Tube sockets

[56oval]

Hello Diyaudio.
I'm at the stage of buying tube sockets ,I have tried some generic ceramic types and have trouble with the centre rivot coming loose or the contacts not grabing the pins tight enough
and I'm very careful how much heat I use when soldering .Also
a friend has tried the Teflons and didn't really notice any improvement and how much does the base metal add to the sound .
Has anyone tried the QQQ sold by Angela or Parts connexion
So what would you guys recommend .
In all I need 4 to suit 300B's ,12 to suit 6SN7's ,4 nine pins .

Cheers.

[SY]

I'm not confident about the long-term mechanical integrity of Teflon sockets, so I tend to avoid them. Ceramic is the material of choice.

Tight connection to the pins is the most essential element. Even if one is a True Believer that different metals impart different sounds to the current flowing through them, it's unlikely that the metal in the socket will have much effect, given the materials used to move current in and out of the tube's electrodes.

[lochness]

given the materials used to move current in and out of the tube's electrodes

Which makes one wonder why people obsess over using solid silver wire coated in gold for short internal connections or special silver alloy connections on hand made teflon sockets (obviously these all have to be hand made by an old guy in japan or they are worthless).

Never had a problem with ceramic or teflon sockets. Maybe OP got a bad batch or something. If they were bought from a retailer send them back and get new ones. If you bought them off ebay...well you learned your lesson.

[kevinkr]

Never had any issues with teflon sockets either - something over two dozen used (yamamoto brand) as long as 10 yrs ago. Octal and UX-4 types primarily.

I've recently purchased less expensive Chinese made UX-4 sockets which look nicely made. Have yet to use them.

Flow should be slow enough that I will be dead by the time it is an issue..

[audiowize]

Whatever you do, avoid the Chinese ceramic Johnson UX4 copies. The rivets get loose really easily, and the tensioner on the contacts fall apart pretty quickly (this goes for all the other similar sockets available). If you have to use that type, add some adhesive over the rivets (like Johnson did back in the day).

The nicer sockets from Parts Connexion should work quite well for you.
-Paul

[andyjevans]

The nicest affordable UX4 sockets I've seen were from Rod Burman. White and made from some thick plastic material.

http://www.valves.uk.com/

He has a lot of interesting things, in fact, and he's in the UK.

[lochness]

oh speaking of teflon sockets where would be a good source of them (especially the 7 pin septar sockets)? My flea market source has dried up.

[TubeHead Johnny]

Antique Electronics Supply has a very large inventory of sockets with a fairly wide price range.

http://www.tubesandmore.com

[AJT]

Ceramic is the material of choice.

zhang sheng sell a lot of those.....<zhangsheng_ebay@163.com> email him, he can help you...

[JandG]

I have used well over 100 of the Chinese Johnson copies & some do have loose rivets, slightly. & only one let a clamp go only from me bending the solder pin tabs completely 90 degree's. This would be UX-4-5-7 & they grip like crazy.