[GrindingThud]

They must be super amazing in the WA2.....they are very nice in the WA3. Brass (trumpet) sounds so alive.
The imaging is crazy good.

just got my gec 6as7g's omg theyre amazing.

 

[MDR30]

Quote:

They must be super amazing in the WA2.....they are very nice in the WA3. Brass (trumpet) sounds so alive.

The imaging is crazy good.

 
Wonderful things. Have another GE I'm gonna try when time permits. Numbering is 4-26 188-5, and I know 188-5 is the GE manufacturing plant, but what date could that be?
 
Presently running an all American setup: RCA 7109 and HP 6AS7G. Didn't know Hewlett Packard was in the tube business, but found some interesting information on Wikipedia on how they started in a garage i Palo Alto in the 1940s:
 
"Of the many projects they worked on, their very first financially successful product was a precision audio oscillator, the Model HP200A. Their innovation was the use of a small incandescent light bulb (known as a "pilot light") as a temperature dependent resistor in a critical portion of the circuit, the negative feedback loop which stabilized the amplitude of the output sinusoidal waveform. This allowed them to sell the Model 200A for $54.40 when competitors were selling less stable oscillators for over $200. The Model 200 series of generators continued until at least 1972 as the 200AB, still tube-based but improved in design through the years.
One of the company's earliest customers was Walt Disney Productions, which bought eight Model 200B oscillators (at $71.50 each) for use in certifying the Fantasound surround sound systems installed in theaters for the movie Fantasia."
 
So, I have to dig up my old Fantasia recordings and check that sound!
 
This HP tube seems to have been manufactured by RCA (274). Nice and airy sound with expansive sound stage.
 

 

[rosgr63]

Very interesting info thanks for sharing.
On a different note, GE and GEC are not the same tubes.

 

[MDR30]

Quote:

Very interesting info thanks for sharing.
On a different note, GE and GEC are not the same tubes.

There you go, always something new to learn - their logos are so similar. Were they once affiliated, or manufactured for different markets/countries?

 

[rosgr63]

GEC was a British manufacturer part of MOV Marconi-Osram-Valves.

 

[Dubstep Girl]

Quote:

They must be super amazing in the WA2.....they are very nice in the WA3. Brass (trumpet) sounds so alive.

The imaging is crazy good.

 
 
yeah the imaging and soundstage. theres so much detail and air in everything, way better than Tung sol 5998.

 

[hifimanrookie]

yeah the imaging and soundstage. theres so much detail and air in everything, way better than Tung sol 5998.

I wanted to upgrade my 5998 to gec's also even that the price is double..but i am going to upgrade to an opamp based amp next..so soon no more tube rolling for me anymore..allthough it was fun to do it and find the right tube pairs for ur taste! i now have only tungsols in my amp..until now best i heard for my amp with my he500.

 

[Dubstep Girl]

Quote:

I wanted to upgrade my 5998 to gec's also even that the price is double..but i am going to upgrade to an opamp based amp next..so soon no more tube rolling for me anymore..allthough it was fun to do it and find the right tube pairs for ur taste!

i now have only tungsols in my amp..until now best i heard for my amp with my he500.

 
aww
 
anyways the 5998 might be better than GEC for HE-500 cause they still have more bass than GEC and are more powerful than GEC tubes

 

[dminches]

DG, have you noticed a big bass difference with the TS 5998 vs the GEC 6AS7Gs?

 

[hifimanrookie]

Quote:

 
aww
 
anyways the 5998 might be better than GEC for HE-500 cause they still have more bass than GEC and are more powerful than GEC tubes

yeah i know the higher gain advantage of the 5998 over the gec is something important...the 5998 is very good with the lower ohms headphones like my he500..if i am not mistaken i even read that someone said that the 5998 gives 0.5 extra watts to the output of the amp...
 
ps..no need for awwww'ing. . the next amp will be something special.... but i have to wait until november..but still i will miss my humble 337...especially now i modded my he500...

 

[Dubstep Girl]

Quote:

DG, have you noticed a big bass difference with the TS 5998 vs the GEC 6AS7Gs?

 
the GEC has a lighter bass. its well textured and extended, but can seem very slightly dry compared to the fuller 5998 bass.
 
the 5998 has a stronger bass thats punchier and has a slower decay to it. both extended right about the same. the GEC just loses a bit of bass but becomes tighter.
 
so for like pop and electronic and rap, i prefer 5998 with the T1. the GEC are brighter and have less bass, especially mid bass and the sub-bass is slightly dry like i said vs the 5998 which has a much more robust bass response. some might prefer 5998 which make headphones seem fuller sounding but some might prefer GEC for its tighter cleaner airier presentation.
 
5998 also have a slightly fuller more tubier midrange than GEC. but the GEC have a more organic tonality to them thats great with vocals and classical and stuff like that.
 
the GEC is still the overall better tube. but for someone who prefers a bassier response the 5998 would be a good choice. the GEC is more refined, but sacrifices a bit of bass.

 

[Oskari]

Quote:

GEC was a British manufacturer part of MOV Marconi-Osram-Valves.

 
Stavros, I think you meant to say parent, not part.

 

[rosgr63]

Hi Oskari, yes indeed, thanks for putting the record straight.

 

[skeptic]

Quote:

so for like pop and electronic and rap, i prefer 5998 with the T1. the GEC are brighter and have less bass, especially mid bass and the sub-bass is slightly dry like i said vs the 5998 which has a much more robust bass response. some might prefer 5998 which make headphones seem fuller sounding but some might prefer GEC for its tighter cleaner airier presentation.
 
5998 also have a slightly fuller more tubier midrange than GEC...

 
Very interesting!  I would agree with this in so far as mids go, but in my setup (modded bh crack /w speedball -> hd800), I find that the exact opposite is true with respect to bass and overall brightness.  At approximately equal volume, if I throw on bass heavy tracks (e.g. 2pac's "u can't see me"), the bass hits much harder and fuller if I'm running my gec 6as7g (or, for that matter, my other 6080's/6as7g's), when compared to any of my 5998's.  
 
In my understanding, this is because ordinary 6as7's (including the gec tubes) have a higher output impedance as a cathode follower than a 5998.  The higher output impedance boosts bass in 'phones like the hd800's, due to the 100hz spike on the hd800's impedance curve.  This is graphed and discussed in detail elsewhere, but I understand we are no longer permitted to link that site on HF.
 
On an unrelated note - grindingthug - can you offer any comments on how the TS and amperex 7802's compare in your Woo?  Thanks!

 

[hifimanrookie]

Very interesting!  I would agree with this in so far as mids go, but in my setup (modded bh crack /w speedball -> hd800), I find that the exact opposite is true with respect to bass and overall brightness.  At approximately equal volume, if I throw on bass heavy tracks (e.g. 2pac's "u can't see me"), the bass hits much harder and fuller if I'm running my gec 6as7g (or, for that matter, my other 6080's/6as7g's), when compared to any of my 5998's.  

In my understanding, this is because ordinary 6as7's (including the gec tubes) have a higher output impedance as a cathode follower than a 5998.  The higher output impedance boosts bass in 'phones like the hd800's, due to the 100hz spike on the hd800's impedance curve.  This is graphed and discussed in detail elsewhere, but I understand we are no longer permitted to link that site on HF.

On an unrelated note - grindingthug - can you offer any comments on how the TS and amperex 7802's compare in your Woo?  Thanks!

U know the headphone we were talking about has low impedance? And every tube reacts differently on different tube amps...and the 5998 tends to be very good in providing the current for that kind of headphones..the he500.