Supratek Tubes and Tube Swappin' for Everybody

I got the Bendix 6106 in the Cabernet. It is more than a little tipped-up. The bass is even less than that of the Sylvania Vt-231 with a gz34 or gz33 rectifier. And I have the Sylvania 6SN7GT 1952 tall-boys, which are well known for their bass, in the preamp right now.

For example, when playing "poco a poco" performed by fourplay the drums are normally featured prominantly and there is a tension in the music between the bass section and the melody. With the 6106 the bass and drums become an accompanyment to the melody.

What bass is present is at least well controlled but that has never been a problem in my system. I seem to have lost some pitch resolution in the bass also. For the rest of the audio spectrum the detail and resolution is very good, even excellent. There is a slight incoherence in the soundstage depth. Mainly due to the reduced bass output.

So does the bass ever get bigger with the 6106 as it breaks in?

Hey Jazzdude,

You're observation regarding the 6106 is exactly how I'd expect a 5Y3 will perform 5AR4-purposed circuit. Another thing I suspect is that it will distort more quickly.

FWIW, I'm burning in a Bendix 6106 right now. I'm going to give it a week and see how it works out.

I just measured my system with Tact RCS. This is in-room response and no my room is not an anocheic chamber. Previous rectifier was a gz33. The current rectifier is a bendix 6106. Output below 300hz is reduced by a few db. There is a hump in response from 3-5khz by at least 2-3db. From about 8khz on up it just climbs a mountain. I am up at least 5-6db at 20khz. I can't consciously hear anything about 17khz but somehow I can percieve a 20khz test tone.

Interesting Jazzdude, I also run the Sylvania 6SN7GT 1952 "bass kings" in my Chardonnay and I have noticed no drop in bass performance with the 6106s. Actually, to the contrary. The bass quantity hasn't increased with the 6106s over the 5AR4/GZ34s, but the bass quality has improved. The bass seems tighter and more focused. Actually, everything is more focused. There was always a very slight fuzz that I couldn't find, but with the 6106 the notes are very crisp and clean. No more fuzz.

When I first plugged the 6106s in months ago, I hated it. But with burn-in, it really transformed. Unlike the GZ33 & GZ37 which remained total dogs.

Mick gave me a GZ32 to try, but it pop and crackled from day one so I took it out immediately.

Jazzdude, a quick question. Have you compared the Tung Sol Round Plates to the '52 Sylvanias? If so, I would be really interested in your opinion of the two. I may try a pair of Tung Sols, but I am thrilled with the '52s.

Fiddler - I'll give the 6106 a week at 24/7 and see how it does. The actual articulation of the notes from start to finish is fine and this is the most important thing. There is no question that it is a very good rectifier, but at this point it hasn't destroyed the competition.

I have a dual-getter metal-base amperex bugle-boy gz34 that goes in after the 6106

The cabernet only uses a single triode out of the dual-triode 6SN7GT. The other triode used is the we101d. Which might explain a difference in bass output between my preamp and yours.

I might give the tungs-sol round-plates a place in the hot socket one day. But for now I am working on finding the best rectifier and regulator. I am trying some alternative regulator tubes including the 6f6g and we'll see how it goes. One thing I can already say based upon my experiences. That is that the higher plate dissipation of the regulator will increase the operating point on the rectifier causing the signal tubes to distort more. So for the cleanest and most natural sound and highest resolution the 6f6g is going to smoke the 7581, 5881, el-37, kt-66, el-34, 6l6gc etc. And I am not really concerned with freq response for my system although I will note it. What I am after is the best execution of the note from start to finish and including the harmonics. I want maximum resolution of the music and for the preamp to still perform without a hint of strain.