[Oskari]

Nena: 99 Luftballons

 

[Scutey]

Kim Wilde: You Came

Now that's a blast from the past!.

 

[Scutey]

Nena: 99 Luftballons

And this one too!.

 

[OctavianH]

After 2 weeks with Psvane + 5998 I have decided to give a new try to this combo, this time with socket savers. What to say, now I do not hear crackling or anything, so I guess I will leave these to cook a few days then make an assessment.

 

[Oskari]

Now that's a blast from the past!.

And this one too!.

Yep! They popped up on youtube.

 

[Scutey]

After 2 weeks with Psvane + 5998 I have decided to give a new try to this combo, this time with socket savers. What to say, now I do not hear crackling or anything, so I guess I will leave these to cook a few days then make an assessment.

That's a combination I have not tried yet, I'll have to give it a try, so far I've only been using 5998 with my Psvanes but the combo I always go back to is EL12N for powers and EL3N for drivers, and it runs cool too.

 

[OctavianH]

That's a combination I have not tried yet, I'll have to give it a try, so far I've only been using 5998 with my Psvanes but the combo I always go back to is EL12N for powers and EL3N for drivers, and it runs cool too.

I heard so many times about this combo, that I have decided to try it this evening. But the only thing which scares me is that red paint of the EL3Ns. Last time I used them it started to fall and I had to make a complete cleanup of the desk/Elise to get rid of small red pieces from it. Why the heck they painted them like this?

 

[Scutey]

I heard so many times about this combo, that I have decided to try it this evening. But the only thing which scares me is that red paint of the EL3Ns. Last time I used them it started to fall and I had to make a complete cleanup of the desk/Elise to get rid of small red pieces from it. Why the heck they painted them like this?

Not sure why they do it, I had the same problem with my first pair, however I did buy a second pair and they were fine, the only explanation I can come up with is possibly something to do with insulation?, probably wrong though!.

 

[OctavianH]

Where have you ordered from? Mine are from Acoustic Dimension:
http://www.acoustic-dimension.com/
Anyway, I will try them and if the combo fits my expectations I will decide to order a new pair, they are quite cheap compared to their reputation.

 

[Scutey]

Where have you ordered from? Mine are from Acoustic Dimension:
http://www.acoustic-dimension.com/
Anyway, I will try them and if the combo fits my expectations I will decide to order a new pair, they are quite cheap compared to their reputation.

Yes I bought mine from the same place, I also managed to get a NOS pair from eBay and they have a different coating on them.

 

[OctavianH]

The others from ebay are similar soundwise? Maybe I will try the other coating to avoid this red paint problem.

Later edit:

I checked on ebay.co.uk and found some EL3N in Spain, at double price than Audio Dimension, which look like this:

These at the first look seem different coated BUT if you look closely you observe that they have the red paint removed. In this case, I guess, I might solve my problem by doing the same. I hope this is not affecting the tube in any way. I do not really know the purpose of the red coating.
Can you show me a picture of your pair which you have bought from ebay? Just to have an ideea how those look like. Thanks in advance!

 

[Scutey]

The others from ebay are similar soundwise? Maybe I will try the other coating to avoid this red paint problem.

The sound is identical, they are Philips Miniwat but I think earlier production, they do have the Philips name on the other side, however they were a one off purchase, I have the EL3N as a saved search on my eBay account and they do sometime come up at a similar or slightly cheaper to Acoustic Dimensions, here's a pic.

 

[Scutey]

OH this evening I will take a pic of the EL3N of different brands I have managed to pick up off eBay.

 

[OctavianH]

Thanks @Scutey for your time to help me learn better what EL3N types are available.

In the meantime I have done what I said: tried Philips Miniwatt EL3N again with RSD EL12N. Indeed a very nice combo, impressive and much above my expectations.

But after some time and some different tracks I use as a benchmark, I felt that I miss the punchy bass and overall sound of 5998. So I tried also that combo.

And now, guess what? It blown me away. This combination is absolutely fabulous. The EL3N as drivers are killing the Psvanes while the 5998 add exactly the quantity of bass and warmness I even wanted. This combo is what I was looking for.
So, after 2 months I found out what UntilThen was explaining so clear here:
http://www.head-fi.org/t/782754/feliks-audio-elise-new-thread/6000#post_12235306
It was all in front of my eyes and still, I had to look 2 months and half for it.
This combination reminds me of the enthusiasm I had when I discovered my all time favourite Voskhod 6ZH1P-EV + 6N6P-IR on Littledot some time ago. I tried almost everything else and could not find a better match for my taste. Until now.
For me this is the best combination on almost all of the albums I listen, a killer combination for rock music. Extremely heavy and fast but it sounds exceptional also on Synthpop like Depeche Mode.
I will continue to observe it, but I have the feeling that this will be my "endgame". My quest is over.

Last question:

Who can help me understand the manufacturing date based on this inscription? Looks like MS12 A2E.

 

[hypnos1]

Hi @OctavianH

Glad you like the EL3N...when I first adapted and tested this tube I knew straight away this was something special - even after the much more expensive ECC31 (basically the famous ECC32/CV181, but with a common cathode). Even Glenn, of Glenn amps was mightily impressed with this tube...so much so he made (and still makes) an amp specially designed around this driver!
They can still be acquired NOS at a reasonable price, and are usually available on ebay quite regularly, for 'little' money...but unused NOS tubes are recommended - especially if they top one's list!
And the red coating - likes and dislikes! - can be removed easily with careful scraping.

All EL3Ns were made by the Philips group, so different colours on them shouldn't make much difference to sound reproduction...notwithstanding the occasional slight difference between factories lol!...ENJOY!...CJ

ps. It appears those adapters can sometimes be a little 'temperamental' if too many insertions and removals are made...so please be careful!