What tube brand in what mic?

[Le Basseur]

For those of you who use tube mics,have you ever tested different kind of tubes (same type,different manufacturers)?
I'm not talking about the normal tube replacement after a few hundred or thousands working hours,but about a direct A/B comparison of different brands.
Also,regardless of the tube type you use,can you recall if a certain brand made your day regarding a specific application ?(something like "...this proved to be the best for vocals,the other one is good for acoustics",etc)
Thank you for your subjectivities,

 

[Le Basseur]

Bump

Well,...anyone?

 

[Marik]

For those of you who use tube mics,have you ever tested different kind of tubes

Yes.

Also,regardless of the tube type you use,can you recall if a certain brand made your day regarding a specific application ?

No.

 

[kidvybes]

tube upgrades?...

here's some stuff to chew on:

https://homerecording.com/bbs/archive/index.php/t-143493.html

http://www.recording.org/ftopic-23078-15.html

After experimenting with some (expensive) NOS vintage tubes in my mics, I can honestly say that the differences are very subtle...I found, like the article above, that the better Euro NOS tubes (Telefunken, Siemens, Mullard, etc) do their best to kinda smooth out the extreme upper and lower range of the mic's sound...eliminating some of the harshness in those areas...but it's not scientific...could just be the desire to hear an improvement after spending $50. for an old tube! (wishful thinking)...all in all, VERY SUBTLE DIFFERENCE (IMHO)

 

[sdelsolray]

These guys have forgotten more about tubes than most of us (me included) will ever know:

http://www.upscaleaudio.com/home.asp

There is quite a parallel between how tubes perform in mics and how they perform in audiophile and studo preamps.

 

[kidvybes]

Maybe, but the better deal is here...

This guy's the best vintage tube seller on Ebay (100% Positive feedback!)...check out his NOS Mullard 12at7/4024 for $13.99 (Mullards are OEM tubes in many of the highest price tube mics and rank right up there with Telefunken, Amperex and Siemans)...half of what others sell it for...I buy his stuff and it's top shelf for the price...

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQsassZbnbQ5ftubes


...and from my experience in seeking out the "Holy Grail" of vacuum tubes, I can also recommend Ken at:

http://www.tubeman.com/index.htm