Why buy E-845 Top 10% Best Grade from Grant Fidelity?

Posted Posted in Purchase Guide, Tube FAQ & Must Read, - 845 all types

‘Why buy Top 10% Best Grade tubes from you? There are cheaper price on internet!”

A few top reasons:

  1. Our Top grade tubes have STRONG emission capacity = LONGER tube useful life. (For example: Our top grade Elite E-845 tubes start with minimum 90% full emission up to 105%. Too strong emission beyond 105% might trigger certain amps into a protective shutdown mode hence not usable at all.)

Can all tubes out of factory simply have 100% spot on full emission, since tubes are produced in modern industrial factories? No. This is NOT possible. The electron emission coatings on the tube plate, by nature, are live and cannot be 100% consistent to be of the exact same value. It is not technically possible for tube factories to have tubes produced ONLY with 100% spot on emission.

Chinese National Standard (GB) allows 845 tube emission as low as 70% of full emission or up towards 115% to be still considered Factory QC Pass. Such a wide range of 70% to 115% tolerance is to reduce production waste during the bygone era when tubes were widely used in electronics. Today high end tubes are luxury items for affluent audiophiles. We simply do not think 70% is still considered acceptable for the factory price these high end tubes fetch for.

2. We have years of experience with tube amps and will select the most suitable tubes for you.

Although we do not know ALL amps on the market, our decades of experience with tube amps have allowed us to know many potential pitfalls. We ask you to fill in your amp make and model when placing your order, then we select our known best suitable tubes for your setup. This cannot be done by vendors who simply entice internet shoppers with low prices and ‘pass on factory boxes’.

3. We DEFINE, SCREEN, TEST and Grade tubes for the right quality.

We DEFINE our OWN purchase parameters with the tube factory to control quality outright. (SORRY – these parameters are not published anywhere as they are trade inside information only.)

We SCREEN factory inventory outright by requesting factory to use the same test equipment as ours, on top of the industrial scale testers used on the tube factory production line.

We TEST all tubes we receive from factory ourselves, one by one, to confirm factory test results at our own facility.

We GRADE all tubes AFTER our own testing.

For those tubes meeting our Top 10% Best Grade parameters (after our own testing) are offered for premium price, matching to their top quality, to those customers who value quality over cheap price.

For those tubes NOT meeting our Top 10% Best Grade parameters, they are downgraded to Factory QC Pass grade and consequently sold for lower price (matching to their corresponding quality). Keep in mind that our downgraded ‘Factory QC Pass’ tubes were already screened outright from the factory inventory pool before shipping out of factory door, and inherently of higher specifications than the overall ‘Factory Pass’ tubes that are offered all over internet at cheap prices.

Among those downgraded by us to Factory QC Pass, inevitability small portion of tubes are considered ‘rejects’ by our standard, even though tube factory considers them ‘Factory QC Pass’ and shipped to us. These rejects will be returned to tube factory to claim factory warranty by us, and save our customers from the downfall experience.

In summary:

  • We offer top 10% Best Grade tubes at price matching to their quality.
  • We sell HIGH Quality. We do not just sell cheap prices for whatever quality, like many vendors on internet do.

We hope these reasons above will help you with confidence in purchasing with us.

Happy tube shopping.

Grant Fidelity

P.S. The above reasons apply to other ‘Top 10% Best Grade’ tubes such as Linlai Global Western Electric Replica WE845 and other 845 varieties etc.

Linlai Global E-845 vs. Psvane ACME 845: ‘almost immediately sense the superiority of the Elites’

Posted Posted in Purchase Guide, Reviews by Tube Model, - 845 all types

Received from customer James H. via email:

“When looking for a review of the Linlai Elite E-845, I could not find anyone who was able to compare it to the Psvane Acme 845, which is the tube’s nearest competitor….

I have the Line Magnetic 845 Premium which uses a pair of 845’s & 300B’s. I will say that the Linlai (Global) Elite E-845s have taken a very long time to sound good for me. It took about 75 hours for me to begin to like them. I do like them quite a bit now after about 100 hours.

I also have a pair of Psvane Acme 845s… which will be up for sale very soon. I did not really have to A/B the Acme’s with the Elite’s to almost immediately sense the superiority of the Elites. The Acme’s were veiled, cloudy, dark, reticent, and very much stuck in the speaker box compared to the Linlai Elite E-845s which have the opposite traits. The Linlai Elite E-845s are just in an altogether different league than the Psvane Acme 845s.

Treasure 6SN7SE Globe: ‘I got the chills from this thing’

Posted Posted in Reviews by Tube Model, - 6SN7 / CV181

Feedback received from customer Noah via email:

“Hey there, I just received a Treasure Globe  6SN7-SE

I dropped it in my (Schiit) LYR+ / BIFROST and I’ve been listening to it on my (Sennheiser) HD800S. This thing is mind blowing – thanks for selling such a great tube in Canada.
I got the chills from this thing. It completely evens out the tone of these headphones while still keeping a massive soundstage. I have been using them for every genre and it all sounds good, as long as it was mastered well.  I’m going to have to get more spares . . .  “

‘Treasure 6SN7-SE GF Special Edition’ – ‘better than ANY tubes I have ever used!’

Posted Posted in Reviews by Tube Model, - 6SN7 / CV181

Mark S. acquired a pair of Grant Fidelity special edition Treasure 6SN7SE top grade with us recently for his Moon Audio Dragon Inspire IHA-1 Tube Headphone Amp. Below is his feedback via email. We hope this will help other headphone amp owners when choosing upgrade 6SN7 tubes!

“Rachel,

Bless your heart! My order of the Globe 6SN7 tubes arrived in just 3 days! (seller note: Mark ordered our Express shipping upgrade for extra cost)

I realize that there is a break in period for the tubes, but they are already better than ANY tubes I have ever used! 

For the first time, my amp has ZERO noise with headphones! I can’t believe it. Also, I have never heard the sound so incredible as it sounds with these tubes!

Thank you so much for your great service and the best tubes I have ever heard!

Very best regards,

Mark”

Customer feedback on GF Premium Tubes:

Posted Posted in 6SN7 Tube Purchase Guide, Purchase Guide, - 300B all types, - 845 all types

Here is an email feedback we received from customer Thomas L about his personal experience of buying from Chinese vendors vs. Grant Fidelity:

“Hi Rachel,

  Just thought I’d give you a little feedback with my recent purchase.  

  Your tubes are expensive (adding in all the fees and shipping).  I think you would agree as well, although you may argue nothing is cheap with this Audiophile hobby, which I would agree as well. With my recent purchases, I think it was pushing around $2000 CAD.  This was for 5 845s, and two pairs of 300Bs.  Honestly, I had been looking at the GF tubes for a while now, never had the $$ or the guts to pull the trigger as the number of tubes that I need for my amps in total would put a dent in my bank account.  With the boxing day / black friday sales, I figured it would be a good time or timing to replace my existing OEM tubes.  So …. Here’s what I have learned.

  Prior to this purchase, I had been buying tubes online from China or locally from a friend.  But what did I get exactly?
  *  Noisy tubes.  

  *  Tubes that broke after a listening session.  

  *  Tubes that looked like they were shorting out (they were supposed to be new!!!!).

  Then I had to contact my friend or vendor in China to have the tube(s) replaced.  And on one occasion I had to pay duty for the replacement tube.  

  So, after I plugged the GF tubes in my amp(s), I had a moment where I was thinking, “this is what I get for paying a premium price.”  

  The tubes are quiet, like very quiet.  The difference between OEM vs the GF tube is obvious.  I used to think that my amps were noisy, but only after I plugged in the GF tubes, I realized a good amount of noise was actually from the tubes itself. 

  Balanced sound stage.  I am referring to the left and right channels.  With that comes a solid image.  You have vocals that comes directly to you.  I’m particularly picky when it comes to this as I hate to hear vocal lop-sided.

  Last but not least, sound quality.  Smooth, very Smooth but not losing both top and bottom end.

  Overall was it worth it?  The decision is leaning to a Yes.  With the tube and sound quality accounted for.  And most importantly, this is a case where I plugin, dial in and enjoy the music without having to worry too much about reliability (knock on wood, so far so good).  

  Lastly, great service.  Thanks again for the quality products and super fast shipping.

  (Now, I will have to save up again for the next tube upgrades).

6SN7SE with HeadFi: Inspire by Dennis Had IHA-1 Dragon Version – ‘The tubes are magnificent.’

Posted Posted in 6SN7 Tube Purchase Guide, Purchase Guide, Reviews by Tube Model, - 6SN7 / CV181

Feedback received via email from Kirk V. in USA:

“The tubes are magnificent. The change in musical quality is astonishing. This is the best investment I have made after spending thousands to improve the signal path. I cannot believe how much music I have missed until now. 
Kirk”

Linlai™ Global E-6SN7 on Feliks Euforia Headphone amp: from Germany

Posted Posted in 6SN7 Tube Purchase Guide, Purchase Guide, Reviews by Tube Model, - 6SN7 / CV181

We have just received the feedback below from Greg K from Germany! Greg owns a ‘Feliks Euforia headphone amplifier’ which came with Psvane CV181-TII as driver tubes.

Read about his first impression after swapping to [Linlai™ Global] E-6SN7 for 26hrs – it might help those who wish to know how the E-6SN7 compared to Psvane tubes: (note: Linlai tubes full burn-in will take approximately 100hrs)

“I have now burned in the tubes for a good 26 hours so far.And on the Feliks Euforia, where the Psvane CV181-TII were before, a lot has happened. I listened with the Audeze Lcd 2 C headphones which are quite neutral. And relabelled 6080 Sylvania power tubes which also arrived on Saturday.

Compared to the Linlai Global E-6SN7, the Psvane are quite neutral in sound. I noticed this immediately after the exchange. This is no longer the case with the Lin Lai, they play much warmer.

The bass has increased considerably where before they were bloodless in direct comparison to the Psvane CV181-TII. The good thing about the Linlai is that the mids and highs are relatively unchanged compared to the Psvane CV181-TII. I didn’t notice any loss there, they seem to have gained a bit of sparkle.

They are also more accurate, closer to the music and go a bit deeper in the highs and a bit longer in the low end. Detail resolution is also very good, I like it better than the Psvane tubes.

Vocals are a bit more distant and more central than with the Psvane, or less voice accentuated, which I personally find better.

All in all, they are definitely worth the money and improve the sound of the Feliks Euforia dramatically. Before I was always getting disturbed by something, but that has gone since the first hour since the Linlai have been in. I don’t regret buying them. Much more the Psvane that you can book at Feliks.

It makes the Feliks neutral but cold, with the Linlai it’s just the opposite.

That was my first impression and I know they still need a little time to burn in. But they are getting better by the hour. Linlai has done a really good job. It also shows that after such a short time they are already so open and show the direction they are going in.

I am enthusiastic about the tubes. And I wanted to tell you that much about how good they are in the first hour.

With Kind regards
Greg”

Can your 6SN7 replace my 6SN7GT, 6SN7GTA, 6SN7GTB?

Posted Posted in 6SN7 Tube Purchase Guide, Purchase Guide, - 6SN7 / CV181

We sometimes receive amp owners question about tube substitute related to 6SN7. Here is a short summary:

  1. GT stands for ‘Glass Tube’.
  2. GTA is an enhanced version of original GT version – to allow higher plate dissipation than the GT version.
  3. GTB is variant of GTA, with a heater warmer control to further enhance reliability when this tube was used in TVs.
  4. Very early 6SN7 tubes can handle max 300V. Today’s new production 6SN7 tubes can handle max 450V.
  5. In short, new production 6SN7 can replace your old 6SN7 without frying the tubes. But you should not use a NOS 6SN7 designed to handle 300V, into a modern circuit of 450V.
  6. All our listed 6SN7 tubes (no matter what suffix it has) can electronically replace 6SN7GT, 6SN7GTA, and 6SN7GTB.
  7. Do check dimension clearance to make sure the different glass bulb shape can fit into your amp space!

Happy tube rolling!

6SN7SE Globe Tube Tips – ‘You Raise Me Up’

Posted Posted in 6SN7 Tube Purchase Guide, Purchase Guide, - 6SN7 / CV181

Some amps have preamp 6SN7 tubes placed in a very tight real estate – i.e. two tubes are placed very closely to each other so the new high end 6SN7 with curved larger / wider glass enclosure cannot fit in side by side.

A customer from Europe recently told me his solution and I think it is worthwhile to share! That is – use a socket saver to raise one of the tubes up!

Just google ‘8 pin socket saver’ (not ‘socket adapter’ which may change pin layout connections) and make sure to purchase from a reputable audio parts vendor. Some lower quality socket saver can introduce current leakage to your circuit and cause unexpected noise issues.

Happy Listening!

6SN7SE Globe – ‘The SE blows them all out of the water’

Posted Posted in Reviews by Tube Model, - 6SN7 / CV181

Feedback received from Craig M. on GF Special Edition – Treasure 6SN7SE Globe:

“Rachel,
I got my SE’s today!  I must say … I have spent a LOT of money on boutique 6SN7 variants and I have never heard anything like this before!  I am running a DIY 6SN7 line stage that was designed by Jack Elliano of Electra-Print.  This is by far the best 6SN7 I have ever heard.  I have NOS Sylvania Bad Boys, TJ, Black Treasure, various JAN and there is NO comparison!  The SE blows them all out of the water…”