Question about tubes

[PFDarkside]

I'm currently in Japan, and I've been visiting electronics stores that are amazing, bigger than Best Buy with the content of a boutique electronics shop. I have seen high-end home audio, and it is good.

Regardless, I see some high end tube power amps for hi-fi, along with the vintage ones and I'm amazed to see tubes that I generally equate with guitar amps. (KT66, KT88) One store had NOS Siemens EL34's, $400 for 4... I guess what I'm asking is, are tubes capable of a very pure sound when run in certain conditions (gain, etc.) and raunchy distortion when run in other conditions? Do amp junkies and audiophiles both like tubes for different reasons?

 

[Curly]

Re: Question about tubes

both hi fi and guitar amps are based on pre WWII radio technology, and use many of the same tubes. The big difference is that hi fi is all about the purest reproduction of recorded music, therefore they want as little distortion as possible, whereas guitarists are concerned with controlling the distortion character of their amps.

audiophiles are notoriously picky about the specs of their amps & tubes

note that Eurotubes, who sell JJ tubes, also sell audio amps

another good source of audiophile equipment is Upscale Audio

 

[More-Gear-Than-Skill]

Re: Question about tubes

Those audiophiles are the only other folks out there who worship the sonic beauty of valves. So without them, i wonder where the few remaining factories would be. Actually if i was loaded, it would be nice to have an all valve Hi-Fi, playing vinyl LPs. I might even "hear" the musicallity, extended frequency response, warmth, joy, and open-blue-sky-potential...

OR - Those audiophiles pushed up the prices on all those yummy NOS valves! Chops!

 

[More-Gear-Than-Skill]

Re: Question about tubes

PS: are you big in Japan?

 

[chill]

Re: Question about tubes

Yes, tubes can be quite linear. Hifi design tends to focus on extended frequency response in the high and low end, linearity (constant ratio of input to output across the frequency spectrum) and headroom. They tend to use multiple NFB loops and some other circuit fanciness that is not found in musical instrument amps.

By contrast, guitar amps need a relatively limited frequency band from about 80Hz to about 5-6K, above which the speaker rolls off the output. Nonlinearity is part of what we like about guitar sounds (e.g. search for "even order harmonics" or "power tube distortion" and see what turns up), and a lot of warm clean sounds have some low levels of distortion from the preamp, PI or power tubes.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Question about tubes

I think I understand... So guitar amps really are meant to use the non-linearities of tubes whereas hi-fi (somehow) manages to keep tubes in an area of operation that is very even frequency-wise.

It has to be way more difficult for audiophiles to find good tubes than us.

PS: are you big in Japan?

Of course. Before I left, my former bandmates and I were joking that I'd probably be a rockstar when I arrived, all of our CDs probably went to Japan and they absolutely adore us.

Interestingly, there is a new Buckcherry CD out, only in Japan currently and a tour that starts early next month. Unfortunately I'll be returning to the good ol' US on Friday so I'll miss it, but it's amazing to see all the bands/guitarists that are big here. You'd think it was still the 80's with all the shred guys on mag covers.