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Best bang for the buck current production 845 tubes?

seanrr

seanrr

Well-Known Member
I recently bought some nice 845 mono blocks, and I am hooked on the sound. They give just enough more punch for my Tannoy 15" drivers than my 300b amp. They came with what look to be early production Shunguang 845s (no logo, just "845, Made in China," but they do have copper bases). Anyways, these sound nice, but I am already getting curious about the other current production tubes out there. I have read that the newer ones are better sonically. I don't want to pay a ton (I am thinking about $300-350 for a pair), and I cannot afford to buy a bunch for rolling. So - what are people's experiences here among those with 845 amps? Also, does the type of 845 tube make a big difference to the amps' sound? I am assuming it does.
 
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No thoughts? Shunguang 845B? Shunguang 845-T? Psvane T-II? Etc., etc. I have seen some threads on different forums from the past, but nothing in about the last eight years, and there are plenty of new tubes.
 
I just purchased a pair of Shunguang 845B tubes from thetubestore.com and am happy with the purchase. They went in to my Cary 805AE mono amps. The stock tubes were the lower priced Shunguangs like your amp has. The 845B's are considered an upgrade. Be aware that not all 845 tubes are appropriate for all 845 tube amps. Some amps like my 805AE's require 845 tubes that have a 100W dissipation not the lower 75W dissipation like the Pavane and other 845 tubes. They will burn out quickly if you do. But if you have the stock Shunguang the upgrading to the 845B is a good choice.
 
Thanks! That may be the soundest advice. Do you know if the Shunguang WE845 tubes are also 100W dissipation?
 
Huh. I found this thread in a forum search because I have exactly the same question. I have 4 channels of 845 power and one Shuguang 845B from years ago is causing issues. I thought there'd be some collective wisdom here about current options.

A little low-energy googling indicates that ~$280/pr from TheTubeStore is probably an okay route.

Man, I still wish I'd been a little faster a few years back. I had a chance to buy NOS RCA 845s and missed it.
 
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Reviving an old thread. Just got a pair of MasterSound 845 mono blocks and a bad tube in one of them shorted and blew the amp’s fuse. Luckily I had an extra set but was wondering the same thing, namely do the expensive tubes 845 tubes make an audible (and better) difference from the stock Shuguang Electron tubes the amp came with? Would love to hear opinions. Each monoblock takes four 845 tubes so this becomes quite an expensive proposition. Thx.
 
I just received a pair of Himing Mona 845 monoblocks and am keeping an eye on this thread.
 
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