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EQUIPMENT FORUMS >> TORII MK IV >> KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
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Message started by piezoman on 06/02/21 at 17:10:03

Title: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by piezoman on 06/02/21 at 17:10:03

Steve's tubes, or not?

- Brad

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Dominick on 06/03/21 at 06:15:17

Brad,

I think the majority will say to stick with Steve’s tube compliment in the beginning. Ironically enough...there was a slight mix up and my amp was shipped with the EL34 by accident. So instead of waiting for the turn around to receive my KT66, I had popped in a backup set of the Gold lion KT66 which I bought slightly used from a forum member. So in my scenario I am currently evaluating the amp with the Gold Lions. Once the amp is fully seasoned in with a few hundred hours, I will then start to do some tube rolling.

Dom

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by piezoman on 06/03/21 at 23:18:45

Dom,

For sure.

Just looking for anyone who has had any or all of the KT66 variety, and their impressions.

I had originally ordered the KT66 Tung Sols and as option [$100] with the Torii MK 4, but decided to nix them. So I'll receive the amp with the stock EL34's.

I'll go for the KT66 separately.....ebay or whatever.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Archie on 06/04/21 at 00:28:35

I liked the Genalex Gold Lion KT66s better than the Tung-Sol in my ZMA.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by piezoman on 06/04/21 at 02:10:11

Thanks Arch. From what I've read in the Torii tube rolling thread, more than several liked the Gold Lions over the Tung Sols.

I wonder what Steve heard with the Tung Sols that had him opting for them over other choices.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Archie on 06/04/21 at 06:56:49

Hard to say. I think he sometimes goes for consistency and price point. I don't even like the KT66 in my ZMA. The 7027A is my choice tube. Unfortunately, NOS quads are a king's ransom. But the New Tung-Sols sound good to me.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by piezoman on 06/04/21 at 18:10:24

Very interesting, thanks Arch.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Dominick on 06/05/21 at 13:17:17

Brad,

When I was considering the tube choices to outfit my Torii, I utilized the tube pictogram chart on the product page. Based on how it was explained, I felt that I wanted the KT66 over the EL34 to evaluate the amp. The bass output being tighter on the KT66 vs EL34 was the deciding factor for me. Will I ever roll a EL34...maybe someday, but I will seek out the 6L6GC and the 7027A as my next power tube choices. I wish I could afford the 350B, but matched quads are shockingly stupid money...a king’s ransom is an understatement!!

Dom

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Archie on 06/05/21 at 16:57:48

Can the 7027A be used in the Torii? It's plate dissipation is quite a bit higher than the KT66 and might require rebiasing of the amp? Just wondering.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Dominick on 06/05/21 at 22:06:42

Archie...I had some conversations with Will and for some reason I thought the 7027a was ok to use. I could be wrong, but now you’ve got me curious. I’m going to have to go back to my emails and double check.

Dom

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Archie on 06/05/21 at 23:41:03

In my ZMA it biases fairly high compared to the EL34 and KT66.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Dominick on 06/06/21 at 05:02:49

Archie,

I was able to pull up an email thread that I had with Will and it appears as though the 7027a is an option. Will happens to like the 6L6GC better than the 7027a. This is what he had mentioned in the excerpt...

“My favorite new power tube now is a tubestore preferred 6L6GC. It is similar sounding to a Tungsol 7027A, but to me more complex, clean, but less solid and rigid. I think the Tungsol is a nice tube, I just like this particular 6L6GC better. “

Archie...I’m still a newbie at this and Will has been like my guiding light. We have had multiple correspondence and he has truly been an inspiration and has helped me out immensely.

Will...if you are reading this, can you elaborate on running a 7027a in the Torii? Can it be done without any issues?

Dom

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Archie on 06/07/21 at 00:55:15

That's interesting. Now I'm curious about the 6L6GC that Will mentions.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by safebelayer on 08/07/21 at 07:31:44

Hey Brad,

I tried the kt66...meh. I like the nos Svetlana winged c much better. The kt77 has better overall gone in my system. The kt66 have a drier sound in my system for sure and I'm running vinyl primarily. I really think the Mk4 does best with the EL34 type tubes.

I'm going to be getting the winged c 6550 in the near future. I'll let you know my experience.

Peace,

J

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by ginny on 08/15/21 at 16:23:14

I have tried cryo treated Gold Lion KT66 in my MKlV.
Impressions as related to my system are that the bass was good and overall sound was ok at low listening levels with a slight amount of glare. As the volume was increased, so did the glare.

I then met Will through the forum and must tell you that he is a diamond in this forum. I have received some great advice from him and others and want to thank you all for that.

He listened to my explanation of what I was dealing with and offered advice based on my setting. He advised that I try Tung-Sol-reissue-7581A. These were better (in my system), with even better bass than the GL’s. The glare issue improved by about 50%.

Will and Lon have both taken time to help with this issue with tube suggestions which have all taken my system to new levels of sound that I won’t try to explain because I don’t want to embarrass myself with my lack of (hifi speak). 😆.

But as much as all the improvements have made, I still had the GLARE issue to the point where I started to question my choice of speakers to the point of almost listing them for sale.

So I decided to read more advice from this forum as well as others and give it one last try to find which tube or tubes would get rid of the glare before I sold the speakers and would have to start a whole new avenue of searching for the right speakers.

So I decided to go back to the 6L6 route that I had asked Steve to ship with the amp when I purchased it...they were Tungsol 6L6G I believe. They had a nice sound but the top end was a little thin, and the glare was only slightly better than the Tung-Sol-reissue-7581A, but only lasted about 4 months. That was not going to work, but I wanted to try something else in the 6L6 family, so I kept reading advice until I landed on the RCA 6L6GC. They came at a hefty price but decided to give them a try thanks to the advice of Andy at Vintage Tube Services.

I received them a week ago as well as a pair of used GZ34 metal base rectifiers that Andy said tested at 100%. I have installed the 6L6GC’s only at this time to compare them to the other output tubes I have tried and will give them a few weeks to burn in.

I can’t wait to try the GZ34 metal base but will wait because I want a fair comparison regarding output tubes.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by piezoman on 08/16/21 at 02:10:15

You may find the GZ34 metal base a bit much and prone to glare at times.
It is an extremely expensive proposition. I purchased 3 of the 1956 vintage, solely as an investment. I expect that investment to double, minimum, in 12 months when I sell them. I won't bother to listen to them anymore, just keep them stored then laugh all the way to the bank.

The 6L6GC "preferred series" black plates exclusively at thetubestore.com can be had for $160 per quad.

Title: Re: KT66 Tung Sol, Tube Amp Doctor, Genalex Gold Lion?
Post by Sb66er on 10/07/21 at 01:53:56

Ginny, any chance the glare issue is a room treatment issue? I know audiophiles look to change equipment incessantly before considering it could be the room.