Preamp Deal of the Century

Hi Supratekers,

I have just received my Chardonnay,taking the plunge after reading the posts here and the reviews on 6moons and can say that it's the best "blind" buy that I have ever made.
As I am in the UK I think we Supratek owners are bit thin on the ground here but it's really great to read about your experiences with these fantastic products.
Mick supplied my Chardonnay with Sovtek KT66 regulators and EH 6SN7's and the lowly Sovtek 5AR4 rectifier.I have barely got my Chardonnay warmed up let alone burned-in but as I had some 6L6 types and a bunch of 6SN7's I thought that I would try a valve (tube) change as I thought that it sounded a tad bright. So in went a set of Brimar 6L6G...... dull and lifeless........Sylvania 6L6GA.......a bit better so the KT66's are back in at the moment. I have a couple of New Tung-sol 6L6G replicas on the way so I will see if they can match the Sovtek KT66. I have also replaced the EH 6SN7's with Sylvania GTA chrome domes and these are a big improvement. I think I will leave things as they stand until I get some more hours on this unit but I am also waiting delivery of a Mullard GZ33 for the power supply.
I am really interested in the mods that you guys have done such as the attenuator and changing some of the caps. As I am new here I would like to ask if someone would tell me what caps to change in the Chardonnay and what the uF values are and voltage. I realize that this has probably been posted somewhere but it would make it so much easier if you could post it in a response.

Kgturner are your 6106's on ebay now? If not how much are you looking for one? I have a Mullard GZ33 on the way to replace the Sovtek 5AR4. You can mail me on jaydeecee@tiscali.co.uk
Thanks

I have been trying a few different 6SN7's in my Chardonnay and contacted Mick on his recommendations and he replied saying that he has tried many NOS 6SN7 types and would suggest that I should stick with the supplied tube the Electro Harmonix as this is better than most NOS.
I tried Ken Rad VT231 (smoked glass); Sylvania GTB chrome domes and Brimar military CV1988 and I have to agree with Mick as only the Brimars matched the EH. I had one other type to try and they were GE 6SN7GTA, short bottle, side getter and they just blew everything else away. Nobody appears to have mention these.
Can anyone give me info on the capacitor upgrade. What caps have you replaced and what values would I need for the Chardonnay. I also asked Mick about this and he said that he also did the V-Cap upgrade and waited months for something to happen........"nothing" so he would not recommend them over the Auricap and neither would Srajan of 6moos, apparently.

Outlier,

I have the Chardonnay driving a pair of monoblocks and a sub-woofer right at this moment and can confirm that it does it beautifully. So tell your friend not to hesitate as it will be the best audio move he could make.

Hope this helps

Correction.

I said in my post that it was the GE 6SN7GTA that blew everything away. What I meant to say it was the RCA 6SN7GTA small bottle, side getter tube.

Does anyone have a spare Bendix 6106 they they would like to sell? Impossible to get here in the UK.

Stiltskin

Many thanks for the info. Is there any way I can identify a 1950's 6106?

I have just installed a pair of new issue Tung-sol 6L6G "big bottle" replicas and they are sounding fantastic......replacing the supplied Sovtek KT66.

Are the 6F6Gs a drop in replacement?

Clipsal,

Any chance you want to sell your Bendix 6106?

Anybody, which is the best 6F6 type to use. I have seen both the "G" and "GT" types.

Powers

Many thanks for the info on the 6F6 types I will try and get a pair to compare. I have just fitted a pair of old Brimar 6L6G tubes into my Chardonnay and will see how they sound. No idea how they test but all I know is that they work.

I am still hoping someone here can offer me a Bendix 6106 as there seems to be a general consensus that this is the best rectifier to use. I have noticed that when I switch on, the tubes on the pre light up almost instantaneously though I thought that the Mullard GZ33 was supposed to be a slow start rectifier.

Has anyone tried a KT63, this is supposed to be a 6F6G equivalent.