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Here is the deal. I have gone to numerous web sites that sell tubes and I am now confussed as to what tubes are what. Some say one thing about one tube and another site says another, like "it is built like the telefunkin smooth plate, blah, blah, blah.............I have e-mailed these vendors with what tubes to buy and always get back NOS's suggestions and prices that are in the $500 to $800 range. Please, this is too much.
I need to find the best sounding, lowest noise and microphonics, new make tubes available. I have a VTL 5.5 preamp,Ver 2, which require this.
Once I find out what is out there then i can buy them, tested and matched.
Any takers?Alx
Follow Ups:
Those really are high prices, I have never heard of Telefunken costing US$500 for the pair, however to find 12AX7/ECC803S the prices have gone up rather high in the US$100.- for 1pc, if you can find real NOS which today seems difficult as most are USED.
For the ECC801S the price should be approx. US$65.- ea
Hope we could help you.
Nicolas
There are plenty of NOS tubes for 12AX7 and 12AT7 tubes that do not cost $500 a pair. I have never paid this kind of dough for NOS tubes. You can get plenty of good NOS tubes for less than $40 a pair!
Cut-Throat
Hello,the best current production 12A?7 tubes are IMHO, made by EI. They come pretty darn close to NOS tubes, and at a fraction of the price.
My experience is the Ei 12AT7 sounds very much like the 12AX7, smooth and open sounding. I have heard the regular and premium Gold 12AX7s, and to me they sound virtually identical. Haven't yet compared the regular 12AT7s to the gold version, but I would expect the same results. The Gold versions are supposedly selected for low noise, etc. I recommend either Triode Electronics or Jim McShane as sellers.
http://pages.prodigy.net/jimmcshane
http://store.yahoo.com/triodeel/tubes.html
Regards,
Kevin
Hello Alx.d,I know what you mean about NOS prices. I have always used NOS tubes that are 30 to 50 years old. A couple of months ago I started inquiring about new production tubes. I have tried the new Ei Elite 12AX7EG tubes and I really like the way they make my system sound. I have read that past Ei tubes are and can be microphonic in nature. But I like these Ei Elite's. I have not tried their 12AT7's yet. I have asked about them on this site. Also guys here like the JJ brand.
The Ei 12AX7EG gold pins have a smooth, balanced sound for my system from top to bottom. But not every system is the same.Hope this helps. Good luck.
The Ei tubes sound pretty good, amazing for the price. Also, the Svetlana 12AX7 tube is very good and priced right.Those NOS prices are insane. I just picked up some slightly used Mullard 12AX7's for $22 each and they sound wonderful. I also bought some NOS RCA 12UA7's for $25 each. Once you hear a Mullard, it's hard to enjoy new tubes.
FWIW, I am no tube guru. Therefore, I would rather buy the real thing slightly used than get ripped off on some NOS counterfeit deal.
So, where did you buy the Ei Elite 12AX7EG?
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