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What is your favorite tube type?

With so many tubes that do different things and have different sound profiles, what is your favorite? EL34s wonderful PRaT, KT88/6550s smooth and dimensional sound, lush mids of a 300B, detail of a 2A3 or the huge soundstage of an 845? I am curious which is your favorite. What do you like about it?
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jtcf's avatar
jtcf
1,589 posts
 
My two favorites right now are Sofia 6SN7(lush but detailed) and Tung Sol KT150(powerful and airy).
noromance's avatar
noromance
9,394 posts
 
Depends on where the tube sits. My favorite tube of all was a black plate CV5042 (of uncertain heritage) which is a military version of the 12BH7A but it was better than those. It had silent blacks and huge soundstage with exceptional detail in a cathode follower circuit.
I also loved my quad of Marconi-Osram GEC KT88s in a Tim deParavicini power amp. Delicate, tonally colorful midrange and sweet highs. Bass not great but...
Currently, my favorites are the @wolf_garcia mentioned TungSol 7581A which are seamlessly tight and clear and powerful in place of 6L6 and EL34/KT77 and, the PSVANE Globe 6SN7 with its unbelievable detail. It needs a lot of burn 
ebm
9,311 posts
 
MY Amperex tubes are all 1957,1958.
azazello
63 posts
 
2A3, 6BQ6, EL11 Telefunken, C3g, ECC88, E180F, ECC82, 
analogvm15's avatar
analogvm15
112 posts
 
PP 6BQ5/EL84 with my Snell  E3s
SE 6BQ5/EL84 with my Klipsch LaScallas
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