Tung-sol 12AX7...

PCollen · Post by **PCollen** » Tue 04/01/08 3:15 pm

..are they really THAT good for a current production Russian (NSC) tube ?
Better than EH 12AX7....?

Alexo · Post by **Alexo** » Tue 04/01/08 3:19 pm

Heh. I bought one of these about a month ago to compare and to answer that same question for myself. Funny thing is I still haven't gotten around to trying it! Maybe I'm afraid that it'll be so good that it'll debase my Mullards and Telefunkens. Or maybe there's just no need for improvement over Mullards and Telefunkens. Sorry - useless post. If you're in my neck of the woods, you're welcome to come by and give it a shot!

sub · Post by **sub** » Tue 04/01/08 4:21 pm

PCollen wrote:..are they really THAT good for a current production Russian (NSC) tube ?
Better than EH 12AX7....?

Best new production tube IMHO.
Better than any new, and better than some NOS what i tried.

Post by **rjgtr** » Wed 04/02/08 1:59 pm

I wouldn't say it's better than any other, but it is probably the best sounding New Sensor 12ax7 yet. I really do like them, especially in Fender style amps. Reminds me a little of USA made tubes of old. However, there are others that sound equally as good to my ears, although different.

The GT12ax7M (Mullard repro) is a great sounding tube, if a little pricey. It's the closest to the original Mullards in new production I've heard, but if you get them, buy from a reputable reseller who does quality checks. There's been reports of some bad tubes.

The JJECC83S is still a very reliable and good sounding tube. It has that European edge that keeps distorted tones defined.

The Chinese 12ax7 R9 is also a very good tube. They can get bright in an already bright amp, but they are a very transparent sounding tube. I like to use them for the PI and other 'utility' tube slots. They are very good in a cathode follower slot.

Having said that, I still prefer NOS Mullard, Brimar and RFT for the important V1 slot in a TMB or for both V1 and V3 in a trem. To me the Mullard ECC83 is still the pinacle of the 12ax7 family for tone, with the Telefunken and RCA strong runners up.

Oldschooltone · Post by **Oldschooltone** » Wed 04/02/08 2:35 pm

This really is a great tube.

I recently switched to the Tung-sol 12AX7 after doing the A/B testing thing, OLD GE's, High & Low Gain JJ's, Old Sovteks etc., "I have been a die hard JJ Ecc83 high gain fan for years" and it was hard to admit the difference, (((it was like changing my favorite Hockey team, almost.)))

I posted a few months back asking what are some of the favorites in the 12ax7 dept. and the biggest responce was the Tung-sol 12AX7, that said I think it is the best 12ax7 "not including" NOS tubes.

tarzanalog · Post by **tarzanalog** » Wed 04/02/08 2:50 pm

(DISCLAIMER: I'm a TS RI fanboy.)

I hear that. Trying them for the first time was like when my Nordiques moved to Colorado and won the Stanley Cup in their first year! I was thrilled and pissed at the same time. In the case of the tubes... I was PO'd that I'd spent so much in the past on NOS.

FWIW, I find the TS RI ECC803S to be a little too "Hi-Fi" for V1 in some amps, but in others is an NOS-slayer and worth the higher price.

morcey2 · Post by **morcey2** » Wed 04/02/08 3:47 pm

tarzanalog wrote:(DISCLAIMER: I'm a TS RI fanboy.)

I hear that. Trying them for the first time was like when my Nordiques moved to Colorado and won the Stanley Cup in their first year! I was thrilled and pissed at the same time. In the case of the tubes... I was PO'd that I'd spent so much in the past on NOS.

FWIW, I find the TS RI ECC803S to be a little too "Hi-Fi" for V1 in some amps, but in others is an NOS-slayer and worth the higher price.

(DISCLAIMER: I'm a TS RI fanboy AND an Avs fanboy! It's so good to have Foppa and Foote back! Now if Forsberg will just stay healthy)

I've bought a few new TS 12AX7s and really like them. They're a little smoother than the jj ecc83s. I don't have lots of NOS to compare them to, but I really like them.

I also like their new 6V6 in Tweed-ish circuits (yes, I'm bordering on going OT). They sounded good in my Plexi6V6, but absolutely roared in my 6G3/5E3 hybrid.

Matt

Oldschooltone · Post by **Oldschooltone** » Wed 04/02/08 4:08 pm

"NOS not included" There is not a present tube made that I think compares to the JJ 6v6,

morcey2 · Post by **morcey2** » Wed 04/02/08 4:25 pm

And at some point I've got to build a 6V6 18watt to try all these out on.

Matt

Oldschooltone · Post by **Oldschooltone** » Wed 04/02/08 6:56 pm

And at some point I've got to build a 6V6 18watt

there is no better time than right now,..... Do It,............Do It.

Mine was first the EL84 Lite IIb and I wanted a little more chunk, zaphod_phil suggested 6v6's and at first I thought yeah right, I had a Univalve and that was not my favorite tube for "that" amp, now the 6v6 Lite II? is my 2nd favorite amp I've owned or heard.

dartanion · Post by **dartanion** » Wed 04/02/08 7:16 pm

The TS 12AX7 looks a lot like the Russian military tubes and sounds quite good. Quite a bit different than EHs and Sovteks.

The new Mullard RI from NS is pretty nice sounding as well. Long plate design with a different plate coating material that is almost black.

Oldschooltone · Post by **Oldschooltone** » Wed 04/02/08 9:04 pm

<<<PCollen>>>

The TS for its price is tops.

summitcity · Post by **summitcity** » Wed 04/02/08 9:51 pm

I hope that the new TS 12ax7s are good I just ordered 24 of them today.
I have read threads where guys have indicated that they sound great.

P.S. IMO 6v6 talk is not OT. I love those tubes and they work well in the 18 watt world.

morcey2 · Post by **morcey2** » Wed 04/02/08 10:38 pm

Oldschooltone wrote:
And at some point I've got to build a 6V6 18watt
there is no better time than right now,..... Do It,............Do It.

It's on my list. I actually have most of it already. The only problem is I have 5 amps to (hopefully) finish before our little amp show out here. After that, I will definitely build it.

Matt.

pylet2000 · Post by **pylet2000** » Thu 04/03/08 11:50 am

The Tung Sol RI is a great tube, new production or NOS aside. And coming from New Sensor, I found it to be a shock. I was really skeptical, as the RI Mullard from them was a dissapointment to me and the only other tube they put out worth a hoot is the Sovtek 12AX7LPS (maybe only worth 3/4 hoot).

I would suggest ordering more than you actually need, as I've bought about a dozen and had problems with 2 or 3 of them. One was DOA, one burned out VERY quickly (10-15 hours tops), and one was hopelessly microphonic/noisy. Another problem I've had with these is the diameter of the tube is a little bit larger than standard. Usually not a problem, but I couldn't use these in a VibroChamp because the tube shield base was too small.

I guess the VibroChamp has a relatively small tube shield base, but it was a real disappointment.

tarzanalog · Post by **tarzanalog** » Thu 04/03/08 3:23 pm

FWIW, I have a Fender XII and it sounds great with my EF86 channel... just beautiful, in fact. The TMB channel when run clean with a TS RI ECC803S at the input is also very good.

morcey2 · Post by **morcey2** » Thu 04/03/08 4:23 pm

I haven't tried the Gold Tung-Sol ECC803s. I plan on getting another set of 6V6s for the 6V6 18-watt (probably a superlite TMB). I'll probably have to buy spares too. One of the guys I have built a few things for heard the TS 6V6s in my 6G3/5E3 hybrid last night. The GE 6V6s sound pretty good, but the tung-sols just growl wonderfully.

I know that the JJ's seem to be almost a lower powered 6L6 than a true 6V6(not that that's a bad thing; they sound awesome) and seem to really like fixed biased amps. The Tung-Sol's are real 6V6s and seem to like cathode-biased amps more. I don't know if that has any basis in reality, but that seems to be what I've heard. Not that the Tung-Sol's sound bad in my Plexi6V6, but just not as good as the JJ's.

Matt

kinmike · Post by **kinmike** » Thu 04/03/08 7:22 pm

RJGTR wrote:

The GT12ax7M (Mullard repro) is a great sounding tube, if a little pricey. It's the closest to the original Mullards in new production I've heard, but if you get them, buy from a reputable reseller who does quality checks. There's been reports of some bad tubes.

I thought the whole idea behind Groove Tubes is that they did an extensive quality check?

Mike

tarzanalog · Post by **tarzanalog** » Fri 04/04/08 8:45 am

Like I said, I like the gold-pin TS ECC803S in certain applicatons. I think it would be terrific as a cascoded tube or even in a paralleled input preamp. For the $$$ though... the regular TS RI 12AX7 is a good all around tube and more than adequate for most applications.

Anyone see JB's performance at the last Crossroads festival? Was that his daughter on bass?!? Whoever it was, she was wicked.

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