When it comes to making vacuum tubes, Ray Tubes is committed to going above and beyond the usual. That's especially true of the RESERVE Collection. Our RESERVE tubes are designed from the ground up to deliver the best sound possible, and we spare no expense with higher-quality materials and our monocrystalline carbon Magic Coating.
Today, we're introducing a new optional component for our RESERVE 6SN7 tubes, intended to improve their performance in unfavorable conditions. Going forwards, all of our RESERVE 6SN7 tubes will come with a rubber damper designed to sit between the base of the tube and the socket. The purpose of this damper is to reduce microphonics in certain uncommon circumstances.
For more information about why we're making this change, read on.
What are microphonics?
Microphonics is the name given to a phenomenon in which an electronic device that isn't a microphone behaves like one by converting vibrations into unwanted electronic signals.
When the electronic device in question is a vacuum tube, this obviously causes problems. Your tube amp should be amplifying your music, not the ambient vibrations in your environment. Excessive microphonics are one of the biggest irritants to an enjoyable listening experience, which is why we devote a disproportionate amount of time and effort to ensuing our tubes are not prone to them. Reducing microphonics is one of our major goals when we sit down to design a product.
Why now?
The ways people listen to music are evolving. Microphonics aren't as big an issue for hi-fi amps in a dedicated listening room, because in those set-ups, the amp is typically isolated from outside vibrations. Headphone amps are a different matter. By their nature, they're a more portable device, and more and more we're seeing people use them at their desks or in other environments where it's not really feasible to isolate the amp.
In rare cases, we've heard from our customers that they experience minor microphonics while using this kind of setup. We're always looking for ways to get out ahead of concerns like this, which is why we conducted testing to determine the best way to address this phenomenon. The damper is our solution.
Will this increase the price of RESERVE 6SN7 tubes?
No.
We're constantly monitoring the performance of our tubes in a range of different environments and circumstances. When we identify a way to improve performance, we implement it. For example, in the recent past we've thoroughly updated our packaging design to address the needs of our users, and we've also improved the process for screen printing our logo and product name, making the text more vibrant, sharper, and more resistant to abrasion and temperature fluctuations. These changes incurred additional development and production costs, but in both cases, we opted to absorb the cost and hold firm with our pricing. We believe that making improvements like this is part and parcel of manufacturing vacuum tubes.
Why the RESERVE 6SN7?
We are including the rubber damper with the RESERVE 6SN7 for two reasons. First, the Ray Tubes RESERVE Collection is our flagship product line. Even though the number of people who noted issue was low, we strongly believe that our top-of-the-line tubes should meet the needs of all users, all the time, in every circumstance. Second, the 6SN7 is a larger preamp tube that's more prone to microphonics, and it's especially popular in headphone amps, where this phenomenon has been reported.
Will the damper be available to customers who have purchased RESERVE 6SN7 tubes in the past?
Yes. If you've bought Ray Tubes RESERVE 6SN7 tubes in the past and you're experiencing the microphonics issues described in this post, get in touch at help@raytubes.com.
