First NTK experience bitter-sweet. Advice needed

[storm-01]

I recently purchased two rode NTKs. One worked well and the other gave me pops, distortion, volume changes etc. and gave a weak output (both were same setup, gain etc.). Thinking it might be the tube, I swapped the tube from the good mic to the "bad" mic and it worked perfectly!

Okay, now that I narrowed the problem down to the tube, I will need to purchase a new one. I read on the DUC that the factory tube for the NTK is a Sovtek 6922, correct? My question is if I were to use another tube somewhat close to the same price (such as the JAN-Philips 6922 Low Noise tube), what kind of audible difference/s should I expect to hear? Even if I purchased another Sovtek, could the sound vary?

Both of the NTKs are a great matched pair and I would like to keep it that way. Should I stick with the Sovtek, or what? Is the tube mentioned above a good choice? I think this really sucks that I spent $400 on this mic and now I have to spend more money to get it fixed! I love these mics and rode in general, but it crapped out on me straight out of the box! I think rode should pay for the tube AND the shipping!
I'll get off of my soap box now, and I would really appreciate any advice on my situation. What kind of tubes are you guys using in your NTK mics?

Thank you,
Stormy

[basschair]

Have you contacted Rode about it? I get the impression from other NTK users on this site that they are pretty cool about this sort of thing. Try contacting them and see what happens...

[crs117]

This isnt hte first time i have heard this story. I am not doggin ntk, but i halfway wonder if its shipping. Tubes can be quite sensitive, and if during shipping the box gets dropped thrown or whatever the tube can be destroyed. My ntk was fine, but i really do wonder how easy it would be to bust the tube from one occurance of shock.

Christian

[Matt Zeiner]

Russian preamp tubes are notorius failure out of the box. Get the NOS American tubes whenever possible. That Phillips tube is mil spec, too. A superior substitute in every way.

[where02190]

If the mic is less than 1 yr old it is fully guaanteed (including the tube) by rode. They are excellent at making right.

Tubes are very fragile items, it is very likely, no matter how carefully it is packed, it was damaged during shipping.

[Plugs]

Just a little Rode past experience.

I'd bought the NTK from a friend and wasn't too impressed because of a low end hum I was getting. I contacted Rode (australia), they in turn contacted their distributor in Montreal, who contacted me. After talking to him, he was pretty sure it was the tube. He said, ship it off to him with the reciept and they'll take a look at it. Think I had the reciept? or the buddy I bought it off of? Yeah, right!

I called the Rep back and told him I didn't have the reciept and that I'd bought it used from a buddy, he said ship it off to him anyway and he'll take care of it.

I shipped it off, while heading away on holidays, by the time I got back, it was here waiting for me. It sounded great and the S/N ratio was impressive.

I contacted the Rep to find out the damages ($$$) for the new tube ... his reply was "No Charge"!!
When I came to, I realized they didn't even charge me return shipping!! The damn thing was used!!

All I can say is, when I get the ... "Hmmmm? I could use a new mic" feeling, I start with Rode (budget permitting, of course).

'nough ramblin', just like to give credit where credit is due.

My advice, contact Rode. If your not happy with their reply, then look for alternatives.

L8R,

Ter

[3JDamon]

Okay, now that I narrowed the problem down to the tube, I will need to purchase a new one. I read on the DUC that the factory tube for the NTK is a Sovtek 6922, correct? My question is if I were to use another tube somewhat close to the same price (such as the JAN-Philips 6922 Low Noise tube), what kind of audible difference/s should I expect to hear? Even if I purchased another Sovtek, could the sound vary?

**The first thing you should do when you get ANY TUBE MIC home is upgrade the tube.** I would call Sovteks "entry-level useful", meaning they're a step above chinese junk. For some descriptions of the difference between tube brands and the benefits of good tubes, check out the catalog at Watford Valves, though the best deals on nice vintage tubes are generally found on eBay.

I recommend RFT or Svetlana tubes if you're buying new, but it's really worth it to splurge on some vintage Telefunkens. You also don't need a 6922 specifically. 6922 is a "premium" 6DJ8, also known as an E88CC, where a 6DJ8 is also known as an ECC88, which is effectively interchangeable with 12AX7 derivatives, meaning there are dozens of tube types that you can use, and dozens of manufactures that make or have made them, and even different vintages offer different responses, so you can literally have a variety of sounds available to you just by swapping tubes in the same mic. Tube prices range from $5 to about $60 each, but prices don't necessarily reflect performance. Sounds like a real P.I.T.A., but it can be a lot of fun.

I'd start with Svetlana 6N1P's at $6 each and see how that works for you. Here's a page from a reseller:
http://www.amusicdirect.com/products...?sku=ASVET6N1P

[Lowfreq]

As a side note: Since you bought a matched pair of NTK's, considering getting a matched set of preamp tubes. Many tube makers and a few sellers will sell you a matched set.

[3JDamon]

Ah yes, of course, silly I didn't mention that. Unfortunately Svetlana doesn't match the 6N1P's, but their consistency is excellent, so just buying a pair will probably be very close, and you'd probably only have to buy 4 to find a match as close as any you'd get from any 3rd party that matches them. Any tube amp repair tech would be able to verify that they're matched, and it's best to wear them in before matching anyway, so I doubt a verified matched pair would cost less than 4 tubes. Any tube pair from the same run from a company as consistent as Svetlana would probably only vary in output level, and not in other factors.