Hi Newbee,
If my elation suggested that I believe that my first significant move to one of the classic NOS tubes resulted in the ideal selection, that was not my intention. However, the improvement from my previous Sovtek and Electro Harmonix 6922s shouldn't be trivialized by comparing it to a change in tone control. With all due respect to the subjectivity involved in tube choices, sometimes better is better and what I'm hearing is way better. I'm now hearing musical detail that was formerly obscured; instruments and voices are both more natural and nuanced. I have no doubt that more experienced guys like you, Tvad, and Mofimadness could introduce me to a dozen or more tubes that would challenge my listening skills. That said, I am encouraging people, like myself, who have a piece of equipment that retailed for $4000 and came equipped with $40 worth of tubes to investigate a change in those tubes. I think you might be surprised by the number of people, as T2232 suggested, who upgrade components to realize improvements when a change in tubes would suffice. Many audiophiles put their faith in dealers and audio publications and I've never walked into a dealership and been advised to change tubes instead of components.
If my elation suggested that I believe that my first significant move to one of the classic NOS tubes resulted in the ideal selection, that was not my intention. However, the improvement from my previous Sovtek and Electro Harmonix 6922s shouldn't be trivialized by comparing it to a change in tone control. With all due respect to the subjectivity involved in tube choices, sometimes better is better and what I'm hearing is way better. I'm now hearing musical detail that was formerly obscured; instruments and voices are both more natural and nuanced. I have no doubt that more experienced guys like you, Tvad, and Mofimadness could introduce me to a dozen or more tubes that would challenge my listening skills. That said, I am encouraging people, like myself, who have a piece of equipment that retailed for $4000 and came equipped with $40 worth of tubes to investigate a change in those tubes. I think you might be surprised by the number of people, as T2232 suggested, who upgrade components to realize improvements when a change in tubes would suffice. Many audiophiles put their faith in dealers and audio publications and I've never walked into a dealership and been advised to change tubes instead of components.
