Modifications to integrated tube amp: experiences?

i actually did some mods to my sp3. the unit out of the box has a very warm and enjoyable sound. i added .1 sonicap platinum bypass caps to the coupling capacitors on the power tubes, and on the pre tubes (12ax7 i believe) i replaced those with .1 sonicap platinums. if i were to send it off i would have also had them replace the rectifier with something better, but doing it myself, it was a difficult part to get to.

i noticed increased air and clarity up top and the unit sounded significantly more detailed.

BUT.

i will tell you this now, none of the mods i had done will change this amp as much as rolling some tubes through it.
12ax7 to the GE triple mica 5751's made a bigger difference to the sound than the mods i did. also changing the power tubes to the valve art 350b made a definite change for the better. it can all be very system dependent though.

if you search my name on the av123 forums you can find some detailed posts and pictures regarding the mods that i did.

good luck and happy listening :)

Johnzm,

Thank you so much for your excellent post!

Richard

Johnzm,

Please save me some time.
Where did you get your tubes, particularly the GE 5751 & 350B's?

Rhanechak,

you might want to spend some time surfng the av123 forums, as there is a VERY large wealth of information on not only the mods people have done, but the tubes you will want to try in it.

http://forums.av123.com/showthread.php?t=28771

http://forums.av123.com/showthread.php?t=34216

theres a start :)

Thank you, I've read that, but my question was WHERE did YOU get your GE 5751 triple micas and Valve Art 350Bs PLEASE?
I want to know who I can trust to buy these tubes from.
Thanks.

Richard