12ax7 vs 5751

update for the ei elites....

ok one of them (the right side) has turned very slightly microphonic but it`s very slight and not really noticeable and certainly doesn`t affect the performance.

and now for the good stuff! i have about 45 hours on them now and i can`t believe i`m saying this but the sound has improved immensely! the punchy deep bass has turned into a punchy deeper bass with slam when required! the warmth in the bass is just superb. the bass is as seductive as you can get!

the noise floor is even lower! on dave gilmours cd on the track "a pocket full of stones", when he first starts singing there is just his voice accompanied by a piano. both the voice and piano come out of nothingness, blackness, darkness i dunno how to describe it but it`s amazing! you can hear a pin drop. thats the effect it gives you.

the highs are just as high but have more presence as does the midband. voices now sound just a tad more forward than what they were and are just as detailed and deep. by that i mean more depth to the voice in the soundstage.

and on to the soundstage!i said before when i installed the tubes that i initially found the soundstage freaky. i meant that in a very good positive way. well now the soundstage is super freaky!!! much more depth, much more seperation, much more 3 dimentional, more expression and amazing presence and air around that presence. voices sound closer to me in the soundstage. this must have a lot to do with how the ei elites interact with the brimar 6sn7gty/cv1988 and the rca grey glass vt231`s in this amplifier. it is just pure magic.

there`s still no sign of my black treasure kt88-z`s or the ge 5751`s yet. i can`t wait to get them now to see how they fair in this amp. so there`ll be more to come soon :)

i don`t know where these tubes stand in the 12ax7 world of tubes but in this amp they`re incredible

VERY interesting thread. I recently bought a Thor ta1000 and am very impressed with it but would like more of the sound you are describing.(3d and depth) This is my first tube component of any sort and I was told to go with GE 5751 triple mica blacks. If the potential for improvement is anything close to what you have experienced...then I have a lot to look forward to! I am anxious to hear your update when the 5751s come in.

Tpreaves
What is Paul lindermanns user name? Thanks

hiya guys,

i`m still waiting on those tubes though i got a matched pair of sylvania 1970`s grey plate disc getter 5751`s through the post. i bought them because they were very cheap and have nothing to lose as they were cheap.

the sylvania`s for the price are very respectable. nice and clear, nice bass and lots of detail. they`re not in the same league as the others i`ve tried (12ax7`s and 5751`s) but i wouldn`t say they`re that far behind. they`re a used pair so no breaking in has been required but i have let them warm up a couple of hours. the sound compared to the ei elites is thinner all round but again i don`t want people to think they`re rubbish. far from it! they still have a very nicely weighted sound, just not as weighty as the others.

it`s driving me nuts waiting for the ge 5751`s and the black treasure kt88-z`s. i was lead to believe the black treasures were posted on the 18th but i`ve found out they were only posted on the 29th! so i have more waiting to do! grrrrr lol. the ge 5751`s should be here anytime now.......hopefully!!!