New phono stage arrived

I have it for sale, I just want it out of my life. Pretty much seems to me it was hyped up and not all that good to begin with.

Hi @hilroy48 I had a similar issue which I solved by chance. I got a good deal on a hardly used Melto 1 unit and upon arriving it sounded dry and lifeless. I gave it a week as I thought it needed time to break in. However, it barely improved so I had a hunch that there was a faulty tube perhaps due to shipping. The Melto 1 comes stock with 2x 6N1P-EV (output) and 2x 6N2P-EV (input), uncommon tubes that I didn’t have lying around.

When I opened up the unit, to my surprise, the circuit board was labeled for 6992 tubes instead of 6N1P for the output stage. Luckily I had 6922 Tungsol NOS tubes lying around in my collection and they work perfectly. It is now sounding as it should, sonorous midrange and just delightful, just as the reviews describe it.

The bigger brother Melto 2 comes stock with 6922 tubes, which aligns with the circuit board labeling. Why LAB12 decided to ship the Melto 1 with 6N1P tubes instead of 6922s remains a Greek mystery. Perhaps if the stock tubes were working properly it would’ve sounded good but I believe 6922 is much better and is a huge upgrade from the stock tubes even if not faulty.

So if you haven’t sold it yet, pick up a matched 6922 pair and I think you will be pleased.

Just for fun, I looked up the characteristics of the 6N1P and compared them to those of the 6922. First, they are compatible, meaning a socket wired for one will work for the other. Both have a gain factor (mu) of 33, so no difference there. However the 6922 has more than twice the transconductanc (Gm) and less than half the plate resistance (Rp) of the 6N1P.  Also, the 6N1P requires 600mA of filament current from the power supply; whereas the 6922 requires 300mA.  I would say there is no obvious reason based on specs to think that one would sound so much better than the other in a given circuit, except with regard to filament current.  If the PS cannot deliver 600mA to each tube filament, then the 6N1P would never be working at its full capacity and would sound "bad". Maybe someone up the line who was not cognizant of this limitation stuck the 6N1Ps in there after import.

The manual states that it comes in stock with 6N1P-EV tubes, so I don't believe this was an oversight. The only reason I can think of is that a.) 6N1P is more durable, as the "EV" is supposed to be military spec or something along those lines. Ironically the "long-lasting tube" failed right away. And b.) It's cheaper than a 6922. Lowbeats.de (German Site) - reviewed both the Melto 2 and 1, and they concluded that the Melto 2 had more resolution, I'm wondering now if that's due to the use of 6922 tubes vs 6N1P.

• Noise Performance: The 6N1P is slightly quieter than the 6922, making it a preferred option for low-noise applications such as hi-fi preamps and driver stages.
• Durability: The 6N1P is known to be robust and durable, often outlasting the 6922 in high-stress applications.
• Sound Profile: The 6N1P provides a warmer, smoother sound, whereas the 6922 is more neutral and analytical. Depending on your sonic preference, this can significantly impact your choice.