I'm finally here?

[JohnVF]

Oh no. I've wandered onto the internet looking at different 12at7s for the phono stage. I knew I couldn't sit still! Maybe if I just leave tinkering to this one part....

(I had another pair to roll in but I think one of the pair ended up in a microphone here. Yeah they make tube microphones).

 

[MikeO]

Oh no. I've wandered onto the internet looking at different 12at7s for the phono stage. I knew I couldn't sit still! Maybe if I just leave tinkering to this one part....

(I had another pair to roll in but I think one of the pair ended up in a microphone here. Yeah they make tube microphones).

I suspect you aren't too troubled with buying more tubes but in the context of this thread the question I would be asking myself is why. If it is to fix a specific issue ie. Too bright, too warm etc. it comes from a "rational" place then it is probably nothing to worry about. If it comes from I haven't made a change to this system in almost a week, how can I make it more perfect, then I would resist for a while. But again, anxiety is a big part of my life I am trying hard to deal with. For most people, I suspect there would be no anxiety around such a small purchase.

 

[JohnVF]

I suspect you aren't too troubled with buying more tubes but in the context of this thread the question I would be asking myself is why. If it is to fix a specific issue ie. Too bright, too warm etc. it comes from a "rational" place then it is probably nothing to worry about. If it comes from I haven't made a change to this system in almost a week, how can I make it more perfect, then I would resist for a while. But again, anxiety is a big part of my life I am trying hard to deal with. For most people, I suspect there would be no anxiety around such a small purchase.

Well said. Thankfully, this time it just comes from curiosity. I have rolled tubes in this stage before, but never in a system this revealing of the changes. And I very simply just want to see what changes, for good or bad, as a reference. So I bought a pair of early '50s Sylvania 12at7s, black plate d-getter (I think? I'm not the most knowledgable tube person when it comes to distinctions). Are they the best? I have zero idea. At the very least I'll have a spare set.

Interesting that you and I both have anxiety following us around. Mine has been sitting more in the back seat, asleep, for a couple of months and I'm not sure why, though I've been working on it daily. Perhaps that also has something to do with my audio contentment? Don't make any sudden moves or noises, I don't want to wake it up. It's a horrible thing, I prefer to leave it alone.

 

[MikeO]

Well said. Thankfully, this time it just comes from curiosity. I have rolled tubes in this stage before, but never in a system this revealing of the changes. And I very simply just want to see what changes, for good or bad, as a reference. So I bought a pair of early '50s Sylvania 12at7s, black plate d-getter (I think? I'm not the most knowledgable tube person when it comes to distinctions). Are they the best? I have zero idea. At the very least I'll have a spare set.

Interesting that you and I both have anxiety following us around. Mine has been sitting more in the back seat, asleep, for a couple of months and I'm not sure why, though I've been working on it daily. Perhaps that also has something to do with my audio contentment? Don't make any sudden moves or noises, I don't want to wake it up. It's a horrible thing, I prefer to leave it alone.

I agree. Anxiety is a horrible thing that seems to wake up out of nowhere. I have had a fair bit of success recognizing it and resisting it recently, thanks mainly to psychotherapy, but I do really hope for a day where it has no impact on me any more. It is also incredibly fascinating how it got so fixated on this particular hobby. I have no desire or need for anything else to be "perfect". Not my tv, not my computer, not my car, not my house. But my stereo for some reason is my connection to my youth and possibly my only connection back there. My youth involved lots of sports, especially hockey, none of which I do anymore. It involved lots of hiking, fishing and boating growing up in a small town. I have lived in a massive city for the last 25 years. And a huge amount of listening to music. So I do wonder how much of my trying to create the perfect stereo experience now is tied into connecting back that time.

 

[mhardy6647]

For anybody waiting on the cliff-hanger:

I took down the Christmas Tree.

Whoa. We did that yesterday, too.
Cosmic.

I kinda did a "Knut's Party" or Kasta ut granen kinda thing with the tree (which we cut from a local tree lot after Thanksgiving) with ours yesterday... it's still out in the back yard, just outside the back door. Need to do something about that today...

Knut's party - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[mhardy6647]

Oh no. I've wandered onto the internet looking at different 12at7s for the phono stage.

Anything in particular or just different.
I ask because I bought a buncha different 12AT7 morphs when AES had a big(gish) tube sale last year -- I have a smattering and I'd be happy to send you some to try. They can be a long term loan (like infinity minus one long term) if you happen to like some -- as long as you don't clean me out

I can check stock if your curiosity is piqued (mine is)

PS The reason I bought 'em was option creation for the driver stage of the Bottlehead Paramours. Something had rekindled interest in 'em last year -- can't actually remember what at this point, though.
😐

DSC_8376 (2) by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

heh -- not that they're visible in that photo.

 

[OldNuke]

Oh No, no, no! You have got to change out those Speco transformers! I have some of Mikey's M4/Nickel and others I can send your way.
(Don't let your fellow Havenites play bad transformers kiddies...)

 

[mhardy6647]

Oh No, no, no! You have got to change out those Speco transformers! I have some of Mikey's M4/Nickel and others I can send your way.
(Don't let your fellow Havenites play bad transformers kiddies...)

Hey, if they're burnin' a hole in your pocket.... we should talk.

That said -- the little four buck line voltage transformers (turned backwards) that the original Parmours, as implemented, aren't bad.
Those Paramours were among the very first of them sold by Doc B & Co. In fact, they might have been from the 'beta' kit run. Mrs H got them for me as a (IIRC) birthday present (maybe Christmas... it was a long time ago), and our kids (then early double-digit aged) and I built them together (they did most of the work).

They are my spare SE 2A3 amps. Come to think of it, I did at some point buy upgraded chokes for them -- they're still in a box, someplace... the Paramours got retired when I acquired @Redboy's erstwhile Simple 2A3 amp.

Sorry for the digression @JohnVF!

PS oh, I did, finally, find a photo showing the drivers.

paramours 112413 by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

 

[JohnVF]

Anything in particular or just different.
I ask because I bought a buncha different 12AT7 morphs when AES had a big(gish) tube sale last year -- I have a smattering and I'd be happy to send you some to try. They can be a long term loan (like infinity minus one long term) if you happen to like some -- as long as you don't clean me out

I can check stock if your curiosity is piqued (mine is)

PS The reason I bought 'em was option creation for the driver stage of the Bottlehead Paramours. Something had rekindled interest in 'em last year -- can't actually remember what at this point, though.
😐

DSC_8376 (2) by Mark Hardy, on Flickr

heh -- not that they're visible in that photo.

Thanks for the offer. Really, I'm just trying to see how they differ? I like the Raytheons that are in there a lot. I recall liking the military Mullards, too, but not quite as much as the Raytheons. And the Sylvanias should be something else, too...as it goes. I'm not really missing anything, I'm just curious. I'll keep you updated on how the Sylvania tubes go. If they're awful its no big deal, as I like what I have just fine.

 

[Redboy]

I have tubes, too!

It's funny, actually... Tubes are one of the things I buy that I never sell, mostly because I don't own a tube tester! Someday I'll get around to buying a good tester, which will probably pay for itself immediately in tube sales. Until then... tubes come in but they never leave.

 

[mhardy6647]

I have tubes, too!

wait, what?
really?

 

[JohnVF]

I finally fired the digital side back up, which I haven't listened to since mid December. I'd tried but somewhere in there all the bluesound stuff had reset it self, went wonky, and I'd also changed my Tidal password somewhere which I guess was the end of the world to these little diva devices. All good now.

And...yay! Sounds great. Apparently all the work I did positioning the speakers and making sure they have a much firmer footing, with spikes, leveling, and cups for the spikes, helped. I also took the backs off the speakers and futzed with the foam in the Harbeths and reset the screws in the backs a bit tighter...a Harbeth thing I guess. Whatever I did it improved things especially in the bass.

If you'd told me a decade ago that I could stream any of a few million songs/albums into my house over the internet and it would sound this good? Pfft.

 

[kirk57]

Well said. Thankfully, this time it just comes from curiosity. I have rolled tubes in this stage before, but never in a system this revealing of the changes. And I very simply just want to see what changes, for good or bad, as a reference. So I bought a pair of early '50s Sylvania 12at7s, black plate d-getter (I think? I'm not the most knowledgable tube person when it comes to distinctions). Are they the best? I have zero idea. At the very least I'll have a spare set.

Interesting that you and I both have anxiety following us around. Mine has been sitting more in the back seat, asleep, for a couple of months and I'm not sure why, though I've been working on it daily. Perhaps that also has something to do with my audio contentment? Don't make any sudden moves or noises, I don't want to wake it up. It's a horrible thing, I prefer to leave it alone.

Aside from the kind/brand of tube, it's good to know if the tubes are good and whether they match. I have a tube tester so I can verify, otherwise you are counting on the seller to tell you the truth.

If you're buying from someone reputable like Jim McShane that's not a problem. If you're buying from some random guy on the internet, maybe.

 

[JohnVF]

Aside from the kind/brand of tube, it's good to know if the tubes are good and whether they match. I have a tube tester so I can verify, otherwise you are counting on the seller to tell you the truth.

If you're buying from someone reputable like Jim McShane that's not a problem. If you're buying from some random guy on the internet, maybe.

I bought matched tubes from TubeDepot supposedly also tested for low noise/microphony. The pair that I'm currently using were bought off of Reverb.com and I think I just got lucky with them, though the seller did say they were matched and audibly they appear to be, and also low noise. My luck on ebay has been hit and miss, as has my luck with random pulls from found objects/gear not worth the tubes within.

 

[MikeT.]

@JohnVF , wonderful write up in your OP. If you have tubes, any kind of tubes, any number of tubes, it’s inevitable to want to play. Since the Harbeths arrived, the desire to go whole-hog-crazy again has subsided. I’m very happy with things but the only way I could have known that I really like the Denon 103, the Sphinx, the DAC, etc, was to go through all the pain and shuffling/suffering that came before. I’ll still tweak now and then but maybe I’m finally here too.

 

[adaug]

... and I'd also changed my Tidal password somewhere which I guess was the end of the world to these little diva devices. All good now.

passwords to play music? noooooooooooooooooooooooo!

 

[fiddlefye]

Thanks for the offer. Really, I'm just trying to see how they differ? I like the Raytheons that are in there a lot. I recall liking the military Mullards, too, but not quite as much as the Raytheons. And the Sylvanias should be something else, too...as it goes. I'm not really missing anything, I'm just curious. I'll keep you updated on how the Sylvania tubes go. If they're awful its no big deal, as I like what I have just fine.

I'm running a mixture of Raytheons and Sylvanias and they're both great. Brimar are still my faves, but good ones are getting a bit rich for my boold.

 

[Leben]

I have tubes, too!

It's funny, actually... Tubes are one of the things I buy that I never sell, mostly because I don't own a tube tester! Someday I'll get around to buying a good tester, which will probably pay for itself immediately in tube sales. Until then... tubes come in but they never leave.

You just explained my situation exactly. Well almost, I think it’s safe to say that you likely have more tubes.

 

[Thermionics]

Thanks for the offer. Really, I'm just trying to see how they differ? I like the Raytheons that are in there a lot. I recall liking the military Mullards, too, but not quite as much as the Raytheons. And the Sylvanias should be something else, too...as it goes. I'm not really missing anything, I'm just curious. I'll keep you updated on how the Sylvania tubes go. If they're awful its no big deal, as I like what I have just fine.

I might have a few RCA black-plate 12AT7 at home in the stash if you wanted to try those out as well.

 

[Deli]

Fantastic post, John.

I’m not there. In the grand scheme, I’m relatively and satisfyingly satiated, I am more than fairly content, and I’m finding great joy in the hobby- but I’m not quite where you are.

Yet.

However this post reminds me it’s okay. Okay to have shed the insatiable need of better, the hounding burden of constant pursuit, to have calmed from the nervous energy the existential nag of “what if” inflicts and taxes one with, it’s a good thing to have arrived at. To be aware and appreciative of the moment, to enjoy the experience at hand, and to move slowly and at leisure in any pursuit of betterment- and that, only if it rewards the efforts and allows ample room for appreciation of what is already there.

I look forward to tightening things up and shedding the remainder of wayward components but in the meantime catching gracious moments of bliss through the system as it is in its current state.

Now, tell me- what JBLs have usurped the Harbeths? That, my friend, I find intriguing…