Rectification

All my other previous Shindo amps have been solid state rectified, and it was the tube rectification of this Cortese that was part of its appeal. I had a nice NOS Sylvania 5U4GB rectifier in my stash so thought I would see if I could hear any effect by swapping out the Philips/JAN one that comes as standard.

I’m not a fan of tube rolling really. Tube brand generally isn’t as important as the circuit design itself, and the transformers, and I trust the designer to pick the tubes they think are right for the job. This is especially the case with Shindo. I figure a rectifier isn’t a signal tube though, so I’m not messing with things too much.

I only got to listen to one side of an LP, a new LP at that that I am not familiar with yet so I can’t really say what I heard. I will try listen again this week and see what I find. I have heard different rectifiers change the presentation in other amps, so I am curious if it will be the case here.

Interestingly though, Sylvania apparently invented the 5U4GB tube back in 1954. This one has black plates and a halo getter.

Update: I couldn’t really hear any difference, either due to my cloth ears or there being no difference. Either way, back to the stock tube for me!