[CoiL]

Nice! Any update about that amperex tube? Just even briefly, do you like it?

 

[Grevlin]

Quote:

Nice! Any update about that amperex tube? Just even briefly, do you like it?

 
Nope
 
I think its on the Dolphin-Express from Israel.

 

[walfredo]

Hi Folks!!
 
I just got mine!!  
 
So, I did not have time to do a thorough evaluation.  Far from it.  To start, I've only used one headphone with it: ATH W3000.
 
Anyhow, first impressions are: very detailed, powerful, spacious, clean, not "tubey" at all.  Interesting and promising, although I was expecting a bit more of a tube sound.
 
A couple of questions:
 
1-  Did you notice clear changes after "break in"?
 
2-  What would a good tube to try?  I listen mostly to acustic music: jazz, brazilian and the like.
 
(Yeah, I know these likely have been answered before, but this thread is very large.  I'd appreciate if some of you could distil the knowledge and enlight me. 

)
 
Thanks!!!
 
[]s
Walfredo

 

[CoiL]

What tube you got with it walfredo? 6922EH? 
 
 

Anyhow, first impressions are: very detailed, powerful, spacious, clean, not "tubey" at all

I had same first impression with 6922EH.
 
 

1-  Did you notice clear changes after "break in"?

To be honest, didn`t notice any. Just plugged in the tube and there it was - eargasm!
 
 

What would a good tube to try?  I listen mostly to acustic music: jazz, brazilian and the like

I would certainly recommend 69`Amperex ECC88/6DJ8 with single support leg dimple disc. Only thing is, it`s very hard to get. Another one would be Mullard ECC88 with A-frame support leg and dimple disc which is very similiar tube. You can read about my tube impressions few pages back. Also there seems to be Amperex 7308 that is highly recommended. I really suggest you to take time and read this thread carefully through!
Also there is always opportunity to try out different tubes yourself, it`s fun and you can find exactly what you like! Suggestions from other ppl are subjective and might not fit for your ears.
 
Tubes that fit for Aune T1: 
6DJ8, ECC88, 6922, E88CC, 7308, 6N23P, 7DJ8, PCC88, 6N27P, E188CC, ECC86, 6GM8, PCC189, 7ES8
 
And just in case asking, what player and bypass plugin are you using for PC listening?
 
 
E: About that amperex ecc88 I have... I`m really starting to enjoy every kind of music with it. 6922EH is still better for me with electronic music but with amperex I feel no real urge to change tube, still gets me enough air, space and "flowing in air" feeling.
Btw, ordered one Philips Herleen Holland PCC189/7ES8 tubey... can`t seem to get rid of tube-sickness ;D 
I need to make a nice wooden case/stand for my tubes

 

[toschek]

Yeah I have two of the Amperex 7308 tubes and even between the two there is a relatively large performance gap. One of them is a white letter JAN tube which is said to be exactly the same as the legendary Amperex 7308 PQ, the other is a green label JAN tube that while very very good doesn't quite hit the same marks as the PQ even though they sound similar. Both have expansive soundstages, incredible detail, three dimensional imaging and very lush presentation. The white label version that I absolutely treasure excels at everything you can throw at it. I truly feel like I don't deserve this tube sometimes

The green one is good, it's my backup for a reason though. It can stand up with the white label but it's kind of like dating someone who only resembles your first true love.

I'd look for the white label 7308s, either the PQ or JAN but you should be prepared to lay out some cheddar for those.

This is a highly objective assessment by the way. /Joking

Seriously though, it is a really nice tube and I'm not tempted to change it, I'll just get a better tube amp one of these days when I stumble into a few thousand dollars to blow on new goodies for myself.

 

[Salvatore]

Quote:

everything you can throw at it. I truly feel like I don't deserve this tube sometimes

 
Oh man why are you doing this to me... I feel like this is a must purchase

Can you give me the link for the place you got the white logo amperex. From all of the impressions here I should probably value the fellow annie owners recommendations the most. This being said I'm eagerly waiting for your impressions on the 6922EH. Would really appreciate detailed 6922EH vs Amperex 7308 comparison.

 

[Sorrodje]

Don't forget there's other tubes than Amperex ones ... Many brands made e188CC/7308 such as philips , Mullard , Dario etc which are easier to find and far less expensive.  My last NOS from 70s e188CC from LaRadiotechnique costed me 26€ . 
 
Russian Voshkod 6N23p is often considered equivalent to E188CC/7308 and costs around 30€ here or there.

 

[zerogun]

I find it extremely mind boggling how you guys can manage to remember all these codes and know that they're all able to fit the Aune T1 

 
I'm not expert on audio or even tubes for that matter, but my virgin audio ears have experienced what everyone has said about the 6922-EH Electro Harmonix. I think the biggest thing for me now, though I'm not sure if this is a legitimate statement, is that the sound appears to be very much coming from infront of me now. It's to the point where I can't tell if my speakers are creating the sound or if the iMac is making such beautiful sound. Again, I'm not sure if that's a legitimate thing to say about having added the T1, but this has been the most noticeable thing for me as I play music through my speakers (Creative Gigaworks T40 Series 2).
 
I find the spaciousness and clarity most, when I use the T1 to power headphones/IEM (ATH-WS55 Solid Bass / Shure SE215). Granted the speakers do sound different, but I just can't put my tongue on what actually that difference is. Can someone drop me an easter egg and tell this newb how tubes affect the sound? The Aune T1 has 1 tube, but there are other DAC's that have multiple tubes for example, how does the number of tubes affect the sound being converted out?

 

[dcfis]

Don't forget there's other tubes than Amperex ones ... Many brands made e188CC/7308 such as philips , Mullard , Dario etc which are easier to find and far less expensive.  My last NOS from 70s e188CC from LaRadiotechnique costed me 26€ . 

Russian Voshkod 6N23p is often considered equivalent to E188CC/7308 and costs around 30€ here or there.

True but not really. Amperex owns the 6922 from the 6dj to the low noise 7308. The earlier the better. I usually hate the greens though

 

[Grevlin]

CoiL - what is this bypass plugin yo speak of?

 

[CoiL]

Quote:

dcfis, what do you mean by it? For foobar there is this thread that you should propably read: http://rockgrotto.proboards.com/thread/7039/basic-foobar-configuration-1st-posts
Personally I don´t bother messing with foobar, traditional classic winamp + ASIO and KS plugin. Which plugin to use is up to you. First try KSO plugin: http://www.thefreewindows.com/2605/bypass-the-windows-audio-mixer-with-the-winamp-kernel-streaming-plugin/ and then ASIO: http://www.thefreewindows.com/2513/asio-plugins-for-winamp/ . For me ASIO plugin + ASIO drivers worked best because with KSO it didn`t seem to play in 24-bit (even when 24-bit box is disabled in winamp), KS status showed 16-bit while 24-bit file playing. But well, most FLAC and other lossless formats are in 16 bit per sample anyway, so it shouldn`t bother most ppl. KSO is a lot easier when you have no 24-bit music files. More info about KSO @ Winamp: http://www.hifi-advice.com/Winamp5-kernel-streaming-info.html (don`t set input/output buffers too low or you might get jitter and crackly sound). Also note that with KSO, depending on if you check 24-bit box or not, the output sound is slightly different.
 
e: These are my settings:
 

 

[icecap]

Depending on your dac, ASIO is much better, in certain case much needed, to fully capitalize its capability.. In this case of T1, wasapi should be the preferred and good-enough method, since ASIO is not needed as it is plug and play..

J River media centre gets my vote too.. I like it better than foobar for its GUI intuitiveness.. But importantly I feel it plays better than foobar in terms of soundstage expansiveness.. Bit-perfect playback but how can 2 different programs sound different? Hah, another hotly-debatable subject.. To each of its own..

I love my gold lion e88cc, but somehow feels the signature can still vary given the flexibility of T1.. Looking at mullard and amperex now to take a pot shot soon!

 

[CoiL]

wasapi should be the preferred and good-enough method, since ASIO is not needed as it is plug and play

Why should I prefer WASAPI? ASIO drivers are needed if you use ASIO output plugin with winamp. 

 

[walfredo]

Thanks for the quick answers, Folks.  The amount and depth of your info is awesome.
 
Yes, I have the 6922EH.  It came with the T1.  I'll take the time to read through the tube options and start rolling...
 
Regarding how I play, I use foobar with WASAPI output.
 
@CoiL:  Please post a picture of your tube collection in the wood box.  Sounds fascinating.  

 

[Grevlin]

Quote:

Thanks for the quick answers, Folks.  The amount and depth of your info is awesome.
 
Yes, I have the 6922EH.  It came with the T1.  I'll take the time to read through the tube options and start rolling...
 
Regarding how I play, I use foobar with WASAPI output.
 
@CoiL:  Please post a picture of your tube collection in the wood box.  Sounds fascinating.  

I'd like to see that as well.
 
I'm using a small Otter Box for my tiny collection so far. I'll post a pic later on.