Tube talk... JAN Philips 6922
Kenneth Kirkpatrick
> After reading Vacuum Tube Valley
> magazine’s 6DJ8 / 6922 shootout... I
> decided to purchase a few JAN Philips
> 6922 tubes (best buy) for my pre-amp
> and DAC. Up to that point I had been
> using Mullard 6922. In total I've run
> these brands of tubes: (1) GE, (2)
> Dragon, (1) Yugoslavian, (3) Sovtek,
> and (1) Mullard.
>
> After about 100 hours of use the most
> noticeable artifact of the JAN Philips is
> the smooth/slightly rolled-off high
> frequency... which seems to
> enhance/highlight the midrange. Some
> of this perceived enhancement results
> from increasing the volume which is
> possible without experiencing upper
> frequency hardness.
>
> The Sovtek still, for me, is the best
> sounding of the lot. And like the
> Mullards the Ensemble tube sock
> doesn’t fit the JAN Philips. Has anyone
> tried the 3M Viscoelastic tube dampener
> ($3.50)?
The best 6922's for my Cat Ultimate I have found are the Seimens 6922's
with gold pins. They are quiet, dynamic, with great bass and treble
extension. I also really like the Telefunkens, but I have never found a
pair that were quite enough for my preamp. I use them in my Cat JL-1
amps though. I found the Sovtecs to have a glare in the midrange in my
system. I keep them for back ups. Kevin Deal sold me a pair of Sovtec
6922's he hand selected that are very nice though. Just not as nice as
the Seimens, but allot cheaper. I wish these 6922's were easier to get
hold of! I have not tried tube dampeners.Cheers, Ken
Powell
"Kenneth Kirkpatrick" wrote
As a consumer I'm concerned about
purchasing NOS tubes in general. With
these tubes there is an assumption that
the design model is a larger contributing
factor in the sonic signature over
systematic sorting choices. For example
if one budgets $80 for each tube one has
the option of purchasing a NOS tube or a
common manufacture but a highly sorted
variety (ex. Gold Aero - specs meets 3%
of all tubes tested or Roger Majesky's
sorting system). With NOS you rely on the
goodwill/knowledge of the provider.. you
receive no technically enforceable warranty
of quality. Even if you did consumers don't
have the technical means to verify it
(quality)... it's the buyer beware. I'm not
saying NOS is bad just much more iffy. I've
done comparisons of mail order tubes vs
best Gold Aero & RAM of 6DJ8 & 6922...
the difference in noise and tonal signature
was audibly significant. In the back of my
mind I wonder if the sonic signature of the
JAN Philips at 3% of all sorted would sound
like the one I have... but lacking the will to
purchase a 3% JAN Philips I guess I'll never
know :).
> I use them in my Cat JL-1 amps though. I
> found the Sovtecs to have a glare in the
> midrange in my system.
>
They certainly do glare when they get older.
And like all tubes they are over the hill long
before the stated life time is reached by at
least 20%, IMO.
> Kevin Deal sold me a pair of Sovtec 6922's
> he hand selected that are very nice though.
>
No offence to Kevin but who does he sell
the *not so "nice" tubes* to... do you think
he throws them away? This is the faith issue.
Good thing the ABX's can't afford tubes...
they'd have a field day :).
Alan Dana
"Powell" <hig...@gtii.com> wrote in message
news:t83aoam...@corp.supernews.com...
I own four JAN Philips 6922 tubes. Have tried them in 2 preamps.
My biggest problem is that all four are somewhat to very microphonic.
Sonically, my findings were different than yours - I found them to be a
bit harsh and a bit lean through the midrange. There's a chance they were
more accurate than some of the others as they produced a more neutral
kinda sound, but I was looking for a warmer, more classically "tubey" sound
and the Philips didn't deliver.
> > The best 6922's for my Cat Ultimate I
> > have found are the Seimens 6922's
> > with gold pins. They are quiet, dynamic,
> > with great bass and treble extension. I
> > also really like the Telefunkens, but I
> > have never found a pair that were quite
> > enough for my preamp.
I'm currently using Amperex 7308 gold pins. Very nice smooth
sound while still retaining good bass definition. I A/B'ed against
the Philips, Sovtek, GE, Yugos, and a few older USA brands (I
think Sylvania or RCA or something - can't remember now). It took
me several hours over a 3-day period to run all of the comparisons,
but in the end my clear preference was the Amperex.
> As a consumer I'm concerned about
> purchasing NOS tubes in general. With
> these tubes there is an assumption that
> the design model is a larger contributing
> factor in the sonic signature over
> systematic sorting choices. For example
> if one budgets $80 for each tube one has
> the option of purchasing a NOS tube or a
> common manufacture but a highly sorted
> variety (ex. Gold Aero - specs meets 3%
> of all tubes tested or Roger Majesky's
> sorting system). With NOS you rely on the
> goodwill/knowledge of the provider.. you
> receive no technically enforceable warranty
> of quality. Even if you did consumers don't
> have the technical means to verify it
> (quality)... it's the buyer beware. I'm not
> saying NOS is bad just much more iffy.
These are excellent points. I've had Mullards, RCAs, Amperex,
and other "premium" NOS tubes that were very noisy and/or
microphonic. Or simply didn't match up well with my equipment.
Buying expensive NOS is a crapshoot.
I got lucky with my 7308 purchase. Picked them up from a dealer
who was pulling tubes from old Tektronik test equipment. They look
and test new and cost me only $7 a tube. I got 8 that all work fine and
sound great for $56 total. As my preamp only needs 2 and I don't use
that system a lot, these 8 should be enough to last my lifetime!
Alan
tim osborne
back. After about a month of frustration, I threw them in the garbage.
Microphonic as hell and no better sounding than Sovteks.
Oz
Alan Dana wrote in message ...
gschm...@my-deja.com
"Powell" <hig...@gtii.com> wrote:
> After reading Vacuum Tube Valley
> magazine’s 6DJ8 / 6922 shootout... I
> decided to purchase a few JAN Philips
> 6922 tubes (best buy) for my pre-amp
> and DAC. Up to that point I had been
> using Mullard 6922. In total I've run
> these brands of tubes: (1) GE, (2)
> Dragon, (1) Yugoslavian, (3) Sovtek,
> and (1) Mullard.
I wouldn't outright believe what VTV has to say. I am a fan of
6922s , but I remember reading a VTV (Charlie Kittleson article I
think) article that said that 6922/6Dj8 etc were junk basically to use
as preamp and drivers , but then they "review" them.
>
> After about 100 hours of use the most
> noticeable artifact of the JAN Philips is
> the smooth/slightly rolled-off high
> frequency... which seems to
> enhance/highlight the midrange. Some
> of this perceived enhancement results
> from increasing the volume which is
> possible without experiencing upper
> frequency hardness.
>
> The Sovtek still, for me, is the best
> sounding of the lot. And like the
> Mullards the Ensemble tube sock
> doesn’t fit the JAN Philips. Has anyone
> tried the 3M Viscoelastic tube dampener
> ($3.50)?
A friend makes this custom 6922 preamp and uses ONLY Telefunken. It's
the most cleanest and dynamic preamp I ever heard. Sovteks are cheap
and good. I would also try some Amperex gold pin.
>
>
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