Tube Rolling

Titus, 6550 power tubes, correct? It's always a good idea to have a spare set on hand...you never know.  So, try some new 6550s and see if you can hear a difference and like it. Tubes take a little burn in time, IMO these are probably "settled in" with 50 hours or less of play. Let us know what you do.

Nice amp by the way, very similar to mine. I change tubes when they blow, start acting up (funny noises) or sometimes just when they're very old. One set went a good 3 years, maybe 4, in my Melody. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367  That one time the dynamics did improve when the new tubes went in. Not like it seemed to lack before, but it was noticeable with the new tubes. This only happened that one time when the old tubes were very, very old. 

Different brands have been used over the years. JJ, Svetlana, Sovtek, Tung-Sol, Electro-Harmonix, basically all of these except the GE https://www.thetubestore.com/power-tubes/6550-tube-types The Melody uses KT88 and before that I used KT88 and 6550, they are very similar with KT88 being just a bit more liquid and deep. JJ is the most liquid and deep of the others I have tried. Even so not a lot of difference even from the best to the worst. 

Early on, because of all the stories, I tried replacing tubes that didn't need replacement. What people call tube rolling. Tube rolling is buying tubes you don't need to buy. Which I can understand the attraction to calling it tube rolling. Tube rolling rolls off the tongue way better than buying tubes for no good reason. Anyway I did try buying tubes for no good reason. Which is how I know that's what it should be called. Its not that there isn't any difference. There is always a difference. But for the same amount of money you could buy an Orange Fuse and have it be not merely different but incredibly better, and with money left over.  

Also there seems to be no correlation between what you pay and what you get. I have had the most expensive tubes sound bad and blow in a week, and I have had the cheapest tubes sound the best and last forever. And everything in between. Tubes are like records- you pays your money and you takes your chances. 

This is all power tubes I'm talking about. 6550C and KT88. Not that it makes much difference. They sound different yes but in the big picture what matters is power tubes get replaced because they wear out, while input tubes get replaced because, well you tell me they seem to last forever. 

Putting it all together, for you with a used amp the smart thing to do is buy a new matched set of power tubes. I'd go with JJ they're the best value in my experience, both in terms of sound quality and reliability. If you are really into it get a set of input tubes for the same reason, to have a spare set. Also who knows they may sound better. (Or not.) Either way now you have a spare set which is what I have come to see as the main benefit of the whole exercise. 

I literally just “rolled” my tubes in my ARC pre today. Replaced with new matched and balanced. Definite improvement as, like you, the original tubes had unknown age and duration on them. Can’t wait till the get really burned in. I also installed them without the ARC dampers as well, so I have a tweak to play with in the future... Can’t go wrong starting with a fresh set of tubes...

Hi,
Power tubes when lack dynamics, loose treble and have difficulty in bias, driver tubes when becoming noisy. How fast will power tubes wear? Depends from how hard they are driven in circuit, your speaker and your listening habbits. Always get matched pairs or even better matched quads. When i had my SF Power 2 i liked SED6550C (not Svetlana) best to anything else but i had to replace them every 700hrs.

Look at the getter (the chrome-like coating on the inside of the top end of the glass envelope) of each tube. As the tube is used, that "flash" is burned off.

HI,
Getter is the metal (various shapes) that is connected to a hot electrode and is to collect free gases for tube to work in a vacuum, they are coated and loose some shining with use. The underside top of glass is metal particles (silver colouring) induced when sealing the tube. In power tubes they fade away with use. Driver or signal tubes get hazy marks or spots and a white ring at nipple base.

I replace tubes well before the getter "flashing" gets funky, and often simply because I want to try a different tube...generally the power tubes get the most attention, but my amp has only 2 (single ended pentode) so it's cheap. Preamp tubes seem to last a very long time in my Freya (4 6SN7GTYBs), and there's only one of those in the amp that also lasts...I check tubes by simply replacing one from my pile of new spares.

I have 3 power tube sets for my PrimaLuna Dialogue integrated amp: Tung Sol KT120, Gold Lion KT77 and TungSol 7581A. Each produces a different sonic signature and I swap sets about every 3 to 4 months. Now that's rolling!