tone controls are ?

[burmashave]

For those who think they need tone controls...on tube equipment, rolling tubes is equivalent to having tone controls. Just sayin'

 

[invaderzim]

That is great if you don't mind shutting down and waiting for everything to cool off enough to not have a hot restart and then swapping out the tubes and turning it back on and waiting for it to warm up every time you change to music where you'd like a slightly different sound.

And for those that say "so you think you can do better than the professional that mixed the track?"
Unless I'm listening to the songs through the same equipment with the same speakers in copy of the room they were in then I'm not hearing it the same way they did anyways.

 

[burmashave]

I find it isn't like that. Tube rolling is a session unto itself and a lot of fun for me. Listening sessions only occur after the tube rolling has gotten me where I wanted to go.

 

[sKiZo]

Yup - I did a lot of rolling here until I found exactly what I was looking for, and haven't much touched it since.

(Doesn't stop me from trying a new combo every now and then, but I find myself returning to the same set time after time.)

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Call that a prelude to mentioning I have a couple new drivers coming in the mail. <G>

PS - the set currently in the main amp is actually a bit dark for my tastes, but I tweak that up using a tube buffer with a brighter driver.

 

[burmashave]

Yup - I did a lot of rolling here until I found exactly what I was looking for, and haven't much touched it since.

(Doesn't stop me from trying a new combo every now and then, but I find myself returning to the same set time after time.)

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exactly!!
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.

Call that a prelude to mentioning I have a couple new drivers coming in the mail. <G>

PS - the set currently in the main amp is actually a bit dark for my tastes, but I tweak that up using a tube buffer with a brighter driver.

 

[invaderzim]

I find it isn't like that. Tube rolling is a session unto itself and a lot of fun for me. Listening sessions only occur after the tube rolling has gotten me where I wanted to go.

I guess it depends on how one listens.

If you pick a style and source of music and spend a long time getting ready and a long time listening then tube rolling is fun.

If you click on the music while making dinner and start with some classical, move to jazz and then stop at pop all within a half hour it makes changing tubes for the different sounds a bit harder.

Granted my main tube amp doesn't have tone controls but my old garage one does and while I don't often adjust them, they come in handy sometimes when wanting to cycle through a lot of different types of music while covered in grease.

 

[sKiZo]

Only adjustment I may make switching between rock and jazz is flipping the amp from "pentode" to "triode" mode ... whole nuther sound and feel to it, and I can do it on the fly if so desired.

 

[burmashave]

I guess it depends on how one listens.

If you pick a style and source of music and spend a long time getting ready and a long time listening then tube rolling is fun.

If you click on the music while making dinner and start with some classical, move to jazz and then stop at pop all within a half hour it makes changing tubes for the different sounds a bit harder.

Granted my main tube amp doesn't have tone controls but my old garage one does and while I don't often adjust them, they come in handy sometimes when wanting to cycle through a lot of different types of music while covered in grease.

I totally get where you’re coming from. I have a dedicated listening room. The music in the rest of the house is great, but I seldom dedicate real listening time except for background music while something else is going on.

 

[N8Nagel]

Tone controls are cheaper than tubes however either I have a tin ear or my system isn't bad because I usually don't even have them enabled (Lux TP-117, so no tube rolling possibilities there.)

 

[primosounds]

For those who think they need tone controls...on tube equipment, rolling tubes is equivalent to having tone controls. Just sayin'

Lately, i have been using the "Loudness" switch on a PAS, and on the Sansui AU70, and Scott 222C. When listening at a lower volume, a nicely balanced loudness function can be just the right amount of added bass and usually highs which one's ears are not very sensitive to, at lower decibels. This is noticeably better than have the tone control in circuit. It is actually just a cap and resistor and switch. Much less components than a full function tone control circuit.

 

[burmashave]

Lately, i have been using the "Loudness" switch on a PAS, and on the Sansui AU70, and Scott 222C. When listening at a lower volume, a nicely balanced loudness function can be just the right amount of added bass and usually highs which one's ears are not very sensitive to, at lower decibels. This is noticeably better than have the tone control in circuit. It is actually just a cap and resistor and switch. Much less components than a full function tone control circuit.

Until I acquired an Anthem L2, I had no idea a preamp could have such lush and almost ethereal presentation without tone controls. Now, when I reintroduce my ss pre, a Mitsubishi DA-P10, true dual mono, it sounds so harsh to me now I can't stand it. I loved it before. Live and learn.

 

[primosounds]

Until I acquired an Anthem L2, I had no idea a preamp could have such lush and almost ethereal presentation without tone controls. Now, when I reintroduce my ss pre, a Mitsubishi DA-P10, true dual mono, it sounds so harsh to me now I can't stand it. I loved it before. Live and learn.

You are not alone in that regard! It is the sound quality of tubes that has made its resurgence into mainstream audio a permanent fixture.

 

[RUmad]

Funny this comes up today. Just last night I was researching mods for a technics sl 1200 first gen. There’s not much out there so I was chasing ghosts practically. Got directed to a thread on a vinyl forum where a member had called us AK’ers all snobs when it comes to tone adjustments. Apparently it got so heated that a moderator had to come in and remove a lot of comments. I think it was a few years old, I just thought it was funny. Why must we be snobs because we like it a certain way? I dunno man. It seems rather simple to me. You do how you do, I’ll do how I do. Let’s not bicker. Lol. Anyways. Relax! Enjoy the tunes!

 

[Lavane]

Several systems I have setup in the small room where my bench is set up have tone controls and they can come in handy. My main system has none. Same as what's been posted above, after rolling different tubes I found the sound I like. Instead of rolling different tubes for different music I also just use the pentode/ triode switch along with several sets of speakers on a selector.

 

[GChief]

What are those?

 

[Blue Shadow]

For those who think they need tone controls...on tube equipment, rolling tubes is equivalent to having tone controls. Just sayin'

So are tube buffers. And there is nothing wrong with that. I like my music to sound good to me. I don't give a crap about how someone using completely different equipment from what I have, makes it sound on that rig (the record engineer/produced/etc.) like we are supposed to think that is the only way to listen to it. Can't be done, my room is different, another type of sound 'processor'.

 

[Blue Shadow]

Tone controls are cheaper than tubes however either I have a tin ear or my system isn't bad because I usually don't even have them enabled (Lux TP-117, so no tube rolling possibilities there.)

You got that back together and in place already? I thought we were still figuring out what chips to try. I guess you like it. Great unit for the price.

 

[N8Nagel]

You got that back together and in place already? I thought we were still figuring out what chips to try. I guess you like it. Great unit for the price.

I have a busted unit that I got off BT for the remote, because I didn't have one. I just took one of the op amp chips out of that unit to confirm the issue. Sounds great. I will have to order some more next time I need something from Mouser or Digi-Key though as I hate leaving stuff cannibalized. Only things left on this rabbit hole are a) figuring out the remote codes so I can get a Harmony to work with it (tried to learn one of my 650s yesterday for the CD control codes and failed) and b) somehow find or duplicate that RC-501 IR receiver so I can utilize the Zone 2 preamp. I will document this all if I get it done because it's a pretty good unit, just kind of useless without all the accessories.

 

[gadget73]

Tone controls are
....largely un-needed, same as replacing good tubes with other good tubes is not needed.

yes I realize this is not a popular opinion.

 

[jeffs01879]

Another reason for not using your tube stash as a tone control:

From page 10 of Robert Tomer's book "Getting the Most Out of Vacuum Tubes", in the section titled "Glass Failures"

"Not disturbing tubes that are functioning properly will also help reduce the incidence of this type of failure, because it is a proven fact that merely removing and inserting the same tube in the same socket too many times will eventually lead to broken pins and cracked glass."