Rolling Tubes – Preamp Tubes
When I first got into tubes I wanted to change the power tubes (output tubes) because they were the bigger tubes and it made sense, as a newbie to tubes, to start there. I found out after some research that wasn’t the case, and that the preamp tubes (input tubes) will make the biggest difference in how the music can sound in my system.
Let’s be clear tube lovers, I am not taking anything away from the power tubes. I just wanted to get that out before you get upset and scroll to the bottom of this article and start leaving comments. I’ll talk about them in the next post.
My experience has shown that to get the sound you want, you have to start with the preamp tubes. The preamp tubes mold the sound. They add the imaging, airiness, detail, and definition to each note. They can be the difference between a guitar pluck sounding like it is coming from right in the same room vs. sounding like it is just another noise in the recording.
Being caught off guard by the music is something that I’m sure most of us still enjoy and are amazed by. I’m referring to that moment when you are listening to a song that has always sounded amazing in your system and with new tubes there is detail and sounds you have never heard before.
A great example of classic rock is Poco’s Crazy Eyes. I’ve always like the song, but when I started rolling preamp tubes in it really came to life. Listen to the banjo at the 1:40; It blew me away with the 3D sound. That is what a great preamp tube can do.
A tube I like in the preamp tube options is the 6922 JAN Phillips tube. The JAN stands for Joint Army Navy and was meant to take abuse and last. In the Hi-Fi world, they can really bring a recording to life.
They offer plenty of top end to help a system that has a dull or dark sound. The remarkable thing about the 6922 is that it doesn’t lose the solid lows or the warmth in the mids with the top end being so extended.
They can really take command of the recording and put its sound signature on it! What is one of your favorite preamp tubes? Let us know in the comments section below.