Description
Perfect matched pair of vintage Philips SQ 6189 12AU7WA audio tubes - Made in France - 1962 - Same date code - Very Rare Product Summary The beauty, the legend, the classic, the Special Quality(SQ) - this is the super tube from Philips high echelon that doesnt break your bank. Known for their superb musicality and ultra low noise, thanks to Philips proprietary SQ design, the SQs remain among audiophiles top choices of 12AU7 tubes for serious listening. And this pair is even more special for two reasons: 1) Made by Philips-owned Mazda factory (La Radiotechnique) in Suresnes, France (not in Holland) and therefore you get the distinct French flavor, a warmer and wider (and surely more romantic) sound with more vocal forwardness than the Heerlen production; 2) Also marked 12AU7WA in addition to 6189 (this is very important) etched in the glass, these tubes are 100% military 6189s, further confirmed by the special French military FRS date codes. Sound Characteristics Immediately appealing is the super smooth highs offered by these tubes with lots of open air. The overall tonality of SQ is warm, musical and euphonic. And this feature is even more pronounced on the French version with an unmistakable romantic flavor. The midrange displays some secondary octave nuances, which is very unique and can hardly be found even on the top-end German tubes. Similar to Telefunken tubes, the SQs can create infinite levels of harmonic depth and a liquid sonic texture without altering the musicality of the sound. The bass on these is the clear winner of the Philips tubes family: articulate, accurate, deep, textured, full-bodied and powerful. The sound stage is wide, deep and well structured. Vocal representation on the SQs is close to Mitcham and Blackburn Mullard tubes in terms of warmth, sweetness and texture, making them great alternatives to Mullards as the best vocals tube. But what truly shines on SQ tubes, especially the ones from the 1960s like this pair, is their magic in portraying piano music: creamy smooth, richly colored, realistic and intimate. For many audiophiles (incl. ourselves), theyre the go-to tube for piano sound. Listening to Claudio Arraus Beethoven Complete Piano Sonatas on these tubes should be on your bucket list if you happen to be into classical piano music, but even if you are not, these tubes superb interpretation of piano music from any genre will amaze you. The ultra low noise on SQs also sets them apart from most of the high-end tubes. They dont just compete with Telefunken tubes in low noise; theyre known for being a long-term leader in low noise. As a result, you get superb detail and clarity from these tubes as well. Professional Sound Evaluation The pair worked wonderfully and sounded terrific in our professional studio setup for monitoring. - Input: Cambridge Audio CXC V2 dedicated CD transport + Schiit Audio Bifrost 2 Multibit DAC - Amplification: Woo Audio WA7 Fireflies (3rd gen) Balanced Headphone Amplifier - Output: Focal Clear MG Pro open-back headphones Our full tube sound review was written 100% based on the actual listening experience while this pair of tubes were running in the system described above. Professional Tube Testing Both tubes tested Strong (90% -100% nominal mutual conductance) on a Mercury 2000 tube tester with the following result (mutual conductance in uMhos): Tube 1: 2,800/2,750Tube 2: 2,850/2,750 Good tubes start at 2,000 and new tubes (incl. NOS/NIB) 3,000, and the Mercury 2000s rated mutual conductance (nominal) for new tubes is 3,000. Test result can also be seen in the pictures. In case you wonder what all these numbers mean to your sound experience, its actually quite straightforward: mutual conductance directly translates to a tubes ability to amplify sound, so the higher the numbers the stronger. Appearance & cosmetic condition Besides the world-class sound characteristics, we still treasure this pair for its near pristine cosmetic condition given the tubes age - over 90% of the paint is still intact on both tubes, and the identical French military tube date codes etched in glass are perfectly visible: FRS 62252 (FRS = France, 62 = 1962) Packaging This pair of tubes will be packaged in the original Philips Miniwatt tube boxes w/ the 6189 Made in France print, secured by a hand-made paper ribbon (by courtesy of Soundlumia.) Shipping Policy - Ship worldwide! Flat-rate shipping within the US. - Same business day handling. Orders placed by 2:00PM US Pacific Time on weekdays are posted on the same day, otherwise the next business day. - Combined shipping available - request invoice for total before making payment or receive shipping credit after order ships. - Customers outside the US please pay extra attention: International shipping is through eBay International Shipping program by default. Its the least expensive option and customs declaration is automated but it may take longer than other carriers. If you prefer to use a different carrier please contact us before you buy so we can get you the correct shipping rates before you make payment. Return Policy - Please READ carefully First of all, returns are acceptable as long as you are reasonable. Soundlumia sets extremely high quality standard for the products we deliver. Tubes we sell are guaranteed to work because we run professional tests and sound evaluation before they are approved for listing AND before we ship them to customers. So the defective item case doesnt exist and please do not bother trying - this type of returns will NOT be accepted without proof that tubes do not work and we will open a dispute with eBay. Sound experience is a very subjective thing, and lets be real its not that easy to run into compatibility issues between amps and tubes (so that one wont fly, either.) Please contact us to work things out before submitting return requests claiming item is defective or item not as described. We would really appreciate your respect to the professional work we have done (sourcing, testing & matching tubes, evaluating tube sound, sharing our sound experience with you, packing and shipping) to make these wonderful vintage tubes available to you at reasonable prices. Secondly, if you are a tube roller looking to game the return system, Number One STOP. We have seen it all and we know what youre up to. No tricks here please. Abusive behaviors will be reported to eBay immediately and negative feedback will be left to your account - thats guaranteed. We have already reported several abusers and eBay has ruled in our favor the dispute cases. We are more determined than ever to continue working with eBay to help rid of these unprofessional, unjustified, unkind, unfair and unacceptable abuses that are detrimental to the eBay marketplace, the vintage tubes market and the audiophile community.
Live search