“I am now listening to the Brimar CV1988 tubes. They are awesome! ” Read
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2 thoughts on “Brimar 6SN7GT Gray Round Plates”
The Brimar 6SN7GT Gray Round Plates is truly an amazing tube—open, transparent, powerful, and dynamic. It has quickly become my favorite 6SN7 and is easily one of my favorite tubes across all types. While I usually roll through tubes quickly, I left this one in for days because I simply couldn’t stop listening; it offers a huge sound stage and a lifelike image that is very hard to match.
Brimar is often an overlooked brand since it was never officially imported into the US, but it deserves a much closer look. Every Brimar tube I have used has impressed me immensely. While Mullard gets most of the attention, this British neighbor is a step up in the majority of cases. They currently sell for a fair price given their superb performance, so if you are looking for something special, seek these out.
Final Verdict: Highly Recommended. An absolute standout that outperforms more famous rivals with its transparency and massive scale.
Brimar is a member of BVA, British Valve Association, along with Mullard, STC and GEC. Brimar is relatively unknown in the USA but made some truly outstanding tubes. The Brimar CV1988 is one of their most well known tubes here in the USA; it is an excellent 6SN7 type with an engaging, textured, 3-D midrange that rightly makes the CV1988 a hifi legend and one of my “go to” 6SN7 tubes for any application. Less well known are the EXCELLENT Brimar CV4004 UK milspec ECC83/12AX7, and the 13D5. Type 13D5 is Brimar’s fabulous premium-version, factory selected-stock 12AU7. Especially well-suited for linestage preamplifiers, the 13D5 offers an almost 6SN7 sound in a 9 pin format and is an excellent choice for octal tube lovers who have a piece of equipment that requires a 12AU7. Brimar’s 13D5 is known for consistency from tube to tube, a sign of tight quality control, and sonically it is rather neutral yet layered and spacious in the upper midrange; a real winner that is still very much affordable. Brimar’s CV4004 is a decent sounding ECC83 type, but it was never made in very large quantities and thus typically costs $80 to $110 for a single tube…and for that kind of money, there are better ECC83s out there. However, with the CV1988, 13D5, and the legenday Brimar “T” labeled audio tubes (T for TRUSTWORTHY! A series of factory-selected low noise, high Gm, low microphonics hifi tubes) Brimar is a tube company well worth learning more about. Oh… and about those great “T” series tubes; the T6060 is one of the very best 12AT7s ever made! If you use 12AT7s, “Trust” the quality of Brimar’s T6060!!
The Brimar 6SN7GT Gray Round Plates is truly an amazing tube—open, transparent, powerful, and dynamic. It has quickly become my favorite 6SN7 and is easily one of my favorite tubes across all types. While I usually roll through tubes quickly, I left this one in for days because I simply couldn’t stop listening; it offers a huge sound stage and a lifelike image that is very hard to match.
Brimar is often an overlooked brand since it was never officially imported into the US, but it deserves a much closer look. Every Brimar tube I have used has impressed me immensely. While Mullard gets most of the attention, this British neighbor is a step up in the majority of cases. They currently sell for a fair price given their superb performance, so if you are looking for something special, seek these out.
Final Verdict: Highly Recommended. An absolute standout that outperforms more famous rivals with its transparency and massive scale.
Brimar is a member of BVA, British Valve Association, along with Mullard, STC and GEC. Brimar is relatively unknown in the USA but made some truly outstanding tubes. The Brimar CV1988 is one of their most well known tubes here in the USA; it is an excellent 6SN7 type with an engaging, textured, 3-D midrange that rightly makes the CV1988 a hifi legend and one of my “go to” 6SN7 tubes for any application. Less well known are the EXCELLENT Brimar CV4004 UK milspec ECC83/12AX7, and the 13D5. Type 13D5 is Brimar’s fabulous premium-version, factory selected-stock 12AU7. Especially well-suited for linestage preamplifiers, the 13D5 offers an almost 6SN7 sound in a 9 pin format and is an excellent choice for octal tube lovers who have a piece of equipment that requires a 12AU7. Brimar’s 13D5 is known for consistency from tube to tube, a sign of tight quality control, and sonically it is rather neutral yet layered and spacious in the upper midrange; a real winner that is still very much affordable. Brimar’s CV4004 is a decent sounding ECC83 type, but it was never made in very large quantities and thus typically costs $80 to $110 for a single tube…and for that kind of money, there are better ECC83s out there. However, with the CV1988, 13D5, and the legenday Brimar “T” labeled audio tubes (T for TRUSTWORTHY! A series of factory-selected low noise, high Gm, low microphonics hifi tubes) Brimar is a tube company well worth learning more about. Oh… and about those great “T” series tubes; the T6060 is one of the very best 12AT7s ever made! If you use 12AT7s, “Trust” the quality of Brimar’s T6060!!