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Tube versus SS


Since I just installed some rather expensive NOS 6922 Telefunken tubes in my Phono-preamp, that yielded outstanding results, I decided to compare CD to Phono.

From the best of "Jacintha", CD, I selected "Danny Boy". Her voice emerged deep center stage from a jet black noise free back ground. It sounded more like what I expected from the analog.

That was followed by special LP's of Dinah Washington that had recently arrived. Those LP's were everything I expected with the NOS 6922 Telefunken Tubes in the Phono, but the surprise was the fact that I couldn't tell the two apart; both were outstanding.

What may surprise you, is the fact that I attribute these outstanding results from the COVID 19 "lock-down" which has given us the quietest "grid" ever in history. That means those of us with lesser means have the same AC power as the richest who can afford expensive AC power "clean uppers".

BTW, I have made extensive comparisons to recordings made before and after, the lock-down that confirm just how much of a difference it's made. I must admit that I had doubts about expensive power conditioners, but this confirms that fantastic results come from taming the wild AC.

It's my belief that we can not achieve better results than we have from the current "quiet grid", which means power conditioner or no power conditioner, we are all presently getting the same results.

Could it be that the dominant factor when comparing tube and SS when they both are of comparable quality is "The quality of the AC"?
   
orpheus10
orpheus10 OP
8,668 posts
 

Why are many of the most expensive preamps 2 box units? Do they have two boxes just to impress you? Of course not, they have one box exclusively devoted to turning AC into DC for the signal section.

Why do those who understand these things pay so much for capacitors that are involved in turning AC into DC? Audiophiles who don't even know Ohms Law, have observed that their rigs sounded the very best at times like "New Years Eve" night.

While your rig is sounding better, there are a number of reasons you haven't noticed this. My neighborhood is not the only one on "lock-down"; this is fairly universal.
orpheus10 OP
8,668 posts
 

Thank you David, you are also one of the few who know why the high end is so high, and why the word "Minutiae" is so big.
noromance's avatar
noromance
9,898 posts
 
This occurred with absolutely no change in anything else.
You are begging the question. You're assuming your conclusion from the posited variables in the hypothesis. Maybe the recordings are the same but you are getting more rest. Maybe the recordings are the same but an unknown variable is at play. Maybe they are different because the AC voltage was higher then. The point is that you are trying to make some sort of theory without enough evidence. 
mikelavigne
2,199 posts
 
Why are many of the most expensive preamps 2 box units? Do they have two boxes just to impress you? Of course not, they have one box exclusively devoted to turning AC into DC for the signal section.
i have 2 preamps.

my darTZeel pre has a main chassis, and a power unit; the power unit is really a charger since it's battery powered.

my CS Port phono is also battery powered.

so A/C power is bypassed for all my pre-amp functions.

turns out that battery power has advantages for low noise AND dynamics.
ebm
9,311 posts
 
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