2. analog
  3. 158230-130910

Newb Tube question

Having recently acquired a Pro Ject Tube Box S2 phono stage, I'm liking what I hear and am wanting to learn more about tubes.
I see reference to the plates inside the tubes... "short plate", "long plate", "smooth plate", etc.
Is there any sonic difference with the different plate characteristics, or is the quality and manufacturer more important?
Are there brands to seek or avoid?
Just curious... Don't know if my lower-end *system or my 65 year old ears are capable of resolving the difference between tubes anyway.

Thanks!

*System:
Emotiva BasX PT-100 preamp, Emotiva BasX A300 power amp, Zu Libtec speaker cables feeding Maggie 1.6's, Morrow interconnects, Technics sl-1200 mk2 w/ Nagaoka mp-200 cartridge and before-mentioned Project Tube Box S2  phono stage.
mwinkc

Showing 1 response by unison77

unison77
50 posts
 
I have a ProJect Tube Box DS2 which came with JJ ECC 803 tubes. Sounds quite decent with stock tubes. Its construction is different from your Tube Box S2 - the tubes are sunk inside, and on order to replace them with NOS tubes, I would have to open the top cover, remove the stock tubes together with heat dampers glued to them and install vintage tubes. I could not cope with this simple task as I could find a suitable tool.
Re long vs short plates: It is rumored that tubes with long plates (such as Mullard tubes) have higher value and sound better, but I would say it depends on the application. 
More to discover