Preamp Deal of the Century

Ecclectique - I don't have a tube tester so haven't tested the ECC32's. I presume there is nothing wrong with them given that they work fine in my Cortese. The trouble my friend had with the ECC32's in his Syrah and the non-functioning remote volume lead me to believe that the way his Syrah is wired is different than newer Supratek's.

I think his Syrah is the second unit to ever have the remote control - my Chardonnay was the first. Switching the DC power cord between his Syrah and my Chard caused similar issues with the remote volume not working.

At that time, I believe Mick was pulling power for the motorized volume from different places in the pre - experimenting?? Perhaps this is an instance where the different internal electrical properties of the ECC32 vs. 6SN7 come in to play.

Hello Bwhite. Could be a weak rectifier and/or weak ecc-32's. Gentlemen... please do yourselves a very big favour , you "must" get yourselves a good calibrated tube tester!!! Absolutely indispensible,especially when considering the tube rolling everyone is doing here! Most any tube that tests anything less than 90% shouldn't even be a consideration. Even if one is purchasing nos tubes,a good calibrated tester is "imperative" as many NOS tubes right out of the box can fail to meet spec.To be blunt and honest! I think you will be somewhat surprised when you test some of these tubes you are using in the supratek. Matching the 6sn-7's per channel is paramount for top preformance in the supratek.... not to mention.... section to section matching of each of these tubes- which is even "more" important [in all triode tubes]! Check the strength of any rectifier you are using as these will have a large impact on the overall sonics of the preamp.Making a comprehensive evaluation regarding the sound of various tubes makes, types, and vintages of these tubes in any circuit is pretty much flawed without knowing these parameters.For example... A strong rectifier of the same type will sound very different than that exact same tube that tests even 10% less than the stronger one. Do not mean to sound so derogatory gang, however some things are a given and need to be addressed here .....Cheers David

Tube matching is a must with push-pull configurations. With single-ended configurations (like all SupraTek's) it is optional but still a good idea. Ditto the need for a tube-tester, esp for someone who has invested a couple thousand in tubes. A good B&K 747B or TV-7 can be had for just a couple hundred dollars.

Where did everybody go?

Do NOS tubes need to burn-in time to reach full sound potential ?

Got my Chardonnay 2 months ago.

Yesterday received NOS Ken Rad Black Glass 6SN7GT.

- Ken