Quicksilver MidMono Owners & Past Owners


I've noticed there are quite a few QS MidMono owners, like myself, on Audiogon so I have a simple request.....I'd like to know which output tubes, other than EL34s, you have fallen in love with. When I purchased my amps 5-6 years ago Mike Sanders recommended Tesla NOS EL34s which I think are wonderful.   However, I'd like to roll in some KT88s or 120s just for a change of audio scenery.  Please let me know your thoughts with brand/vintage preferences.  Cheers!

whiteknee

To @whiteknee - while I cannot speak to the Toolshed amp, I've owned several Cary and DH Inspire amps, EL34s, KT88s, and KT150s mostly. They are different amps from the QS mid-monos, which should have more grip than the PP SLA70, imo.  I'm not a huge 6550 tube fan person but they do sound different in different amps, most of what I've heard with them is a more "glassy" sound, and I'd probably take really good EL34s or KT77s over them in the Mid Monos. However, that's just my opinion and I've not heard your amps on the Omegas, yet a friend owned the Omega Super Alnico Monitors, and tried so many different tubes with 4 different Dennis Had Inspire amps with his Alnico Omegas. He liked 6L6s a lot with his horn speakers, and he's the guy that originally got me and a few others to try KT77s.

Hard to say really without hearing your setup, room, amp/speakers. What tube characteristic do you want more or less of, etc.   I can understand why you might want to try different tubes with those amps and your speakers.  Seriously, I'd contact Mike. He uses big Klipsch to develop those amps. Ask him what the 2nd-next tube to try in your Mid-Monos might be and tell him about your speakers, send a pic, he can help give secondary ideas.  I'll be curious if he just says to stick with your Tesla EL34s, LOL :) 

 I have a twenty year old pair of QS Mini Mite monoblocks with EL34 output tubes that I've owned from new. I think cost wise  that the EL34 is the best sounding tube for this as well as the mid mono amplifier. 

 

Mike also told me he voiced the Mid Mono amps for EL34.   That's what I have in now and will probably keep.  

My amps are the second version with binding posts and the power and output transformers are the same size.  He said do not use KT90.  Apparently not all kt90 are the same and that amp can't handl3 them.  

I liked the EH green label EL34 that I bought the amp used with.   The JJ EL34 have meat on the bones , warmer better bass.  The EH had more mid and upper energy.  

 

 

My buddy runs the standard new-reissue JJ EL34 set of power tubes with his mid-monos, and it sounds great.  Prior to the Mid Monos he had a very expensive non-US preamp and amplifier with KT88s. It was nice, a little more transparent, yet he likes the Mid Monos with regular JJ EL34s better, and they've been very reliable for him. The former amp/preamp was given to his father to play with. It was an exercise that showed some times "simple is better", and can work really well :)