - original Tungsol, not re-branded: https://www.ebay.com/itm/285052254853

Raytheon 6SN7 - great deal for the pair: https://www.ebay.com/itm/155281077477

Classic RCA Grey Glass - a little weak, but so am I: https://www.ebay.com/itm/155284524891

Brimar 6SN7 - Made In England - Oval Plates - wonderful sonics: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144429877153

Crazy pricey Tungsol Round Plate Pair: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144733902322 - just so you know. And run away.

This is but a start of a long and tasty tasting session. Happy tube rolling!