tubes have no 'bell curve'
Do tubes "burn in"?
My preamp (octal tubes; cathode-follower outputs) came with two NOS RCA 12SN7GT tubes and I really like the sound I get. Just for grins I picked up a slightly used pair of GE 12SX7GT (U) JAN tubes (Canada) to try. Straight off they were more prolific in the bass and more golden in the mids and highs. I enjoyed these attributes. But the more I listened, the more I noticed the vocals were pushed further forward and the clarity was missing in the mids (vocals, saxophone) when compared to the 12SN7's. I disliked these attributes. The 12SN7's seem to be more evenly balanced throughout. My questions are: Do tubes "burn in" and improve with use? And, can the negative (for me) attributes I described for the 12SX7's improve with burn in (better clarity, less emphasized vocals)?
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- 16 posts total
- 16 posts total