[connieflyer]

If the entrance price is not to bad just remember, if you need to replace a tube they are almost $1500.00 each!

 

[connieflyer]

All of a sudden, the price I paid for my KT's does not seem expensive at all!

 

[LoryWiv]

Wishing all thread members a very Happy New Year.
A thought for anyone thinking of getting either Euforia or Elise in the new year. I'm running Sennheiser HD600 at the moment listening to an all time great, Eva Cassiday set-up is Elise plus quad of KT88's and the sound is wonderfull. So in my opinion it's not necessary to stretch straight away to a TOTL headphone although some think the HD600 is such a headphone. Music can be glorious on less expensive phones with this set-up.

As a fellow Elise owner, @barontan2418 can you comment further on the Genalex GL KT88 quad in Elise? I'm running thses as powers driven by GL KT77 and mids are the standout, definitely more engaging than when I had GL KT66 as drivers to KT88. However, the KT66 drivers offered better stage and instrument separation / definition and was a less "congested" with complex music. Extension was excellent for highs, perhaps a bit less so for bass. Over time I did find the overall KT66-->KT88 signature a bit too clinical / solid state sounding and moved on to the GL KT77 drivers.

What are your impressions of the GL KT88 quad in Elise for these attributes (stage, instrument separation, freq. extension and overall musicality)?

I'm trying to decide if i want to invest in another pair of KT88's to try as a quad in Elise, and would really appreciate your additional impressions. Thanks, and Happy New Year!

 

[OctavianH]

I've left Elise at home for a few days and went to Athens to celebrate New Years Eve, but when I entered back here I've seen that you guys already found new toys to try.
It is incredible how many energy and possibilities are you finding in less than a week. You already made me curious about KT77. Well, and since a picture makes more than 1000 words and I have no Elise or tubes to show you, I'll leave here other stuff. A bit of history and the beer pub, the highlights in a man's life.

 

[mordy]

Hi H1,
How is it going with your Russian salt shakers?

The sockets look like they were made for a tank:

 

[WithGumption]

Hey all,

Long story short, I’m going to be selling my Euforia. I’ve listed it in a couple places online and wanted to post it in B&S here. While I figure all that out, please PM me in the meantime if you are interested.

 

[hypnos1]

Hi H1,
How is it going with your Russian salt shakers?

The sockets look like they were made for a tank:

Hi m...good timing - ready to update folks on this weird looking tube lol!

As ever, it's a bit of a rollercoaster ride as these GU50s burn in - more so than usual, given it's a NOS Russian military of course! My second as power, driven by the GEC TT21s seemed to want longer to wake up...such that I (foolishly!) began to have doubts about this tube. However, with about 15 hrs play time, it wasn't until straight after the third cooling off period that my faith was restored (confirming once again my belief that such periods are almost as important as the actual play time in the whole burn-in process).

It's still too early for proper assessment, but already they're almost at KT tube level. Bass doesn't yet quite go as (sub) deep but is well controlled and solid. Mid/upper bass and lower mids are a touch too dominant at present for my tastes but this will surely alter with further burn-in...these really are very early days for such a NOS tube!! Treble has come on leaps and bounds even in this short time.

If things continue to progress at this rate, I'm fairly sure that this £3 to £4 tube will indeed at least match the KTs and anything that went before...as powers at least. In a few days' time I hope to have another pair for driver duties...or I'll swap my current 2 with the TT21 drivers (which are no doubt helping the GU50s perform so well! ).

Anyway, will update in 2 to 3 days (if not sooner lol!). But for now I'm linking a very interesting youtube video of a guy explaining how tubes work, using the GU50 as guinea pig...and taking it to pieces!! It looks to me like all the grids (and posts!!) might well be gold plated...and if so, I've never come across a tube with more than just the signal grid plated thus :

Also a pic of the Russians minus their comical hats, which simply unscrew...

 

[hypnos1]

OK guys...don't need days of further burn-in to be wowed by these GU50s after all...as powers at least.

With just another 8 hours on them, including 2x half hour cooling periods, I had the shock of my life this afternoon when listening to one of my main test CD albums - Mike Oldfield's 'Elements'...'The best of...'(sounding as good as much hi-res material lol!). The leap in performance was most unexpected this early in proceedings (these Russians probably taunting me for bemoaning their slow development/long burn-in requirements!! ).

Anyway, to cut things short, these two as powers are actually outperforming all my previous best already, including the Gold Lion reissue KT88s...all except my GEC TT21s, that is...

However, although the GU50 (as yet) doesn't quite have me feeling sub bass to the same degree as the TTs, in another area it is in fact 'better'!!...ie. the now better controlled/less dominant than earlier area of mid/upper bass and lower mids. There is now more detail coming through in this part of the FR, which I'm having to get used to in fact. I'm sure this would be a godsend for lovers of heavy rock/metal, and really fill one's head to bursting...if it can take it lol!! For me personally, 'soft' rock benefits sufficiently for my own tastes/ears/brain cells ...now I just need to make sure this area doesn't dominate too much in the Classical arena (but am fairly sure already that it won't).

And even more remarkable of course is the crazy cheap price of these tubes, along with an obviously very plentiful supply (which the guy in the video I posted also found surprising...the continued late production probably being a ploy to keep folks in work!!).

Anyway, with days of continuous playing time, including 11+ hrs overnight sessions, my amp continues to show no signs of objection to these tubes whatsoever, still with deathly black background and music playing, or not...and so would appear once again to be totally safe in our amps. My sort of 12V power supply for the heaters can be found on ebay or Amazon for about $16 or even less, as shown here :



My own is such a PS - ostensibly for strip LED lights etc., but clearly the same as used for laptop charger replacements (and far cheaper than those that have a particular manufacturer's name stuck on it lol! ). I myself have had no problem whatsoever with mine - it works flawlessly (and silently/no interference). And if it should have marginally shorter life than a 'named' one, at this sort of price it's a no-brainer IMHO...just make sure it has all the safety certificates it can muster, and check reviews.

And if folks are interested in giving these tubes a try, I'm happy to ask Mrsx to do the honours once more with adapters, or you can ask member Deyan if he's interested in tackling this one, and at what price...CHEERS!...CJ

 

[mordy]

OK guys...don't need days of further burn-in to be wowed by these GU50s after all...as powers at least.

With just another 8 hours on them, including 2x half hour cooling periods, I had the shock of my life this afternoon when listening to one of my main test CD albums - Mike Oldfield's 'Elements'...'The best of...'(sounding as good as much hi-res material lol!). The leap in performance was most unexpected this early in proceedings (these Russians probably taunting me for bemoaning their slow development/long burn-in requirements!! ).

Anyway, to cut things short, these two as powers are actually outperforming all my previous best already, including the Gold Lion reissue KT88s...all except my GEC TT21s, that is...

However, although the GU50 (as yet) doesn't quite have me feeling sub bass to the same degree as the TTs, in another area it is in fact 'better'!!...ie. the now better controlled/less dominant than earlier area of mid/upper bass and lower mids. There is now more detail coming through in this part of the FR, which I'm having to get used to in fact. I'm sure this would be a godsend for lovers of heavy rock/metal, and really fill one's head to bursting...if it can take it lol!! For me personally, 'soft' rock benefits sufficiently for my own tastes/ears/brain cells ...now I just need to make sure this area doesn't dominate too much in the Classical arena (but am fairly sure already that it won't).

And even more remarkable of course is the crazy cheap price of these tubes, along with an obviously very plentiful supply (which the guy in the video I posted also found surprising...the continued late production probably being a ploy to keep folks in work!!).

Anyway, with days of continuous playing time, including 11+ hrs overnight sessions, my amp continues to show no signs of objection to these tubes whatsoever, still with deathly black background and music playing, or not...and so would appear once again to be totally safe in our amps. My sort of 12V power supply for the heaters can be found on ebay or Amazon for about $16 or even less, as shown here :



My own is such a PS - ostensibly for strip LED lights etc., but clearly the same as used for laptop charger replacements (and far cheaper than those that have a particular manufacturer's name stuck on it lol! ). I myself have had no problem whatsoever with mine - it works flawlessly (and silently/no interference). And if it should have marginally shorter life than a 'named' one, at this sort of price it's a no-brainer IMHO...just make sure it has all the safety certificates it can muster, and check reviews.

And if folks are interested in giving these tubes a try, I'm happy to ask Mrsx to do the honours once more with adapters, or you can ask member Deyan if he's interested in tackling this one, and at what price...CHEERS!...CJ

Do you think that the GU50 is better as a driver than a power tube?
That top aluminum ring that you unscrewed, do you think that it has a function?

 

[hypnos1]

Do you think that the GU50 is better as a driver than a power tube?
That top aluminum ring that you unscrewed, do you think that it has a function?

Hi m. Haven't tried the GU50 as driver yet, and am eager to see just what it can do. Hope to have another pair from Romania soon, or might try my current pair once they have more hours on them (still evaluating them properly as powers). All I can say is that if they can match my TT21s in that slot also, I think I might just go totally insane lol! .

The top black plastic cap that unscrews is apparently just so it's easier to remove from the 'trash can' holder when used...no other function...CJ

 

[LoryWiv]

Well now, this just get's more interesting. Decided to give my newly acquired NOS Sylvania 6SN7WGT drivers another try, this time with Genalex GL KT77's as powers. The previous soundstage constriction I felt was a negative aspect of the Sylvanias powering KT88 has resolved, and the stage and instrument placement has improved substantially The euphonic mids of the KT77's are a small bit less evident in the power slot, but still quite nice. Overall i'd describe this combination as a bit on the analytic side but superb for detail retrieval, air and stage. Overall tone is bright but but bass is taut, tuneful and of good quantity when the source material features it.

I'm not sure if I'll stay with this combo. but it does demonstrate to me that synergy is key, and not to "write off" a tube until trying it in a variety of pairings and permutations. Also, the older Sylvanias and newer Genalex's make a handsome couple (quadruple?) indeed:

 

[mordy]

HI LW,
Synergy is the key. That’s why I am reluctant to sell off tubes that don’t see much use. It already happened several times that somebody discovered a great sounding combination using such tubes.
That tube that was just sitting in the drawer collecting dust suddenly became a star....

 

[hypnos1]

Hi @LoryWiv .

Yes indeed...depending on one's own system of course, we now have a multitude of possible tube combinations to 'fine tune' to our heart's content lol! And as mordy says, there could well be a drawerful of lonely tubes just waiting to be resurrected!! ...(things can - and will! - change with each upgrade to the rest of one's system, especially headphones). And while on the subject of cans, this KT family certainly does bring out the best in the Senn HD 650, and presumably the 600 also....most definitely also for the HD800 it would appear. My own 650s have never sounded so good, but there's no denying Euforia + the latest tubes (assuming good source/DAC/cables/mains conditioning) goes to new heights with top headphones. A/Bing with my Empyreans confirms I could never go back to anything less...so, guys, get saving/hinting for birthday or Christmas presents/selling off the mother-in-law - whatever it takes to do the necessary lol! ...you know you deserve it!!

Back to your latest combo, it sure does look good...and this is obviously one of the reasons the GU50 has never been adopted in a big way by the major amp manufacturers (as confirmed by several DIY sources on the 'net, despite their glowing reports of its capabilities! ). This really is not a 'looker' of a tube alas, along with an unconventional base/pins and need for care in fitting in a socket, especially if not using a tailor made holder - something not too difficult to manage.

Also, it appears this tube was never really aimed at the civilian market due to the high cost of manufacture (expensive nickel alloy plates with special coating etc.), hence reserved for military use. However, sonically this tube is right up there with the best of them at $£hundreds!! And all I can say is that my pair as powers will not be moving from there, replacing 2x GEC TT21s that will remain as spare drivers. And who knows, 4x GU50s just might mean four spare TT21s...but that's a while off yet lol!!...CJ

 

[Lucky87]

Hey guy’s just upgraded to Gold Lion KT88’s for the QUAD SANDWICH very impressed specially with my Utopia & Empyrean’s. Bought them from Upscale Audio where I usually buy my stuff from with the 72 hour burn in. Looking forward to the 200 hour mark. The only thing I noticed is that I need more volume about +2 from the stock, I thought I read somewhere you get more power with less volume? Currently running Schiit Yggrasil A2 Unison USB > Euforia > Utopia/Empyreans = Thank you to all have been doing all of the tube rolling

 

[LoryWiv]

Hey guy’s just upgraded to Gold Lion KT88’s for the QUAD SANDWICH very impressed specially with my Utopia & Empyrean’s. Bought them from Upscale Audio where I usually buy my stuff from with the 72 hour burn in. Looking forward to the 200 hour mark. The only thing I noticed is that I need more volume about +2 from the stock, I thought I read somewhere you get more power with less volume? Currently running Schiit Yggrasil A2 Unison USB > Euforia > Utopia/Empyreans = Thank you to all have been doing all of the tube rolling

Glad you're enjoying them (from one Bay Area resident to another!) Others have also commented that higher volume settings are required with GL KT88, and that's definitely been my experience as well, currently running them as powers driven by Sylvania 6SN7WGT in Elise.