A few comments: I think that tubes require AT LEAST 72 hours to start sounding right (although I like to burn them in for a full week). Be careful that the "lack of bass" you are perceiving may well be due to the fact that the Amperex tubes may have improved and opened up the treble so dramatically that you are misinterpreting this as a lack of bass. I think that someone bought the "Amperex" trademark back in 1999 and are simply rebranding "who knows what tubes". NOS Amperex these are not!!! In that vein, by the 1980's the golden age of NOS tubes was over, so that even the great NOS tubes brands of this era were pale imitators of their earlier '50's, '60's and '70's predecessors. Also, there was much rebranding in the '80's so it takes an expert to know what's what! (I use Andy Bowman of Vintage Tube Services He's the BEST that I've found! Tel # is 616-454-3467.) Buying tubes on Ebay is a crap shoot...the odds are against you. I have heard the argument that "manufactures voice their equipment for current production tube stock." From a merchandising perspective, a manufacturer could not possibly use NOS and keep costs under control. Don't forget, they would also have to provide for replacement NOS sets! The well respected manufacturer of my amp/preamp FOR YEARS stated that his equipment was meant to be used with cheaper Russian tubes. Well, in the last year, he has finally come around and states that NOS tubes do make a HUGE improvement in the sound of his equipment. When I swapped Sovtek 12AU7's for RCA's, it made a huge improvement in the sound! Going from the RCA's to Telefunkens was beyond belief! Happy Tunes!
What's so bad about Sovtek 6922s?
I've seen lots of preamp reviews and remarks where people say they replaced their "hard sounding stock sovteks" with "brand X".
I have an Anthem Pre 2L, and the first thing I tried to do was get rid of the "nasty Sovtek 6922s". I tried the Teslas (new and cheap) and a used set of Amperex Bugleboys. I rotated between the two - very hard to A/B of course. Was not satisfied. The Amperex seem to be allergic to bass (I guess it's possible that these are forgeries - bought off ebay). The Teslas seem like "ok" replacements, but nothing special happens with them.
For the heck of it, I put back in the Sovteks (after many months), and abracadabra - the system sounds its best. Nice microdynamics. Very clean and not the least bit harsh. No unwanted noise. Just sounds very good.
Is anyone else living happily with the "hard sounding stock sovtek 6922s"? Just curious. I am not going to take a stab at some megabuck Telefunkens based on the lack of improvement trying more moderate tube "upgrades".
Are Sovteks underrated?
I have an Anthem Pre 2L, and the first thing I tried to do was get rid of the "nasty Sovtek 6922s". I tried the Teslas (new and cheap) and a used set of Amperex Bugleboys. I rotated between the two - very hard to A/B of course. Was not satisfied. The Amperex seem to be allergic to bass (I guess it's possible that these are forgeries - bought off ebay). The Teslas seem like "ok" replacements, but nothing special happens with them.
For the heck of it, I put back in the Sovteks (after many months), and abracadabra - the system sounds its best. Nice microdynamics. Very clean and not the least bit harsh. No unwanted noise. Just sounds very good.
Is anyone else living happily with the "hard sounding stock sovtek 6922s"? Just curious. I am not going to take a stab at some megabuck Telefunkens based on the lack of improvement trying more moderate tube "upgrades".
Are Sovteks underrated?