I can't remember what forum I got this from. but my thanks to Senior
Member 17630:



4060 Tube Changing Experiment
Chipotle
Senior Member
Member # 17630

posted 07-29-2002 11:02 PM
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I bought some NOS tubes and thought I'd see how they sounded in the
AT4060. The stock tube is the Sovtek 6922 and the two other tubes I
tried were an Amperex 6922 (US made) and a Siemens 6922. I kept one
mic with the Sovtek to compare to the 2nd with the new tubes. The
sources I tried were male vocals, acoustic guitar, and drums (one mono
mic around 3 feet in front).

On male vocals, I liked the Siemens best. It was full and rich with a
clear midrange, and nice articulate top. The Sovtek had a boxy
characteristic to the upper mids and a harsher top. The Amperex, when
solo'd, sounded close to the Sovtek in terms of tonal balance, but
seemed much more detailed. The differences were more apparent when the
vocals were placed in a mix; both new old stock tubes seemed to sit
better, while the Sovtek sounded boxy and harsher.

Acoustic guitar, both the NOS tubes beat the Sovtek in articulation as
well as being less congested in the mids. The Siemens seemed richer
and had the most girth. The Sovtek tended to project the body of the
notes, while the Amperex and Siemens did better at attaching the
transient/attack, if that makes any sense.

Drums: I just did the Sovtek and Siemens. Siemens got more of the bass
drum and had a nicer top. When put in the mix, the Sovtek didn't get
the bass drum much at all and sounded generally more clangy and
congested.

To summarize, the Sovtek is generally more congested in the mids and a
little shrill on the top and tends to not sit as well in a mix. The
Amperex would be good for those who don't want to deviate too much
from the standard 4060 tone but want a clearer sound. The Siemens
sounded best to me; very lush and when I was A/B'ing the three, I
always wanted to stop and listen to this one.

That's it for now!




(Brian) wrote in message om...
I just bought an AT 4060 used. I don't know how long the tube has
been in it but I am guessing that it is original. Can anyone tell me
what are the signs of a failing tube (low gain, hi end roll off,
etc...) Also, is there a tube out there I should look at that can
really make this mic better than the stock tube? Thanks.