by knotscott Mon Jun 29, 2020 9:30 am
Experimenting with tubes is among the easiest ways to change (hopefully upgrade) the sound. I've tried a few variations of the 12AU7s, and am currently running an RCA 12BH7 in the center position of my Dyna/VTA ST-70s with RCA clear top 12AU7s on the outside. Love the sound I'm getting.
I've also experimented with output tubes....have tried EL34s from Siemens, Shuguang, EH, and Nesstone. Love the mids on the EH and the bass extension on the Nesstone. I have not yet tried any 6550s, but they're on my radar.
It's pretty easy to experiment with different RCA interconnects too.
It's often more a matter of finding the perfect match for your system than it is one being clearly better than another. As long as you're not doing something to damage the system or going broke doing it, half the fun is experimenting.