Preamp Deal of the Century

Hello everyone. I recieved my Chenin in early December and as the unit breaks in Ive been experiencing a strange effect. Over the past 2 months I have noticed a gradual increase in upper midrange glare and grain. Mostly noticeable on voices and seems more prominent on better recordings. Every other aspect of the sound is getting better as time goes on so this is a little confusing to me. I should say that right now Im just using the line stage as I have not settled on a table yet. Im wondering if the Chennin is actually becoming more revealing as it breaks in and is showcasing limitations elsewhere in my system. Any input will be much appreciated. My system consists of:
Wadia 861
Chennin
VTL MB 125 Tube amps
Vandersteen 2CE Sig
(2) Vandersteen 2WQ Subs with model 5 crossover
Cardas Goldencross
Kimber Bifocal XL speaker cable
BDR cones
Room is approx 14 x 30 with system on long wall

Hello Braro,

I too have the Chenin. If it was me, I will try the rectifier tube or the 6SN7's.

If the rectifier is noisy, the regulator will regulate the voltage just fine but will not eliminate any noise (ripple) that can pass thru. The 6SN7's on the other hand can be microphonic and will present the same problem.

just a thought

Hi all,

I have been using a Chardonnay for nearly a year now. This has been the single best upgrade i have done to my system. The Chardonnay has single handedly transformed my system to a level not possible without having to spend serious money.

I am very greatful to this thread & to all the people who have contributed tremendously. THANKS EVERYONE !! Made my life a lot easier ( no more swapping pre's for a long while ) & bringing real joy along with the pride of owning something special.

Some Supratek owners have previously commented that they have compared the Supratek with pre's costing in the $15K range. My first thought was ......yes i thought it was a lot of talk. Few months back i had a friends $16K solid state dual box-design pre in my system by a reputed US manufacturer. To cut a long story short let's say that my friend was not very happy . So for the people still on the fence, take a chance. This would be a decision very hard to regret. I too was skeptical but VERY glad that i took the plunge. Thanks again Slowhand for bringing this wonderful pre to our homes & hearts & thankyou Mike for putting it within our reach without a $15K tag.

O.K. Need a bit of advise. I need to roll my regulator tubes & would like to try the 6F6 highly recommended here.
I know this has been discussed above but now i need to order some tubes for my poweramp & thought of ordering a pair of 6F6's at the same time. The order has to be made fast so does not give me a lot of time to read all the posts. So pls. bear with me.

I would appreciate if you can educate me briefly on the brands & types of 6F6's i should look at and what shade of sound i can expect from them.

Cheers & happy listening,

Dilly,

I have the 6F6G's (Sylvania with Green lable, smoke glass) and bought it NOS for <$45. Before acquiring the NOS pair, I purchased a "used" pair of this type from a fellow Audiogoner here. From my recollection, the 6F6G's (I can only vouch for the Sylvania's)de-throned my GEC Kt-66 clear glass and my GEC Gold Lion KT-66 as regulator tubes on my Chenin. The GEC's are very good as a regulator for the Chenin (but people swear the best is the WE 350B? I think if you can afford it). With the the 6F6G's, I found more definition on the detail I am getting from my vinyl rig (primary music source)than the GEC's. The GEC gives me a tad bigger instrument weight but I prefer the 6F6G's sound overall. Besides, a touch of VTA can correct the "weight" I am talking about in my system but not how good the detail and other parameters would be.

My recommendation is to find a used pair of the Sylvania's that test strong not the border-line stuff. Then you should be able to compare it to what current tube you have on the regulator position at the moment. Besides $45 is not really a burden of a price tag to experiment should the tubes dissapoint you.

goodluck

Braro - "grain" is normally something associated only with solid-state designs. Grainy is considered an escalated form of dryness. For example, Bryston gear is dry but Supratek is not. It is quite possible to get some glare with the stock tubes though.

http://stereophile.com/reference/50/index3.html

But anyway, I would highly recommend that you roll the 6sn7's. Amandarae, Ecclectique, Bwhite and too many others have made excellent recommendations on 6sn7's. You should search their notes.