12AX7A and AT7 tubes


I recently changed all 8 power tubes (KT88) in my 8 year old Mac 2102 power amp. Used Gold Lion tubes as recommended by the majority of the Audiogon respondents to I thread I ran asking for KT88 advice. As suggested, these tubes really made a difference in the sound produced by the 2102. I am now thinking that maybe I should be replacing the 4-12AX7A and the 4-12AT7 tubes as well. I am pretty sure there is nothing mechanically wrong with the OEM tubes currently in the amp. but I am just interested in what this change would do for the sound, if anything. I have some questions about this move. First, do you think this is a worthwhile investment? Second, if this is a good move, what tubes do you recommend? Lastly, should I also change out these tubes in my C2200 preamp? If cost gets to be a factor, would you do the preamp first, last, or not at all? (As an aside, Upscale Audio recommends the Mullard CV4004 and CV4024. The CV4004 tubes are a whopping $80.00 each. Are they worth it?)
frepec

Showing 1 response by infotrad

How about considering using 5751's instead of 12AX7's? Apparently most of them are better. I think some of the best could be Sylvania Black plates..For more info on this, check out Joe's Tube Lore; he provides a very detailed account of his listening experiences with 5751's, 12AU7's and 6922's.
Also, just by the way, regarding Chinese Shuguang tubes, I have purchased a quad of Shuguang EL34's for my C-J MV55 amp, amd found them to be immensely superior to the Electro-Harmonix of the same type I had in there. With EH 6CA7's, however, it's a completely different story.