EC Aficionado (was: The Studio Jr.)

Don't own an AF (yet) but have never had a problem with tubes ordered from https://tubeworldexpress.com/search?q=WE+396A hope this helps.

 

I've ordered tubes from there before and I've been happy.

Right now it doesn't look like any of the 396as they have test great though.

I usually go for stuff with 4 exclamation points or more, the ratings go from 0 to 5 (!)

Those !!!! GE 5670Ws look nice though, worth trying for 20 bucks maybe?

I got my 396As from eBay. Kind of a crapshoot but usually if they publish gm/ma relatively safe?

 

Yes very good rating system. Every tube I have bought from tubeworldexpress rated (!!!!) has been excellent.

 

Just swapped in a Philips 5R4GYS rectifier. I'm not noticing any immediate differences, but I just swapped it in. Anyone else tried a 5R4 and can tell me what to listen for?

Edit: Put the 5AR4 back in and felt that it's fuller, has more bass, and the treble is more controlled, less harsh. It seems maybe it's best to stick with the rectifier that this amp is designed for. Too bad because that big coke bottle tube sure does look cool!

 

Hey tube experts. I was thinking about this guy for the EC AF. https://www.head-fi.org/threads/bendix-6385-2c51-legendary-tube-from-1964-nos-nib.875570/

I owned a SinglePower Extreme back in the day and remember the bendix 2c51 being the magical piece that made that amp sing. I am a complete newb on this stuff, but I think this is the what I need for a driver tube?

Any comments on compatibility, price, alternatives, etc?

 

The bendix is my favorite 2C51 tube. It outclasses the WE2C51 for me as it has noticeably better depth and opens the sound stage up. I would classify it as a pretty dead neutral tube where the Western Electric is slightly warm with some bloom and a touch too much bass.

 

I don't own an AF but do know the Bendix 6385 is very hard to find should be able to resell if it does not work for you. I would grab it before someone else does.

 

The 6385 is not quite a 2C51. The heater current is higher at 500mA rather than 300mA. @purr1n said previously that 600mA is too much (6SN7) and could overload the power supply. So this is probably one to avoid. Bendix 2c51 OTOH would be fine.

 

I wouldn't have even tried rolling a rectifier except that I happened to have the tube on hand. I originally bought it for the Inspire IHA-1. The difference was night and day better with the 5AR4 so the 5R4GYS has gone back into storage and I'll probably sell it eventually. In fact, there's no need for me to roll any tubes since this was originally Ray's amp and came with a full complement of tubes that sound amazing.

Expect a Druid Tube Sell-a-thon before too long. I have way too many tubes that I don't have any use for anymore.

 

Any idea what the turn around time is these days, from order to delivery on an Aficionado?

No reason for asking... ...

 

Several requests for output impedance numbers but no response so far...

 

Current run delivers late April early May.

 

Sorry to be the tube newb, but after "wasting" 2 hours reading and re-reading this thread to get an idea of a reasonably priced tube for the AF when I should have been working... I was thinking about going with:

PSVANE 2A3B(reasonably priced, marvey approved-ish, look cool) https://www.ebay.com/itm/391702124985
WE 396A(NOS, SBAF approved) https://www.ebay.com/itm/332598769062

Any red flags from the smarter folks on the forum here?

 

Also consider the EH 2A3 as a budget option depending on the sound you're after?

 

Earlier in the thread it was mentioned to likely be in the realm of 2-3 ohms

 

Hmm.

It's strange that nobody is making any new tubes compatible with 396a/2c51/5670. It's a relatively popular tube type, though I guess it's guitar amps that really drives the market, and those run a lot of 12A*7s.

 

How difficult is it to switch out caps? Is there soldering or anything involved or is it just, like, unplug one and plug in another?

 

Well yeah, you have to desolder the old ones and solder on the new ones

 

damnit