Mystery EL34 tube solved
heiney9
Posts: 25,165
When I first recieved the Norh SE-9 the first thing I did was search out some new tubes. I found a pair of NOS Siemens EL34 in boxes from a seller in England. Here's his description:
EL34 SIEMENS MATCHED PAIR NOS
NEW AND UNUSED
ORIGINALLY DISTRIBUTED BY SIEMENS GERMANY
ORIGINAL BOXED
EARLY PRODUCTION
ORIGIN OF THESE TUBES IS NOT KNOWN THEREFORE PRICE IS VERY VERY REASONABLE
He further states they are of Eastern European origin. Based on the photo's I thought perhaps I stumbled upon some late production Mullards so I bought them.
After I received them I realized they weren't Mullards nor were they "typical" Siemens tubes. Siemens never made their own EL34, they just rebadged others like Mullard or most likely RFT made in East Germany. All RFT EL34's I've ever seen have stapled plates not welded plates like the Siemens I bought. So the mystery continues...... I still had a naggng feeling these were sourced from the Tesla plant (not JJ).
But even late Tesla's while having welded plates had a dual O getter or single O with single post and the bottom mica was always smooth where these Siemens had a single O getter w/two posts and a serrated lower mica. All other Tesla's I've seen (and I've seen hundreds of photos) all have dual plate wings (fins) and either (2) smooth edged mica's or the upper was serrated and the lower was smooth. These Siemens have a single U shaped cooling fin in the center and both micas are serrated edged.
I finally found some corroboration that the Siemens I have were made in the mid to late 80's and were a final design from the original Tesla plant before JJ/Tesla took over. Groove Tubes re-labeled these tubes as their own in the late 80's as GT E34LS but they actually were sourced from the last days of the Tesla plant. The Siemens I have are identical to the GT E34LS. They also are slightly larger than the typical EL34 and the glass is about twice as thick. Really robust tube and it feels like it!!
Man, I love this stuff. JJ/Tesla still manufactures this design in their E34L which is different than their regular EL34. Soundwise the Siemens are very smooth and have balls to the walls. Big, big bass without sounding flabby or loose, great midrange and smooth highs. They pack a wollop and make the 9wpc sound like much more.
H9
EL34 SIEMENS MATCHED PAIR NOS
NEW AND UNUSED
ORIGINALLY DISTRIBUTED BY SIEMENS GERMANY
ORIGINAL BOXED
EARLY PRODUCTION
ORIGIN OF THESE TUBES IS NOT KNOWN THEREFORE PRICE IS VERY VERY REASONABLE
He further states they are of Eastern European origin. Based on the photo's I thought perhaps I stumbled upon some late production Mullards so I bought them.
After I received them I realized they weren't Mullards nor were they "typical" Siemens tubes. Siemens never made their own EL34, they just rebadged others like Mullard or most likely RFT made in East Germany. All RFT EL34's I've ever seen have stapled plates not welded plates like the Siemens I bought. So the mystery continues...... I still had a naggng feeling these were sourced from the Tesla plant (not JJ).
But even late Tesla's while having welded plates had a dual O getter or single O with single post and the bottom mica was always smooth where these Siemens had a single O getter w/two posts and a serrated lower mica. All other Tesla's I've seen (and I've seen hundreds of photos) all have dual plate wings (fins) and either (2) smooth edged mica's or the upper was serrated and the lower was smooth. These Siemens have a single U shaped cooling fin in the center and both micas are serrated edged.
I finally found some corroboration that the Siemens I have were made in the mid to late 80's and were a final design from the original Tesla plant before JJ/Tesla took over. Groove Tubes re-labeled these tubes as their own in the late 80's as GT E34LS but they actually were sourced from the last days of the Tesla plant. The Siemens I have are identical to the GT E34LS. They also are slightly larger than the typical EL34 and the glass is about twice as thick. Really robust tube and it feels like it!!
Man, I love this stuff. JJ/Tesla still manufactures this design in their E34L which is different than their regular EL34. Soundwise the Siemens are very smooth and have balls to the walls. Big, big bass without sounding flabby or loose, great midrange and smooth highs. They pack a wollop and make the 9wpc sound like much more.
H9
"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
Post edited by heiney9 on
Comments
-
Overall I still prefer the SED Winged "C" slightly, which has me eating my words about not liking any currently produced vacuum tube. But then I'm not paying Mullard EL34 prices so I haven't compared them to "true" Mullards.
H9"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul! -
I always like reading about your tube expertise & journey into tube land...since I'm a tube virgin I find it very informative & means I have a lot to learn yet.
But since I added the Music Hall dac25.2 to my system I have experienced my first taste of tube rolling. My 1st new tube was an Amperex Bugle Boy (1958) & it made a remarkable difference over the stock tube. I just recently got the yen to try another tube & to hear how it compared to the Bugle Boy. I choose to give the EAT ECC88 a try. All I can say is...Holy Smokes!!! this EAT has surpased the Bugle Boy & really had me scratching my head. The difference in controled bass, picking up little details that were missed before on my CD's that I am quite familiar with. The entire CD has a new lease on life with the EAT ECC88! It was pricey but I'm thrilled to bits with it. Now do I try yet another?????"2 Channel & 11.2 HT "Two Channel:Magnepan LRSSchiit Audio Freya S - SS preConsonance Ref 50 - Tube preParasound HALO A21+ 2 channel ampBluesound NODE 2i streameriFi NEO iDSD DAC Oppo BDP-93KEF KC62 sub Home Theater:Full blown 11.2 set up. -
Phil, the rabbit hole goes deeeeeeeep once you get a taste of what tubes can do. I spend a lot of free time researching and I have bought so many tubes for my various pieces of gear it's obscene:eek:.
But the bottom line is it's great fun for me and I really, really like what tubes can do and, when rolling different kinds it's like getting a new piece of gear in many instances.
I like the research and to learn about the history of a tube or tube type. Sort of a romantic connection to days past.
H9"Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul! -
Wow, you did some serous research there H9. That's some great info.
Glad to hear you're enjoying the SED. I'm running those right now and I'm diggin the sound.
How's the Norh sounding? I remember you had some issues a while back. -
Brock, the tube freak. :biggrin:Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Overall I still prefer the SED Winged "C" slightly, which has me eating my words about not liking any currently produced vacuum tube. But then I'm not paying Mullard EL34 prices so I haven't compared them to "true" Mullards.
H9
he,he,,
Brock,,have you considered offering your services as a tube "screener",,man,,you got it down. JC approves....he told me so. (F-1 nut)
