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Nov 11, 2021 at 2:33 AM Post #721 of 2,070
Nov 11, 2021 at 2:36 AM Post #722 of 2,070
Rolling or trying other tubes is purely a personal/subjective thing so while folks may be able to make some random suggestions the best gear is your own ears for finding your own tastes. The differences vary depending on the tubes and from person to person, I got stuck on a set of British 1960's Brimar's and have several still to try but have just sat using these as I enjoy them.

So the other thing I can offer is if you are already happy with how the OEM tubes sound why change? Just enjoy, "it's all good" if you get bored at some point worry about opening cans of worms up then.:stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

Just thought I'd share this pic as I'm wearing/using the T60RP on the xDuoo TA-20 today/right now in fact and it powers the hungry T60RP's fine, great combo. Who say's tubes and planar's don't mix ????? I'm really enjoying them.

IYGi70J.jpg
 
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Nov 11, 2021 at 3:01 AM Post #723 of 2,070
cirodts said:
is there a lot of difference in sound when changing tubes?
is it worth changing?
Click to expand...
You'll need to decide that for yourself. If you notice a difference, one you enjoy more over another, then yes I find the tubes I enjoy have a wide, deep and tall sound stage. Moving around in the top 3 the Brimar 6060's have a more full pleasing sound to me, and a wider - beside and behind the ears sound stage - that sounds more "real" to me, and is striking enough that I often need to pull off the headphones to tell if outside sounds are what I am hearing, or if the environment being mixed into what I am watching or listening to is the source of the "realism".

With those 3 pairs, Brimar 6060, Mullard M8162 (12AT7WA, CV4024), and Haltron E80CC they are similar but different enough to me that I can enjoy the changes between them.

If the E80CC's didn't run so hot - they use 2x the heater current and make the TA-20 run "hotter" - I'd probably just burn through the 5 pair of those I have. I thought the Brimars and Mullards gave me a wide sound stage, but the E80CC's make a surprisingly stark improvement to my ears, the E80CC's focus all the sound sources in the mix for me to the point I would keep listening to them, but I think I need a backup TA-20 just in case the high heat takes a toll on my single unit. So I rotate in the other wide sound stage tubes I enjoy - to keep my single TA-20 running longer.

But, I could also pick another 3 pair out of the others I have boxed up and enjoy those too. The more enjoyable sounding - interesting sounding? - it doesn't mean more "accurate" but perhaps more "realistic" sounding to my ears, especially considering our methods of storage and presentation (speakers/headphones), so find what pleases you to listen to at the time and enjoy it.

I don't worry about how someone else is going to judge my enjoyment because our paths of experience are all very different, far more varied than are the shared same experiences.

If you do the same things all the time, you start to notice things, you become sensitive to differences if you pay attention. I was fortunate in that I began listening to radio signals with headphones when I was 7 or 8, and got my Amateur radio license when I was 12, and participated in competitive CW contests until just before High School when I started working and didn't have much free time, but those early days of picking out weak signals, trying different headphones and amplifiers in and added on to existing radios, filters and equalizing the audio to best get the edge on hearing faint signals, still sticks with me today.

I have to bear the burden of my experience, but if you don't hear a difference, don't sweat it, it may come to you over time and it may not - either way enjoying the music doesn't often require those last smidgens of differentiation in the audio. :)
 
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Nov 11, 2021 at 3:07 AM Post #724 of 2,070
oh
hmscott said:
You'll need to decide that for yourself. If you notice a difference, one you enjoy more over another, then yes I find the tubes I enjoy have a wide, deep and tall sound stage. Moving around in the top 3 the Brimar 6060's have a more full pleasing sound to me, and a wider - beside and behind the ears sound stage that sounds niew "real" to me, and is striking enough that I often need to pull off the headphones to tell if outside sounds are what I am hearing or if the environment being mixed into what I am watching or listening to is the source of the "realism".

With those 3 pairs, Brimar 6060, Mullard M8162 (12AT7WA, CV4024), and Haltron E80CC they are similar but different enough to me that I can enjoy the changes between them.

If the E80CC's didn't run so hot - they use 2x the heater current and make the TA-20 "hotter" - I'd probably just burn through the 5 pair of those I have :)

But, I could also pick another 3 pair out of the others I have boxed up and enjoy those too. The more enjoyable sounding - interesting sounding? - it doesn't mean more "accurate" but perhaps more "realistic" sounding to my ears, especially considering our methods of storage and presentation (speakers/headphones) we are always living in audio's archaic times, so find what pleases you to listen to at the time and enjoy it.

I don't worry about how someone else is going to judge my enjoyment because our paths of experience are all very different, far more varied than are the shared same experiences.

If you do the same things all the time, you start to notice things, you become sensitive to differences if you pay attention. I was fortunate in that I began listening to radio signals with headphones when I was 7 or 8, and got my Amateur radio license when I was 12, and won CW contests until just before High School when I started working and didn't have much free time, but those early days of picking out weak signals, trying different headphones and amplifiers added on to existing radios, filters and equalizing the audio to best get the edge on hearing faint signals, still sticks with me today.

I have to bear the burden of my experience, but if you don't hear a difference, don't sweat it, it may come to you over time and it may not - either way enjoying the music doesn't really require those last smidgens of differentiation in the audio :)
Click to expand...
thanks for the advice of these valves rimar 6060, Mullard M8162 (12AT7WA, CV4024), and Haltron E80CC.
 
Nov 11, 2021 at 3:28 AM Post #725 of 2,070
cirodts said:
oh thanks for the advice of these valves Brimar 6060, Mullard M8162 (12AT7WA, CV4024), and Haltron E80CC.
Click to expand...
There are lots of other great sounding tubes out there, I wouldn't focus your search too early except to use them as a starting point for your own discoveries. You may like other tube characteristics more than the ones I enjoy, you won't know for sure until you actually take the time to listen. :)
 
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Nov 11, 2021 at 3:19 PM Post #726 of 2,070
SoundGuru said:
This amp is still really powerful for 200 mW, and I need to turn my source to 20/100 in windows to get the volume to 9 o clock. This sound is less in your face and probably a better pair with Grado than the 602
Click to expand...

Hello, do you still like xDuoo MT-601 as an amplifier for Grado? During this time did you find any problems or minuses in MT-601?
 
Nov 12, 2021 at 12:53 AM Post #729 of 2,070
marbert said:
Hello, do you still like xDuoo MT-601 as an amplifier for Grado? During this time did you find any problems or minuses in MT-601?
Click to expand...
For me it sounded pretty good with the Grado as it has a more laid back sound, and had a better synergy compared to MT-602 (way too powerful and has volume channel imbalances at low volumes with low impedance headphones like Grado). For some reason the MT-601 was picking up some background noise. I moved it to another part of my condo where this noise has reduced, and I sometimes use it for listening.

If it wasnt for the noise problem, I would use it much more. I contacted the seller and they said it might be the power supply. I ended up changing the tube to Phillips NOS and this did not fix the problem. I thought it was the power so I also invested in a conditioner, that did not fix it either. The 601 also gets quite hot.

The MT-602 is dead quiet for comparison.

I am not sure if my unit was an outlier or if others have had similar problems....
 
Nov 12, 2021 at 2:09 AM Post #730 of 2,070
Many thanks, interesting.
I am not an expert but I see many different abbreviations and numbers to characterize the tubes, how do I understand which tubes are suitable for the TA-20?
 
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Nov 12, 2021 at 4:24 AM Post #732 of 2,070
SoundGuru said:
For me it sounded pretty good with the Grado as it has a more laid back sound, and had a better synergy compared to MT-602 (way too powerful and has volume channel imbalances at low volumes with low impedance headphones like Grado). For some reason the MT-601 was picking up some background noise. I moved it to another part of my condo where this noise has reduced, and I sometimes use it for listening.

If it wasnt for the noise problem, I would use it much more. I contacted the seller and they said it might be the power supply. I ended up changing the tube to Phillips NOS and this did not fix the problem. I thought it was the power so I also invested in a conditioner, that did not fix it either. The 601 also gets quite hot.

The MT-602 is dead quiet for comparison.

I am not sure if my unit was an outlier or if others have had similar problems....
Click to expand...
Thanks for the detailed answer. And what could you say about the sound of MT-601? Everywhere reviews only about MT-602 and extremely few reviews about 601 model.

I am interested in can I hear "soft warm tube sound" in the MT-601? Many write that 602 model in this sense differs little from the amplifier on the transistors and the tube is not very noticeable in sound.
 
Nov 12, 2021 at 7:02 AM Post #733 of 2,070
Yea I would say its less forward sounding. These are hybrid amps, so they will not be the full tube experience. It also depends on the tubes used. With the phllips NOS it was definitely on the warm side with smooth treble.
 
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