Do "Tube Rings" really work?

I bougth a preamp with clear tube rings that had melted.Ended up having to replace a socket and cleaning all the tubes.

Audio Research installs tube dampers on its products from the factory, and that should tell you something. I've never had a damper melt, just get brittle, and I could always tell by ear when they hardened and needed to be replaced. The classic test is to tap one of your input tubes with the eraser end of a pencil while your system is on - if you can hear the ringing through your speakers (which will always be the case in my experience), put a damper on it.

SD, let me see if I can give the "objective" pro argument for why tube damping devices MAY make a positive difference. You note that if a preamp is well-isolated this should take care of any potential problem. The mechanical aspect can be handled with good rackage and footage. But how can you isolate it acoustically except to place it in another room (too inconvenient)? This question relates to how loudly one wants to play their system. If someone really blasts it with a microphonic tube in a high-gain block, there is little doubt that a small amount of feedback could be induced with audible results around the resonant frequency. But then, why not just select tubes that don't ring in the first place?

Microphonic tube resonances are a real problem and deserve to be dealt with thoroughly. Isolation platforms are very effective, but tube dampers should be used as well; the more damping the better. I am astonished that apparently a number of people feel as though the colorations introduced by tube resonances are beneficial to the sound; I am emphatically in the other camp. Resonance is one of the worst possible additions to the sound if you are looking for accurate musical reproduction, but this thread is actually causing me to wonder whether the "tube sound" that so many people love is partly or mostly due to tube resonance. Certainly there are other differences between tube and SS, but it is fascinating that several people feel that removing tube microphonics removes the "life" from the music. I should add that I like ARC gear better than most other tube gear because it just sounds more accurate and less "tube colored" to me. Maybe it's because the tubes are damped. I would be interested in hearing comments from owners of some of the good-sounding low-power SE triode amps about whether they have ever tested their amps for microphonics using the tap test. I've never owned one but it would be interesting to find out...

Only a little bit microphonic from of my Cary 300SE Signature after tapping by an eraser. I have to put my ear next to the corresponding speaker to sense it.