My
friend has a Musical Fidelity X-Cans V3 headphone amplifier with an ECC88
valve ( perhaps 2 of these ?) and it has recently begun to display a
'powdery, tinkly' sound in response to any nearby mechanical vibration. I
assume this indicates the tube(s) have gone microphonic. The unit still
performs flawlessly. Can any readers suggest a particular brand for
replacement of these (don't know what the stock originals are.....unit is
still un-opened) which might have : a) better sonic qualities and b) also be
less susceptible to microphony ? Is it worth getting a pair matched
(assuming there are 2 within the unit), and what characteristics are
significant here ? It uses a variation on the circuit employed in the
TriVista SACD player....but has the twin triode valve instead.
Finally, we live in Australia...so if there are any recommended Australian
(or Asian) suppliers that would be particularly helpful...otherwise any that
you can recommend would help us out.
Thank you very much for your advice,
Ray Thomas