Stronger than time! This is the classic beauty in sound, admired by audiophiles for almost 60 years and will still be our top choice in the next 60 years. Particularly, the early '60s Siemens tone is considered the "reference sound" for serious classical listeners who need to upgrade the sound quality at phono stage. But before we get into the details of sound quality, let's be sure we all know this is not a regular Siemens tube, but the very rare BWB military issue. BWB (Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung): Within the German Ministry of Defense, the BWB or Federal Office of Defense Technology and Procurement is responsible for all the main defense projects whether national or international. So this rare gem represents the acme of German engineering in tube design, manufacturing and testing in the early 1960s.
Sound Characteristics
Wonderfully transparent and open with lightning quick speed and phenomenal high end extension, accurate bass like intended by the original recording, not at all overemphasized like some other premium tubes. The airy and transparent sound produced by these vintage Siemens tubes has been unrivaled even to this day. The magically extended yet never tizzy highs, coupled with the slightly focused upper mid-range, deliver a clear presentation of the entire frequency spectrum, completed by the precise and deep controlled bass. And the most defining sound characteristic of Siemens E82CC tubes is their ability to retrieve the deepest levels of detail in sound, and these hidden sonic layers can go a long way to revealing the subtle ambient clues that help complete building a truly 3D holographic presentation. While as quiet and analytical as the best Telefunken ECC802S tubes, Siemens E82CC's produce a warmer, smoother and more musical sound.
The "BWB" is not just a label but a proud statement of German military grade quality in low noise and clarity in sound. The richness of the music reproduced by these tubes surpass any other previous attempts of the other E82CC tubes Siemens had ever made. These are extremely low noise tubes, very neutral with pin-point tonal accuracy, providing an outstanding balanced and uncolored sonic tapestry that will put your mind in a whole new dimension.
Professional Sound Evaluation
The tube 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: Handcrafted Bottlehead Crack Headphone amplifier
- Output: Neumann NDH 20 Closed Back Studio 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.
Appearance & Cosmetic condition
Beside the world-class sound characteristics, we treasure this tube because of its excellent cosmetic condition. Nearly 100% of the paint and lettering are still clear on the 60-year old tube. The BWB print, falcon logo and the Munich date code etched in the glass is perfectly visible - D0 4# 3F (D0 = E82CC, # = Munich, 3 = 1963, F = June.)
Professional Tube Testing
Slightly below NOS, this tube tested Strong (90%+ nominal mutual conductance) on a Mercury 2000 tube tester with the following result (mutual conductance in uMhos): 3,000/2,800.
Good tubes start around 2000 and new tubes (incl. NOS/NIB) 3,000, and 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 would 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 the numbers the stronger.