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KT 88s - Gold Lion re-issue vs others

Can anyone comment on the Genelux Gold Lion KT88 (re-issues) vs the "Winged C" (SED) KT88s. They cost about the same, and I use the Gold Lions now. Any thoughts on whether I should bother trying the Winged C version? I don't feel like I'm missing anything, so really its just curiosity. I will say that I like control, nothing over-accentuated or artificially warm. Also see the EAT KT88 Diamond - that cost 5x as much... are there any who think they are in a different world of performance?

Cheers and thanks
hatari
magnumpi205
504 posts
 
Go Gold Lion, no need to look back.
tpreaves's avatar
tpreaves
2,686 posts
 
Ditto the Gold Lions.They tightened up the bottom end on my amp a great deal.IME,changing the signal tubes netted a bigger change in the sound.
bblilikoi's avatar
bblilikoi
99 posts
 
I have them both and have tried a few others as well. I like the Gold Lion reissues for robustness and warmth, relatively speaking. I like the SED KT88s for extension, treble clarity, and reliability.

I used the Gold Lions in a pair of deHavilland KE50A monoblocks, 2 per. I used the SED KT88s in an Air Tight ATM-2 and Cary SLI-80.

Currently, I'm using old stock Tung Sol 6550s in the KE50As, which sort of split the sonic difference between the new Gold Lions and SED KT88s.

JJ KT88s can be very clean-sounding and extended as well, but some find them hard on top. I didn't, but they weren't as reliable in my Air Tight as the SEDs. But neither were the Gold Lions, which blew up at an alarming rate in the Air Tight ATM-2. SED KT88s I found the toughest. The Air Tight threw huge voltages at start-up, and thus stressed tubes to an extraordinary degree.

The KE50As are very soft-starting, so the Gold Lions do very well in them.
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