[paradoxper]

Love it. Use Elrog 300B and EML Globe Mesh 45 with MELZ 1578 pretty daily. Tak 2A3 incoming but I doubt I'll be impressed. Just picked up yet another pair of Elrog 300B securing the future.

 

[EagleWings]

I've been building amps and preamps with DHTs since around 2009, and been through many of them. I took time off to explore a 2 stage amp with 2a3 outputs and 6SN7 variants as driver stage, liking the CV6 a lot. But I've started putting a preamp in front of my 2 stage 2a3 SE and I'm trying out DHTs again in my modular system, which means I can build quite quickly with existing parts. I passed over the 26 this time and liked the 2P29L better. Then the 6C4C which I liked better still. And latest is a 10Y preamp which is very nice. I also tried a 300b preamp but that only lasted a few hours before I was bored by it and changed it to 10Y. Too smooth and euphonic and not enough detail and bite. The 300b for me is quite like the 26, a pleasant sound but not as involving as other DHTs. I have 2 variants of 300b, EH and Chinese 4300 from a while back. Maybe I'm not hearing the 300b at its full potential but I clearly prefer the 2a3 and Svetlana 6C4C - more focussed sound, more involving. For a preamp I could listen happily to 6C4C or 10Y or indeed 2P29L. I haven't got round to trying 46 or 47 but have both and will be trying them. In the past I could prefer the 46 to the 10Y but it's been years.

Thanks for sharing this. I am in the process of gathering data for a custom 2A3 amp. Still debating if I should go for a parallel 2A3 or just an SE. Also, for the driver stage, I am kind of torn if I should go for DHT or IHT for drivers. 10Y, 6SN7, WE417 are what I have in mind for now. My friend also confirmed he didn't like the 26 as drivers for 2A3. Since you like the 10Y, perhaps you could try that as a driver? I am going to check out the 2 tubes you mention. Btw, without an active preamp in front of the 2A3 amp, do you feel a full-DHT, 2 stage 2A3 amp has enough macro, weight and authority?

 

[paradoxper]

After completing a tribulation of different DHT from 300B, 45, PX4, PX25 some older 112A and 101D, I feel I've largely exhausted discovery and my bank.
I am wondering, over the years, what are your favorites or even perhaps standout least favored? a few AVVT left me wanting amongst terrified they would blow up.

One of my favorite tubes of all is the Perryman 45 mesh. Nothing seems to bring the realism in voices out in the same fleshy manner, however, it has a considerable downside (as most do) as it's simply too soft for the type of bass response desired which is directly slaved to a specific application of planar drive.

I was really impressed by some of the older 1930 PX.

 

[rosgr63]

I hope you enjoyed exploring and listening to DHT tubes, there are some nice ones out there for sure.

Did you ever try any VT 52's?

 

[paradoxper]

I hope you enjoyed exploring and listening to DHT tubes, there are some nice ones out there for sure.

Did you ever try any VT 52's?

As the filament voltage is quite a bit higher, it never made the running from a practical sense.

 

[rosgr63]

Yes minimum is 6.3V they match 6A3 better