What was the the last audio-related item you purchased?

5 cassettes from Sweden. Just received a message from GLS the courier was unable to deliver it to the specified reserved GLS parcel locker??????? Anyways tomorrow a second attempt? Keep y'all posted.
 
izeek11 said:
just rolled in a matched pair of kenrad 6sn7s in my freya+. even without break in, they're fabulous!
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I took my Psvane Horizons out of my office Freya+ and put in two Sylvania 6SN7WGT (1954 chrome top military tubes) and two Sylvania 6SN7GT (1951 bottom getter) and let them warm up for a good hour before giving them a listen. While they gave a nice mellow sweet sound, they had a one dimension sound stage- no depth, just very flat and trapped between the speakers. I put the quad of Horizons back in and the 3D holographic soundstage returned.
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krautmaster said:
I took my Psvane Horizons out of my office Freya+ and put in two Sylvania 6SN7WGT (1954 chrome top military tubes) and two Sylvania 6SN7GT (1951 bottom getter) and let them warm up for a good hour before giving them a listen. While they gave a nice mellow sweet sound, they had a one dimension sound stage- no depth, just very flat and trapped between the speakers. I put the quad of Horizons back in and the 3D holographic soundstage returned.
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might give the psvanes a look.
im hunting another matched set of the kenrads for the other side.
iono. might get another sylvania bad boy to go with the one i have. my understanding is matching on the buffer side isnt critical.
 
krautmaster said:
I took my Psvane Horizons out of my office Freya+ and put in two Sylvania 6SN7WGT (1954 chrome top military tubes) and two Sylvania 6SN7GT (1951 bottom getter) and let them warm up for a good hour before giving them a listen. While they gave a nice mellow sweet sound, they had a one dimension sound stage- no depth, just very flat and trapped between the speakers. I put the quad of Horizons back in and the 3D holographic soundstage returned.
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are you using socket savers?
 
izeek11 said:
sooo, how about a synopsis on how those sound. do you have a quad of any? or is this your favorite mix?
just asking questions. im just starting my tube journey.
and how does $400 in tubes sound on it? :rflmao:
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I have lots of NOS tubes, mostly 1950s Sylvania and 1960-70's RCA, some modern ones (Tong-Sol reissues, one of which "farts"), Ray Select 6SN7 and Psvane Horizon CV181-AT (6SN7 equivalent). After listening to them all over the last two and a half years, the RAY and Psvane sound the best when used in quads. The Ray tubes are dead silent and very neutral and therefore are in my main system running KEF R7 Meta speakers which are also very neutral. The Psvane Horizons are a little microphonic if you tap on them (as are almost all my NOS tubes) and have a deeper base and mellow mid range, which is important for running my Monitor Audio Silver 500 speakers (6th gen from 2018) in my office system . The MA 500's have all metallic speakers and tend to be on the bright side with a neutral tube.

Both the Ray and Psvane have a very wide/deep/tall sound stage that can be crazily holographic with a good recording. The Horizons will run you about $240 for a quad, the Ray close to $400... I would try the Horizons first to see if you like them, if not send them back (mine got better after the first week of use, around 20 hours or so to break in).

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izeek11 said:
might give the psvanes a look.
im hunting another matched set of the kenrads for the other side.
iono. might get another sylvania bad boy to go with the one i have. my understanding is matching on the buffer side isnt critical.
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Schiit recommends a matched quad for the "best" sound due to the way the tubes operate together (they don't work exactly like old tube preamps with completely separate buffer and gain stages). IMO, they are correct. When I asked Schiit about how the Freya works, I got to different but similar answers:

The Freya+ uses a differential design, meaning each channel (left and right) utilizes a pair of tubes for gain. Specifically, the front pair of tubes (V1 and V2) are used for the voltage gain stage, while the rear pair of tubes (V3 and V4) are used for the output stage. Both pairs work together to handle the left and right channels in a balanced configuration.

So, to sum it up: the front tubes (V1 and V2) and the rear tubes (V3 and V4) are not dedicated to individual channels but rather work in tandem to deliver that sweet, sweet balanced sound to both the left and right channels.

*****When you look at the circuit board the rear pair of tubes are labeled "Differential Tube Right" (U104 on the left and U103 on the right). The Front pair of tubes are labled "Differential Tube Left" (U204 on the left and U203 on the right) which works better with the second explanation that I got below: ****
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On the Freya+, the tube layout is indeed a bit of a dance between buffer and gain stages, but it's not as simple as left side for buffer and right side for gain.
Here's the lowdown:
  • The left side tubes (V1 and V2) are indeed used for the voltage gain stage.
  • The right side tubes (V3 and V4) are used for the output stage, which includes the buffer.
So, in essence, the left side tubes handle the voltage gain, and the right side tubes handle the output stage, which includes the buffer. It's a beautifully orchestrated symphony of tubes working together to deliver that luscious sound.
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krautmaster said:
Schiit recommends a matched quad for the "best" sound due to the way the tubes operate together (they don't work exactly like old tube preamps with completely separate buffer and gain stages). IMO, they are correct.
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lol, ill have to make due with matched pairs as i have a pair already,
according to AI( :rflmao: ), the buffer stage and gain stage in the Schiit Freya+ are separate, distinct circuits that can be independently selected, although they do not operate simultaneously.
idk
i went in this. maybe i should have gone to schiit 's site.
right now with stock 6ns8s buffer side and kenrads gain side sounds pretty good.
 
izeek11 said:
lol, ill have to make due with matched pairs as i have a pair already,
according to AI( :rflmao: ), the buffer stage and gain stage in the Schiit Freya+ are separate, distinct circuits that can be independently selected, although they do not operate simultaneously.
idk
i went in this. maybe i should have gone to schiit 's site.
right now with stock 6ns8s buffer side and kenrads gain side sounds pretty good.
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Well that AI is OTL (out to lunch !)... the buffer and gain stages cannot be selected independently, and they do work simultaneously... The AI is confusing the three different MODES the Freya can play in, not how the tubes work together IE: Passive Mode(no gain), differential buffer mode(also no gain), and differential tube gain (+12db gain).
 
krautmaster said:
It looks like they may have more than just their Amazon Store Front up and running... seems to be legit... Why Not try them?
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Well I checked and that site is probably bogus, especially with the return policy "return within 7 days, UNUSED". The only legitimate sites are Psvane's Amazon Store and Psvane Direct:

psvane.co

PSVANE Official Store – Premium Vacuum Tube Brand

PSVANE Official Store – Your source for premium vacuum tubes with superior sound quality and official assurance. Perfect for audiophiles and high-end audio systems.
psvane.co psvane.co

Amazon Store Front:

 
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