A DAC that crushes price vs. performance ratio

@lula 

There is only one tube, so you have to be sure that it is balanced and you have to screw the lid off to replace the tube.

Just wanted to share an amazing experience with the LAB 12 DAC concerning rolling tubes.

The type of tube the Lab 12 DAC normally uses is a 6922.  When I rolled 6922 tubes it definitely improved the performance compared to the stock tube that Lab 12 ships with the unit.  A NOS CCA Siemens gold pin was my favorite of all the 6922's I tried in my system.

Now, because of a different piece of gear that I'm reviewing that uses a 396 type tube I learned that a 396 can be used in place of a 6922 by using a very inexpensive (around 20 dollars) tube socket adapter.  The 396 that I rolled in is a WE396A D getter JW Military version which for my ears offers some of the best timbres/colors, transparency, 3D images, and overall space/air around individual players. These tubes are easy to obtain and are not very expensive (around 50 to 80 dollars).

This tube modification took the LAB 12 DAC to even a higher level of  musicality and the illusion of real music through my system.  This change of tube type added what I would describe as a SET quality to the sound, rich timbres, "meat on the bones" images, and a liquidity that allows you to relax into the music.  I would assume if your system is very warm and somewhat "slow" to begin with, this could be to much of a good thing.  It always comes down to synergy with your other gear and of course personal taste.  If you own the Lab 12 DAC you owe it to yourself to run this experiment, it costs pennies and gives a totally new sound with this DAC.  

@teajay 

I currently use a MHDT Labs Balanced Pagoda DAC that typically uses 5670 tubes. I had read though, that someone used a converter and used 6922 tubes and was loving it. So I got a converter and then started reading about the "best sounding" 6922, or one that sounded like it would work for the type of sound I wanted, and I came across the Reflektor '75 6N23P SWGP Silver Shields.

Not sure if you've tried that tube in your dac, but in mine, it sounds much better than any other tube I've tried. It doesn't sound like a tube at all. I would recommend trying one and seeing what you think. It really works perfectly in my DAC. I'd also recommend trying a MHDT Labs Pagoda and seeing what you think.

I also wish there was a company that was making high quality audiophile converters for these tubes.

Hey lordcloud,

Could you describe in more detail what you mean by, "doesn't sound like a tube at all".  There are sonic differences between the same type of tube and different companies "house sound" (Mullards, Bugle Boys, Telefunkins, TungSol etc), but don't understand what your description means.

MHDT Labs designer recommends his favorite NOS tubes to use his DACS.  You can 396 or 5670 tubes to flavor the sound of their DACS to your personal taste.  However, he does not mention the tube you are using in your DAC.

The 5670 is close enough to the 6922 that you can use an adapter and use a 6922 in the DAC instead of the 5670. That's what I do currently. 

The Reflektor '75 6N23P SWGP Silver Shields doesn't sound like a tube is in the DAC to me. With the other tubes I used, the sound erred in one direction, or there was something letting me know I had something in the signal path. But with these tubes, they just seen to get out of the way, and the music seems to come through. They're very clear and relatively transparent sounding.