Which 6sn7 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 9th, 2020
Continue readingThe Best 6SN7 tubes
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Category Archives: Guides
The Best 12au7 tubes
Which 12au7/5814 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 7th, 2020
Continue readingThe Best 12ax7 tubes
Which 12ax7/5751 tube won the right to be called the best and the worst?
Updated August 5th, 2020
Continue readingWhich tubes reign supreme?
Since we started this site in 2012, a lot of people contributed their reviews and ratings for various vacuum tubes. So 8 years have passed, which tubes have the highest rating?
Updated August 2nd, 2020
Continue readingTube Matching 101
There is a lot of confusion about matching tubes. It starts with some vendors, especially on eBay, matching tubes by the way they look (visual matching) to matching on multiple electrical parameters at the same time.
There are 4 parameters that could be used to match preamp tubes:
- Transconductance – Gm
- Voltage Gain – Mu
- Plate Current – Ip
- Tube Age
Flying Saucer is a sign of trouble
If you find a tube with a getter in the form of a flying saucer, you can ignore any branding on the tube. It’s practically guaranteed that you have a Soviet/Russian made tube. Some of them are great, like EV/DR versions of tubes, but in the majority of cases, they don’t sound good.
Continue readingBrimar Special Type Tubes
The following Special Quality types are recommended as plug-in replacements for the corresponding commercial types. Substitution in the reverse direction is not recommended.
Continue readingBrimar Tubes Date Codes
Brimar (BRItish Made American Range) was a part of Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (STC) and was founded in London as International Western Electric in 1883. From 1925 to mid 1980s the company was owned by ITT of the USA.
There is very little information available on how to read Brimar tube codes, but in general, they are one of the easiest to decipher.
The code consists of multiple sections and usually look like:
4G9/980 (4th week of production in July of 1959, tube type 6060)
BTW, if Brimar labeled tube doesn’t have the date code or it has foreign stamped on the tube, it’s not produced by Brimar, but by some other manufacturer. Many Brimar labeled tubes are actually Soviet made.
Continue readingDeciphering Soviet Tube suffixes
Deciphering different tube codes is hard even when they are in your own language. Deciphering Soviet tubes is even harder since the majority of information about them is in Russian.
Here is some information about common suffixes:
Continue readingFavorite Tubes 12au7
Hi there, I’ve now listened and analyzed countless 12au7’s (and it’s equivalents) and thought I’d give my opinion on my current favorites.
1st Place Tie: Mazda 6189 Silver Plates 3-Mica and 50’s Valvo Long Plate Angled Getter
These are somewhat similar to me in that they both have soaring/sparkling top-ends and beautiful midrange. Both have lots of detail. I think Mazda has better bass and is slightly more precise, forward and transparent. But Mazda is also more dry. Valvo is sexier and easier on the ears. To me, the Valvos are a bit light on the bass. Mazdas have maybe a larger soundstage, but Valvo is deeper and more intimate. Tie for first. If someone put a gun to my head, I’d choose the Valvos.