274B choices?

[retired farmer]

I’ve been using the Aqua 274B in a TRP for some time and also in a just departed Supratek preamp. I also have an upgraded GG2/3 coming with one that I look forward to. I had been recommending it to Supratek users over on Agon and all have found it worthy. The Aqua is also often available at discount under the Specials tab at the Sophia’s site. My only regret is not having tried it much earlier in my tube search.

There’s been mention here of Sophia`s excellent EL34-ST. In the TRP, I ended up preferring their KT88-ST. Better synergy for my tastes. If anyone is interested in my EL34’s (grade A), which have well less than 1000 hours on them — and the Lampi is easy on tubes — feel free to PM.

How many el 34 tubes do you have?

 

[highstream]

Forgot to mention that Sophia has now got their own 6SN7 back in stock.

 

[godofwealth]

I just bought a pair of Sophia Electric 274Bs for use in a Triode Labs 45M SET monoblock. They sound really nice. I run my Klipsch La Scalas with these 2 watt per channel monoblocks. It’s amazing how good these sound. You’d think 2 watts is nowhere near enough to drive a pair of refrigerator sized behemoths that weigh 200 pounds apiece, but 105 dB rated efficiency means you need just a few hundred milliwatts to make them play really loudly. Beautiful tonality and wall to wall soundstaging. These tube amps run so cool that they are cooler than most of my solid state gear. Even my Oppo Blu Ray player radiates more heat than these SET monoblocks.

 

[retired farmer]

Forgot to mention that Sophia has now got their own 6SN7 back in stock.

What do you think of them? Have you listened to them? Regards

 

[retired farmer]

I just bought a pair of Sophia Electric 274Bs for use in a Triode Labs 45M SET monoblock. They sound really nice. I run my Klipsch La Scalas with these 2 watt per channel monoblocks. It’s amazing how good these sound. You’d think 2 watts is nowhere near enough to drive a pair of refrigerator sized behemoths that weigh 200 pounds apiece, but 105 dB rated efficiency means you need just a few hundred milliwatts to make them play really loudly. Beautiful tonality and wall to wall soundstaging. These tube amps run so cool that they are cooler than most of my solid state gear. Even my Oppo Blu Ray player radiates more heat than these SET monoblocks.

Yes most times the smaller the speaker the more power you need. Lots of people think small speakers low power quote the opposite in most cases.

 

[highstream]

What do you think of them? Have you listened to them? Regards

No, I just noticed today that their site is showing them. Something recent, as I was keeping track until I replaced my 6SN7 Supratek with a preamp that uses the 6DJ8 family. I've seen rave reviews online, though.

 

[retired farmer]

No, I just noticed today that their site is showing them. Something recent, as I was keeping track until I replaced my 6SN7 Supratek with a preamp that uses the 6DJ8 family. I've seen rave reviews online, though.

Well I was looking at there site in the last ten days and they were not showing so good eye. I have a few systems on one has a melody h88 in it it uses 4 kt88 2 6sn7 2 6sl7 and a pair of 5687 tubes. Iay be just lazy but I would like to find someone's new tubes that are decent and just order them when you need one. So nice to hear that you have heard good things about them. Thinking I would like to have a set or two in reserve for everything I own. That is a hard part about living in rural Canada to far to just go pick something up. So a small stash in a drawer would be good. I do worry about availability in the future depending on what you read sounds like it might be hard to ever get Russian tubes once what is here is gone.

 

[plasmod3]

Thanks @retired farmer!

@Bbock I look forward to your thoughts. My friend and I had a clear preference for the Brimar over the metal Philips and @VoicesInMyHead prefers it to his GEC U52. It’ll be interesting how you feel it compares to the Sophia Aqua. The only tubes I have had from Sophia was a quad of carbon plate 300b about 15 years ago which comfortably ousted some WE300b reissues, so clearly they have a promising track record.

Photo below of some other rectifiers auditioned.

View attachment 99881

Time to try the we engraved base 274b Mark

 

[Sablon Audio]

Time to try the we engraved base 274b Mark

Lol, too rich for my blood Ian! Also had a very disappointing experience with the WE300b reissues of two decades ago. Do you have one? If so, then I’d be interested in how it compares with that cheapo Brimar cv1863.

 

[plasmod3]

Lol, too rich for my blood Ian! Also had a very disappointing experience with the WE300b reissues of two decades ago. Do you have one? If so, then I’d be interested in how it compares with that cheapo Brimar cv1863.

Not the reissued one mark but the nos ones. The reissued ones never got to the standard of the nos ones for some reason even though supposedly...they use the same machines. The materials are not 100% the same though - the new we tubes are redesigned . Given how good the lampi is at protecting tubes i feel if we do use an expensive tube it has to be with the lampi . with the 274b engraved base - once i had that in - there is no need to roll tubes in the rectifier position anymore. it on comparison had surpassed all the different variant of tubes i have in that position which is quite a few but obviously not all that is avaliable out there

 

[Sablon Audio]

Not the reissued one mark but the nos ones.

yeah I get that but after my disappointment I’m not feeling the urge to spend sully money unless it was guaranteed to turn water into wine. In my experience, a number of ‘grail’ tubes haven’t lived up to their reputations. That said, I’ll keep an open mind when you lend me yours to evaluate

 

[plasmod3]

yeah I get that but after my disappointment I’m not feeling the urge to spend sully money unless it was guaranteed to turn water into wine. In my experience, a number of ‘grail’ tubes haven’t lived up to their reputations. That said, I’ll keep an open mind when you lend me yours to evaluate

sell the rest and buy the 274b

 

[Sablon Audio]

sell the rest and buy the 274b

I tell you what, how about I buy you a Brimar cv1863 and you report back on how it compares?

 

[plasmod3]

I tell you what, how about I buy you a Brimar cv1863 and you report back on how it compares?

hha ok deal mark and if you do that when i get to london next year i will bring you my 274b to try

 

[Sablon Audio]

You have a deal Ian!

 

[plasmod3]

sell the rest and buy the 274b

thats what good friends are for matey!

 

[JSA]

I tell you what, how about I buy you a Brimar cv1863 and you report back on how it compares?

Hi Sablon, is that the Brimar cv1863 that you would recommend:

 

[Sablon Audio]

Hi Sablon, is that the Brimar cv1863 that you would recommend:

For my lampi dac, yes. Is not however a universal recommendation for all applications. Here’s a good supplier

www.langrex.co.uk/products/5z4gycv1863-kbfe-stc-brimar-nos-boxed/

 

[JSA]

Thanks a lot! I should get it today and will try it out over the next few days.
Except for Svetlana black plate, it will be first NOS recti tube that I will use in my Lampi Pacific.
So far my favorite is Psvane ACME 274B. I am awaiting delivery of Linlai Titanium 274B-D. Few others like KR 274B, 5U4G, Linlai Elite E274B, russian 5C4S, Psvane WE274B, Svetlana black plate were not better than ACME.

 

[Sablon Audio]

@JSA good luck with that and if you have time, then please check out some of my posts on the Baltic thread covering other rectifiers I have tried. So far, the EML274b and Brimar are my faves but I also have a bendix 6106 due any day now.