GE Military Stock 12AU7 / 6189W Gold Grade / No Cryo Reviews

4.8 Rating 20 Reviews

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909.931.9686

Email:

joel.m@upscaleaudio.com

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2058 Wright Avenue,
2058 Wright Avenue
California
91750

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Paul Creighton

Unverified Reviewer

“The stock JJs in my Candela preamplifier were okay; Northern Electric (the new ones) just a bit better. I still heard some upper register edginess and an imprecise instrument presentation; not bad but I thought there should be more musicality. Kevin’s Stash GE military tube pair already shatters those criticisms. And they will get better over time. Now there is synergy, energy, and a clean reproduction top to bottom in my Odyssey world. Kevin’s Stash GE military tubes (no cryo; cryo was out of stock or I would have grabbed those) are dead quiet too. The Kismet beryllium tweeters are now amazing; clean, snappy, but sweeter than before. Extended low end was not why I decided to try Kismet floorstanding speakers. I sought tonality and natural heft. I still have no idea how Klaus gets so much punch from one 7.5 inch driver per speaker. These tubes put me about ten rows from the proverbial stage, dead center. No, they did not throw the soundstage 20 percent further to the sides. No, they do not push the soundstage back beyond the walls of my living room. No, they did not drop that modest low end into the subwoofer zone. Why would they? Stuff is simply where it is supposed to be and stuff sounds fantastic to me. No musical genre is disappointing: classical is very good; blues superb; jazz is, whether traditional, smooth, or fusion, wonderfully dynamic; acoustic/world/new age is phenomenal; and rock & roll rocks. The Candela preamplifier with these 6189W tubes surpasses the price point by a wide margin.”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

“Just inserted today”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

“I put 2 of these into my Primaluna Evo 300 to replace the stock tubes. What I noticed right away was how much blacker the background was and how much more Focus there was on individual instruments. With better separation. The stock tubes put slightly more emphasis on the recording space than there was on the instrument. The clarity and detail were also noticeable improvemed. The downside was they seemed to be slightly more analytical and there just wasn't as much dynamics as there was with the stock tube. After 48 to 72 hours of break-in time this changed,dynamics were back to what sounded to my ears like what the stock tubes did. This break also developed bass detail and control that I did know I was missing. I'm very happy and would highly recommend!”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

Chris Bieler

Verified Reviewer

“Excellent, warm, smooth tubes. Great in mid- range. Always happy with Upscale- they know their stuff. They take tubes seriously and I no of no other place that takes more care with tubes. I call many times to order over phone and the people that work here are very knowledgeable and super friendly. I always learn something new when I call them. Extraordinary company- the best.”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

EDWARD STRNAD

Verified Reviewer

“Didn't sound as good as I expected. Went back to my amps' stock tubes (Rouge Sphinx v3 JJs). Wish I could return them.”

1 Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

Peter Groenewold

Unverified Reviewer

“One of the tubes in my relatively new Primaluna EVO400 preamp was going bad, so I replaced the four factory/Shuguang center tubes with four "Platinum/Kevin's Stash" models dating back to 1985. Even without any kind of break-in, I noticed an immediate, significant difference. The original tubes sounded pleasant, but highs and lows seemed rolled off. Not these GEs! The highs are very detailed without being overly analytical or fatiguing, and the bass seems to dig deeper and have more slam. I'm very pleased so far and am debating ordering a few more to keep around as spares.”

Helpful Report

Posted 3 years ago

Jonathan Cabrieto

Verified Reviewer

“I changed the JJ tubes that came with my Rogue Sphinx. Right off the bat, the music is more airy, excellent sound stage, detailed and focused. I already have been bragging to my FaceBook friends " I love my Rogue" they should replace the JJ tubes of their Sphinx with the G.E. Military stock tubes!”