12ax7 vs 5751

Mcpherson

hiya yes the ge`s are d getters triple mica black plates (the really good ones). i`m waiting to pounce on the postman (not literally!) this morning. i`m so hoping he has at least one package for me! i also ordered the telefunken 12ax7 smooth plates yesterday. should get those tomorrow. i want to see if there`s any difference in the sound quality compared to the ei elite 12ax7`s. thats gonna be interesting!

unfortunately i have no experience with the phillips miniwatt 12at7`s as my amplifier doesn`t accept those types. i`m kinda glad too! this tube rolling is getting expensive! i really musn`t order any more! i`ve already built up a small collection of 12ax7`s and 5751`s. i must say i`ve not heard any lousy sounding tubes out of any of them. they all bring something unique to the sound of my amplifier but i will say the ei elites are truly stunning!

we`re both in the same boat as newbies to tubes! i was kind of the same, i went from a denon reciever straight to a tube amp and i know exactly what you meant saying you were cracking up when listening to the commodores. i`ve been exactly the same with some of my cd`s too. i just cannot wipe this stupid grin off my face when i listen to a cd! i feel like the cat that got the cream!

the funny thing is i was listening to music on youtube through headphones on my computer and listened to some of the tracks off that dave gilmour cd on an island. i actually heard more detail through the headphones and they`re only cheapies too but it`s made me think that all that extra detail maybe is to come when i get all these other tubes i`ve ordered but i`ll have to wait and see. once i`m satisfied with the sound in all this mixing and matching i`ll just concentrate on those certain tubes i`ll be using and get spares. all the other tubes i`ll probably sell but i`ll hold onto them maybe a few years to see if they go up in price and hopefully make some extra money.

i`m really excited at the prospect of getting those telefunkens. i got them at a fantastic price off ebay last night. they`re supposed to be the best.

i have to ask.....did the cap upgrades make a difference. i`m thinking of doing the same for my amplifier using mundorf silver/oil caps in the pre amp stage. i`ll be starting a new thread on this topic once i`m happy with the tube arrangements and sound. i bet that`ll be a very interesting topic. keep your eyes peeled for that one. i`, also thinking of upgrading the speaker cables at some point to chord epic cables but that might be some time off yet as those cables are pretty expensive!

i`m kinda glad too! this tube rolling is getting expensive! i really musn`t order any more!

Oh just wait until you start rolling vintage output tubes or try some current production EAT's!! Then just think of all the combinations with all the input and driver tubes. I just ordered some Gec and Tesla KT88's.

Xti16 stop right there!!!!!! lol. i can`t hear you!!! i kind of had a little delve into the gecs, wow! very expensive! but i bet they sound amazing! let me know what they`re like when you get them it`ll be very interesting. not heard of the EATS, i`ll do a little research into them and the tesla KT88`s. i was thinking of those psvane KT88-t`s too. i`m just looking around my room to see if there`s anything i can sell lol i can see me ending up sitting on a wooden box listening to the only bit of furniture i have left lol. funny enough i do have plenty to sell that will make a good bit of money but my sensible side tells me to keep the money for a rainy day, but then i have this little devil on my shoulder poking me in the ears until i give in!

just a very quick update on those sylvania 5751`s in there currently..... they sound really nice. nice and clear and a really nice focused soundstage. listening to them right now with the volume cranked up a little louder than usual. there`s nothing really lacking in them anywhere. they have a nice punch to them too but not the slam that the ei elites gave me. but there`s lovely detail all through the frequency extremes. damned good considering i only paid $18 for the pair. stunning bargain!

They are good tubes have a few and i like them, I also like the 12ax7 Mini Watt too. Both in my VTL 5.5 pre-amp.

Grayf
The upgrades included replacement of all signal caps with V-Cap CUTF/OIMP
MUNDORF silver/gold hook up wire
WBT Nextgen RCAs for 2 inputs and output
DACT 24 STEP Attenuator

I would contact Ted at highendaudio.com for any upgrades.
He is part of the new owners of Thor Audio and you couldnt ask for a more available and polite person to deal with. I plan on sending my unit to him to do some housecleaning.
They work on all units though.
The particular unit I bought had a bit of history b/c the upgrades they offer/suggested were done by another outfit. Long story short I think I came out ahead due to the fact that Thor didnt do the upgrades...otherwise a 5 year warranty and stamp of approval would have driven the price up.
This is really an incredible preamp. My sound floor is at 1 on the volume. ALL the sound is there as soon as the volume is engaged. I was a volume hogg because I had to turn it up so loud to hear detail before. Cheap imitation.haha
I think this is a glimple of how a 30 or 60 watt amp can produce quality sound. Just for the record the new Thor will retail at around 17K and the old unit upgraded is supposed to be in the same ballpark. I feel like I got a sports car for a work truck price!
WHERE IS THAT STINKING POST MAN???????