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Mullard
Mullard 12AU7 ECC82 Matched Pair - 10M Series - Blackburn 1961/62 - Strong
Mullard 12AU7 ECC82 Matched Pair - 10M Series - Blackburn 1961/62 - Strong
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$645.00 USD
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$645.00 USD
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Product Summary
No other tubes can deliver vocals like the British made Mullard's, and that's a fact. And no British made Mullard's can deliver vocals like the 10M Series...this is the end game! Born with gold pins (recall Telefunken ECC802S and Siemens E82CC - even the 3-mica version do NOT have gold pins), the 10M Series ECC82 tubes were specifically made for audiophiles by the special production unit at both Blackburn and Mitcham factories. These tubes went through rigorous testing & screening processes according to the highest standards of the industry. Minimum 10K hours of heater life, super rugged industrial build, section-to-section match and near zero noise are just the beginning. The 10M Series was Mullard's official answer to Telefunken's ECC802S and remains one the very top choices for serious audiophiles and sound professional. The only one problem with these tubes is they are elusively rare as they were produced in very limited quantity and only in select years of production. Exclusively presented here by Soundlumia is a perfect matched pair of 10M Series from the 1962 Blackburn production. Welcome to the concert hall of 10M Series!
Sound Characteristics
For those who feel the Mullard ECC82 tubes are less analytical than their German counterparts, the 10M Series proves that the best tube can be both analytical and musical. One can almost say this is a better version of ECC802S because you get the laser precision in detail retrieval of Telefunken tubes and the unmistakable British warmth in sound, which is NEVER found on Telefunken. Next, the holographic soundstage...another Telefunken "proprietary" feature is being seriously challenged here as well: 10M Series' presents a less curvy sound stage than ECC802S' without compromising the full 3D imaging. You hear everything right here like at a concert hall INSTANTLY and don't have to look for the harp sound in the corner (recall how many times you had to do this with Telefunken tubes?) Now there's only one last thing needed to treat the Telefunken "thinness and hollowness". How about some expansive and forward midrange? But isn't that what Mullard does the best? It only gets better on the 10M Series: elegant, smooth and fluid.
Any sound review on a Mullard tube without discussion of its "British warmth" would be a lousy one. So we dedicated a full paragraph to the comparison between the classic Mullard warmth and the 10M Series warmth. Recall how many times you feel the vocals on Mullard's get too warm it feels like heat right in your face? That is gone on 10M Series! The moment you turn on your music, the 10M warmth begins to release slowly (and of course surely) and gently through your ears and reaches your fingertips before you know it...and then it warms your heart.
10M Series = the ultimate audiophile tube.
Professional Sound Evaluation
The pair worked wonderfully and sounded terrific in our professional studio setup for monitoring.
- Input: Cambridge Audio CXC V2 dedicated CD transport + Schiit Audio Bifrost 2 Multibit DAC
- Amplification: Woo Audio WA7 Fireflies (3rd gen) Balanced Headphone Amplifier
- Output: Focal Clear MG Pro open-back headphones
Our full tube sound review was written 100% based on the actual listening experience while this pair of tubes were running in the system described above.
Professional Tube Testing
Both tubes tested strong and NOS (100%+ nominal mutual conductance) on a reliable recently calibrated Mercury 2000 tube tester with the following results (mutual conductance both in uMhos and in percentage of nominal):
Tube 1: 2,600/2,580 (87%/86%)
Tube 2: 2,550/2,600 (85%/87%)
Good tubes start at 2000 and new tubes (incl. NOS/NIB) 3,000 - 3,100, and the Mercury 2000's rated mutual conductance (nominal) for new tubes is 3,000. Test result can also be seen in the pictures. In case you wonder what all these numbers mean to your sound experience, it's actually quite straightforward: mutual conductance directly translates to a tube's ability to amplify sound, so the higher these numbers the stronger.
Appearance & cosmetic condition
Both tubes are in pristine cosmetic condition. Logos and lettering are well retained. The identical Mitcham date codes etched on glass are also perfectly visible on both tubes:
B2B4 (B = Blackburn, 2 = 1962, B = February, 4 = Week 4 of the production month)
B1K3 (B = Blackburn, 1 = 1961, K = November, 3 = Week 3 of the production month)
Packaging
This pair of tubes will be packaged in the new Mullard reproduction boxes.
