(29 votes, average: 3.55 out of 5)
Loading...No reviews found on the web. Read our reviews.
2 thoughts on “Siemens 12ax7 Long Plates”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Tube Maze
Guides and reviews of vacuum tubes and tube equipment
The Siemens 12AX7 Long Plate (1960) is quite simply another beauty in the world of vintage glass. Sonically, it shares a striking resemblance to the Amperex Long Plates of the same era, offering a rich and engaging character that makes it hard to turn off the music.
The specific version tested featured the O-getter with dual supports, and the performance was nothing short of stellar. It delivers a beautifully detailed and extremely transparent soundstage, paired with “to-die-for” midrange reproduction. What really sets this tube apart is its ability to handle gentle female vocals with grace while maintaining a tight, punchy bass—a combination that is surprisingly rare. When compared to the legendary Telefunken, the Siemens offers significantly more body, though it perhaps sacrifices a tiny bit of that signature Telefunken “air” to get there.
Final Verdict: An absolute must-have for those seeking a perfect balance of transparency and harmonic richness. Highly Recommended.
Even better than the 1960 Siemens ECC83 (which are pretty great themselves!) are the mid 1950s Siemens Und Halske ECC83s which have the date code printed on the bottom rather than etched on the side near the pins. The mid 1950s version, which was mentioned in a tube forum… the review got reposted and cross-posted and hence prices went from very reasonable for a 1950s long plate, that was made in limited numbers, to INSANE prices. I have seen used/good examples of 1956 S&H long plate ECC83s fetch over $200! They are nice, but not THAT nice…
These Siemens tubes have a very desirable sonic profile; they bridge the gap between the cage getter Mc1 Mullard ECC83 and the Telefunken ECC83. They have the neutrality, inner detail, and wide bandwidth of Telefunken ECC83s and add a measure of the midrange texture, depth, and harmonic richness that the Mullards have in spades. A great tube well worth trying out.