Home » Audio » Thermionic Emissions » 2A3 Upgrade (Paramour)
tubes [message #10574 is a reply to message #10573] Wed, 17 March 2004 07:52 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Seeker is currently offline  Seeker
Messages: 48
Registered: May 2009
Baron
HI Wayne, I got them at the Tube Store; $89.95 for a matched pair.

http://thetubestore.com/index.html

Re: tubes [message #10575 is a reply to message #10574] Wed, 17 March 2004 12:09 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18670
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
I've got a pair coming. Thanks for the tip and for the link to the online tube store.

Re: tubes [message #10576 is a reply to message #10574] Wed, 17 March 2004 18:26 Go to previous messageGo to next message
GarMan is currently offline  GarMan
Messages: 960
Registered: May 2009
Illuminati (2nd Degree)
I've ordered from these guys several times and they're great.
I like them even more because they're Canadian.

Re: tubes [message #10579 is a reply to message #10575] Fri, 26 March 2004 18:05 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18670
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
I received my pair of Electro-Harmonix 2A3 Gold tubes today. I'm so busy I barely had time to write this post, and so I haven't plugged 'em in yet. But I'll surely do that at some point this weekend and then I'll write back. Thanks again Seeker for the suggestion.

Re: 2A3 Upgrade (Paramour) [message #10587 is a reply to message #10567] Thu, 08 April 2004 12:37 Go to previous messageGo to next message
DRCope is currently offline  DRCope
Messages: 160
Registered: May 2009
Location: Brooklyn, CT
Master
These are the changes I put amps through:

(1) The .1uf metallized polypro interstage coupling cap was my first stop. Doubled up to .22uf for starters, tried VTV silver PIO caps first, but ended up with Audio Note copper foil PIO's. (No cries of "Foul!" please. I don't distribute the parts. In North America PartsConnexion.com sells them.)

(2) In my case, the iron underwent a wholesale change next. (If I were to do it again, I might do the third step 2nd.) The parafeed OPTs were replaced by a pair of nickel MQ's. I upgraded the parafeed chokes as well, again with MQ's goodies. This yielded a spare pair of chokes which can be directly subbed for the big-ass 1.2kohm 10w wire wound resistors. A no cost upgrade which yields much smoother, more refined sound.

(3) The 3.3uf parafeed caps went next. Again, metallized polypro are not the nicest sounding caps, but they are cost effective. In my case, I scored a pair of Western Electric PIO caps from Mike Lefevre while he was in a garage-cleaning frenzy. ;-0

Note: Early on, I had subbed Black Gate caps into the PS. Heard next to nothing, which is assuredly NOT the case in other applications. The parafeed topology seems to minimize the sonic effect of PS cap choices. I wouldn't bother with them till I had run out of other things to monkey around with, if then.

Yeah, it's all been covered on the Bot Forum, but, as somebody else already said, "yer here, right?"

Re: 2A3 Upgrade (Paramour) [message #10588 is a reply to message #10587] Thu, 08 April 2004 13:19 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18670
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
Foul!

I don't really know why I said that. Just 'cause you said not to, I suppose.

Hey, is the Paramour amp you brought to Lima the one you're describing here?

Re: 2A3 Upgrade (Paramour) [message #10589 is a reply to message #10588] Thu, 08 April 2004 13:24 Go to previous messageGo to next message
DRCope is currently offline  DRCope
Messages: 160
Registered: May 2009
Location: Brooklyn, CT
Master
Yep, that would be them, alright. I forgot to mention in the first pass that obviously tube rolling plays a big roll. I had (and have) TJ meshplate 2A3's. I preferred them to the Valve Arts and Sovteks. A pair of ancient RCA's were lovely till one got feeble; that's when the meshies came on board.

At that show I had one dead and one live input/driver tube. (One didn't enjoy the drive to Toledo.)

Re: 2A3 Upgrade (Paramour) [message #10590 is a reply to message #10589] Thu, 08 April 2004 13:52 Go to previous messageGo to next message
Wayne Parham is currently offline  Wayne Parham
Messages: 18670
Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
I remember your having a bad input tube. Easy swap though, easy fix.

You might have seen that I purchased a pair of Electro-Harmonix tubes. They sound real nice and no more Geiger-counter clicking sound from the Valve Art's. Do your VA2A3's make that Geiger counter click?

I'm jealous about your RCA's. Those are what everybody wants at $300.00/pair. I'm slumming it with my $100.00/pair Electro-Harmonix. But the build quality looks very similar to the TJ Meshplates. If you don't look at the labels on the base, inside the glass you can't tell 'em apart.

Re:Cool! I'm controversial! (nt) [message #10591 is a reply to message #10567] Thu, 08 April 2004 14:57 Go to previous messageGo to next message
BillEpstein is currently offline  BillEpstein
Messages: 886
Registered: May 2009
Illuminati (2nd Degree)
.

Re: tubes [message #10592 is a reply to message #10579] Thu, 08 April 2004 15:01 Go to previous messageGo to previous message
BillEpstein is currently offline  BillEpstein
Messages: 886
Registered: May 2009
Illuminati (2nd Degree)
As the rest of the worls knows, I won the TJ Mesh (sortaplates) in the 1,000,000th post contest. They sounded detailed, had good bass and were an upgrade? But the Valve Arts were quieter and more Musical(?) (easier to listen to) and BLUE.

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