[TonyNewman]

I really like my SERPs in my Manley preamp, but I'm a female vocal/midrange freak, so your description of the Psvane Replicas still has me very tempted ; on the other hand I may just save up for a pair of Takatsuki's!

Thanks again for your impressions; I've found very little info from users of the Replicas.

Best,

Randy

 
Takatsuki's - * drool *

 
For female vocals the Psvane replicas do it better than anything else I have heard - but please keep in mind that is only 3 sets of 300Bs (SERPs/Replicas/EATs) - so my baseline is limited.
 
I hear nothing but wonderful things about the Takatsuki's (except for the pricing). If your budget goes that far I would be very, very tempted 

 

[kokushu]

   
Did you get the adapters I recommended on the 6SN7 thread? You need all-plastic adapters, the ones with a metal base gather interference. These work:
 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tube-adaptor-6F8G-to-6SN7-Socket-NEW-/171555247064
 
I'm sure Glenn makes these also, and would have gone to him next.

Yes i did buy that adaptor.  The funny thing is that I thought about rotating the tube and it might work.  It didn't and it just switch channel with the problem.  I then read somewhere that if a NOS tube hadn't been use for a while it might have some noise for the first 10-20 hours.  Although it didn't get rid of all the noise it still much quieter.  I am getting the same amount of noise as other 6sn7 just not the whirling sound like before.  The sound I get with all 6sn7 is a slight hum at high volume but no sound playing.  Anyway I am at the point where I could live with it but the wire for the 6f8g does make noises when it close to the 300b tube.  So I guess there is a break in period for really old tube.  Next time I will keep it running for a while before start to complain.  The only thing that still bother me is why it only happen to one tube and not the other.

 

[kokushu]

Anyone try the elrog 300b tube.  I been hearing its pretty nice was wondering what people here opinion on that tube is and how it compare to other high end 300b.

 

[MIKELAP]

Anybody have infos on U54 tubes not much out there .Thanks 

 

[TonyNewman]

Am I nuts? I have a line on an Australian supplier for Elrog tubes and have reserved a pair of 845s and 300Bs. The 845s are in stock now, the 300Bs hopefully before the end of the year. Sometime in January I will be jumping on a plane to Sydney to pick up and return to NZ with the Elrog goodness (at these prices it is worth a visit to pickup rather than deal with the customs BS).
 
I don't have a firm price for the total yet. "A lot" would be an accurate term.
 
Once I have these babies burned in I will post some comparisons ER300B vs SERP vs Psvane WE300B vs EAT.
 
For those into 845s (there is now a headphone amp that uses 845s - the Viva Egoista - so I feel OK about talking about 845s) I will post some thoughts on the ER845 vs Psvane WE845 (a very fine sounding tube indeed).
 
I think I might have crossed the line from 'hobby' to 'crazed obsession' with the Elrogs.
 
After this the next leap is to the Takatsuki 274Bs. Where does the madness end? Bankruptcy? A rubber room?

 

[Badas]

^

Yip. Nutz.

 

[TonyNewman]

^

Yip. Nutz.

 
It's a good thing I didn't show you the body parts in my freezer then

 
I have Norah Jones playing on my 845 big rig right now. It doesn't have quite the same emotional grip as the WA5 + HE6 with the SERPs or Psvane WE300B replicas - but it is very, very close. The 845 tube produces audio magic. I could float away on those vocals...

 

[isquirrel]

  Am I nuts? I have a line on an Australian supplier for Elrog tubes and have reserved a pair of 845s and 300Bs. The 845s are in stock now, the 300Bs hopefully before the end of the year. Sometime in January I will be jumping on a plane to Sydney to pick up and return to NZ with the Elrog goodness (at these prices it is worth a visit to pickup rather than deal with the customs BS).
 
I don't have a firm price for the total yet. "A lot" would be an accurate term.
 
Once I have these babies burned in I will post some comparisons ER300B vs SERP vs Psvane WE300B vs EAT.
 
For those into 845s (there is now a headphone amp that uses 845s - the Viva Egoista - so I feel OK about talking about 845s) I will post some thoughts on the ER845 vs Psvane WE845 (a very fine sounding tube indeed).
 
I think I might have crossed the line from 'hobby' to 'crazed obsession' with the Elrogs.
 
After this the next leap is to the Takatsuki 274Bs. Where does the madness end? Bankruptcy? A rubber room?

Hey Tony,
 
Welcome to the funny farm!
 
That sounds interesting, haven't heard of Elrog before but looked them up, you could be onto a very nice tube there 

 
I was thinking if you're coming over to Aus and you have time you are welcome to come and have a listen to the Takatsukis which will be here by then or depending on how I go with them I could send a pair of the 274B's over to you. I am having a love affair with the Mullard Metal Bases ATM.
 
I also have ordered the EML 5UR4 Mesh Plates & 300B's on order so a shoot out would be great.
 
I have gone back and forth with the SERP's and the KR300B's - both have their strengths, hard to choose a winner.

 

[TonyNewman]

 
Hey Tony,
 
Welcome to the funny farm!
 
That sounds interesting, haven't heard of Elrog before but looked them up, you could be onto a very nice tube there 

 
I was thinking if you're coming over to Aus and you have time you are welcome to come and have a listen to the Takatsukis which will be here by then or depending on how I go with them I could send a pair of the 274B's over to you. I am having a love affair with the Mullard Metal Bases ATM.
 
I also have ordered the EML 5UR4 Mesh Plates & 300B's on order so a shoot out would be great.
 
I have gone back and forth with the SERP's and the KR300B's - both have their strengths, hard to choose a winner.

 
I wouldn't send anything like that through the post - risk of NZ customs getting their sticky fingers on it isn't worth it (but thanks for thinking of it).

 
Please post your impressions of the Takatsuki 274Bs once you are ready (here or in the rectifier thread) - lots of folks will be very interested to hear about them - especially me

Any comparisons you can make would help a lot with any purchasing decision. At $1000 USD per tube they are not a small investment - they need to offer a LOT more than the Psvane WE274B replicas ($220 USD per tube) to make it a reasonable buy.
 
I really like the SERPs and Psvane WE300B replicas. Very similar sounding tubes though.
 
I have put the EAT 300Bs in for a few weeks of burn in. These are very different tubes right out of the box. Neutral, detailed, balanced, great extension at both ends. Perhaps slightly recessed mids, but that just might be an artifact from listening to the Psvanes and SERPs which have more prominent mids. Perhaps not a great tube for vocals, but for classical or instrumental/jazz listening I think they might be ideal. I'll post more about them in a few weeks when I put another 100+ hours on them.
 
The Elrogs have a great reputation for spectacular sonics - warmth + detail + extension. Equal or better than the best vintage NOS. I hope so. The initial production tubes has some reliability issues, but I am assured these have been solved.
 
Next step on the road to insanity is the WA234. I am resisting that for now...

 

[isquirrel]

   
I wouldn't send anything like that through the post - risk of NZ customs getting their sticky fingers on it isn't worth it (but thanks for thinking of it).

 
Please post your impressions of the Takatsuki 274Bs once you are ready (here or in the rectifier thread) - lots of folks will be very interested to hear about them - especially me

Any comparisons you can make would help a lot with any purchasing decision. At $1000 USD per tube they are not a small investment - they need to offer a LOT more than the Psvane WE274B replicas ($220 USD per tube) to make it a reasonable buy.
 
I really like the SERPs and Psvane WE300B replicas. Very similar sounding tubes though.
 
I have put the EAT 300Bs in for a few weeks of burn in. These are very different tubes right out of the box. Neutral, detailed, balanced, great extension at both ends. Perhaps slightly recessed mids, but that just might be an artifact from listening to the Psvanes and SERPs which have more prominent mids. Perhaps not a great tube for vocals, but for classical or instrumental/jazz listening I think they might be ideal. I'll post more about them in a few weeks when I put another 100+ hours on them.
 
The Elrogs have a great reputation for spectacular sonics - warmth + detail + extension. Equal or better than the best vintage NOS. I hope so. The initial production tubes has some reliability issues, but I am assured these have been solved.
 
Next step on the road to insanity is the WA234. I am resisting that for now...

Will do, thinking it might be best to leave the Elrog's for a while and see what you think of yours. The wallet has taken a beating in the last few months.
 
I have a full Shunyata power setup arriving on Friday, Triton and the Typhon. 
 
Matt and I will do a shoutout on rectifiers and the 300B's when he gets back from Japan with the Takatsukis in early Jan. Which will be useful as you will have both of our impressions to compare. We have different tastes in music which makes it interesting.
 
He's bringing up his Abyss in an effort to sway me from the dark side.
 
I continue to be deeply impressed with the 234's they keep getting better and better, my favourite setup so far is with TS RP 6SN7, SERP's or KR 300B's and either the Psvane 274B or the Mullard metal base GZ34's. The Mullard's are more musical, the Psvanes have a little more bass and a little more air, main thing I notice is they seem to have a more relaxed presentation. I have some one of kind German Ceramic mica 6SN7's on their way, I have no idea what to expect but the construction is unlike anything I have ever seen in a 6SN7.
 
The price on the 234's has increased here quite dramatically with our drop in the US exchange rate. How much are they in NZ?

 

[TonyNewman]

...  
The price on the 234's has increased here quite dramatically with our drop in the US exchange rate. How much are they in NZ?

 
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much for me to seriously consider it. I am very happy with my WA5/HE6/HD800 setup, so will do some more playing with tubes and leave the WA234 alone for now. Maybe in a year or two, depending on the job/mortgage situation.
 
The Elrog 845 got me interested in their tubes to start with. I was looking for a tube that goes beyond the Psvane WE845 (which is excellent), and found the ER845. Then I found out that Elrog have released a 300B - just had to give them a try too

 

[kokushu]

So you guy saying the elrog 300b might be good and I should give it a try.  My current eml 300b mesh is slowly breaking in and I will write something when I listen to it more.  Right now the eml is running with tung sol 6f8g and mullard gz32.

 

[isquirrel]

  So you guy saying the elrog 300b might be good and I should give it a try.  My current eml 300b mesh is slowly breaking in and I will write something when I listen to it more.  Right now the eml is running with tung sol 6f8g and mullard gz32.

Interested to hear your comments on the EML Mesh plates, mine arrive late this week I hope.

 

[Angelbelow]

How long would you guys recommend I spend with the stock tubes before trying out some of the newer tubes I bought (rca rectifer tubes and sylvanias 6sn7s.

 

[TonyNewman]

  How long would you guys recommend I spend with the stock tubes before trying out some of the newer tubes I bought (rca rectifer tubes and sylvanias 6sn7s.

 About a nanosecond

 
Both Woo amps I own have came with nastyassed stock tubes (WA6+WA5) - rather unpleasant. Apart from using them for amp burn in, I don't see much point in not jumping right into new tubes (budget permitting). Just about anything you get is going to be better than the stock tubes.
 
Any new tubes will need burn in, so that can double as burn in time for the amp as well - so personally I can't see much reason in keeping the stock tubes any longer than it takes to find alternatives. Your ears will thank you.