Ordered some Brimar 12AX7s today

pjdami

The guy that modded my Jolida JD100A cdp from Parts Connextion recommended Brimar as a replacement tube for the SED 12AX7s that I have been running.

Don't know too much about Brimar except that they are compared to Mullards but have their differences. I haven't heard the Mullards either but it will be nice to have some quality NOS tubes in the player for a run.

RuSsMaN

Where did you order from?

I'd be interested in a 12au7 to try in my ASL Wave Line. I'm loading up on a variety to find what suits me in this particular preamp.

Cheers,
Russ

pjdami

http://www.partsconnexion.com/catalog/NOSTubes.html

I don't see any Brimar 12AU7s there though. They have Mullard and Telefunken at decent prices according to the website. I just missed out on the 10% off all tubes sale they were having last month.

gidrah

Russ - I think I've got a bunch of 12AU7s. They aren't NOS, but lemme see what I have and if you want any, you can have them (back).

I had no idea Tele 12ax7s were so expensive. I'm running a pair in my AVA Super PAS4i.

RuSsMaN

Keep what you've got, I've got a nice handful of Mullards and Telefunken that all test around 80% or better that I picked up tonight.

I've got some RCA clear tops, and a Telefunken smooth plate in the bunch too.

Just looking for something I DONT have.

Cheers,
RUss

organ

Sounds cool. Let us know how they sound. Didin't Mullard make tubes for Brimar at one time? Is this your first NOS tube?

Russ,
Do you need a pair of U7? If you want, I can give you a pair of RFT (East Germany, from the 80's I believe). I also have the 12AU7EH. You hooked me up with tubes on the GTA, I'll send you the U7's if you're interested.

Maurice

pjdami

Didin't Mullard make tubes for Brimar at one time? Is this your first NOS tube?

Organ, not sure about that but was reading something to that over at the Tube Asylum.

Not my first NOS in 12AX7. I have some military Jan Phillips but they aren't really known for their musicality. They are okay though and what I want to compare to (as well as the affordable Russian SEDS / Sovteks). Durability will be another test for me as the SEDs only lasted about 6 or 7 months in my cd player.

Good call on the 12AU7 RFTs. I have some of those based on your recommendation in my Rogue tube amp. Got them from Triode Electronics but looks like they may have run out of them since they aren't listed on their website anymore.

RuSsMaN

Thanks Maurice, but go ahead and keep em. I've got more than a couple handfuls to try out now.

Cheers,
Russ

organ

Let us know how they sound when you get them. Maybe I should try out different 7199 in my Dyna because the ones I've got now are JAN/Philips. Don't know if they're considered musical or not.

Oh yeah, I was doing some reading on audioasylum on the standby stuff. Some people say to turn the component completely off when you're not using it. Before turning it on, put it on standby for a few minutes and then turn it on. You should check it out, just go to tubeasylum and do a search on 'standby'.

Russ,
That's cool. If you ever want them let me know. Is it the Wave 10 you're playing around with? How does it sound?

Maurice

pjdami

Well, I got the Brimars in today along with enough supplies to make another DH Labs DIY power cord. I start to burn them in. Not the fanciest looking tubes (but who cares about that anyways!)

As strange as it may seem, I feel that tubes go through some burning in. They sound pretty good after about 4 hours but I will wait to comment for a week or two.

pjdami

A shot of the Jolida with the top off. The tubes have these spring loaded aluminum caps on them. Some people make the mistake of unscrewing the caps from the circuit board to get to the tubes not realizing that the caps just rotate off.

organ

Nice pics. I'd love to own a tube CD player one day. I think those tubes were made by Mullard. I know Mullard used the code CV4004 on some of their X7's.

Maurice

pjdami

I know that there are several threads floating around about the Jolida cdp. I'm devoting this thread to NOS tube rolling. A few more folks out there with the Jolida now and more on the way from discussions I've had with some individuals.

Well, got some 1961 Sylvania tubes in today. Previously burned in and "A" grade for low noise and microphony.

About 1/2 the price of the Brimars and older than me by 9 years. President Kennedy was still alive when these were made. My mom and dad hadn't even met yet. Just amazing when one thinks about it. All these years....

Well they sound great right out the box. How about the mids almost as good as the Brimars but with a little more top end excitement. Diggin it.

organ

Thanks for the update. Sounds like my kind of tube. I like them with the top end excitement as long as the highs are not excessive.

This is a very interesting thread because I plan to get a Jolida one day. But first I'm going to get a pair of RF-7 within the next few years.

Yeah, I also think about the age of some of the stuff I got. I always look at my amp and tubes and wonder where they've been and who handled them in the past. I also can't believe they still function and sound so damn good.

Maurice

pjdami

So I got these in last week. The much anticipated 5751 to replace the 12AX7 in the Jolida cdp. The anticipation was incredible as I put them in and let them burn in for over 30 hours.

The sound? Less than thrilling. Kind of a big disappointment. Too smooth of a sound. I can readily notice the 30 percent less gain of the 5751 as I have to put the volume up a little louder to listen at normal levels. Dynamics are also lacking. The sound is just too polite for me. Maybe they need more burn in? I didn't think preamp tubes need a lot of burn in but they just aren't coming around yet.

These are just way to smooth sounding. The highs are rolled off. Even more than the Brimars; but the Brimars have more dynamics to them. The softest sound compared to the loudest sound is more with the Brimars.

I find I still like the NOS Sylvanias the best here. Smooth midrange with more treble detail.

Interesting thing I did today was swap out the Transparent IC and speaker wire with Kimber Silver Streak and DH Labs Q10 speaker wire. Got some life back in the system with the wiring but not at the same level as the Sylvania with the Transparents. Interesting nonetheless that wiring made a noticeable difference here that anybody reading this I'm pretty sure could notice. The tube change between the Sylvania and the RCA I'm almost certain 8/10 people could notice it. My neighbor certainly did.

Oh well, I'll let them burn in some more but man talk about YAWN.... they really bored up the sound a whole lot.

organ

Sorry to hear that, Paul. I too wasn't impressed with my 5751. My impression was similar to yours. Very laid back, less HF extension and less dynamics. It can be sweet on vocals but I'd take a good 12AX7 any day.

How do the Sovtek LPS compare to the Sylvania?

Maurice

pjdami

Originally posted by organ
Sorry to hear that, Paul. I too wasn't impressed with my 5751. My impression was similar to yours. Very laid back, less HF extension and less dynamics. It can be sweet on vocals but I'd take a good 12AX7 any day.

Maurice

Is that so? Now that is interesting for sure. For a moment there when I was writing the RCA Blackplate review I thought I was nuts because I read a lot of people like them on AA. I'm happy to hear that you found the 5751 less dynamic too. It is readily apparent in my opinion. Maybe I'm not so nuts after all or just have a high listening standard like you do. With the wire swap, I also noticed that it can be very system dependant.

How do the Sovtek LPS compare to the Sylvania?

Its been a while since I had the Sovtek in there Maurice. From what I remember, the LPS was one of the better sounding current production 12AX7s I heard. I will have to do another comparison soon. I will tell you this, I currently have about 6 or 7 different types of 12AX7s to roll and the LPS is what remained in my Rogue tube amp.

organ

Yeah, it seems a lot of people want a really laid back presentation. I can really see some people just enjoying the smooth sound of the 5751 a lot more than the 12AX7's.

Thanks for the info on the LPS. I loved the sound of that tube in my ASL. It's funny how Sovtek have some of the best and worst tubes out there.

Maurice

pjdami

Yep, these are getting harder to find and more expensive. Got a used but test like new late '50s production GE blackplate tube. Supposedly, these are the second or third best 5751s on the planet after the Sylvanias. Most of the silkscreen printing is gone but these are the military "JG" version.

These are definitely and immediately noticeably much more alive than the RCA blackplates in the Jolida cdp. I can notice the less gain again but dynamics are very good with this tube. Smooth top end yet remains quite detailed and not boring at all.

I'm going to live with these for a little while. I'm all smiles over here:D

organ

Awesome. At least they're already broken in. Would you still say the 12AX7 is more dynamic sounding?

Maurice

pjdami

Originally posted by organ
Would you still say the 12AX7 is more dynamic sounding?

Yes, but these aren't far behind at all.