Congrats on the acquisition. I enjoyed my time using EML 300B XLSs in the 508ia. The one thing I really miss about them is their soundstage and scale.
Hi guys Has anyone tried Golden Dragons 805? They are somehow cheap (about U$S 50/70 each plus shipping) and, if they are as good as their 300B tubes for the price, they could be a good alternative.
Well, for U$S 900 plus shipping and import taxes we have many options. A good finding would be a very good 805 tube under U$S 300 or so. I'm looking a back up for my ACMEs, not something more expensive.
No issues using the CV181s? Thought they might cause problems due to not being direct replacements for 6SN7s.
I used the Shuguang black treasures cv181 many hours with out any issues whatsoever. Should I be worried? Shouldn't be the same or am I missing something? Are there different CV181 tubes?
not in this case. In the 508IA it is a cathode follower to drive the 300B so the difference is not significant. I have some amps which it totally doesn't work.
those Chinese types are not true CV181. They are just 6SN7 and merely using the CV181 name. The real Mullard CV181/ECC32 have 50% more gain than regular 6SN7, and the sound is completely different than any other 6SN7. Deep and wide sound stage, but unfortunately being a Mullard it is a bit on the syrupy side. So need to balance it with some brighter tube.
Wondering if having Mullards in the 6SN7 slots as well as in the 6SL7 position might be too mellow or too much of a good thing.
too mellow for sure. Although having a row of ECC35 + ECC32 looks might impressive! I usually swap back the Sylvania VT229 to get a bit more in the top end.
The CV181 has a much larger effect on the sound. Anyone even without trained ears will hear the difference. Darker, wider, more 3D. ECC35 while has difference, is not as large. never tried ECC33. They seems really really rare.
Adding the EML 300B-XLS's provided enhanced & deeper bass extension, overall weight and greater depth but started making me crave just a bit more air. I swapped out the CBS Halytron 6SN7's I was using for my WWII-era RCA smoked glass VT231's and got exactly what I was looking for. Really enjoying the current tube combo - RCA 805s, EML 300's, RCA VT231 6SN7's and Mullard ECC35. Just a gorgeous sound right now listening at mid-80's dB levels with lowest NFB on 16 ohm taps through my O/96's. For the first time since getting the LM805ia I'm not craving a new tube to try! ha.
Selling to fund the merry-go-round which is audiofoolery. Acme 805s are great but I'm really liking the RCA 805s so I don't want to hold on to these. As @Thomas K opined - some might prefer the Acme 805s to the RCAs. I have two sets of Acme 300Bs - one pair was used in my DAC. It's been sitting unused for a while since it hasn't been my preferred output tube in my DAC for sometime now. It is my preferred 300B in the Line Magnetic amp so someone can get to experience it if they want. Please PM me to talk about price.
I was under the impression the ECC33 was incompatible with this amp. Maybe it was more of a gain incompatibility that I read about but this was a while ago. It may be worth looking into on my end.
ECC33 is in between 6SN7 and ECC32. closer to 6SN7 than it is to ECC32. They don't work on all amps that need 6SN7 but I know the ECC32 works for the 508IA. I haven't tried ECC33.
You're thinking of the ECC32. The ECC33 is a direct 6SN7 replacement. I've owned a pair of ECC33s before and they worked perfectly.
