Thank you for your responses. I recently purchased an Aesthetix Calypso and Quicksilver V-4's to replace my Pass X2.5 and X150 that were mated with a Raysonic 168. My tube list has grown from 6922,6DJ8, to; 12FQ7, 12BH7 or 12FQ7, KT-88 and 12AX7WB !! I thought it might be prudent to learn how to test the tubes in my equipment and what I'm buying to better match them. I'm not ready for a $2500 tester yet but $300-$700 is ok. Is there one unit in this range that will test all the tubes I use for leakage,microphonics and...? I want to roll tubes and it is becoming evident that to achieve the sound I may want will require trial and more trial. My intention isn't to buy and sell( but to buy and buy) so possibly a cheaper tester to start . I got a taste of what can happen when I connected the 168( Amperex US White Label PQ) to the V-4 's(KT-88) I had to put the EH 6922's back in because the sound had become too mushy.
Showing 13 responses by samhar
I would like to amend my statement ( "I got a taste of what can happen when I connected the 168( Amperex US White Label PQ) to the V-4 's(KT-88) I had to put the EH 6922's back in because the sound had become too mushy".) The cause turned out to be the power cord to the Calypso plugged into a power conditioner!! |
Jafox I made a poor diagnosis of a problem thinking it was tubes and not the combination of power cord and PLC.I never thought or stated that it was the Calypso.I feel the Calypso is the the centerpiece that I am building my system around. The tubes I switched were in the Raysonic 168 which is the weakest (?) piece in this system,I meant to imply that the interaction of multiple tubes in multiple pieces of equipment presents a Pandora's House of posable combinations. I don"t consider this a random choice "Amperex 6922, PQ, white label, US (shield, gold pins) Another very good Amperex tube. Warm yet lively, focused, grainless and transparent. A winner one of the best. Dynamic with punchy bass to boot...." I consider it a good first pick. Rodman99999 thanks for the imput |
Tran talk to Brent Jessee he can tell you what you need,I called him and he called me right back. Here is his info. [email protected] 847-496-4546 Sam |
jtwrace, I felt the B&K 747 was a little underkill, good for quick checks but not the level of accuracy I was looking for so I bought a Hickok 539B it's beautiful but may be a little overkill!!! After playing around with a Hickok 725 I think it is the" happy compromise" between the two, no resetting for second section and more than accurate enough for most purposes, as a novice for a novice, I think it's a great choice. |
Update! I now have a Roger Kennedy digitally modded Hickok 539b. Pic in my system, click on Hickok then click on the picture to enlarge. The 539b has two power transformers. One to supply all the heater (Filament) current and the other to provide all the test measurement voltage/current. So the Tube Under Test (TUT) load is divided by the heater and test transformers also improving the accuracy of the tests, and reduces the load on the test circuit and its power transformer. They also have another advantage of having a separate AC line set volt meter. This helps by reducing the effects of the line sag (accuracy issue). In addition this models also has more than one test signal level allowing for more accurate test results on a wider range of tubes. The modded unit has a DC plate current mA meter making it a great tester for matching power tubes. One section at a time is checked and resetting is necessary for checking second section. In the picture I'm testing all the #1 sections then resetting and testing all the #2 sections. |