what 12au7 have different tone ??vintage and modern

[prorms]

what 12au7 have different tone ??vintage and modern

[kmaier]

Not sure what you mean by a different tone. What is your intended use, audio gear, MI amp?

I have many NOS tubes... Telefunken ECC82, Mullard ECC82, Sylvania JAN-6189, RCA 5814A Blackplate plus some GEs and others. As an input/driver tube for a SET amplifier, there is virtually no sonic difference, albeit I can measure some changes in THD output between them... the JAN-6189 are lowest, but the difference is not that great to begin with.

I've not bothered with any newly manufactured tubes as you can easily get excellent NOS tubes of this type at reasonable prices from many sources.

Regards, KM

[prorms]

i got Siemens Silver Plate 12AU7 sounds some more brighter then other vintage tubes that i have. the tube is for preamp

[kmaier]

For a preamp, i.e., low-level signals, I would be inclined to find either NOS Telefunken or Mullard, the former being very expensive as the name commands a high price.... but there's more available of course at lesser prices.

Note that RCA made a series of tubes specifically for broadcast and studio use under the name Command series. If you can locate some 5814A Command tubes these would be excellent. They featured triple mica supports and a heavy U-frame wire stiffener. They were very quiet, had close adherence to published specs and featured long life continuous operation. GE also had their (broadcast) version under the 5-Star series. I've used all of the above for preamps and the RCA Command series is great deal... unless you have a retired uncle who has a stash of Telefunkens he's willing to you.

Regards, KM

[prorms]

thxs

[thetubeguy1954]

Hello Prorms!

I'd like to share an experience I had when I first purchased my amp which uses 12AU7 tubes. I readily admit this is a somewhat long post but, I believe it's a valuable read. At that time I was unfamiliar with the 12AU7 family of tubes, so I got on the internet and asked "What's the best sounding 12AU7 tube?" in different audio forums.

My question was almost always answered with the typical chorus one hears when asking this question buy Amperex, Mullard or Telefunken! As a tube-newbie I believed what I was told ---{at this point let's forget that as a newbie I didn't know how to identify a real Amperex, Mullard or Telefunken from a fake one}--- and so I set off looking for Amperex, Mullard or Telefunken on Audiogon, eBay and anywhere else I could locate them.

However I was very disappointed with the sound of Amperex, Mullard and Telefunken. So with no other options available to me, I proceeded to purchase tubes from as many different European tube manufacturers I could locate ---{Brimar, Cifte, Electro Harmonix, La Radiotechnique, Marconi, Mazda, Phillips, RFT, RT, Seimans, Tesla, Tungsram & Valvo}--- I did the same with the US tubes manufacturers ---{GE, JAN, RCA, Raytheon, Sylvania and Tung-Sol}---- and that's just naming those I can remember!

My search for the ultimate 12AU7 tube didn't end with just trying different manufacturers. I also tried as many different variations of the 12AU7 tube as I could locate such as ---{CV4003, CV491, ECC82, E82CC, ECC802S, M8136, 12AU7, 12AU7A, 12AU7WA, 5814, 5814A, 5963, 6067, 6189 & 7730}--- as well!

Needless to say this search for the "BEST" 12AU7-type tube cost me a lot of time & money but, it also taught me a few very valuable lessons.

1) There are sonic differences in the sound of 12AU7 & 12AU7-type tubes Sometimes these differences are subtle but, sometimes these differences are fairly dramatic.

2) The 12AU7 tube others suggest as being sonically superior might not be the one you believe is sonically superior. The tube you'll like best will depend on the equipment they're used in, the room the music is played in and the type(s) of music you listen to!

3) There's no such thing as the "BEST" 12AU7 or any other type of tube ---{a tube's sound is very component variable. It all comes down to what sounds the best to you in your particular audio component!}

In the end I found in my equipment, listening to the music I like the 2 best sounding 12AU7 tubes were the Mazda 6189 or 12AU7WA "silver-plate" & the RFT 12AU7 "yellow Mickey Mouse Ears" tubes. My suggestion is to try as many different 12AU7-types as you possibly can so you can decide for yourself!

Thetubeguy1954

Rational Subjectivism. It's An Acquired Taste.