Hi !
Is there any reason to buy so called gold-plated tube sockets (for extra cost)?
This gold-colored coating is few microns thin, and probably won't survive even single insertion.
From my past experience gold-plated RCA connectors were gimmicks, coating worn out very quickly.
Silver colored sockets are probably tin-plated.
Thanks for any suggestion(s).
Is there any reason to buy so called gold-plated tube sockets (for extra cost)?
This gold-colored coating is few microns thin, and probably won't survive even single insertion.
From my past experience gold-plated RCA connectors were gimmicks, coating worn out very quickly.
Silver colored sockets are probably tin-plated.
Thanks for any suggestion(s).
I don't know. Switches and relay contacts without gold plating that only switch low-level signals tend to give contact problems due to oxidization or reactions with sulfur after some time. I never had any problems with valve sockets without gold plating, though. Then again, Philips special quality valves typically have gold plated pins, so it must be good for something.
Most gold plating is done only for fashion, there isnt any advantage in things that are made to make a solid contact once in a lifetime, most tubes have resistive pin materials, not counting for some tubes where the plate is barely making contact with tiny folds or spots, but nobody cares about that, the tube rolling wasnt a thing until now, that technology wasnt conceived for frenetic tube rolling, and the actual cheap sockets that can be found are less than good they are made just to comply with the actual demand but havent come with one that has the same tolerances within the same batch or that it has actual gold as advertised.... to each his own 