New Line Magnetic 508ia Integrated Amp

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by GoldprintAudio, May 20, 2016.

  1. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Hi guys, finally got the 508ia from china-hifi (shipping and communication were top notch, literally less than a week to London Uk I got no idea how they do it).

    Since the thread is now 126 pages I got two questions if anybody is kind enough to spare me the whole reading:

    Fuse: what's the type/value for europe/uk version? I'm going with the sinergistic black just need to understand which value.

    6sl7: I wanna get the Mullard but on ebay I see different model/prices, is there one model in particular to look for? I've a Fivre NOS which is an upgrade over the stock (altought I think the stock is quite good) but really want to try the Mullard.

    6sn7: The stock EH are not that bad but definitely cut off the resolution. I have TAD and PSVANE here: TAD an improvement in resolution but no as full bodied. Psvane TII terrific resolution and more dinamic but overall sound too hot and v-shaped, kinda cheap sound system effect so not happy. I thought of trying the Psvane globe or the linlai but I think they are all from the CV181 family which if I'm not wrong as slightly higher voltage, which would justify the bold sound of the Psvane I own in the first place. Any suggestion here for new production? I got JJ as well but it's not even worth trying them.

    Thanks for any answer.
     
    Pedro Guillemain likes this.
  2. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    For anyone questioning the tube, here is the reference link from LineMagnetic: Set up
    LM-508IA: 220-240: T8A250V 100-120: T10A250V
    LM-805IA: 220-240: T8A250V 100-120: T10A250V

    I found a pair of Shaunguag 62l7we, the strange bottle one, on ebay for a fair price.

    Still I would really like to try a good Mullard and a worthy replacement of the EH 6sn7.
     
  3. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Love the blue glow from the WE 300-B's.

    [​IMG]
     
  4. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    First, congratulations on your new amp! It's a beast and once you equip it with the right tubes, it'll sound 2x better than it already does! :)

    Since you're a new owner, I suggest you read this thread that I created about a design flaw so that your unit is proactively fixed.

    Design flaw for Line Magnetic's LM-508IA.

    As for tubes, my experience is that NOS tubes are almost always better than current production ones. After trying the EH and Psvanes, once I was done tube rolling quite a lot, I eventually came to this configuration of unfortunately expensive tubes but the results cannot be denied and I'd never go back to anything different.

    - Mullard ECC34 in both 6SN7 slots *and* the 6SL7 slot too!
    - EML 300B-XLS
    - NOS RCA 805

    Each one made a seismic difference in the sound quality but if I had limited funds and only stock tubes, I'd start with the Mullards first. Then, the 300B, and finally the 805s.

    The review for the Western Electric 300B reissues from @Ontheone is intriguing but I don't have the 2K I'd need to get a pair right now and I'm still thoroughly enjoying the EMLs anyway. Hopefully, I'll eventually get to try a pair. Too bad none of us are local owners; it'd make tube rolling that much easier.
     
  5. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Thanks, can you describe how the mullard look?

    Oh so the Mullard is actually the ECC34 with the coca cola bottle not the ECC35 with standard shape?

    Can I really put 6sl7 tubes in the 6sn7 slots? Or is it something specific to ECC34 variant? I'd like to try the shuangung 6sl7we in the 6sn7 slot but do I risk to do damage?

    As per the 300b I'm not sure a WE is worth in the driver stage, sounds like a waste of money (then of course all can be in this hobby). I have Psvane 300b-uk that I tried but I prefer the stock one, interestingly on the decware forum there is a long thread about the upcoming 300b amplifier and Steve is using the WE usa reissue and then he adds that for a cheap alternative he discovered some underground no label Shanguang with a white base that sound stunning and better then the low tier new productions (like the psvane hifi/uk/cossor series or russians), I believe the unlabel shanguang can easily be the same that LM rebrands from Shanguang, indeed they sound good.
     
  6. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    I don't disagree. As superb as the WE 300-B sounds in the LM805 I don't think the incremental performance is worth the extra cost if you're making purely a value assessment. Bear in mind, my plan is to use the WE tubes in a future 300b amp soon, at which point I will happily rotate the EML's back into the LM.
     
  7. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Please ensure you use the Reply and Quote buttons when you're writing a message to someone or they won't be alerted you replied. I only happened by your response by chance. Use Reply and Quote in the future, please.

    The ECC34s will work in all 3 slots and are by far the best tubes I've tested in all 3 slots.

    I can't answer whether other 6SN7 tubes can be used safely in the 6SL7 slot.

    Chinese tubes, to me, are a huge no-no. I avoid them all. Never heard one being close to a definitive tube in any position for any stereo or guitar amp, ever.
     
  8. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Right, thanks for pointing out.

    I understand your position on chinese vs nos. Of course but NOS is a roulette unless you really know what to get. And the Psvane TII really shined previously in a Freya+ compared to nos RCA and other new production I tried, it's not a bad tube at all, I really think it's that the CV181 is slightly higher voltage in this amp makes everything sound so bold and dynamic that on my 94db efficiency speakers it gives me an headache.

    Can you confirm the Mullard is the coca cola bootled one? mullard ecc34: Search Result | eBay

    For the fuse I think I'm going to get a QSA light blue.
     
  9. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    I think I will eventually get the WE if I put my hand on one of those upcoming decware. But first I need to upgrade my spatialaudio hologram speakers to something more refined, I'm an openbaffle fan and OB brands are all difficult to buy here in the UK, possibly a new model from GRResearch is coming out soon and waiting on that currently as it's one of the most affordable options.

    The LM amp is really something I bought to make the spatialaudio work since they are a difficult load and didn't play well, lacking bass, with my 300b amp.

    This LM is impressive, it takes so much bass out of the speakers, it betters class-d mega watts I tried before, not to speak of all the rest of the spectrum.
     
  10. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Then it's not a good tube. No such thing as too many dynamics in a tube. However, I would suggest you experiment with the NFB switch. I have mine on setting 2 as it's by far the most naturally sounding setting.

    Instead of spending hundreds on Chinese tubes, it's better to spend hundreds on NOS tubes, IMHO.

    I'm so sorry! I meant ECC32! *NOT* ECC34. They look almost identical but it's Mullard ECC32s that I have in my amp and that sound extraordinary. The ECC34s are not compatible with this amp, from what I remember. I just had a brain cramp and wrote ECC34 instead of ECC32, previously. Again, my apologies for the mix-up.

    They look identical too, which can make identifying them without a label a bit more difficult.

    ECC32 @ The Valve Museum
     
  11. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Oh I see, then that's more of a CV181/6sn7 then 6sl7... an indeed that's the bottle shape of all modern shanguang/psvane/linlai CV181.

    I bet it's fantatstic but nfortunately seem way out of my budget at current ebay prices:
    mullard ecc32: Search Result | eBay

    I think it's not much the valves to blame but my speakers, 2 15 inches cones per side plus a compression tweeter... they are a lot of fun but can easily sound unrealisticly bold. Can't wait to change them for something more refined and laid back.
     
  12. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Don't be fooled by bottle shapes. Some bottle shapes are actually unnecessary but chosen for various other reasons. Such is the case with some tubes which were advertised as one type but were in reality another.
     
  13. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    What do you mean? They are all CV181. May not sound as good as nos but are made to CV181 specs.

    I'm curious when you use the Mullard in the 6sl7 position compared to other 6sl7 what does it sound like?
     
  14. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    I'm merely stating the bottle shape is meaningless as I've encountered some tubes that were different than even labeled. It's a loooong discussion that I'd rather not get into. Suffice it to say, don't rely on bottle shapes to know whether a tube is one type versus another.

    Better in every way you can imagine.
     
  15. IGD Positive

    IGD Positive Forum Resident

    Location:
    Inner groove
    Mind sharing how much you paid?
     
  16. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    They're $1500 USD/pair.
     
  17. IGD Positive

    IGD Positive Forum Resident

    Location:
    Inner groove
    I'm well aware. He said he found a good deal so I'm assuming he paid less than retail.
     
    Strat-Mangler likes this.
  18. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    I paid $1,200
     
    IGD Positive and Strat-Mangler like this.
  19. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Has anybody been experimenting with tube dampeners? I just tried my herbies (HAL-O III Stabilizer ) they fit both the 300b and the 508 and on the 300b seem to quite dry the sound out, to the point I took them out for now.

    I'm curious if anyone has been experimenting with this, unfortunately I don't have any for the pre tubes.
     
  20. AP1

    AP1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    TX
    6SL7 tube where dampener may help most. Do NOT use anything for 805 tube. You need to have clean glass to prevent overheating of this tube.
     
  21. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Where are you getting this from?
     
  22. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Yes I shy away of doing things to those 508 tubes.

    The 300b definitely had an effect, obviously this all depends on floor, position relative to speakers and any other cause to pick up vibrations I suppose that's why there is so little agreement on tube dampeners - to me no question they work, I can tell what height on the tube I have them from the sound.

    Curious about experiences, in my previous 300b amp all the tubes in the pre stage had dramatic effects but they where the small 12au7 and 6922. I used to leave the 300b alone there too no to dry the tube sound too much but definitely even the big rectifier tube was changed by the dampener leading to a somewhat more solid foundation to the sound. Luckily no rectifier in this amp to roll :)
     
  23. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    I think generally cause that's the tube that has the most impact in the amp.
     
  24. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    My experience is entirely different and those are 2 different unrelated topics.
     
  25. Paxpax

    Paxpax Member

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    Which tube made more impact in your experience? The 6sn7 pair?

    Not sure what each tube is doing in the circuit 508 power, 300b driver, 6ns7 gain? 6sl7 input gain again?

    Did you try any ring dampeners?
     

Share This Page

molar-endocrine