Calling all First Sound Preamp Owners

Kevinzoe, I've tried Siemens 7308, Amperex 7308, Amperex 6922 PQ
and Philips 6922 SQ. All are excellent tubes. In my opinion, the
Siemens are the best, but you would also be very happy (I think) with
Amperex 6922 PQ White Label made in USA. They are very close to the
Siemens sonically, and they are easier to find. Don't let the scarcity of
Siemens 7308 tubes lead you into a sense that only they will satisfy your
quest for better tubes for your First Sound. Do a search for
"Amperex" on Audiogon, and you'll probably come up with
some for sale. If not, they appear from time to time with relative
frequency.

Also, you might read "Joe's Tube Lore" if you haven't already.
It's a good primer on 6922 and 7308 tubes. Here's the link:

tubes.html>http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/faq/joes-tubes.htmla>

THANKS all for your insight thus far. Despite a secondary thread begining to develop here about tube replacements, I think the concensus to my posted question is to forget using a line conditioner with the FS preamp. On a related note, I was speaking with Bea from VTL today about the same two issues (power cord upgrade or to use a line condition on the VTL amp) and she suggested that tube rolling would provide more benefit than replacing the stock power cord. Specifically she suggested replacing the Svetlanna 6550 tubes with KT88 and thought that plugging the amp directly into the wall outlet would be best. Seems to be some consistent information across manufacturers.

Audiofankj -- thanks for the tip on locating the Siemens 7308 tubes @ Upscale Audio.
Tvad -- thanks for the heads up on the alternative tubes both 7308 and 6922's. I haven't heard of the "Joe's Tube Lore" article so thanks kindly for bringing it to my attention.

Happy listening all.

In case you were wondering, I bought an Audience PowerChord (4ft) for my First Sound preamp and an Audience AU24 interconnect between my Audio Aero CDP and First Sound and it all sound marvelous, especially when my VTL St-150 amp is in Tetrode mode (more air around the instruments, better soundstage etc.).

I expect to buy another Audience powercord and interconnect for the amp and between pre & amp.

Cheers,
Kevin

Kevin, if you buy the KT-88s from VTL, make sure their tube warranty applies if you are using a non-VTL preamp.

Brooksl - interesting note on voided tube warantee if non-VTL preamp is used . . . I spoke with Bea at VTL and her KT88 tube prices are not competitive with what I can get from a local Toronto supplier at www.conusaudio.com so I don't think tube warantee will apply. But thanks for the heads up in any case.

Are you using VTL stuff?