6SN7GT VT231 TUBES

I've always used Raytheon VT-231 tubes. Since I have my own computer tune tester I find samples on eBay for the most part. If I use a tube vendor my go to people are Andy Bouwman at Vintage Tube Services and Brent Jesse.

I bought a bunch at a rummage sale in the 90s, but I'm not parting with them!

Tung Sol did make VT231s

Brent Jesse great to do business with…..

Brent Jesse great to do business with…..

                                   +1

    I bought his last NOS Tung-Sol RP, 6SN7GT, matched pair.

               A perfect pair and: I love ’em!

I bought most of them through Ebay from 2018 to 2022.

Most of them were good.

I have all the tubes you mentioned including TS bgrp.

Now my favorite are 6f8g tubes which sounds fuller than vt231.

I may have the most comprehensive collection of 6sn7 or variants.

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/shootout-of-nos-6sn7-tubes

I have 50 different kinds and total more than 120 pairs.

But I do not sell my tubes. They are my lifetime collection.

Thomas

www.langrex.co.uk

I don’t use these tubes, but what’s the point of responding to a question with essentially, ‘those are great/amazing tubes, I have dozens of pairs that I’ll never use/sell/share, and good luck finding any because I’ve hoarded them all’…?? If the tubes are that good why not get them out there for others to enjoy? 

+1 for Raytheon VT-231’s! The Ken-Rad VT-231’s have the most solid bass of all the 6SN7’s I’ve heard in my Cary SLP05, Schiit Freya+, and Schiit Saga. The 5692 versions are smooth sounding. My favorite combos now are a quad of Raytheons in the Cary’s gain stage with by a set of CBS Hytron 5692’s in the XLR input buffer. With the Freya, black glass Ken Rads in the gain stage followed by the 5692’s in the buffer is my favorite combo, and I use a Sylvania 6SN7 GT JAN (“Bad Boy”) from the early 1950’s in the buffer. 
 

I have a quad of NIB red base GE 5692’s (RCA made) that I can’t wait to try as well, with several other JAN versions of RCA, Sylvania, etc.

For the money, the best I have heard are 1960’s NOS Sylvania 6SN7 GTB’s bought for about $35 apiece from Brent Jessee that have an exuberant, sparkly top. They sound significantly better than any of the new production tubes that I have experienced.

 I can’t recommend Brent Jessee enough, and will add that I have not yet experienced a bad experience buying NOS or used tubes from a variety of folks on Audiogon or US Audio Mart. I love the tonality of the 6SN7 tube, finding it to sound more natural and less hard than any 12AX7 tubes that I’ve live with for over 45 years (my favorites were Dutch Amperex, less dark than Telefunkens in my SP6B and Marantz 7C, as well as GE 5751’s used in the phono section of the Marantz).

I meant to say that I used the Sylvania Nad Boy in the buffer of my Saga.

Bad not Nad! 

I'm using the Sylvania 6sn7 gtb tubes right now and love them. I actually bought several sets just to have backup. I also have a few sets of the Raytheon and Tung Sol 6sn7gt (not the oval mica). I think they are really close but slightly prefer the Sylvania. The Sylvania 6sn7 GT 3 hole Bad boys are a little bass heavy in my system but have great soundstage and some spooky holographic detail that I do love. I could certainly live with them.  I also tried the Ken Rad VT-231 clear glass but I have not found a set that wasn't microphonic unfortunately.  I'd love to try the oval mica TS VT-231 but those prices have just gotten too steep for me. Running $ 800.00 a pair etc. Wow!

I have heard that the military VT-231 designation is overblown and many of the standard 6sn7 GT or GTB from the same era sound no different. YMMV

Thomas,

I've read through your 6sn7 tube shootout many times. It's a great guide and has helped a lot in my selection. Any particular 6f8g tubes that you prefer?

Thanks,

Mark

All of them are pretty great, and the final choice is going to be very system & listener dependent. More often than not, I like Tung-Sol black glass round plate 6SN7 the best - if I had to pick one, that's it. Unfortunately, I've had the bad luck of heaters going out on a few of these. 

I prefer Sylvania (side getter) VT231 over RCA. Sylvanias in general (through the 1950s) are pretty cool with me. Next are Hytrons and Ken-Rads. And RCA last (but still nice). I haven't had the pleasure of trying the Raytheon VT231, but they look lovely! Heck, even the Russian issues (Electro Harmonix, Tung-Sol) can be good - they measure VERY strong in transconductance, and can sometimes be best-in-slot for driving lots of big KT tubes. 

What I found is that vintage 6SN7GT tubes are best suited for the input stages of power amps. In these slots, you're getting all of their sweet sound with none of the downsides. In preamps, these old tubes are going to have all kinds of noise / microphony issues. Even worse in phono stages. As an output stage tube in headphone amps (this was more popular circa 2000s head-fi), they are very weak compared to many other better alternatives. 

For preamp slots, it's best to stick to later GTA / GTB issues (lower noise & microphony), or modern Russia/China tubes which can be selected for very low noise (and matched tightly, to boot). 

6SN7 is a GREAT tube, but it's important to respect its proper role and limitations. 

@vintageadict 

RCA, Sylvania, Tungsol 6f8g are good.

But Tungsol seems to be overpriced due to hype.

Raytheon sounds more shapr and clear thus dependent on system and taste.

Thomas

Interesting that I mainly use the 6SN7 tube family in my preamp and have not experienced any noise or microphony issues with older tubes.  Just a couple outright failures.
My preferred 6F8G tubes are Raytheon with flat ladder plates (very hard to find).  Step up from the T plate version.  National Union round plates and RCA Gray Glass are also excellent.

@shkong78      Are you still on the Melz 1578 bandwagon? I bought two pair from an ebay seller you had cited. My experience with them was dismal as none of them made 50 hours use. I just ditched the last pair a few days ago. Don't get me wrong...I'm not blaming you for my outcome, just wondering if you've had better luck with longevity.

I have 3 pairs of Melz but no more interest in them due to noise problem.

I also collected more than 8 ohter Russian tubes whish also sound decent.

I just put a 6F8G in my amp and I think I like it better.  Seems to have tightened up the bass.

RCA black glass.

Brent Jessee, great source of information, huge selection, good guy to deal with.....he doesn't give his stuff away, but he has the inventory

I know this is not really what you're asking but I have a VTA SP-14 and just replaced the 4 6sn7's with 7n7's (you'll need a base adapter, readily available on ebay). A much more open and detailed sound with no etching of the treble. The bass seems a tiny bit looser but still powerful and tuneful. Very impressed!

I also tired four different kind of 7n7 out of curiosity 2 years ago.

Although they sound clear and detailed but lack overall musicality compared with vt231 or 6f8g tunes.

Thus no more interest in 7n7.

Thomas

But 7n7 tubes are reasonably priced.

Thus you may try them for fun or different flavor.

You never know until you try them in your system.

Thomas

One of the best things about the 6sn7 tubes other than they sound great is there are still a ton available and many at reasonable prices. I use them in a Modwright LS 100 preamp. I didn't go all in on the Tung Sol round plates that go for such high prices but I have a nice selection of Sylvania, Raytheon, Tung Sol, and RCA that should take care of me for many years. I much prefer those to any newly made tubes I have from Russia or China. The somewhat standard Sylvania 6sn7 gtb sound very good in my system and they are plentiful. 

I love the Tung-sol 6NS7 I use them in my Triangle Arts I've owned the older version & his newer line. Pre Amp & Mono-Blocks. They're inexpensive balanced & sound great. When I compare the difference in prices I'll go with Tung-Sol's. More money for vinyl.....