6L6WGC/5881 Tube choices for Amp

Thegoodarcher Like I said I can't help with 6L6 tubes. My amp uses EL34-6550-KT88-KT90-KT120 and KT150.
That said I do own SED tubes (not Sovtek) and for the money they were a very good tube. Not great and IMO not the most durable either but a really good value.

manufacturer says sovtek is better

Could be that the amp was designed and spec'ed for Sovtek's. Which usually means they last longer too. The original Octaves were designed and spec'ed for the SED and the later versions were designed for other brands.

I'll bet that the stock tubes are Sovteks. The cynic in me would ask "why would a manufacturer admit that they are not using the very best tubes to begin with and that they will simply use a good solid tube that is cost effective and reliable?". Nothing wrong with that; and to be expected. Welcome to the world of tube rolling. Only you can decide what sounds best. Personally, and in my experience, the Sovtek is clearly sonically inferior to the Svetlana Winged. Good luck.

01-04-15: Frogman
I'll bet that the stock tubes are Sovteks. The cynic in me would ask "why would a manufacturer admit that they are not using the very best tubes to begin with and that they will simply use a good solid tube that is cost effective and reliable?". Nothing wrong with that; and to be expected. Welcome to the world of tube rolling. Only you can decide what sounds best.

I think the answer is simple
1-Profit
2-Does it sound bad? - No Then proceed to #1
3-Could it sound better? - Yes Then proceed to #2
That said manufacturers have to what look at what is available today and guess for tomorrow. That can be a real cr@p shoot.

I recently bought a Synthesis Shine and have been dying to get it up and running but my turntable is in the shop and the audio rack I ordered has not yet come in. It sounds like you love yours!
I bought mine off of Ebay so I don't have the original manual, is biasing done manually? I will probably have it looked at by a professional before I get it going since this is my first venture into tube amps and I have a lot to learn.

Largemouthass,
YOU WILL LOVE THE SHINE!
The only draw back is the biasing is done manually, best setting is 40mv.
It also works beautifully with the Brio Phonostage if you can find it on eBay
and has wonderful synergy.

To be absolutely honest without mentioning any names the Shine clearly defeated a 250 watt integrated amplifier from a leading manufacturer, this manufacturer for this particular model had got 6 awards from Absolute Sound,HifiChoice and other publication and the Shine is relatively unknown out of Europe.

I decided then that i need this baby!

The transformers are "wound" in house and everything is made by hand,
the real output of this amp i would say is equivalent to 80 - 40 tube wattage doesnt do this justice, its such a musical amplifier!

Regarding the Output tubes Synthesis says that the preferred the sovteks because they could withstand higher "plate voltage" and played uninterruptedly without any leak because the power and output transformer is very close to the tube, they recommend to keep the tube cage on as it can act as a "heat shrink" - whilst rolling sensitive tubes...