Best 845 tube out there?

According to Psvane Audio, Psvane WE211 tube can replace all current 211 tubes in high end audio application, BUT I have never seen any published specifications to confirm this claim.

Okay, so we are ruling out United, RCA and Amperex due to high cost. Forget about the KR845, they won't work in the 211AE. The Shuguang 845C has a lower disapisation rating than the standard 845, therefore, you will need to adjust the bias on the 211AE 845 tubes. I am not a big fan of the 845C in the 211AE.

Try and find a quad of the limited production metal plate SuperTnT 845W Noblemans which are absolute awesome tubes, but unfortunately, the production run was limited. NOS Cetron 845 also works nicely in the 211AE. I have not tried the Psvane 845, but the over sized glass and build quality looks interesting, but they have not been proven in the field as they have only been on the market for a couple of months.

The Shuguang 845B is the general tube of choice for the 211AE, notwithstanding NOS.

The SuperTNT 845W "Noblemen" tubes have the same tube rating/specs as the reference RCA 845. The Shuguang metal plate 845 has a lower dissipation rating (around 70w compared to the RCA standard of 100w).

Sophia does not manufacture tubes. These are re branded Chinese Shuguang tubes which have "passed" Sophia's quality control standards.

SuperTNT 845W Noblemens can be had for $400 pair when they are offered for sale, although, I have not seen too many pair for sale as most owner are keeping and/or hording them (like me)for future use or back ups. I like the Noblemens better then both Amperex and RCA. My favorite is still the United 845. I own all the aforementioned tubes including the Cetron 845 and a bunch of the Chinese variants.

Amfibus, the 845 referenced in your Sophia link is a rebranded TJ Full Music 845 MKII Carbon Plate. This tube will not work in your Cary 2111AE as it requires a much lower filament current (0.6A vs. 3.25A) than what your amp is spec'd for.

Take a look at the standard Chinese 845 http://supertnt.com/public/images/product/20060303123338_845.jpg and compare the internals to the Psvane 845. Bigger glass envelope and gold covered brass base.

The PSVANE 845T is suppose to be a premium tube at 4 to 5 times the price of the standard 845, therefore, how do tubes with misaligned internal elements pass Quality Control? Why would a manufacture allow these tubes into the retail channel when they are trying to establish a premium brand? Why would a distributor allow this?

I was considering a pair of PSVANE 845T, but I have lost faith in the quality control and will adopt a wait and see attitude.

Te standard FullMusic 845 (not the carbon plate) have similar specs to the Amperex/RCA 845 standard.

TJ FullMusic 845 Specs

Plate voltage 1000 1000 1250 V
Grid voltage -145 -155 -209 V
Load resistance 6 9 16 kohms
Plate current 90 65 52 mA
Signal voltage(pk) 110 145 V
Plate resistance 1.7 1.9 2.1 kohms
Output powe 24 21 24 W

TJ Full Music Carbon Plate 845 MKII is rated with 'nominal filament current - 0.6A at 10V' while the original RCA 845 tube was rated "filament current - 3.25A at 10V'. According to TJ Full Music's tube designer, for 845 tubes made with carbonized Thoriated Tungsten such as the RCA NOS 845 tube, filament current of 3.25A is required to generate sufficient electron emission for the tube to work properly. However, TJ Full Music's 845 MKII uses oxide coated filament which doesn't request as high as 3.25A filament current to generate sufficient electron emission.

TJ Full Music now makes a carbon plate 845 Mk3 (just released) that conforms to the Amperex/RCA standard. I have not heard this version.

Wow, $900 for a chinese current production 845! NOS 845 are looking like a bargain.

Hifi223, what "didn't work" with the TJ? Did they run too hot like that had been over driven with too much filament current?

What did you tube supplier say about your experience?

Did the TJ 845 come with a spec sheet indicating the tube's actual performance?

2.5A..That’s definitely the problem. Your amp probably produces 3.25A filament current to the 300B.

Saika2, the 845 tubes sold by chinesetubes.com are the original metal plate 845C with wings. The 845C has a lower dissipation rating than the RCA 845 standard; therefore, the majority of 845 amplifiers will run these tubes VERY hard. Getting 2 years from your previous pair is doing really well.

A agree with Dopouge, try a pair of Psvane 845, they are among the best current production 845.

Psvane is doing an excellent job at manufacturing and MARKETING their “premium” brand of tubes. Psvane, IMHO, has target the North American market due to our thirst for high quality new production tubes and especially our willingness to pay a premium for said tubes.

So why didn’t Psvane design and market a replica RCA or United 845? Because the Western Electric name has more of a premium “marketability” than either RCA or United. Western Electric never made a true 845 spec’d tube and the WE tube (WE284A) that the Psvane WE845 is supposed to be replicated from are not even close in construction. The WE284A was a metal plate whereas the Psvane WE845 has a graphite plate.

Also, if you take a close look at the Psvane WE845, there is evidence that the vacuum evacuation is performed from the top, whereas both the RCA845 and WE285A are evacuated from the bottom, so the manufacturing techniques are not even duplicated. How can these tubes be called Western Electric “Replicas”????

How many 845 tube variants does Psvane make now? Four, Five, Six?? As you go up the line, you get fancy packaging, a shinier base, and a more robust glass envelope. All marketing BS to appeal to the North American market.

I have had a (borrowed pair) of Psvane WE845 tubes in my system for 3-weeks. They are good sounding tubes, but IMHO are certainly not up to the same standard as vintage RCA, United, and the limited production run of high dissipation Super TnT metal plates. Heck, current production Cetrons will give them a run for the money.

If you want as good sound 845 tube from China, look for the lower price T-series Psvane tubes and by-pass the marketing BS and fancy boxes.

I am glad the current users of the Psvane WE845 tube are reporting excellent results, but based on my listening experience with 845 tubes, I’ll pass on the Psvane WE845 marketing clone, especially at $720/pair for a Chinese manufactured tube.

Charles1dad, I agree that everyone has their own individual listening bias and there is no universal best, only a best for you. I would be very interested in Jwm’s long term listening impressions. I found the Psvane WE845 to be very dynamic with a forward presentation. Initial impression was a bit of a “wow” but the “wow” factor was supplanted by the masking of inner detail and micro dynamics. The WE845 had a too much of an” in your face” with an aggressive presentation that drew attention to itself as oppose to the music.

It was just 5-years ago when a truly evolutionary metal plate 845 tube from China only cost $375/pr. How things have changed. I’ll stick with my 1959 United 845W JAN-CUE with the getter capsule and my 1941 RCA 845.

BTW, I use the Psvane TII series 12ax7, 12au7 and CV181 tube in my preamp with excellent results.

Below is a more updated version of the Psvane / Shuguang relationship and history. There are a few contradictions to ecll80’s post.

http://psvanetube.com/sitetemp/who-is-psvane/