Upscale Audio no longer sells these tubes to noncustomers (only to those who purchased their amp/preamps through Upscale). I was hoping to try these out in my BHK preamp . . . . . . . Anyone know where to purchase these?
Thanks.
_Ben
I recently bought 3 matched pairs at tubemonger.com.
Thanks jag!
Another one to try is Andy Bouwman at www.vintagetubeservices.com
He prefers phone calls to suss out what will best fit your needs.
A fair number of us that received these with our BHK pre purchase from Upscale learned they weren’t all that Uncle Kevvy talked them up to be…perhaps for a couple hundred hours they were OK (or just different) but quickly became gritty and noisy.
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The Matsushita PCC88s they sell currently are also really good. Maybe a bit better in some ways…
I have a set of those I need to try again. They were a little rough when I tried them about a year ago but my system hasn’t been static…striving for synergy.
After listening to 1958 CBS-labeled 5814WA from 3-28-20 until 6-21-20 - 934 hours I switched it up with 1955 GE-labeled 6189 for 50 hours and then Brimar CV4003 for 100 hours I’m back to my backup set of '58 5814WA.
I’ve enjoyed the heck out of vintage Raytheon and Sylvania 12AU7 - none of them more than $40/pairs.
Get a set of socket savers to save the board socket wear…
Fun stuff - my collection
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Parts Connexion sells them but the Matsushita is a better sounding tube.
Thanks for all the great responses. I just received my new BHK pre, so I will happily listen to the stock tubes in order to get a good feel for the sound/synergy. I will, however, do some tube rolling just for fun. Is there a good thread(s) on this forum that discusses which tubes users have tried, and the results they’ve experienced . . . . . I did a search to no avail?
One thing I noticed immediately, is that the BHK pre greatly enhances the DS(sr) . . . . . . I had been using the DS(sr) to drive my amp since I bought it four(+) years ago, and I always thought the sound was excellent. In my rig, the BHK pre has been the best DS(sr) upgrade; better bass control, more gain (“louder!”), less restriction (seems to have opened up the soundstage a bit) . . . . . . . and the BHK’s not even broken in!
Cheers!
_Ben
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Awesome! Same experience I had when moving from the DS Sr. as a preamp to the BHK as a preamp. In terms of tubes it’s all preference. I LOVE the sound of the Tungsrams. Use them in my BHK 250 amp and my BHK preamp.
Lots of experience in this thread:
I have the same front-end and question as Timequest. What are the sonic characteristics of different tubes in the BHK pre? Currently using Radiotechnique 12au7’s, which are a subtle improvement over the stock tubes.
. . . . .Is there a “tube counter” function on the BHK pre? I just read something about this while searching the threads on tubes . . . . .
Yes. Press and hold the button to the left of the display.
Thanks dc
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Congrats Ben! Had a similar experience when adding a BHK preamp to my system.
Two suggestions on tube rolling with a BHK preamp. Only buy them from a trusted source and only used matched pairs. If in doubt about the tubes don’t use them as they can cause problems with and to your preamp.
Sound advice norton!! I’ve been taking notes. There’s some recommendations on this forum for sources, and for tube type/manufacturer. Do you have any recommendations?
If you think you’ll roll often, pickup a set of 9-pin extenders. This will put the wear and tear on the replaceable extender and not the main board sockets. The cover may not fit with them but it’s a small price to pay.
Ben, I tried Tungsram and Telefunken tubes. Both sounded different. Between more pronounced clicking and/or more background noise, I have gone back to all stock tubes in my BHK preamp and power amps.