2. amps-preamps
  3. 165748-2137

Gold or Platinum Grade of Tubes for BAT Preamp.

Hi, all. I am awaiting delivery of my BAT VK-33. I’m going to replace the 6 stock EH 6922s with the NOS Rocket Logo 6H23-EB, which is a direct replacement for the 6922. My tube vendor has gold grade or platinum grade (which is about $15 more per tube than the gold grade). Tolerances for matched gold grade are 15-20%, while the platinum tolerances are 10% or less. Given that these are small signal tubes, is the tighter tolerance of the platinium grade worth the $$? Is the BAT hard on tubes, thereby requiring the more expensive ones? Thanks for your help.
rlb61

Showing 2 responses by noromance

noromance's avatar
noromance
9,404 posts
 
What's another $90?
noromance's avatar
noromance
9,404 posts
 
You may not notice. However, if the tolerances deviate from the spec by too much, the tube itself may not have come off the line as well built as one closer to spec. That's assuming they're matched to that parameter and not just matched to each other. Even so, I'd go for the better tolerance at this level. My phono tubes are matched to 1% apparently. 
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