Favorite nos tube?


With the recent best of threads I decided to do one on tubes. I know there's alot of us out there so let's here from ya. Strangly I replaced my Amprex Bugle Boy 6dj8 for the Sovtek 6922 reflectors. The sovtek just seemed to sound a lot crisper and detailed to me. I have not tried any other nos tubes so your input will help me and others who will be tube rolling in the future.
south43
Well, the favorite NOS tube really depends, to a large extent, on the equipment involved, and what it's mated to in the system. For my Jadis JP80 preamp, my favorites are Telefunkens for the 12AX7s and Amperex Bugle Boys for the 6DJ8s in the MC stage, as I prefer a rich, balanced sound. For the JA80 amps, I've liked both Teles and Mullards for the 12AU7 and 12AX7s (the Teles are smoother, the Mullards had a little more punch and energy--can you imagine being obsessive enough to change those tubes depending on the music you were going to play?), and MO Valve KT88s for the output tubes (wonderfully rich in the midrange and upper bass). However, were I running the JA80s into a speaker with a dark or rich midrange/upper bass, like my old Duntech Princesses, I'd probably opt for Tung Sol or the old ARC Phillips 6550s instead, as the KT88s were too much of a good thing in that case. For my Audio Logic DAC, the 6922/6DJ8s don't seem to matter as much to the sound, so I use Sovteks, but the 12AU7s make a big difference. Audio Logic supplies Mullards, I find them lively but with a glare in my system, so I use Telefunkens instead, which seem to have a more balanced frequency response in the unit. I'm curious to see others' favorites, particularly in Jadis equipment.
South,
In my system i found the bugle boys were a poor choice as they sounded a little flat my system is a little dark. The mullard (english not holland) branded RCA provided better dynamics and extension while creating a 3d sound stage and natural tone the sovetechs are not capable of(in my experience.) These tubes however tend to be microphonic and may not work for you however I have substituted many and always return to the mullards.
I'm trying some Bugle Boy Techtronix in my BC3 right now. Do you have any insight on these tubes?
Flash! Just got in some Jan-phillips 6922 and will use them in my pre(Anthem pre2L). The unit comes stock with sovteks. I will keep you informed as to the sound.Hotcorocket I am not familiar with the techtronix tubes-sorry. Keep rolling those tubes!
South: I plan on ordering a new production Tesla 6922 that has had mixed reviews at AA. How a tube sounds does depend on the amps design (including the other tubes) and the system itself, not to mention indiviudal taste. I would guess however that there are some "universal" duds out there. I also lucked out on Ebay the other day and picked up a 6922 branded as GE that is either a Siemens or a Telefunken. Can't wait to give it a try. I am fortunate in that the Audion only requires one 6922 as singles are easier to pick up. You may want to search the Audio Asylum forums and see if you can find any feedback on tube rolling in your Anthem.