12AX7 tubes

[Fiftyfifty]

Has anyone used Psvane 12AX7 tubes for their preamp? Would love to get some feedback. How do these compare with Mullard and Sovtek (new production)?

 

[Fantastic]

Never used any Psvane tubes. If you do a quick search you will find a mixed bag of opinions. Some saying it's very good and others not so happy about it. Three things I noticed were that they supposedly have better LF performance, brighter HF and 'some' tend to get noisy after a few months. But that was a few years ago. Maybe they fixed the issue now !

I've used tubes from Tungsol and Mullard ( new issues) and like them a lot. Some prefer the Gold Lion's over the Psvane 12AX7 . However I will be repeating what is constantly dinned into our years over time , you need to use the tubes you are interested in, in 'your' system to make a valid comparison.

Bottom line is no one seemed to dislike the Psvane tubes . Amazon has it for $79 a pair. Not very much more than a pair of Gold Lion 12AX7's .

 

[Fantastic]

US $11 at www.thetubestore.com - Your online source for audio vacuum tubes.

There are many brands. Some are:
Sovtek,
Electro Harmonix
Mullard
Tungsol
Gold Lion
JJ
Shuguang
Psvane
etc.
All are current manufacturers. Google the Net to get pricing for them.

 

[vivek_r]

Hi Fiftyfifty,

I haven't used the Psvane 12ax7, but used the 12au7 in my Line Magnetic - it worked well in the DAC - a reasonably clear and warm sound.

Now here is where the answers become difficult.

A good 12au7 does not mean a good 12ax7 by the same manufacturer.

In my Leben amp, which is warm, I found that the Telefunken's with their super clarity and relatively low bloom worked best. Mullards pushed it to too warm compared to the stock tube (think nos GE).

So any tube will have to be seen in the context of your system and what sound you want to achieve - hence one fits all solution just doesnt exist, unfortunately.

So the sad answer is that unless you get lucky with your first purchase (you can guess from reading reviews on the net or with generic comments like mine above as long as you know your system's sound well and know what will make the fit) or get a benevolent soul to lend you tubes, you will need to punt.

Vivek

 

[shafic]

[QUOTE= I found that the Telefunken's with their super clarity and relatively low bloom worked best.
Vivek[/QUOTE]

+1

 

[Fiftyfifty]

Thank you for all the helpful (and educative) responses. Looks like the general view is that tubes make a significant difference to the sound, but in the end what matters is one's individual taste and rig. I got the Psvane from amazon and will post feedback after the new tubes burn in. My Jolida 1501BRC came with stock Tung Sol which sound quite good, but I have this constant itch to see if it can improve, hence the tube roll. I do get excessive bass from my setup and I'm afraid the Psvanes may make it even more 'boomy'. Room acoustics too may have a lot to do with this and I have ordered rockwool boards to use as bass traps. Let us see. My set up:
Jolida 1501BRC hybrid amp
Q-Acoustics 3050 floor standing speakers
Arcam irDAC
NAD CD player
FiiO X5 DAP
Ecosse MS2.4 speaker cables (with wired jumpers at speaker end)
VDH Digi-coupler Coaxial from CD player to DAC
VDH Digi-coupler Coaxial from FiiO X5(with 3.5mm adapter) to DAC
VDH The Wave interconnect from DAC to Amp

Cheers!

 

[Fiftyfifty]

Sir 12ax7 price

Not for sale buddy

 

[Fiftyfifty]

Hi Fiftyfifty,

I haven't used the Psvane 12ax7, but used the 12au7 in my Line Magnetic - it worked well in the DAC - a reasonably clear and warm sound.

Now here is where the answers become difficult.

A good 12au7 does not mean a good 12ax7 by the same manufacturer.

In my Leben amp, which is warm, I found that the Telefunken's with their super clarity and relatively low bloom worked best. Mullards pushed it to too warm compared to the stock tube (think nos GE).

So any tube will have to be seen in the context of your system and what sound you want to achieve - hence one fits all solution just doesnt exist, unfortunately.

So the sad answer is that unless you get lucky with your first purchase (you can guess from reading reviews on the net or with generic comments like mine above as long as you know your system's sound well and know what will make the fit) or get a benevolent soul to lend you tubes, you will need to punt.

Vivek

Thanks Vivek. Telefunken seems worth trying as my current system has an excessively warm sound.

 

[Fiftyfifty]

Sharing my experience after rolling Tung Sol for Psvane and Mullard, which are consistent with the views of so many others on this forum:
Original tubes in the preamp of my Jolida 1501 BRC were Tung Sol (Made in Russia). Balanced sound with fair presentation of all frequencies, perhaps slightly muddled in the lower mids.
Rolled to Psvane: Improved bass, improved stage depth, very smooth midrange and highs without any harshness, rich sound.
Rolled to Mullard: Reduced bass, lesser boom, narrower sound stage, but midrange and highs sound as though boosted with an equalizer. Amazing clarity at these frequencies, particularly vocals, but the naturalness was gone.
Decided to stay with Psvane, definitely worth the slightly higher price of $79.
Just my two bit!