[NOS Valves]

My buddy built the cabs. I could have, but it wouldn't have looked like that.

Ask him if he'd be interested in building them on a semi regular basis. If so have him drop me an email.

[Freo-1]

I thought I would bring this up to date. 

After some prolonged tube break in for a quad of Black Treasures and Penta KT88SC, it appears that the subjective sonic differences between the two are not all that dramatic.  The Penta KT88SC, once broken in, is VERY close in sound to the Black Treasures.  Its close enough to make one question paying a premium for the upper end Black Treasures is worth the extra expense.  To me, changing the input tubes makes a much more significant change in character than the delta between these two power tubes.

To qualify this, the observations were done with a Eastern Electric M88 integrated amp.  The actual listening results one can get with their gear may be different.

[HT cOz]

Great post. Thanks.

[50jess]

I thought I would bring this up to date. 

After some prolonged tube break in for a quad of Black Treasures and Penta KT88SC, it appears that the subjective sonic differences between the two are not all that dramatic.  The Penta KT88SC, once broken in, is VERY close in sound to the Black Treasures.  Its close enough to make one question paying a premium for the upper end Black Treasures is worth the extra expense.  To me, changing the input tubes makes a much more significant change in character than the delta between these two power tubes.

To qualify this, the observations were done with a Eastern Electric M88 integrated amp.  The actual listening results one can get with their gear may be different.

Would changing my EH KT88 tubes to Penta KT88SE provide dramatic improvement in sound?

[putz]

I just switched to the Pentas from Jolidas that are made by Shuguang. Bought the Pentas used and buyer indicated he barely used them, so may not be broken in yet.

Like what I'm hearing so far. No experience with Treasures but thumbs up on the Pentas. I'm using them in a Jolida 502BRC and mostly listening to vinyl. Would love to also pick up a set of the Treasures but I need to start spending some $$ on room treatments and if the Pentas are a close second then I guess I'm done.

[billc]

I just switched from the Penta's to the Black Treasures in my ASL Hurricanes (8 KT88's per monoblock).  I switched 4 tubes at a time to keep the cost down, over about a year.  The Penta's are very good, but the Black Treasures are really superb.  They are more stable, have a somewhat better balance throughout the frequency range, are they are more resolved and smoother in the high frequencies. 

The Penta's are very good, and were my pick after extensive research, plus I did not want to venture into the Black Treasure cost range (given the number of 88s in the Canes).  But I found some Treasures that were well priced and swapping even a few into my Canes made a discernable difference.  If you know what a headache it can be to keep all 16 KT88s at the proper bias, the fact that the Black Treasures stayed rock steady bias-wise was pretty amazing, and it became worth the expense, also considering the better sound.
 
Just my impressions - on my Hurricanes. 

Bill C

[Freo-1]

Would changing my EH KT88 tubes to Penta KT88SE provide dramatic improvement in sound?

I can't say if the improvement would be dramatic, but it would be a improvement.  Have you changed out input tubes?


I do not care for the Gold Lion Re-Issues or the Electro Harmonix KT88.  There was a guy on another site who had a whole heap of Electro Harmonix KT88's that all died a early death, many of them had various shorts.  If you search the web, there seems to be a lot of posts about the Russian KT88 tubes not holding up.   The Russian tubes I had (which died, which were at least six) were checked by a reliable vendor, but that does not correlate to holding up over time.

[Freo-1]

I just switched from the Penta's to the Black Treasures in my ASL Hurricanes (8 KT88's per monoblock).  I switched 4 tubes at a time to keep the cost down, over about a year.  The Penta's are very good, but the Black Treasures are really superb.  They are more stable, have a somewhat better balance throughout the frequency range, are they are more resolved and smoother in the high frequencies. 

The Penta's are very good, and were my pick after extensive research, plus I did not want to venture into the Black Treasure cost range (given the number of 88s in the Canes).  But I found some Treasures that were well priced and swapping even a few into my Canes made a discernable difference.  If you know what a headache it can be to keep all 16 KT88s at the proper bias, the fact that the Black Treasures stayed rock steady bias-wise was pretty amazing, and it became worth the expense, also considering the better sound.
 
Just my impressions - on my Hurricanes. 

Bill C

Bill, glad you like them.  I like mine as well. 

I have seen no difference in bias stability between the Pentas and Black Treasures.  They are both rock solid. 

There were times I though the Black Treasures sounded better, but when I switched back to the Pentas, they seemed just as good.  The 12AX7 driver tube for the KT88s in my amp make more of a difference in my setup. 

However, each setup is different, so I'm glad you notice a difference.

[50jess]

I can't say if the improvement would be dramatic, but it would be a improvement.  Have you changed out input tubes?

Yes, the 12AX7 is a Tungsram and the 12AU7s are RCA Clear Tops.
I was thinking of the KT88 Black Treasures but it seems that the Pentas seem to be a better value for money considering they sound close to the Treasures.


I do not care for the Gold Lion Re-Issues or the Electro Harmonix KT88.  There was a guy on another site who had a whole heap of Electro Harmonix KT88's that all died a early death, many of them had various shorts.  If you search the web, there seems to be a lot of posts about the Russian KT88 tubes not holding up.   The Russian tubes I had (which died, which were at least six) were checked by a reliable vendor, but that does not correlate to holding up over time.