[KMASCII]

That's a good idea, with the parts box. Something to label is great though isn't it. I'm a bit of a woodworker and have been meaning to build a small cabinet with drawers. I also own the Audiotailor Jade and have several tubes for that amp as well.
 
I received my WE 403b's a couple days ago. These, so far, are proving to have just a tad less midrange imaging than the M8161's. But I'm not sure, because the lower treble is more smooth and controlled which is a great bonus for me. But this is early yet and only have about 4 or 5 hours listening on them. I suspect though that these may replace my M8161's as a favorite. I should also note that my LD MKIII is quite modded with alternative aftermarket capacitors. I've replaced the WIMA caps with a pair of Auricaps and a pair of Obbligatos. I also replaced the Chemcon output caps with larger voltage Nichicons. I didn't really mind the MKIII in its stock configuration. But I wanted something a little more tubey sounding and with better imaging in the treble range.

 

[Dogmatrix]

Gday everyone read the whole thread. Love my mkiii love tube rolling. One thing I can add to the 6n6p vs 6n6pi debate, I have found the 6n6p very useful in moderating bright or harsh tubes. Favorite combo at the moment is raytheon jan 6ak5w 1953 with no mica support plates and 6n6p very clean and detailed sound which was a little bright with the 6n6pi

 

[mordy]

 
 
Thanks for your post - tried out your recipe with the 6N6P driver tubes and Raytheon driver tubes. The sound was very poor with a dull midrange and rolled off highs and lows - not what I wanted. Then I took a look at the Raytheon tubes: these had the full mica support and a date code of 243 (43rd week 1962?) But you specified without the mica support. I again looked in my stash and found two such tubes that looked like they were from the 50's - one 6AK5 and the other one a 5654 (Date code 142 on the 5654; cannot read it on the 6AK5). (Mix and match!) Anyhow, they looked very similar in construction. Cranked up my system; WOW!  Beautiful rich sound and a very powerful detailed bass.  Good soundstage, good highs (still slightly bright) but great overall, and probably the strongest, cleanest and most powerful bass of all the tubes I have.     My present favorite combination is the Mullard EF95/CV850 with the 6N6p-I tubes. To me this combination is so good that I stopped listening to the tubes and I am just enjoying the music!                
Anyhow, what you propose is excellent and very enjoyable -thanks!
 

 

[Dogmatrix]

Thanks for the thanks I agree with you on the cv850 I have the whyteleaf variety they would easily be the most tube like tubes I have, very fluid with heaps of head room almost re-verb most pleasurable with jazz vocal.
My tube of the month is telefunken highly recommended, very strong delivery across the spectrum if they have any fault to my ears they are so perfect they are a little boring not much tube character
Final word a tip for anyone with ambient temperature concerns, after much trial and error I have found the combination of a lap top cooler pad under a wire rack most effective in ambient temperatures from 30c to 40c.

 

[mordy]

Glad that you agree with me on the 850 tubes. I have both the Whyteleafe and Mitcham variants, but c
annot say yet if one is better than the other. I read that the Telefunken tubes sound almost solid state, so I did not bother to buy them, but if I find them cheap I may try them. One source stated that they are extremely long lasting, although I don't know if that applies to the EF95 variants. Re cooling of the MkIII I found that different tubes run hotter than others. Once I tried EF91 Mullards, and the amp got almost too hot to touch. Had three old aluminum cones (feet) from my 80's Hi-Fi, and put them under the amp in a triangle configuration. There is an inch or so of space under it, and this seems to keep the amp cool. With EF95 family tubes it never gets really hot. Do you have any experience with the cheaper variants of the power tubes, compared to the $200/pair DR tubes? (I am referring to 6H30P-IR or similar ones). Lastly, how can I tell from a Mullard date code if it is the 50's or 60's?
R

 

[Dogmatrix]

Never tried the 6h30, one day, probably the sovtek I have seen them for around $20 a piece, I have been watching some 6n6p-ir which seem to be an ultra rugged 6n6 but they have been too expensive for a try out
 
Date codes on the other hand, I find the where and when one of the best parts of tube collecting
The theory is that back in the old days old tubes were not seen as a good thing everyone wanted nice fresh tubes so the makers invented various code systems. Tung sol have a secret gap code general electric have cryptic dots. Mullard codes are deliberately vague, government issue tubes are easy as they have a two letter code as well as the etched factory code, domestic mullards persisted with the four figure etched code well into the 70's so a r3d5 could be 53 63 or 73. There are clues in the font style and box design but it is more art than science and just to confuse things further there is all the re branding that went on but that's another chapter.

 

[Gatepc]

Just in case anyones interested I tested the frequency response of my Mullard M8161 (1981) I don't know how useful this data is but here it is for those who wish to see.

 

[TMRaven]

I have a Little Dot MKII with the DT990 600Ω, and I was wondering what would be the best set of driver tubes and/or power tubes that would do best what I want?  I was astounded at the amount of separation and soundstage a decently amped 990 600Ω provided over the AD700 with its famously large soundstage.  Even though the DT990 600Ω doesn't seem quite as distant, the overall layering and imaging seems far superior, giving a much more convincing and appealing soundstage.  I'd like to have some tubes that even further that.  The treble actually isn't too sharp to me at all, so having tubes that further tame them isn't at the top of my priorities.  I think the midrange is fine, but it wouldn't hurt to have a more warm midrange.  What I also really am looking for is for a deeper extending bass that's either tighter and/or provides more punch.
 
What are my best options?  So far my main candidates are a pair of Mullard EF92 driver tubes.
 

 

[Vain]

Hey all!
 
I am really sorry if this has been answered but there is 158 pages to go through, easy to miss some info!
I have a pair of Ultrasone Pro 900 and am wondering if anyone have tested which tubes works good with them? They can be a bit harsh on the treble and have somewhat recessed mids.
 
Would be grateful if anyone had an answer!
 

 

[blacknile]

Hi guys,
 
I'm looking into buying a pair of mullar 8100 NOS for my LD MK III and was wondering if you can help. Are these are what I'm looking for 
 
 
 
 

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/M8100-CV4010-6AK5W-MULLARD-NOS-MATCHED-PAIR-/310282214423?pt=UK_Consumer_VintageAudio_RL&hash=item483e42dc17#ht_500wt_1156
 
There's no "Mullard" label on the actual tubes...Are these actual Mullard or something else?

 

[blacknile]

Can anyone help?

 

[Gatepc]

Those look like what your looking for to me. I really like the M8100s very good mids.

 

[SunSing]

Hi,
 
Those are exactly what you are looking for, I bought mine few month ago from the same seller for my LD MK III.
 
Cheers
Janne
 
 

 

[britt2001b]

Hello
 
I also purchased the Mullard CV4010's for my Little Dot MKIII a few months ago from the same seller. I agree with Gatepc, these tubes deliver excellent mids. It's my understanding these are Mullard military issue, thus no printing of the Mullard name on the tube. These tubes really began to shine after about 50 hours of burn in. 
 
I'm currently burning in a couple of NIB Sylvania GB 5654's that I just purchased for only $30 for the pair from another seller on Ebay. He only had 2 pair to sell and I'm kicking myself for not ordering the second pair. The remaining pair listed several days after my purchase and now are sold out. Apparently these usually go for a much higher price and are hard to find. So far, early within the burn in, they are not as warm as the CV4010's but they deliver crystal clean highs, tighter bass, and a very large sound stage. Cymbals from well recorded music sound wonderful with these tubes. Also, I'm hearing more overtones produced from various instruments. The added push to the highs are welcomed to my aging ears as my high end hearing is diminishing with my age. 
 
I envision myself alternating between the CV4010's and the GB5654's since there is no need for the jumper placement for the MKIII.

 

[mordy]

Hi,
 
Personally, I do not yet own the Sylvania Gold Brand 5654 tubes. However, I have Sylvania Jan 5654 tubes that sound exactly the way britt2001b describes above in post 2369 {crystal clear highs, tighter bass and a very large sound stage}. The ones I have are Military Stock number 5960-045-8639 and Contract number DSA 900-67-C-9983 where 67 indicates 1967. I paid around $3 each on E-Bay a couple months ago.
I remembered a post on Head-Fi about these tubes and finally found it: Post  #626 from 4/18/08 on page 42,  which I am quoting below:
 
 
 
"Thanks to Ethebull, who's listening judgment mirrors my own (even though he uses K701s) and his ability to find things I might have missed.

This time, while I was busy freaking out about the Sylvania GB-5654 Gold Brand tubes (they are amazing), Ethebull found the military stock version, ordered them and tested them and reported back that they were incredible. His description of them was so close to my description of the GB's, I just had to get a pair or two for further study.

They are here! Military Stock number 5960-00-134-6031, Contract number DSA900-75-A-0040. They are Sylvania JAN 5654W. They have black plates and a round halo getter, attached with one post. The printing on the tube is either in green or blue, with the 5654W marking in grey (hard to read). The boxes have a date packed of 12-75. When mine arrived, I did a direct comparison visually with the GB-5654's, to see if I could see a difference. There was only one difference, the GB-5654's have gold pins. THAT IS ALL!!

A quick test in my MKIVse tells me that right out of the box, these tubes sound so close to the GB-5654's, I'm not sure I could tell the difference in a more structured testing. They are burning in and I will post a final comparison in a more controlled situation, but for now, I can easily tell these inexpensive 5654W's are the tube to have. I got mine, 4 tubes for $16 on eBay.

I will also try these in my MKII and MKIII, but I expect the same results.

Because several eBay sellers watch my postings, and appear to be using them as a guide post for what tubes to sell at a much higher price, I'm implementing and recommending to all, the $8 per tube rule (a time honored rule of thumb). If you see these tubes for more than $8 per tube, don't buy them. "
 
 
 
IMHO, based on the above, it is safe to say that Sylvania JAN 5654 tubes with Black Plate and Halo getter with stock numbers 5960/DSA900 should sound the same as the Sylvania Gold at a significantly lower price.
Would be interested to hear other people's opinions on this topic.