6H30 replacement

@astolfor

not sure which continent you are on

if in n america/usa, i second @tomic601 ’s recommendation re calling brent jessee... the other go-to’s are jim mcshane in illinois and andy baumann in michigan (vintage tube services) - they have been at this forever, exceptionally knowledgeable (and honest) and will tell you about 6h30 options...

if you haven't already, you might also read up on when how and why audio research went from 6dj8 input and driver tubes to pretty much exclusively 6n1p's and 6h30's for their highest tier gear... instructive...

a quick google search will yield you web and phone contacts ...

@jjss49 the tubes are for my Heritage in the USA home. I called Andy and he only deals with Western and USA tubes and will call Brent and Jim.

I am Basque/German and live in a neighborhood from Barcelona. 

@tomic601 I am jealous, last week I was in Sunnyvale (?) CA visiting my team and it was glorious! 

The Vintage Tube Services website has a great picture of how tubes matcha section on a symphony house! My dealer here in Barcelona has a similar one for the Berlin house and Vienna and it is so much fun to play with the different tubes. 

@nmolnar I have a lot of Western tube amps in my home in Spain; the Heritage, which I like a lot, especially for the cost, is in the USA and do not plan to change it. Just trying to bring it closer to what I like.

as is the norm for @jjss49  very sage advice ! i also use Andy for tubes and Mcshane is the architect behind the extensive modifications to my 1961 MC240… dude is a tube zen master.

As you now probably know Andy is none too fond of Russian tubes… ha. 

Best to all, a constructive thread for sure…

Jim

Have you tried other input/12ax7 tubes?

I’ve only used 12ax7’s in vintage line and phono stages, as far as HiFi goes, and for added warmth I usually ended up with Amperex or Mullard 12ax7 types over Telefunken.

I much preferred the earlier (17mm plate?) Mullards over the later short plate versions, but this was in vintage gear (might be different with modern gear).

However, Amperex was usually my first choice.

Read about 6h30 vs 6n6p and gather that substitution is a yes/no based upon the circuit bias.

DeKay

Well astolfor, here’s a post about the DRs from the What’s Best Forum from 11 years ago:

6H30’s--Are the more expensive/megabuck versions worth the money? | What’s Best Audio and Video Forum. The Best High End Audio Forum on the planet! (whatsbestforum.com)

Russ, a couple of years back when I was using a Modwright tube pre, I replaced the stock 6H30 pair with DR’s from The Tube Store. In my preamp, the difference was quite subtle - not near the impact of replacing the rectifier with a NOS metal-base Mullard. Based on what I’ve read on various fora, mild to moderate seems to be the most common experience. Dunno about any $700 versions.

There were some DRs for sale on Audiogon recently for $1600 each. I don’t see them here anymore. I don’t think trying different 6h30 tube brands is going to get the sound you want. I still say sell the amp and get one you like the sound of.