In My Humble Opinion, Having a tube pre amp using specific tubes for voltage gain can be verry rewarding indeed.
These pre amps clearly demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses (if any) for using this tube. My faviorite is the 6SN7, the early GTs being the best, fortunately there are many fine exexamples still in circulation or available despite their age. The other advantage of the pre amp is a tad les esoteric,and more familiar to the average guy, you can hook up several sources these pres. I am still old fashioned and have a phono stage a CD player with it's DAC and yes even a tube tuner is plugged in more on this later. This makes switching sources easy. In truth I must admit I really like the sound with the right tubes the tone is rich warm and lush, the sound is full bodies with superb retrieval of detail. Simply put it's beautiful no more need be said except that it takes time to find the right tubes for your gear and musical choices, there is rarely instant gratification. Be patient and diligent, rewards await you!
P.S.I wish I could just give you the the recipe but there are too many variables, but I will give you a start.
Make sure you use a tube power amp. The old adage that a tube somewhere in the system tubifies the system sorry not true not even the very strong belief that a tube re amp makes it a tube system, no it doesn't. In fact a solid state pre with a tube power or out element gives you more of the tube magic. Don't believe me I don't care but I am telling you the truth. It took me about 8 years of f-ing aroung with tube pre and a tube out put on my CD player. When I finally broke down and said IK WTF. I was stunned. It was Holy S**T wowzer totally floored but they are good amps despite being Chinese. So I went all tube into very detailed somewhat hard edged Focal Electras. They came to life like never before the sound from then until my divorce was fantastic. If I can get the gear back I will set it as it was.
I can't know if that sound is for every body but every visitor commented on how well the speakers had burned in not realizing it was the amps (Opera Audio Consonance Cyber 800 Mono Blocks using 4 X 6CA7 EH fat body making 78 wpc). That was responsible for the enormous change in my system. From now on if I can afford it I will use tube power amps. The imaging is jusut unparalleled.
As long as I am ranting about widely held incorrect beliefs I will add the "Tubes make slow syrupy rolled off treble". sound. I think that might have been true 65 to 75 years ago, but modern tube equipment if anything sparkles in the treble frequencies. Modern tube amps and all of the associated gear isintended to yield bright crisp dlean bright signals. Lets try a simple test. Take a Current Shuguang 12AX7 and compare it to a 1950s Blackburn Mullard. I am sure you get my drift.
Say Yes to simple 6SN7 Pre amps to those (me) who like them !
These pre amps clearly demonstrate the strengths and weaknesses (if any) for using this tube. My faviorite is the 6SN7, the early GTs being the best, fortunately there are many fine exexamples still in circulation or available despite their age. The other advantage of the pre amp is a tad les esoteric,and more familiar to the average guy, you can hook up several sources these pres. I am still old fashioned and have a phono stage a CD player with it's DAC and yes even a tube tuner is plugged in more on this later. This makes switching sources easy. In truth I must admit I really like the sound with the right tubes the tone is rich warm and lush, the sound is full bodies with superb retrieval of detail. Simply put it's beautiful no more need be said except that it takes time to find the right tubes for your gear and musical choices, there is rarely instant gratification. Be patient and diligent, rewards await you!
P.S.I wish I could just give you the the recipe but there are too many variables, but I will give you a start.
Make sure you use a tube power amp. The old adage that a tube somewhere in the system tubifies the system sorry not true not even the very strong belief that a tube re amp makes it a tube system, no it doesn't. In fact a solid state pre with a tube power or out element gives you more of the tube magic. Don't believe me I don't care but I am telling you the truth. It took me about 8 years of f-ing aroung with tube pre and a tube out put on my CD player. When I finally broke down and said IK WTF. I was stunned. It was Holy S**T wowzer totally floored but they are good amps despite being Chinese. So I went all tube into very detailed somewhat hard edged Focal Electras. They came to life like never before the sound from then until my divorce was fantastic. If I can get the gear back I will set it as it was.
I can't know if that sound is for every body but every visitor commented on how well the speakers had burned in not realizing it was the amps (Opera Audio Consonance Cyber 800 Mono Blocks using 4 X 6CA7 EH fat body making 78 wpc). That was responsible for the enormous change in my system. From now on if I can afford it I will use tube power amps. The imaging is jusut unparalleled.
As long as I am ranting about widely held incorrect beliefs I will add the "Tubes make slow syrupy rolled off treble". sound. I think that might have been true 65 to 75 years ago, but modern tube equipment if anything sparkles in the treble frequencies. Modern tube amps and all of the associated gear isintended to yield bright crisp dlean bright signals. Lets try a simple test. Take a Current Shuguang 12AX7 and compare it to a 1950s Blackburn Mullard. I am sure you get my drift.
Say Yes to simple 6SN7 Pre amps to those (me) who like them !