I have had my Vac for many years and is not "Tubey" at all but very musical. I just switched to Sophia carbon plates and they are synergistic in the VAC. I also use Brimar tubes for the drivers. The one thing about the VAC as it is very dependant on the quality of related equipment. I use NBS cables and power cords. With a NBS Pro in between my temporary Monarchy NM24 linestage using some Amperex tubes the sounstage and resolution is jaw dropping. The music has weight,drive,exceptional detail and transports me to another dimension. I think Kevin Hayes renneisance series amplifiers are the best.FWIW
300b amps bettering the midrange of the Cary 300b
I'm shortly going to be getting a Cary 300b amp and will try to buy a few other 300b amps later to compare them and eventual settle down with one.
I previously owned the Cary CAD-300bse monos and the midrange was spellbinding, very liquid and three dimensional (especially with the Western Electrics). The bass and highs were okay but with my set up I can compensate. This was a first generation model which will be the same again using a just single 6sl7 driver (I don't know if the sound changed for better or worse in the various sig versions). I have tried some other 300b amps and the midrange was more hi-fi like.
Anyways just wondering if anyone who has had the Carys has found other 300b amps that have equaled it or bettered in providing that midrange magic (even though some may consider this sound as being colored).
I previously owned the Cary CAD-300bse monos and the midrange was spellbinding, very liquid and three dimensional (especially with the Western Electrics). The bass and highs were okay but with my set up I can compensate. This was a first generation model which will be the same again using a just single 6sl7 driver (I don't know if the sound changed for better or worse in the various sig versions). I have tried some other 300b amps and the midrange was more hi-fi like.
Anyways just wondering if anyone who has had the Carys has found other 300b amps that have equaled it or bettered in providing that midrange magic (even though some may consider this sound as being colored).