rmlowz Posted October 13, 2021 Share Posted October 13, 2021 I was wondering if any forum members have tried these and what they thought of the sound? Thanks Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 I have not tried them, but the price is crazy. The best 6SN7/GT made in my opinion is a USA NOS (any brand). I have a few Chinese (generic) and Russian (Sovtek) 6SN7GT's and they are OK, nothing special. I have compared (listened & measured) NOS RCA 6SN7GT's that are used with many hours on them to the Chinese and Sovtek tube mentioned previously. The used RCA tubes have a lot of hours on them, probably close to 6k or 7k hours. The tubes have so many hours on them, there are chrome looking spots above the cathode filament "tubes" on the top glass. Compared to the Chinese and Sovtek's, the RCA's sounds just as good, maybe better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmlowz Posted October 16, 2021 Author Share Posted October 16, 2021 Thanks for your reply yes the price is crazy for sure I was wondering if was worth the money. I just got some GE 6SN7GTB NOS coin bases they sound really nice. Although I have heard that coin bases are not as good as the regular version. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 I know some of the newer tubes may look better (compared to USA NOS), like the Psvane shoulder 6SN7, but the shoulder or look of the tube has nothing to do with the sonics. This particular tube on Amazon says the shoulder version is made for HiFi and is warm (and fuzzy, just kidding, but is does say warmer because of the shoulder design). The metallurgy and design of the USA NOS is (or was) better than the new Chinese tubes in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmlowz Posted October 16, 2021 Author Share Posted October 16, 2021 Thanks for the great information, I am going to try some others just dont know which ones yet. My Mapletree preamp takes 12SN7 or 6SN7. I like the 6SN7 tube in the pre better than the 12SN7 ? Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 1 hour ago, rmlowz said: Thanks for your reply yes the price is crazy for sure I was wondering if was worth the money. I just got some GE 6SN7GTB NOS coin bases they sound really nice. Although I have heard that coin bases are not as good as the regular version. Rich The coin base is not as attractive or Art Deco as a "GT", but they should "behave" the same. I use the word "behave" because of the way some people describe the way they sound. I don't believe that a vacuum or slightly different metal choices (cathode, filament, plate) can change the sound of a tube, but I don't want to take anything away from someone's music. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 1 hour ago, rmlowz said: Thanks for the great information, I am going to try some others just dont know which ones yet. My Mapletree preamp takes 12SN7 or 6SN7. I like the 6SN7 tube in the pre better than the 12SN7 ? Rich 6SN's and 12SN's are the same except for filament voltage. Again, there may be sonic differences, but I can't hear them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schu Posted October 16, 2021 Share Posted October 16, 2021 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 7 hours ago, rmlowz said: Thanks for your reply yes the price is crazy for sure I was wondering if was worth the money. I just got some GE 6SN7GTB NOS coin bases they sound really nice. Although I have heard that coin bases are not as good as the regular version. Rich Don't listen to them the coin base are perfectly fine. The base makes no difference. I tried those when I first got into tubes because they were a bargain.. Buy them at a discount while you can... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmlowz Posted October 17, 2021 Author Share Posted October 17, 2021 Thanks they were a bargain for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 I stocked up on 6SN7, 12SN7, 7F7 and 14F7 long ago anticipating inflation. Now the only issue is is finding a good Loctal type socket. Those cheap ceramic Chinese ones suck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 23 hours ago, Schu said: They do look pretty. I’d buy some if they were $10 each. That’s about what they are worth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OO1 Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 23 hours ago, Schu said: COOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OO1 Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 8 hours ago, rmlowz said: Thanks they were a bargain for sure. Buy as many as you can , ASAP cause i if you dont , someone else will grab these , for the price of light bulbs --- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VDS Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 On 10/16/2021 at 6:00 PM, Schu said: Grant Fidelity? Any report on sound? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjimbo Posted October 17, 2021 Share Posted October 17, 2021 I have lots of 6SN7 tubes available, I don’t use them. Let me know what you need or what you are looking for, all of them are USA and they are all tested. Please message me rather than responding through this thread. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Lammers Posted October 25, 2021 Share Posted October 25, 2021 On 10/17/2021 at 6:03 PM, Curious_George said: They do look pretty. I’d buy some if they were $10 each. That’s about what they are worth. There are excellent 6SN7's coming from China. Unless you have heard them your opinion has no merit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henry4841 Posted October 25, 2021 Share Posted October 25, 2021 The Russia equivalent 6H8C/6N8S should be considered as replacements for the 6SN7. Still a bargain even at todays prices for NOS tubes and I have found them to sound excellent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 25, 2021 Share Posted October 25, 2021 2 hours ago, Les Lammers said: There are excellent 6SN7's coming from China. Unless you have heard them your opinion has no merit. Yes, I have heard some of them, not all. However, in my opinion, new USA or European NOS small signal tubes are better than anything the Chinese are making today. The Chinese have definitely added "glamor" to some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curious_George Posted October 25, 2021 Share Posted October 25, 2021 1 hour ago, henry4841 said: The Russia equivalent 6H8C/6N8S should be considered as replacements for the 6SN7. Still a bargain even at todays prices for NOS tubes and I have found them to sound excellent. I prefer the Russian tubes after the USA NOS. Plus, I prefer vodka to fried rice. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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